Slang and Expressions from United States

The land of the free and the home of slang that takes over the world. From coast to coast, American English churns out new words faster than Hollywood makes sequels. Valley girls, hip-hop heads, Southern drawlers and Brooklyn hustlers all throw into the same melting pot of language.

Grill

"To grill someone or to be grilled by someone means basically to be interrogated or questioned a lot. So for instance, I was at the police station for hours and they were just grilling me non-stop."

Kill me now

"Kill Me Now is used to say, I do not want to do this or this sucks. And it's basically saying like, I'd rather die than do this right now. And a good example would be, let's say you are a teenager and you're stuck on a road trip with your two parents and they start grilling you and asking you a bunch of questions, personal ones at that. You would say, oh, my God, just kill me now. Right"

Break a leg

"Break a leg is an alternative to saying good luck or do great out there. And a good example would just be, let's say your friend is about to perform in a ballet recital and go on stage. Ironically, you would say break a leg to wish her luck."

Over my dead body

"Over my dead body is used to basically say, absolutely not. I would die before I would let that happen. And for instance, you would hear it if you walk in as a teenager and say, I have a date with this guy next week. Your dad might say, over my dead body you do."

Killin' it

"Killing it is another way to say that you are nailing something, that you are just doing it perfectly and no one could do it better. So for instance, an example would be an inner thought you might have while you're doing really well at a job interview. Oh my God, I'm going to get this job. I am killing it right now."