Beth Welcome to The English We Speak. I’m Beth.
Feifei And I’m Feifei.
Beth We have an expression for a behaviour or habit someone has that you find strange or unusual but doesn’t put you off or make you not like the person. The expression is ‘beige flag’.
Feifei Now, beige is a pale yellow or grey colour. But ‘beige flag’? Beth, can you tell us a bit more?
Beth Well, a beige flag is neutral. It’s different to a red flag, which generally means danger, and a green flag, which is a positive thing, in the speaker’s opinion. Now, I recently went on a date with a guy and when we left he said ‘see you later alligator’. And I found that a bit of a beige flag.
Feifei Yeah. Isn’t that something kids say? It doesn’t make you not want to see him again, but I understand why you found it a bit weird.
Beth Also, he said he doesn’t like any vegetables. It’s not an immediate concern, but it does make me pause and question how healthy he is!
Feifei I know exactly what you mean. It’s not something that makes you think he’s a bad or dangerous person, but it’s not really something you like about him.
Beth Indeed. They’re beige flags. OK, let’s hear some more examples.
Examples Ironing bedsheets is a beige flag for me. Why do it when you’re just going to sleep in them?
I really like him, but he wants me to start going to the gym with him. That’s a beige flag, right?
Martin always drinks cold coffee, even in the winter. It’s a beige flag.
Feifei You’re listening to The English We Speak from BBC Learning English, and we are learning the expression ‘beige flag’, which is a way of describing a habit you find strange, but doesn’t put you off a person completely.
Beth Now, beige flags are very common in dating, but you can also use it to describe a colleague for example.
Feifei Yes. You sing to yourself all day in the office. It’s a bit annoying…
Beth Sorry. I suppose that is a bit of a beige flag. I’m going on another date tonight so I’ll try not to sing when I’m with him!
Feifei Good luck. Bye!
Beth Bye!