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  • Feifei: Hello. I'm Feifei and this is The

  • English We Speak.

  • Neil: And I'm... ouch... Neil.

  • Feifei: Oh, Neil, are you in pain?

  • Neil: Yeah. I cut my hand yesterday. Blood

  • everywhere. Look at this cut!

  • Feifei: Yuk! That's horrible. So tell me how

  • it happened.

  • Neil: Well, my shower has been leaking for

  • ages. I'm not good at fixing things so I got

  • this plumber in to fix it. I found his details

  • on the internet - D. Odgy Plumbers - "Got a

  • leak? We'll make you pay for it."

  • Feifei: Hmm. That doesn't sound like a

  • very reputable plumber.

  • Neil: Well, he wasn't. He bled me dry!

  • Feifei: What? You mean he attacked you

  • and that's how you cut your hand. Oh,

  • Neil, you need to tell the police.

  • Neil: Don't panic, Feifei. He didn't touch

  • me, but what he did do was a very bad job,

  • he made lots of mess and then charged

  • me lots of money for doing it - he

  • basically charged me a whole month's

  • salary - that's what I mean by 'bleeding me dry'.

  • Feifei: So you gave him the money - he

  • didn't steal it?

  • Neil: Yeah - not exactly, but somehow he

  • managed to extract all my money from

  • me. Let's hear some examples, shall we?

  • My old car keeps breaking down. It's bleeding me dry!

  • John is taking legal action against the

  • company. He wants to bleed them dry for all the pain he has suffered.

  • This divorce has bled me dry - I can't even

  • afford to go on holiday now.

  • Feifei: This is The English We Speak from

  • the BBC and we're finding out about the

  • phrase 'to bleed someone dry', meaning

  • to extract or drain all of someone's

  • money. But Neil, why did you pay the

  • plumber if he did such a bad job?

  • Neil: Well, he was a big guy and... well, I

  • don't like to complain or make a fuss.

  • Feifei: Oh, how very English! But how did

  • you cut your hand?

  • Neil: After he left, I tried to use the shower

  • but I slipped over because of all the water.

  • Feifei: Oh, poor you. Shall we go for lunch

  • and take your mind off things?

  • Neil: Sorry, Feifei. I can't afford it - the

  • plumber bled me dry, remember!

  • Feifei: My treat!

  • Neil: Oh, come on. Let's go. See ya.

  • Feifei: Bye.

Feifei: Hello. I'm Feifei and this is The

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