Kick: This Is an Idea Worth Kicking Around

Now, the VOA Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.

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From birth to death, the word kick has been given an important part in expressing human experience. The proud and happy mother feels the first signs of life kicking inside her womb. And that same life -- many years later -- comes to its end in a widely-used expression, to kick the bucket, meaning to die.

The expression to kick the bucket is almost two hundred years old. One belief is that it started when an English stableman committed suicide by hanging himself while standing on a pail, or bucket. He put a rope around his neck and tied it to a beam in the ceiling, and then kicked the bucket away from under him.

After a while, to die in any way was called kicking the bucket.

Another old expression that comes from England is to kick over the traces, meaning to resist the commands of one's parents, or to oppose or reject authority. Traces were the chains that held a horse or mule to a wagon or plow. Sometimes, an animal rebelled and kicked over the traces.

The word kick sometimes is used to describe a complaint or some kind of dissatisfaction. Workers, for example, kick about long hours and low pay.

There are times when workers are forced to kick back some of their wages to their employers as part of their job. This kickback is illegal. So is another kind of kickback: a secret payment made by a supplier to an official who buys supplies for a government or company.

Kick around is a phrase that is heard often in American English. A person who is kicked around is someone who is treated badly. Usually, he is not really being kicked by somebody's foot. He is just not being treated with the respect that all of us want.

A person who has kicked around for most of his life is someone who has spent his life moving from place to place. In this case, kicking around means moving often from one place to another.

Kick around has a third meaning when you use it with the word idea. When you kick around an idea, you are giving that idea some thought.

There is no physical action when you kick a person upstairs, although the pain can be as strong. You kick a person upstairs by removing him from an important job and giving him a job that sounds more important. . . But really is not.

Still another meaning of the word kick is to free oneself of a bad habit, such as smoking cigarettes. Health campaigns urge smokers to kick the habit.

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This VOA Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, was written by Marilyn Rice Christiano. Maurice Joyce was the narrator. I'm Shirley Griffith.

Rocket Scientist: You Do Not Have to Be Extremely Intelligent to Understand This

Rocket scientists can have problems just like everyone else.

Hello. I'm Phil Murray with WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, a program in Special English.

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"You do not need to be a rocket scientist." Americans hear these words often. People say them in schools, offices and factories. Broadcasters on radio and television use them.

This is how you might hear the words used.

Workers in an office are afraid to try to use their new computer system. Their employer tells them not to be foolish. "You do not need to be a rocket scientist to learn this," he says.

Or, high school students cannot seem to understand something their teacher is explaining. "Come on," she says. You do not need to be a rocket scientist to understand this."

Or, a company that makes soap is trying to sell its product on television. "You do not need to be a rocket scientist to see that our soap cleans better," the company says.

These words send a strong message. They say that you do not need to be extremely intelligent to understand something.

How did the expression begin?

No one seems to know for sure. But an official of the American space agency, NASA, says the expression just grew. It grew, he says, because rocket scientists probably are the most intelligent people around.

Not everyone would agree.

Some people might be considered more intelligent than rocket scientists. For example, a person who speaks and reads fifteen languages, or a medical doctor who operates on the brain.

Still, many people would agree that there is something special about scientists who build rockets. Maybe it has to do with the mystery of space travel.

Moving pictures from before World War Two showed a man named Buck Rogers landing on the planet Mars. He was a hero who could defeat any enemy from outer space.

The rocket scientist is a different kind of hero. He or she makes space travel possible.

Rocket scientists, however, can have problems just like everyone else.

A Washington rocket scientist tells about a launch that was postponed many, many times. Finally, everything seemed right. Mechanical failures had been repaired. The weather was good.

The scientists had planned that part of the rocket would fall into the ocean after the launch. All ships and boats within many kilometers of the danger area had been warned. But in the last few seconds a small boat entered the area. Once again, the launch was postponed.

When the work goes well, most rocket scientists enjoy their jobs. One scientist said, "As a child I loved to build rockets. Now I am grown. I still love to build rockets. And now I get paid for it."

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This program, Words and Their Stores, was written by Jeri Watson. I'm Phil Murray.

Hang: Don't Get Excited, Just Hang Loose

Expressions that will have you hanging on every word.

Now, the Special English program, Words and Their Stories.

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Hang is a simple word. But there are many meanings for hang. Especially when it is used with other words. Two often-heard expressions are to hang tight and to hang loose.

When a friend says to hang tight, he is advising you to wait a little longer, not to give up. He might say, for example, "Hang tight. Keep studying. You can still pass the course."

But if that same friend tells you to hang loose, he is telling you to take it easy, not to get excited. He could say, "Hang loose. You probably passed the English test."

Hang around is an expression with several meanings. Usually, it means to spend your time doing nothing. You may need time to just hang around if you have been working too hard. Hang around also can mean spending time with friends. You hang around with your friends, for example, because you share a common interest in sports.

Hanging out is similar to hanging around. You may hang out with the same group of friends and always do things together.

A similar-sounding expression, however, has a very different meaning. The expression is let it all hang out. Well, when you let it all hang out, you are being completely open and honest. You do not keep your opinions hidden, even if they may cause you trouble.

