Transcript
Get in on the action
Today we’ll talk about what it means to “get in on the action.” To get in on the action means to be part of something exciting. We use this when we’re describing how someone is trying to participate, or was able to participate in something exciting.
Do you remember how you heard it earlier? Brazil has immunized only three percent of its population, but the residents of Serrana, in São Paulo state, will all get a COVID-19 vaccine as part of a scientific experiment . Lots of people from outside Serrana are trying to get in on the action by renting homes in town, hoping they’ll be eligible . Lots of people from outside want to participate! They want to be part of the excitement. There’s something good—there’s action going on—and people from other parts of Brazil want to get in on the action. They want to participate in this exciting thing.
We talked about “ghost kitchens” in a previous lesson. Ghost kitchens are large commercial spaces where restaurants can prepare meals for delivery only —there’s no dining room, no front door, only the kitchen, and they send all the food out for delivery. It started with small restaurants that couldn’t afford a traditional space; they decided to go delivery only. But more and more established restaurants are getting in on the action: White Castle, Chick-Fil-A, Outback Steakhouse, Nathan’s Hot Dogs, and others are all operating out of ghost kitchens. They’re getting in on the action. Now look, a ghost kitchen may not seem exciting to me and you. But it’s exciting to those companies because it lets them serve delivery customers in a new and innovative way. “Get in on the action” doesn’t have to be exciting to everyone—just to the people involved.
There’s a new app called Clubhouse. It’s a chat app, where users can create rooms and talk about whatever they like via voice chat. It can be either like a conference call or an interactive radio broadcast or a seminar. Everything is live and it’s not recorded, so you can be spontaneous without worrying that your words will be published and archived forever. Sound fun? If you want to get in on the action, you need an invitation from a Clubhouse user. If you want to be part of the excitement, if you want to participate, if you want to get in on the action, you need an invitation from an existing Clubhouse member. If you have a spare invitation, JR’s looking for one, by the way.
“Get in on the action” is an emotional trigger in English. It’s not surprising, then, that you would hear this in…commercials. Betting on sports is just now becoming legal in most of the United States, so there’s a frenzy of new apps and web sites that let you bet on sports games. Not only can you bet on a game before it starts, but you can place all kinds of bets even during the game as the game unfolds in real time . These apps show you all the ways that betting on sports can be fun. Then they tell you, they implore you, get in on the action by downloading the app today. Get in on the action: they’re telling you that if you download their sports betting app, you can be part of the great and exciting world of sports betting. I’m staying away from that—but that’s just me.
Quote of the Week
Here’s a fun quote for today—I had to pick one about the cold weather. This lesson is coming out in early March, but I’m recording it in late February and it’s brutal here. This has been a hard winter. So here’s the quote from George R. R. Martin, the creator of Game of Thrones. Here’s what he said: “Summer friends will melt way like summer snows, but winter friends are friends forever.”
That’s true! It’s hard to keep up a friendship in the winter. Anyone can be friends when the weather is nice—beach trips, ball games, drinks on the patio. But it takes hard work to keep up a friendship in the cold weather.
“Summer friends will melt way like summer snows, but winter friends are friends forever,” says George RR Martin.
See you next time!
Speaking of winter, the next episode will be about the historic snowfall this year in three places: Jerusalem, Madrid, and Texas. We’ll talk about the good, the bad, and—in the case of Texas—the ugly of unexpected snow. That’s coming up on Thursday.
I’m recording this on a Saturday and we just had one of our live calls for Plain English Plus+ members this morning. Those are a lot of fun because we get people from all over the world to join JR and me on a Zoom call and we talk about a recent lesson. A lot of members got in on the action this morning and we talked about the difficulty of being left-handed—that was a recent lesson. In fact, we had a couple of new members get in on the action for the first time; they joined a live call for the first time, which was great. So if you’d like to get in on the action, you can join me, JR, and other Plain English listeners from around the world by joining us in Plain English Plus+ and visiting PlainEnglish.com/Plus. We have calls twice a month—and who knows, we might expand that schedule if they get more popular. PlainEnglish.com/Plus .
¿Hablas español?
The transcript of this lesson is available with interactive translations into Spanish. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .
How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
你说中国话？
The transcript of this lesson is available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
Parlez-vous français?
The transcript of this lesson is available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
Can I see a sample?
Yes, please visit PlainEnglish.com/sample to see a sample episode with the Spanish translations.
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
Você fala português?
The transcript of this lesson is available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
Can I see a sample?
Yes, please visit PlainEnglish.com/sample to see a sample episode with the Spanish translations.
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
日本語は話せますか？
The transcript of this lesson is available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
Can I see a sample?
Yes, please visit PlainEnglish.com/sample to see a sample episode with the Spanish translations.
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
Parli italiano?
The transcript of this lesson is available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
Can I see a sample?
Yes, please visit PlainEnglish.com/sample to see a sample episode with the Spanish translations.
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
Sprechen Sie Deutsch?
The transcript of this lesson is available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
Can I see a sample?
Yes, please visit PlainEnglish.com/sample to see a sample episode with the Spanish translations.
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
Sen Türkçe konuşmayı biliyor musun?
The transcripts of Plain English lessons are available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation. Turkish translations are available starting at Lesson 278.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
Can I see a sample?
Yes, please visit PlainEnglish.com/sample to see a sample episode with the Spanish translations.
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
Mówisz po polsku?
The transcript of Plain English lessons are available with interactive translations into your language. In each lesson transcript, we select about one hundred difficult words, phrases , and expressions for translation. Polish translations are available starting at Lesson 278.
How is this different than simply using a translation engine?
Translation engines are powerful tools for communicating in the modern world . However, they often miss the context and can either mislead you or leave you confused . Our human translators are here to make sure that you’re getting not only the correct definition, but also the full context .How can I use the translations in my studies?
Most members use the translations as they are listening to the lesson and reading along . When you come across a word you don’t understand, you don’t have to press pause to discover the meaning . You can simply hover your mouse over the highlighted word . This lets you learn the definition of the word without having to press pause on the audio.
Do the translations work on mobile?
Yes! Instead of hovering over a highlighted word, just tap on it .
Can I see a sample?
Yes, please visit PlainEnglish.com/sample to see a sample episode with the Spanish translations.
How can I access the translations?
Translations are included in two memberships: Plain English Plus+ and Starter. Choose a plan and get started today!
Audio
The fast version of this expression is available for subscribers of Plain English Plus+.