Expression: To Keep Someone On Their Toes

译文:保持某人警惕不安

American English Podcast

2026-08-13

21 分钟
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单集简介 ...

The other day, I was staring at my list of common Irregular Verbs, trying to think of a lesson I could create with 10 of them. Immediately, I saw some potential! Swing -> Swung, Broadcast -> Broadcast, Sleep -> Slept.  Somehow the clump of words I selected led me to one of the most bizarre stories I’ve ever heard about U.S. culture and history: Dance Marathons of the 1930s and 1940s. Imagine people dancing for days on end, even sleeping while dancing, for the chance to win some cash. It’s a crazy story, and from the discovery of this event, this two-part episode was born.  Don’t miss part 2! It’s coming next week. In part one, you’ll learn how to use the common expression “to keep someone on their toes,” you’ll hear a joke, and you’ll work on your American English pronunciation! Enjoy. :) ⭐ Start improving your English today! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Learn more about the Academy.⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⭐ Take part in our Free ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠14-Day English Slang and Expression Challenge.⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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  • Hi, everybody.

  • My name is Shauna, and this is the American English Podcast.

  • My goal here is to teach you the English spoken in the United States.

  • Through common expressions, pronunciation tips,

  • and interesting cultural snippets or stories, I hope to keep this fun, useful, and interesting.

  • Let's do it.

  • Hi, everyone.

  • Welcome back.

  • I'm excited for another expression episode.

  • Today, we're going to be going over a very common one to keep someone on their toes.

  • We'll dive into the meaning, of course.

  • You'll hear a bunch of stories where this expression can be used.

  • For example, stories about work, about school, and sports.

  • It can be used all the time in any situation where there's an element of unpredictability.

  • So I love a useful expression, and this is definitely one of them.

  • Now, by the end, you should feel comfortable using this expression in conversation and other expressions related to it.