Nail-biter

Nail-biter

Compre: welcome to English in a Minute!

Biting your Nails is a bad habit.

But can you figure out what this expression means?

Announcer: NAIL BITER

Man: I am so excited to watch the soccer game tonight!

Woman: I know!

Both teams are really good.

Man: I think it will be a real nail-biter!

It’s probably going to come down to the final minutes.

Compre: A nail-biter is something that causes stress or makes you feel nervous.

Many people who are nervous do actually bite their nails, which is where this expression comes from.

In our example, Joathan guessed that the soccer game would be a nail-biter, and that no one would know who would win until the final moments of the game.

And that’s English in a Minute.