Catch Word #289 – Apples to oranges

Culips Everyday English Podcast

Culips English Podcast

Courses, Education, Language Learning, Self-improvement

4.8 • 968 Ratings

🗓️ 31 October 2025

⏱️ 24 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

In this Catch Word episode, Andrew and Indiana teach you two very common and useful English expressions for making comparisons: “apples to oranges” and “night and day.” These idioms help you describe situations where things are so different that it’s not fair or even possible to compare them. You’ll hear realistic examples, like comparing homemade food to the gorgeous dishes shared by influencers, or an old, outdated phone to a brand new one.

What you’ll learn with this episode:

How to use “apples to oranges” when two things are too different to compare
How to use “night and day” to describe a major, positive change
The difference in meaning and usage between the two expressions
Real-life examples from conversations about jobs, health, technology, and daily life

This episode is perfect for:

Intermediate English learners who want to use idiomatic expressions to talk about comparisons
Learners trying to sound more fluent and confident in real conversations, at work, school, or in social situations

The Best Way to Learn with This Episode:

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hello, everybody, and welcome back to Catchword, the Culep's series where we teach you idioms,
0:06.1	phrasal verbs, and expressions that will help your English sound more natural and more fluent.
0:12.9	Joining me today to help me teach this lesson is my co-host, Indiana.
0:17.4	Hey, Indiana, how's it going?
0:19.4	I'm good, Andrew.
0:20.7	My arm is a little bit sore because I just got my
0:24.4	flu shot for the year. So not totally feeling the best, but I would say I'm in a good mood
0:31.7	despite that. How are you doing, Andrew? I'm doing very well, Indiana, and thanks for being a trooper and joining me for this lesson today,
0:41.8	even though you have a little bit of a sore arm.
0:45.4	And guys, maybe that's a cool expression that we can teach you right off the start of this episode
0:49.7	to be a trooper.
0:51.7	Indiana, what does that mean if you're a trooper?
0:54.8	Yeah, so you're a trooper. You're such a trooper. Indiana, what does that mean if you're a trooper? Yeah, so you're a trooper. You're such a trooper. Thanks for being a trooper. You might say
1:00.2	those things when you're trying to praise somebody who has been working on something or going
1:05.7	through something that's unpleasant, but they're still doing it. They're still pulling it off.
1:10.9	They don't quit.
1:12.2	They don't give up.
1:13.3	They just keep moving.
1:14.8	Keep going forward.
1:16.0	You're a trooper.
1:17.5	Very good.
1:18.2	So, guys, there's a fun expression, right, from the start of this episode.
	...

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