蜜芽传媒

Hi Catherine.
i am excited that my last answers are correct.
the first answer :
1 - ( like a tomato ) you mean that his face gets the red colour like a tomato
2 - (the sky is like a big grey blanket ) you mean that the sky be covered by the clouds,the clouds be like the blanket form .
the second answer :
1 - i have answered today's homework like i drink water.
2 - i am afraid that your next homework for us won't be like a dismantling of the maize .
number one is a slang expression in Arabic, it expresses how the thing i mention is very easy, i know it doesn't exist in English.and the number 2 i created it by my brainchild.
Thank you very much for helping us.
best wishes from Kuwait
Abdallah

correction for the second answer number 2 :
2 - i am afraid that your next homework to us will be like a dismantling of the maize.

Dear Catherine,
thank you again for the post and thanks Olga for provide us with this interesting text.
Regarding your questions
1- "... ends up with a face like a tomato" - which means that the person got so much sun without protection that she/he got a red skin due to mild sunburn.
2- "the sky is like a big grey blanket..." - which means that the sky is completely cloudy and you can not see the blue.

Second task:
1- I wish to speak (English) like a parrot.( this is a Brazilian expression that means that a person speak a lot and fast)
2- I have just seen the the moon. It is a full moon like a huge light yellow cheese.

thank you again
regards from Brazil
Evandro

Hello Catherine! My name is Adielson and I am Brazilian. I hope you are very well! So, I found 2 similes in your blog 鈥渓ike a tomato鈥� and 鈥渋s a big grey blanket鈥�. Well, you have used the first expression to saying how much Londoner鈥檚 face stay red during the summer and the second expression to saying how much the sky stay dark during winter time, and because of this you can鈥檛 see the light of the sun.
Well, here in Brazil we make use of many expressions as these similes that you showed for us. For example: 鈥渟oft water in hard stone so much beat until that bore!鈥� than is the same thing to saying that of so much we to insist we go to getting it that we want, or still 鈥淚 am Brazilian and don鈥檛 desist never!鈥� that mean the same thing. I hope you like of my similes phrases. I will try to finding more phrases here and then I will send for you.
That鈥檚 all I have to say at the moment!

Hugs and best wishes!

Adielson

Dear Catherine
This is Cybele from China, nice to meet you. it's my first time to come here, you're so kind and nice, i love your article very much, it helped me very much.
my English is poor, but after i'll come to here to learn English everyday.

my first answer:
...ends up with a face like a tomato
the sky is like a big grey blanket
a couple of tweaks

Thank you
Best wishes
Cybele

I think tow following sentences are the answer

Ends up with a face like a tomato!
The sky is like a big grey blanket


I heard "like an Adam's child" often in my childhood from my parents or teachers and it means like a good boy or girl, for example "Play like an Adam's child", "Walk like an Adam's child"

Hi Catherine,
Here it's my task:

1. "...ends up with a face like a tomato"- it means someone got the red colour like a tomato because he spent too much time sunbathing.

2."the sky is like a big grey blanket covering the whole city"- you meant that the sky is completely cloudy.

Dear Catherine, some people say that physically I am like my sister, but this is not completely true because we are not twins and there are many differences, for instance, she is taller than me and she loves Mathematics.

Best wishes,
Tadassa.

Hello Catherine,
here in the Czech republic, we have currently the sky like a big grey blanket too, and I don't like it. I prefer sunny weather, the blue sky with only small little clouds like a sheep. But when the Sun shines too much, I also have my face like a tomato soon, because I have very fair type of a skin - almost as pale as a sheet.
Have a nice day,
Tereza

Dear Catherine!

It's Sunday evening and it's time for today's homework.
I spotted two similes in your blog.

1. with a face like a tomato
My explanation: If you have a face like a tomato your facial color is turned red, for example caused by embarrassment. It's a fact that (ripe) tomatoes are red as well. In that way this simile works.

2. the sky is like a big grey blanket
My explanation: The November is the most rainy and cloudy month of the year. Often the whole sky is covered with clouds and you can't see a single sun-ray. Well, on a cold November day for me there's nothing better than reading a fascinating book. Often I snuggle myself up in a blanket so that I wouldn't feel cold and maybe you would not see me. Therefore, a blankets purpose is to cover other things. And there's the sense in this simile.

However, in Germany "similes" are so called "Metaphern".
My favorite English similes are the two following ones.

- It's like a drop in the ocean.
= a thing is too unimportant or too inconsiderable to change or influence something else

- It's raining cats and dogs.
= it is raining heavily

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Marcel

1st part:
a face like a tomato: it happens when we stay too much time under the sun in summer or also in winter, but at the mountain, and we doesn't use a protection for our skin ad it becames red (and also hot)

the sky is like a big grey blanket covering the whole city: When there isn't the sun for many days and the sky is of a totally equal color: gray.

2nd part:
If Olga use "like a cabbage" to describe a dress made of some layers of clothing on top of another we, in Italy , describe the same situation with "dress like a onion ". But we refer this paralellism to the spring dress when the temperature raise up a lot from morning to noon. In this occasion You take away one or more of the clothes You dress (like the onion's layer and remaining at least with a t-shirt :)) to don't suffer for the hot noon temperature.
Thank You, another time, teacher Catherine for You suggestion and also for this enjoyable homeworks.

Marco.

Super comments everyone... onions, cabbages, tomatoes... we have a vegetable theme here :-))

Check out this funny video from The Teacher to learn some more vegetable idioms:

/worldservice/learningenglish/language/theteacher/2009/03/090303_teacher_food_vegetables.shtml

Catherine :-)

Hello Catherine,

I hope you're doing well and had a relaxing weekend.

How great to see you teaching, teaching in this wonderful blog. I know you're an expert in grammar. I still have got some vivid memories about your explanations of How To series back in 2007.

I just don't know how my English would be without this fantastic, great website of the 蜜芽传媒 LE. As always, your good job is very much appreciated.

And putting on my student's hat, here is the homework: 1)Having been visiting this wonderful site since 2007 my English isn't as good as it should be. 2) Unfortunately, Somalia, which is where I am from is still as terrible as we all hear on the 蜜芽传媒 Radio, TV. 3) My nephew, Hassan is as good as gold. 4) I will be with you guys as soon as possible. 5) It's as good as it gets.

Wish you the best of luck, Catherine,

Abdi

Catherine, thank you very much for your link! I love idioms:)I'll do my home work on my main blog.See you soon!!

Hi there,

It's Abdisamad again here. Just wanted to correct about Catherine's grammar explanations were on Grammar Challenge series, not on How to series.

Best wishes,

Abdi

Catherine,I just wanted to mention, that you have magical voice:) thank you and William for a funny way of studying English with Grammar Challenge. give my regards to William and all your colleagues. You all are really nice, thanks!

Hello dear Catherine,

I like using similies both in spoken as well as written language. Here are the two similies I've spotted in this blog:

1- 'red like a tomato': Which means, if we spend too much time under the blazing then the skin turns red which makes it look like a tomato.

2-'the sky is like a big grey blanket': This means here that the sky is so covered with clouds that it prevents the sunlight to come.

A simile I often use to tease my sister is 'you smell like a fish'.

I have always been saying this and will say it again that 蜜芽传媒 LE has best teachers.

Naheed