Try on
Today’s expression is a phrasal verb: “to try on.” We almost always use this phrasal verb when we’re talking about testing a piece of clothing to see how it fits. I hate trying on clothes. The only thing I hate more than trying on clothes is returning them—so I begrudgingly try on clothes in the store. One characteristic of a lot of direct-to-consumer brands is that they don’t have a lot of stores. Warby Parker, Bonobos, brands like that—they have a few stores in the biggest cities, but most people don’t live near a store. So most people have to order these things online. But they’re very personal; you just never know from the measurements the way a pair of pants is going to fit. So it’s common for these brands to send you multiple sizes and let you try them on at home.
In fact, if you’re shopping for just one pair of glasses, Warby Parker will send you a pack of five. You try them on at home—look at yourself in the mirror, see how they fit—and then return them. Warby Parker will take the one you choose and fit your lenses in them and send it back. Most people would not buy mail order glasses without being able to try them on—that’s why mail order didn’t work for so many things for so long.
Have you heard of the brand Zappos? They’re not a direct to consumer company, but they sell shoes online. And they give you free shipping—and free return shipping. So you can order as many sizes as you like, try them on at home, and return the ones that don’t fit: and it’s all free.
If you’re in a traditional store and you’re holding a shirt or pair of pants up against you, the clerk might come by and ask you, “Would you like to try that on?” Would you like to go to the fitting room to see how that fits on you?
You typically use “try on” when you’re trying to judge how well something fits. But you can also use it to see if something looks good. There are times when you see an outfit and it looks great on the shelf, or on a mannequin. But when I try it on, it just doesn’t look right on me. Maybe it’s a great outfit, but I just can’t pull it off; it doesn’t look great on me. It’s better to try it on in the store than get home and discover it doesn’t look as great on me as it did on that perfect mannequin body.
JR’s song of the week
Today’s song of the week is “Tupelo Honey” by Van Morrison. I chose it because as I wrote this, I was in North Carolina and there’s a restaurant called Tupelo Honey, which reminded me of this song. It’s a blues-y song that’s about the singer’s domestic happiness that he experiences after marrying his wife. In an episode of “Friends,” Ross says it’s the most romantic song ever. It’s a good one—“Tupelo Honey” by Van Morrison.
That���s all for today. I’d love to know if you have brands like this in your country. A few of the brands I mentioned are international. But let me know in the comments section at PlainEnglish.com/237. We will be back with the next episode of Plain English on Monday. See you then!
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Use realistic expressions like a native speaker
