In this mini episode, you will learn the expression “neck of the woods.”
Episode 473 of the Everybody ESL podcast is a mini episode that teaches you the expression “neck of the woods.” Send your questions about English and your comments and suggestions to EverybodyESL@gmail.com. (And let me know if you’d like to record the introduction to a future episode.)
Intro
“Hi! This is Nanxi, from China. And you are listening to Everybody ESL.”
Welcome to episode 473 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 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 strange expression. The expression is “neck of the woods.” Neck of the woods.
That’s n-e-c-k, of the, w-o-o-d-s. Neck of the woods.
What does “neck of the woods” mean? First, let’s look at the word woods.
What does woods mean? Woods is another word for forest. Woods means a forest or anyplace with a lot of trees. So, somebody could say, “I like hiking in the forest” or “I like hiking in the woods.” They mean the same thing.
That’s what woods means in “neck of the woods.” What about neck? What does neck mean in this expression? It’s not completely clear where this expression comes from.
Let me just tell you what this expression means. “Neck of the woods” means a place or a region or maybe even a neighborhood where someone lives. “Neck of the woods” describes the place where someone lives.
You will often hear people use “neck of the woods” with “in this.” In this neck of the woods. And that means in this area, in this region.
And you will also often hear people use “neck of the woods” with a possessive pronoun: in my neck of the woods. In his neck of the woods. In her neck of the woods. In our neck of the woods.
We use this to describe the place or the region where someone lives.
Here’s an example of a situation where someone might use the phrase “neck of the woods.”
Imagine two old friends talking on the phone. One of these old friends is inviting the other one to visit him. And he says, “Why don’t you come visit us in our neck of the woods?” Why don’t you come visit us in our neck of the woods? In other words, “Why don’t you come visit us in the place where we live?” Or just “Why don’t you come here to visit us?”
Now, imagine that the person does go to visit his friend. After being there for a few days, he might say something like, “It has been a long time since I have been in your neck of the woods. So much has changed since I was last here.” It has been a long time since I visited your neck of the woods.
“Your neck of the woods” just means the place or the region where you live. The place where you live is your neck of the woods. The place where I live is my neck of the woods. When we think about this expression, it can seem a little bit strange. But it is an ordinary expression that people really do use.
That is “neck of the woods,” an interesting expression that I think you should know.
Outro
This is the end of episode 473 of Everybody ESL. Remember: If you have any questions about English, or if you have comments for me, or if you would like to record an introduction that I can play at the beginning of future episodes—the same way Nanxi recorded the introduction you heard at the beginning of this episode—send an email to EverybodyESL@gmail.com. I’ll be back soon with a new episode. And until then, keep going, keep practicing, and keep learning. I’ll see you soon. Goodbye!