This mini episode teaches you the very useful expression “to have a thing for.”
Episode 245 of the Everybody ESL podcast is a mini episode that teaches you the very useful phrase “to have a thing for.” What does it mean? And how do you use it? Send your questions about English and your suggestions for future episodes to EverybodyESL@gmail.com! (And let me know if you’d like to record the introduction to a future episode.)
Intro
“Hi, everyone. This is Alalu Borom Gawane, from Senegal, West Africa. I hope you enjoy Everybody ESL.”
Welcome to episode 245 of Everybody ESL, the podcast for everybody who wants to improve their English, practice their English, or just learn more English. My name is Ben, and I have a mini episode for you today, where I am going to teach you about one English topic. You can subscribe to the Everybody ESL podcast at Apple podcasts, on the Stitcher app, and wherever you find your podcasts. If you like Everybody ESL, leave it a good review so other people can find out about it too. And if you have any questions, comments, or suggestions for me, please send an email to everybodyESL@gmail.com. Okay! Let’s get on with this mini episode.
The episode
In this episode, I am going to teach you a very common and very useful phrase. And that phrase is “to have a thing for.” To have a thing for.
That’s have: h-a-v-e, a thing: t-h-i-n-g, for: f-o-r. To have a thing for. What does it mean if we say that somebody has a thing for something?
In this phrase, a thing means something specific. It’s kind of strange because a thing can mean just about anything. But in this phrase, “to have a thing for,” a thing is something specific. It means a special attraction toward something or a special feeling of fondness or a special liking. If you "have a thing for" something, that means you really like it. You have a special attraction to it or a special affection for it, or you like it a lot. You can have “a thing for” a person or for a thing.
Let me give you a couple of examples of sentences that include this phrase, “to have a thing for.”
“I think my friend has a thing for that new student.” I think my friend has a thing for that new student. This means, I think my friend likes that new student. I think my friend is attracted to that new student. I think my friend has a special fondness for that new student. He has special feelings for that new student. That’s what it means when I say, “I think my friend has a thing for that new student.”
Here’s another example:
“She seems very shy and serious, but she has a thing for horror movies.” She seems very shy and serious, but she has a thing for horror movies. This means she seems very shy and serious. But she really likes horror movies, or she has a special fondness for horror movies. Horror movies are her favorite. She really likes horror movies.
When we say that somebody has a thing for something or somebody, we mean that somebody especially likes something or somebody. Somebody has a special fondness or attraction to something or somebody.
And that is “to have a thing for”—a very common and useful expression that I think you should know.
Outro
We have reached the end of episode 245 of Everybody ESL. Remember: if you have any questions about English, or if you have comments or suggestions about the podcast, or if you would like to record an introduction that I can use at the beginning of future episodes—the same way Alalu recorded the introduction you heard at the beginning of this episode—send an email to EverybodyESL@gmail.com. I’ll be back soon with another episode, and until then, keep going, keep practicing, and keep learning. Goodbye! I’ll see you soon.