Learn English meaning of 'get on each other's nerves'

Intro

1. Learn Vocabulary - Learn some new vocabulary before you start the lesson.

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• roommate
• by accident
• take turns
• silly

• get on each other's nerves
• avoid
• chores
• split up

• vacuum
• tension

2. Read and Prepare - Read the introduction and prepare to hear the audio.

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Do you have brothers or sisters? When you were younger, you probably had a lot of fights. It’s easy to get on each other’s nerves when you live in the same house, or worse, sleep in the same bedroom! It’s difficult to spend time with people who take your toys, borrow your clothes without asking first, or avoid the chores that your parents have split up between you.

The same kind of tension can happen between adult roommates. Your roommate may not take your things without asking, but he or she will probably wake you up, eat your food by accident, or not always remember to take turns cleaning your home.

Marni thinks that Sara and Kellie should make a plan for who will do the housework. Will they go for it? Read on in today’s English lesson about sharing responsibilities.

3. Watch - Watch the video without reading the dialog.

Dialog

1. Listen and Read - Listen to the audio and read the dialog at the same time.

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2. Study - Read the dialog again to see how the vocab words are used.

Sara_R

Marni

Kellie

Sara_R:  Thank you so much for helping, Marni.

Marni:  Oh, no problem. So, have you guys decided how you’re going to split up the chores?

Kellie:  Split them up?

Marni:  You want to avoid one person doing more work than the other. It’s the easiest way for people to get on each other’s nerves.

Sara_R:  That won’t happen. We’re perfect for each other.

Marni:  I thought the same thing about my first roommate, but she wanted the house cleaner than I did. She was cleaning all the time, and that started to create tension.

Kellie:  What do you think we should do?

Sara_R:  We could make a list of everything that needs to be done.

Marni:  That’s a good idea. Clean the bathroom. Clean the kitchen. Take out the garbage. That sort of thing.

Kellie:  That seems a little silly. Can’t we just remember what we have to do?

Sara_R:  Yes, but maybe a list would help in the beginning. We could take turns doing different chores or agree to do the ones we like.

Kellie:  I love vacuuming.

Marni:  There you go. Some people can live together with no problems, but most people work through it together.

Kellie:  We should probably talk about our schedules, too. We don’t want to come home after a long day at school or work and discover that the other person has friends over.

Sara_R:  I would never do that to you.

Kellie:  Me neither. But it could happen by accident.

Marni:  I’m sure you’ll figure it out. It’s normal to get on each other’s nerves every once in a while, but you do seem like you’re going to get along.

Sara_R:  Best roommates ever.

Marni:  Oh, boy.

 

Grammar Point

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Quizzes

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Lesson MP3

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