روابط

Lesson 2 – Relationships

When you move to a new city, it can be hard to make friends. You’ll probably have a number of casual acquaintances – people who you know on a basic level, but with whom you don’t have a significant relationship. Over time, some of these may become good friends or close friends – these collocations refer to friends with whom you have an especially strong relationship.

Do you believe in love at first sight? That’s when two people meet each other and immediately fall in love – perhaps because they have strong chemistry – this expression describes strong compatibility or connection between two possible romantic partners. Some people believe that their significant other (their boyfriend, girlfriend, husband, or wife) is their soul mate – this is a poetic expression that means that two people are destined to be together.

It’s possible for one person to have feelings for another person – this expression is an indirect way to describe romantic feelings – but if the other person doesn’t feel the same way, then the feeling is not mutual. The other person might say “he’s/she’s just not my type” – meaning that they are interested in people of a different type of personality/appearance. Ah, there’s nothing sadder than unrequited love!

(Love that is not returned)

Some people marry their childhood sweetheart or high school/college sweetheart – this expression refers to a boyfriend or girlfriend from your childhood, teenage, or college years. Other couples are introduced by a mutual friend – one friend that the two people have in common. When the couple is ready to make a commitment, the man proposes to the woman – he asks her to marry him. If the marriage is good, then we say the couple is happily married.

Unfortunately, not all love stories have a happy ending. Sometimes a husband or wife has an affair – they have sex with a different person. We can also say that they are cheating on their husband/wife.

The expression “have an affair” is typically used only for married couples, and the expression “cheating on” can be used for married couples or for boyfriends/girlfriends.