Let up

To "let up" is to decrease in intensity.

Today's story: Hong Kong protests
Explore more: Lesson #181
Keywords:

Be your best self in English

Move confidently through the English-speaking world

Listen

  • Learning speed
  • Full speed

Learn

TranscriptQuizYour turn
Simple TranscriptEspañol中文FrançaisPortuguês日本語ItalianoDeutschTürkçePolski

Let up

Today’s phrasal verb is to “let up.” What does it mean that something is “not letting up?” The protests in Hong Kong are showing no signs of letting up. They are showing no signs of reducing in intensity. We use “let up” to describe something becoming less intense. In Hong Kong, there are frequent, intense protests, sometimes a million people at a time out protesting. Ten thousand entered the arrivals hall of the airport. Public transit is disrupted. The protests are intense. Does it sound like they’re becoming less intense as the days go by? No, it does not: they are not showing signs of letting up. Many people don’t think the protests will let up until there is some kind of investigation into police treatment of protesters.

One of the most common ways to use “let up” is to describe the intensity of rain or snow. Let’s say you’re sitting at work and it’s almost time to go home. You have about a ten-minute walk to the train station. You look outside and it’s raining really hard. You might want to wait and see if the rain lets up a little bit before you go outside. Nobody wants to outside in the middle of an intense rainstorm. Maybe if you wait a few minutes, the rain will let up and you can get to your bus or train without getting too wet.

“Let up” in this case doesn’t necessarily mean stop—it could mean stop—but it could also mean, just be less strong, less intense. You don’t need it to be perfectly dry to go outside, but it would be nice if the rain lets up a little so you don’t get too too wet.

Criticism is another thing that can let up, if it’s really intense. Do you remember our episode on Huawei?

Related: Huawei cut off from Google and other suppliers after landing on US trade blacklist

The American government’s criticism of Huawei has let up a little bit since that episode came out. That’s not to say that the US has given its blessing to Huawei to produce all the most sensitive 5G equipment. But the criticism is not quite as intense as it was a few months ago; it’s starting to let up, though it hasn’t stopped entirely.

Is the heat wave in Europe finally letting up a little? It is here in Chicago. We had a really hot June and early July, but so far August has been very nice. The intense heat has finally let up; it has become less intense.

JR’s song of the week

It’s Thursday, so JR has a song of the week for us. The song is “I Say A Little Prayer” by Aretha Franklin. If you’ve been with us for a while, you might remember Episode 79 where we talked about the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin. Aretha’s version of this song came out in 1968. It’s a very good example of rhythm & blues, or R&B, music from that time period. It was featured in “My Best Friend’s Wedding,” which is where JR remembers it from. Some good Chicago scenes in that movie, too. “I Say A Little Prayer,” by Aretha Franklin is JR’s song of the week. If you would like to nominate a song for a future episode, you can e-mail [email protected].


That’s all for today. Remember, if you use the translations on our web site, you’ll want to be on our email list so we can keep you up to date on the upcoming changes to the web site. Nothing to worry about, but if you like those, you will really want to be on the email list. You can do that by visiting PlainEnglish.com/mail. That’s all for today: have a great rest of your Thursday, a great weekend, and we’ll be back together on Monday.

Use realistic expressions like a native speaker

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

We speak your language

Learn English words faster with instant, built-in translations of key words into your language

Starter feature

Test your knowledge

Take a 4-question quiz to make sure you understand today’s Expression

Plus+ feature

Write a sentence with this Expression

Get personal, human feedback on the examples that you write. Build the confidence to use this Expression in the real world

Story: Hong Kong protests