Sometimes, a person may suffer from a hang-up. Well, a hang-up is an emotional difficulty that causes a problem for a person. You may know someone, for example, whose hang-up is shyness. They have a problem talking with people they do not know well.

A hangover can be a very painful condition. A hangover is the headache, upset stomach and other disorders that result from drinking too much alcohol.

Another common expression is to get the hang of something. It means to understand how a device works or how to do a job. An office worker might say that she cannot get the hang of using a computer. But after a few days, she may tell you that she finally got the hang of it.

One of the early heroes of the American republic, Benjamin Franklin, gave a warning to the other signers of the Declaration of Independence. The warning contained two different meanings of the word hang.

"We must all hang together," Franklin said, "or surely, we shall all hang separately."

The other signers took Fanklin's advice. They hung together, remained united. As a result, the American colonies won their independence. And none of the signers of the declaration was hanged as a revolutionary by the king of England.

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This VOA Special English program, Words and Their Stories, was written by Marilyn Christiano. Maurice Joyce was the narrator. I'm Shirley Griffith.

Heart to Heart: Let's Get to the Heart of the Matter

Take heart, the English language has many heartfelt expressions.

Now, the VOA Special English program, Words and Their Stories.

Each week, this program explains the many meanings of English expressions. Today's expressions include a very important word - "heart." We will try to get to the heart of the matter to better understand the most important thing about words and their stories. So take heart. Have no fear about learning new expressions. Besides, popular English words can be fun. There is no need for a heavy heart. Such feelings of sadness would only break my heart, or make me feel unhappy and hopeless.

Now, let us suppose you and I were speaking freely about something private. We would be having a heart to heart discussion. I might speak from the bottom of my heart, or say things honestly and truthfully. I might even open up my heart to you and tell a secret. I would speak with all my heart, or with great feeling.

When a person shares her feelings freely and openly like this, you might say she wears her heart on her sleeve, or on her clothing. Her emotions are not protected.

If we had an honest discussion, both of us would know that the other person's heart is in the right place. For example, I would know that you are a kind-hearted and well-meaning person. And, if you are a very good person, I would even say that you have a heart of gold. However, you might have a change of heart based on what I tell you. Our discussion might cause you to change the way you feel about something.

But, let us suppose you get angry over what I tell you. Or worse, you feel no sympathy or understanding for me or my situation. If this happens, I might think that you have a heart of stone. And, if you say something to make me frightened or worried, my heart might stand still or skip a beat.

Yet, even though you may be angry, I would know that at heart, you are a kind person. In reality, you do care. And any argument between us would not cause me to lose heart or feel a sense of loss.

My heart goes out to anyone who loses a friend over an argument. It really is a sad situation, and I feel sympathy for the people involved.

I promise that what I have told you today is true - cross my heart.

I really wanted to play some music at the end of this feature. In fact, I had my heart set on it. So here it is, a song called "Don't Go Breaking my Heart" by Elton John.

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This VOA Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES, was written by Jill Moss. I'm Faith Lapidus.

Colors: I'm Feeling Very Blue Today

Many American expressions are based on colors.

Now, the VOA Special English program, WORDS AND THEIR STORIES.

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Every people has its own way of saying things, its own special expressions. Many everyday American expressions are based on colors.

Red is a hot color. Americans often use it to express heat. They may say they are red hot about something unfair. When they are red hot they are very angry about something. The small hot tasting peppers found in many Mexican foods are called red hots for their color and their fiery taste. Fast loud music is popular with many people. They may say the music is red hot, especially the kind called Dixieland jazz.

Pink is a lighter kind of red. People sometimes say they are in the pink when they are in good health. The expression was first used in America at the beginning of the twentieth century. It probably comes from the fact that many babies are born with a nice pink color that shows that they are in good health.

Blue is a cool color. The traditional blues music in the United States is the opposite of red hot music. Blues is slow, sad and soulful. Duke Ellington and his orchestra recorded a famous song - Mood Indigo - about the deep blue color, indigo. In the words of the song: "You ain't been blue till you've had that Mood Indigo." Someone who is blue is very sad.

The color green is natural for trees and grass. But it is an unnatural color for humans. A person who has a sick feeling stomach may say she feels a little green. A passenger on a boat who is feeling very sick from high waves may look very green.

Sometimes a person may be upset because he does not have something as nice as a friend has, like a fast new car. That person may say he is green with envy. Some people are green with envy because a friend has more dollars or greenbacks. Dollars are called greenbacks because that is the color of the back side of the paper money.

The color black is used often in expressions. People describe a day in which everything goes wrong as a black day. The date of a major tragedy is remembered as a black day. A blacklist is illegal now. But at one time, some businesses refused to employ people who were on a blacklist for belonging to unpopular organizations.

In some cases, colors describe a situation. A brown out is an expression for a reduction in electric power. Brown outs happen when there is too much demand for electricity. The electric system is unable to offer all the power needed in an area. Black outs were common during World War Two. Officials would order all lights in a city turned off to make it difficult for enemy planes to find a target in the dark of night.

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I'm Warren Scheer. Listen again next week for another Words and Their Stories program in Special English on the Voice of America.