Neil Hello and welcome to The English We Speak. I’m Neil and …
Feifei Hi everyone. I’m Feifei and I’ve just …err… well…
Neil Feifei is here with me… Feifei, what’s going on?
Feifei Yes, and today we are here, with you, dear learner of the wonderful English language…
Neil What are you looking for?
Feifei The script, Neil. I misplaced it somewhere…
Neil Just wing it!
Feifei Wing it? Wing, like a bird? Yes, the air is fresh and I flap my wings…
Neil What are you doing? What are you doing?
Feifei You told me to pretend I was a bird. Or to tell the story of a bird or… I know lots of bird jokes.
Neil No, that’s not it. In English ’to wing’ something means to improvise. This informal expression is thought to come from the theatre and it refers to performances given by actors who had to learn their lines quickly while waiting in the wings.
Feifei Ah! The wings are the space on each side of the stage, where actors wait before coming onto the stage. Sometimes someone gives them their lines from there as support.
Neil That’s right. Let’s hear how this expression is used:
Examples Mary spent all weekend partying instead of studying. When I asked her why she wasn’t concerned about the exam, she told me she’d just wing it.
The minister is a great orator. He’s never had a speech ready, he just wings it and people love it.
Neil So a theatrical expression for you. Now Feifei, do you know lots of jokes about birds? Tell me one.
Feifei Why did the little bird get in trouble at school?
Neil Mmmm… no idea…
Feifei Because he was caught tweeting during the test.
Neil Yes, very funny…
Both Bye.