Name: Take the biscuit: The English We Speak
Uploaded: 2021-03-26T21:01:30.000Z
Duration: 2 min 46 s
Description: Thousands of YouTube videos with English-Chinese subtitles! Now you can learn to understand native speakers, expand your vocabulary, and improve your pronunciation...

Feifei: So Rob, help yourself to a biscuit.

Rob: Oh right. That's very kind, Feifei, but very odd.

I hope you don't mind, but I used up all your coffee

when I made drinks for the team this morning.

Feifei: I haven't taken any biscuits – just your coffee.

Rob: No, Feifei! When I say someone really takes the biscuit,

I mean what you have done is really surprising, annoying

Feifei: Oh dear. You're not happy? Sorry, Rob.

Let's hear some examples while you calm down…

I can't believe she copied my work and pretended it was her own.

You're really taking the biscuit if you're expecting me to take you to the match and wait outside until it's finished!

Your plan to turn the spare bedroom into a snooker room really takes the biscuit!

Feifei: This is The English We Speak from BBC Learning English

and we're finding out about the phrase 'to take', or 'to really take the biscuit',

which means we are surprised or annoyed by someone's actions.

By the way, we can say 'something' as well as 'someone' takes the biscuit.

So you take the biscuit by using up my coffee

but there is something that really takes the biscuit.

Rob: These biscuits you bought are ginger nuts.

Feifei: OK, Rob. You are really taking this badly.

Pass them over here then and I'll eat them.

Rob: Oh crumbs, I've dropped them. Sorry!

Feifei: It looks like I won't be taking any of my biscuits today!

Subtitles ListPlay Video

Take the biscuit: The English We Speak

sort

phrase

pretend

expect