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Lesson 115 / Food & preparation
5 phrases · 12 minutes · Look, listen and try.
Prepare a quick snack, dilute a drink and share portions with friends.
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A randomly assigned, fixed male or female synthetic voice for each phrase or sentence · Slow playback at 0.7× preserves pitch.
She whipped up a fruit-yogurt snack for her friends.
She whipped up a fruit-yogurt snack for her friends.
I can whip up a simple lunch in a few minutes.
I can whip up a simple lunch in a few minutes.
Informal; here this means preparing food quickly, not necessarily whisking cream. The -ing form is “whipping”.
Cambridge Dictionary · whip up
She watered down the strong fruit juice.
She watered down the strong fruit juice.
The sauce is too thick, so I will water it down.
The sauce is too thick, so I will water it down.
Here this is the literal dilution of a liquid. It can also mean make an idea or a statement less forceful.
Cambridge Dictionary · water down
She dished out fruit into the smaller bowls.
She dished out fruit into the smaller bowls.
Could you dish the salad out while I set the table?
Could you dish the salad out while I set the table?
Informal; here it means serving food. It can also be used figuratively with praise or criticism.
She threw in a free biscuit with the snack box.
She threw in a free biscuit with the snack box.
The shop will throw a small bag in for free.
The shop will throw a small bag in for free.
Here this describes an extra included to improve an offer, not physically throwing an object. The past form is “threw”.
She cranked up the radio so we could hear the song.
She cranked up the radio so we could hear the song.
They cranked the heating up when the room got cold.
They cranked the heating up when the room got cold.
An informal expression similar to “turn up”, often suggesting a noticeable increase. A mechanical crank is not required.
The examples were written for this course. Usage was checked against Matt Errey’s book, pages 139, 138, 36, 131, 30. A2–B1 is the course’s intended level.
Additional references for the senses used in this lesson: whip up — Cambridge · water down — Oxford · dish out — Collins.
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Drag a wire from the dot beside a phrase to the dot beside its matching picture. You can also tap a phrase, then a picture. Drag again to change a pair before checking.
Read the picture descriptions for more context. Similar expressions are accepted when they fit the particular scene.
An whips up a fruit-yogurt snack from prepared ingredients.
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An waters down strong fruit juice by adding plain water.
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An dishes out fruit from a serving bowl into friends’ smaller bowls.
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An throws in a free biscuit with a snack box for a friend.
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An cranks up the radio volume at the snack corner.
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Choose a phrase to begin.
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Read the conversation and find the expressions you have learned.
Can we whip up a quick snack for the visitors?
Can we whip up a quick snack for the visitors?
Yes. Should I water down this juice?
Yes. Should I water down this juice?
A little, then we can dish out the sandwiches.
A little, then we can dish out the sandwiches.
Here “whip up” means prepare food quickly; “water down” means dilute it with water. Quick preparation does not itself mean dilution or lower quality.
Try answering before revealing the suggested answer. This practice is not scored.
The answers below are models. Other answers can also work if they preserve the facts, meaning and structure requested in the task.
Unexpected guests arrive. The host can quickly make noodles, but a fruit drink is too concentrated.
Describe the quick meal preparation.
She can whip up some noodles.
Unexpected guests call for quickly preparing food: “whip up some noodles”, rather than merely serve an existing dish.
Replace “the juice” with “it”: Water down the juice.
Water it down.
“It” replaces the over-concentrated juice and goes between “water” and “down”: “water it down”.
Write a serving instruction after preparation.
Dish out the noodles once the guests are seated.
“Dish out the noodles” portions and serves them after the guests sit down, rather than cooks them.
The usage comparisons are checked against the Cambridge Dictionary entries linked beside the compared expressions. The additional conversations and exercises are written for this course.
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