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The English We Speak.

We Speak.

From BBC Learning English.

Hello and welcome to The English We speak. My name is Rob.

And hello my name is Helen. Hold on Helen, hold on. We can't hear you properly. I think your microphone's playing up.

Sorry so I didn't quite catch that. Let me just push this button. Oh there

hello now you said the microphone was playing up? That's right it wasn't working properly. If something isn't working as it should be

we sometimes say it's playing up. Up, not down? No playing down is a different

expression that means something totally different.

Okay, so as the picture on my TV at home is flickering, I can say my TV is playing up?

Exactly. Let's hear about some other things that are playing up. Exactly. Let's hear about some other things that are playing up.

I don't think I'll be able to give you a lift to work today. My car's been playing up.

Ugh, my phone keeps playing up. My phone keeps playing up. Every time I dial a number, it just switches itself off.

That sounds like my phone. So if something isn't doing what it should do, then it's

misbehaving? Well you could say that. It's just like people, when they misbehave,

we can say they're playing up, like this.

Sorry, but I'm going to be late.

The children have been playing up, and I've still got so much to do.

BBC Learning English. and I've still got so much to do.

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