Jiaying Hello and welcome to The English We Speak. I’m Jiaying…
Neil … and I’m Neil. Hi, Jiaying. How are you? I’ve been looking for you! I’ve got something to show you…
Jiaying Why are you talking to an empty chair? I’m here! And why are you wearing sunglasses? It’s quite dark in here already. No wonder you couldn’t see me.
Neil Oh! There you are. Check out my new vegan leather jacket, isn’t it cool?
Jiaying It is, but why are you trying to look so cool? Are you trying to be a cool cat?
Neil** Cool cat**? What are you talking about? There isn’t a picture of a cat on my jacket.
Jiaying No, Neil – I said you’re trying to be a cool cat. We use this expression to describe a person who is exceptionally fashionable and trendy. It is also used to describe someone who is funny, charming, and quite often relaxed. It’s thought to originate from the jazz scene.
Neil Ahh that makes sense. That describes me perfectly! I’m a very cool cat! I never get stressed out and always look so trendy!
Jiaying OK. Well, we can talk more about how cool you think you are after these examples.
Examples Jethro is such a cool cat! He always dresses in the latest fashion.
Yuqing is so awesome to work with. She’s funny and never gets stressed out. She’s one cool cat!
I met Tano at a jazz music performance! He plays the saxophone and he’s such a cool cat.
Jiaying You’re listening to The English We Speak from BBC Learning English, and we’re talking about the expression ‘cool cat’. We use it to say that someone is very stylish, trendy or relaxed – and it’s associated with the jazz scene.
Neil Now I know I’m a cool cat, I was thinking what type of cat I would be. Maybe a big cat, like a lion or tiger.
Jiaying Well, do you know that this year is the Year of the Tiger?
Neil Really? Well, I hope that everyone has an amazing Year of the Tiger!
Jiaying Thanks. But, Neil, why are you wearing a fake leather jacket inside the building. Surely, you should wear that outside.
Neil The heating isn’t working, so I wore a cool jacket to keep warm. I’d rather be a cool cat than a cold person!
Jiaying Haha – that makes total sense. Well, I hope you get warm soon. Bye, Neil!
Neil Bye!