The End of a Conversation (2)

• How long should a conversation last?
• When do you end a conversation?

Maybe you just met someone in a social situation. You can say, "It was nice to meet you. Maybe we can talk again sometime." If you really hit it off with the other person, you can exchange contact information.

When you start a conversation, have an idea of how long you should talk. For example, maybe you meet someone while they're doing errands. You know they will want to get back to them soon.

If you sit next to someone on the bus or plan, don't talk for the entire trip. You or the other person may want some quiet time.

Another strategy to end a conversation is to make it easy for the other person to leave. Say, "Well, I'm sure you have a lot to do today."

Use these ideas to end a conversation, or be aware that others may use them. Then you'll know it's time to end the conversation and get on with your day.


Info Cloud

One way to help ease the awkwardness or sadness of saying goodbye is to inject a little humor into the situation.

Right, if you are with close friends instead of saying the standard, “I have to leave now, try the more humorous, “I’m going to make like a tree and leave”, don’t get it? Let’s break it down.

Okay, first to make like means to behave in the manner of, so to make like a tree means to behave like a tree.

So when you say this, you’re leading your friends to believe you will somehow imitate a tree that in itself isn’t absurd but funny thought.

Yeah, so just how will you imitate a tree? You will leave, but wait a second, trees can’t leave, they don’t move.

No, but they can produce leaves and there in lies a humor. In the punch line you’ve created a pun by playing with two different meanings of the word leave.

These guys of goodbyes are clever humorous and ungrammatical all at the same time. But that’s what makes them so fun. Okay everyone, I think it’s time for me to make like an egg and beat it.

英文有一個特別, 那就是它可以採用 pun (n.雙關語) 來製造出許多有趣的句子,
如果你覺得要跟某人道別, 感覺很尷尬, 你可以用這句話來化解這種尷尬和不自然的感覺,
I'm going to make like a tree and leave.
字面上是說我要扮成一顆樹然後離開
奇怪? 樹跟離開有什麼關係呀?
因為樹上有很多樹葉, leave在這裡是一個pun 雙關語

還有一個也是很冷的句子
Make like an egg and beat it.
做一個雞蛋然後 beat it,
beat it指的是走開,
beat it 在烹飪指的是打蛋,
這句話在這裡是指滾蛋的意思

Language Lab
hit it off 與某人相處的來
to become friends; to get along well
- Sandra and Mandy didn't hit it off at the beginning, but now they're best friends.
- Nina doesn't hit it off with her boyfriends's buddies.

errand n. 短程的差事
/ˈerənd/
a short journey that you take to do or get something
- Chelsea's boss kept sending her on one errand after another yesterday.
- I have to run some errands before we meet.
run an errand for someone 替某人辦事
- Lydia had her secretary run errands for her this morning.

aware adj. 意識到的, 明白的
/əˈweɚ/
knowing that something (such as a situation, condition, or problem) exists
- Are you aware that our boss hasn't shown up for almost a week?
- David wasn't aware of the risks of investing all his money in one project.

get on with  [phrasal verb]
get on with something
to continue doing (something)
- We have no time to chat. We need to get on with our meeting.
- I got on with my work after finishing the phone conversation.
- Helen hopes she can get on her life as soon as possible after the surgery.

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