Hello and welcome to a new edition of Ethan’s English Cafe.com’s Fantastic Phrase. Today we keep moving on up the body to the Shoulders where we will look at four idioms having to do with the shoulders. The four we will look at today are to have the Weight of the world on your shoulders, to have a chip on your shoulder, to give a cold shoulder and last but not least, to rub shoulders.

Have you ever had one of those days where everybody needs your help and is asking you to do something for them? At the end of the day you feel tired and helpless like there isn’t anything you can do to fix the problems? That’s what it feels like to have the weight of the world on your shoulders. If you have too much responsibility and you feel like everything is relying on you, you can say “I feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders!”

The world would be pretty heavy but what’s the big deal about having a chip on your shoulder? To have a chip on your shoulder means you are angry about something that has happened in the past, it can be something someone did to you or it could just be that you were born too short so you are always angry and trying to show people how big you are. Those with a chip on their should are quick to anger and often resort to violence or intimidation. If someone always gets angry easily and fights with people and your friend asks “What’s with that guy?” You can reply “Him? Oh, nothing, he’s just got a chip on his shoulder.”

If someone always has a chip on their shoulder, it might be better to give them the cold shoulder. To give someone the cold shoulder means to not be friendly to them and ignore them. If you want to talk to your friend but they are always saying they are busy and ignoring you, you can ask “Hey, why are you giving me the cold shoulder lately?”

If your friend gives you the cold shoulder a good solution is to go out and rub shoulders with others to find a new friend. To rub shoulders means to talk to other people and interact with them in a social setting. If you go out to a party with lots of famous people you can say to your friend “Last night I was out at a party where I rubbed shoulders with celebrities!”

So if you have too many responsibilities and feel like you have the weight of the world on your shoulders, try not to get a chip on your shoulder about all the hard work you are doing. If you do get a chip on your shoulder, your friends might start giving you the cold shoulder and then you’ll have to go out and rub shoulders with strangers to find some new friends.

Four idioms of the shoulders for you to learn, hope this Fantastic Phrase has been informative and you’ve enjoyed the talk. For everyone here at Ethan’s English Cafe.com this is Ethan Strauss saying thanks for listening and see you next time!