Learn English with FRIENDS TV SHOW! Season 1 Episode 2

Michael Idioms, Slang 21 Comments


If you like watching Friends to learn English, you’re going to love these lessons! Today, let’s look at four phrases from Friends Season 1 Episode 2 Scene 3, The One With The Sonogram at the End. The phrases are:

  • Be through with
  • That would be
  • See…
  • Ball up

In this scene, while Chandler, Joey, and Phoebe are watching TV in Monica’s room, Monica is cleaning up her room very hard because her parents are going to visit her.

Joey has a glass in his hand. Monica asks him, “Are you through with that?”

To be through with [something] means, to be finished using or doing something.

  • I am through with working these late hours. I’m quitting my job.
  • When you are through with the newspaper, please put it in the recycle bin.

To be through with [person] means, to want to end your relationship with that person.

  • Jane is angry with Joe. I think she is through with him.
  • Rachel was through with Barry, so she didn’t marry him.

Monica is cleaning the house and sees a small ball of paper. She asks, “Whose little ball of paper is this?” Chandler says, “Oh, uh, that would be mine.”

[something] would be means [something] is. We use this pattern to emphasize the answer, often when we are upset or defensive when someone asks us a question.

  • Jane: Do you want to date my friend Jenny?
  • Joe: That would be no.
  • Bob: Should I tell Cathy I want to break up with her?
  • Donna: That would be not good.

Chandler continues speaking saying, “See, I wrote a note to myself, and then I realized I didn’t need it, so I balled it up and…now I wish I was dead.

See is used as a conversational topic marker. See is used in a conversation when the speaker wants to emphasize that the listener should pay careful attention to what is said after see.

  • Later in this episode, Barry says to Rachel, “See, about a month ago, I wanted to hurt you.”
  • See, I think we should move our vacation plans to next year.

Ball up is a phrasal verb and means to put something or oneself in the shape of a ball.

  • Chandler balled up a piece of paper.
  • I balled up the aluminum foil that came with this sandwich.
  • My cat balled herself up and went to sleep on the sofa.

If you know anyone who might be interested in this English language point, why not help them out! Just share this lesson with them. Thanks for studying today!




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Comments

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Comments 21

  1. Thanks a lot for this lesson. I love Friends and I´ve started learning English only because of them.

    Answering your question, my favorite episode is “The One Where They All Turn Thirty”.

    I´m looking forward to the next lesson. 🙂

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  4. ‘That would be not good’ should be: ‘That would not be good.’ Do you have the actual video of this scene? Is this the first lesson using ‘Friends’ or are there any others?

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      Chaya,
      Due to copyright regs, I can’t provide the video. More lessons are coming.

      The phrase “That would be”is a fixed phrase when used in this context, so even though it is not grammatically correct, we would say, “That would be not good”

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  9. Thanks Michael. I’ve been following this blog for a couple of weeks and you’re doing really superb job, and this topic is fantastic. I’m looking forward to see more. Can we use ball up only in that sense or is there any other meaning? Thanks in advance.

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  10. Hello Michael,

    This is Amr from Egypt. This is my first time follow your blog and I’d like to thank you for sharing this great video podcast. Keep on posting them as possible as.

    Thanks in advance,

    Amr.

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