Feifei Hello, welcome to The English We Speak, with me, Feifei.
Rob And me, Rob. Now Feifei, would you call yourself hard-nosed?
Feifei Oh here we go again – you’re trying to insult me. Can we leave my nose out of the conversation please?
Rob I was starting to compliment you.
Feifei Go on… why is having a hard nose a compliment?
Rob Not having a hard nose but being hard-nosed describes someone who is practical…
Feifei OK.
Rob …someone who is determined and tough-minded. That’s you, isn’t it?
Feifei Hmmm maybe. Well, yes I suppose that could describe me.
Rob I thought so. Let’s hear some more examples of this word ‘hard-nosed’….
Examples She’s a hard-nosed reporter - she got the scoop that none of the other TV channels managed to get.
When my son was ill I asked my boss for time off but he’s so hard-nosed he said ’no’!
Our company is in financial trouble, we need a hard-nosed business person to come in and save us from closing.
Feifei This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English and we’re learning about the word ‘hard-nosed’, which describes someone who is practical, determined and tough-minded. But hold on, Rob…
Rob Yes?
Feifei I’ve been researching this word and understand that being hard-nosed also describes someone who is stubborn, unforgiving and insensitive! Erm, Rob, can we talk about this please?
Rob I was trying to be nice!
Feifei I don’t care. I will not forgive you.
Rob What about if I called you soft-nosed?
Feifei No. From now on I’m only going to present with Neil. Now, I’ve got a pile of work to do so I’m off to write some scripts.
Rob There you go – hard-nosed – practical, determined, stubborn and unforgiving.
Feifei Goodbye!
Rob What did I say?