BBC Learning English
The English We Speak
12th April 2011
Two ticks
William:
Hello and welcome to The English We Speak, I'm William Kremer.
Wang Fei:
And I'm Wang Fei. So how are you today?
William:
Two ticksâ€Åš
Wang Fei:
What?
William:
Give me two shakes, Wang Fei, I just need toâ€Åš
Wang Fei:
Eh? What's that?
William:
I'll be with you in a jiffyâ€Åš
Wang Fei:
In a jiffy. What's a jiffy? William, what are you talking about?
William:
There, done now. I just needed to send a text.
Wang Fei:
But what were all those ticks and jiffys?
William:
Ahh, and shakes?
Wang Fei:
Yes.
William:
Well they're all expressions of time, Wang Fei. So they're ways of saying 'just a moment', or 'just a minute'.
Wang Fei:
I see.
Example
A: Can you come and help me lift this sofa?
B: Yeah, I'll be with you in two ticks.
William:
Two ticks. In English, we say clocks make this noise: tick tock, tick tock. So two ticks is just like saying two seconds.
Example
A: I said, can you come and help me here? It's too heavy for me.
B: Yes, yes. I'll be there in two shakes.
The English We Speak
© British Broadcasting Corporation 2011
Page 1 of 2
bbclearningenglish.com
Wang Fei:
Hmm. Two shakes?
William:
Yeah, the full phrase here is 'two shakes of a lamb's tail', but we shorten this to 'two shakes'.
Wang Fei:
Oh I see. Two shakes of a lamb's tail.. English can be a very weird language!
William:
Yes, it can be! I guess that this is because lambs' tails shake very fast, so two shakes is a short time! And finally...
Example
A: Look Neil, this sofa isn't going to lift itself. Get a move on!
B: I know, I know. I said I'll be with you in a jiffy.
Wang Fei:
In a jiffy. So in a jiffy also means 'in a short space of time'. But what's a jiffy?
William:
Well, you know what, Wang Fei? Nobody is completely sure of the origin of this word. But it has been in use for over 200 years!
Wang Fei:
200 years! That's quite a long time. More than a jiffy!
William:
Yes, and that's several billion shakes of a lamb's tail.
Wang Fei:
Yes and all those ticks of a clock! Bye for now.
William:
Bye bye.
Example
A: Are you going to help me with sofa or not?!
B: What sofa? You need help with a sofa?
The English We Speak
© British Broadcasting Corporation 2011
Page 2 of 2
bbclearningenglish.com
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