Name: English Tutor Nick P Idioms (294) Make It Snappy
Uploaded: 2020-01-16T02:04:03.000Z
Duration: 2 min 32 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...

Hi this is Tutor Nick P and this is Idioms number 294. The idiom today is to make it

snappy. Okay. Let's take a look at the note here. If you tell someone to make it

snappy,  you are telling him or her to do it

quickly,  very quickly. Perhaps because it is urgent. Or this phrase is often used

as an imperative. Remember as an imperative means when you order someone

to do it. Yeah. Come on. Make it snappy.  Don't fool around. Do that right away. So

we say make it snappy.  All right. Let's continue.  The origin of snap

seems to come from Dutch or German meaning to bite or seize. All right.

Remember even today we still use the word to snap. Like a dog could snap at

someone like trying to take a bite or seize is another thing that we usually do

quickly. We try to take something quickly.  All right.  So let's continue.  Snap as a noun

could also mean a breaking or cracking sound. We also have the phrase to snap

ones fingers. So some think it may have come from that. Like to you know, (snapping finger sounds) snap

your fingers like that. Yeah. In the past we often associate snapping ones fingers

with you know,  to get attention and order someone to do something. So therefore

some people think the origin of this phrase may have come from that idea. Like

you know,  somebody snapped for like a waiter or somebody's snap somebody to do

something. So maybe the idea of make it snappy might have come from that idea of

snapping your finger or the noise ordering someone to do something. Something

quickly. So well all them combined could have somehow formed in to make it snappy.

Anyway,  let's give a couple of examples of how we use it. Run down to the store

and buy some photocopy paper. Don't fool around and look at other things. Make it

snappy. We need to get those reports out right away.

All right.  So don't fool around. Come on.  Get back here with that paper. We got to send this

out immediately.  Make it snappy. Or number two here. The

boss wants you to run to Starbucks and get his favorite coffee. You had better

make it snappy. He hates to wait. Okay.  Anyway I hope you got it. I hope  it was clear.