The words and word combinations to speak about people who are not in harmony with themselves

—   Hello, guys! My name is James Wilson.

—   And my name is Martin Green. Welcome to our lesson!

—   Listen to the story about one girl whose name was Vanessa.

—   Vanessa was a wonderful girl. She really liked spending time at the seaside and taking pictures of her sweet doggy Tyler.

—   One day the girl went for a walk with Tyler.

—   She was talking on the phone when suddenly a black cat showed up out of nowhere.

—   The dog ran after the cat. Vanessa got scared. Then she started shouting at her dog and telling Tyler to come back.

—   The dog didn’t return. She felt disappointed. Vanessa understood that it was her fault.

—   Tyler ran away, because she was talking on the phone and didn’t look after the dog properly.

—   It’s been two days since the dog ran away. Vanessa felt blue.

—   She skipped the school, because the girl was in a black mood.

—   She didn’t want to talk to her best friend Anna, because Vanessa was in low spirits. The girl felt irritable and aggressive every time Anna was trying to talk to her.

—   These days Vanessa felt touchy and Anna kept asking the girl about the dog. That’s why she was so irritable.

—   On the third day Vanessa got desperate, when suddenly her phone rang. 

—   One man told the girl that he found her dog. He recognized Tyler from the pictures that Anna pasted everywhere.

—   Vanessa was so happy! She hugged her dog so tightly. Then she apologized to Anna and thank her for everything she’s done to find Tyler.

Now, when you know the whole story, answer my questions:

•      Can we say that Vanessa lived her life in harmony with herself when her dog ran away from her?

And

•      Why do you think so?

Let me help you with the answers!

One. Can we say that Vanessa lived her life in harmony with herself when her dog ran away from her?

The answer is:

No, we can’t!

Two. Why do you think so?

The answer is:

We can say that Vanessa wasn’t in harmony with herself for two days, because the author of the story used the following phrases:

“… felt disappointed.”

“… felt blue.”

“… was in a black mood.”

“… was in low spirits.”

“… felt irritable and aggressive…”

“… felt touchy…”

Now you see that in the lesson today we will:

•      learn the words and word combinations to speak about people who are not in harmony with themselves;

•      learn how to use them in practice.

Let’s look closely at these words and word combinations.

To be/ feel aggressive

We can say that someone is aggressive if her or his behavior is full of anger and violence towards different people. We also call aggressive the people who are predisposed to being competitive. These people usually make determined attempts to win. Aggressive people are always taking it out on everyone around them, especially on their relatives and friends.

Let’s look at the example.

—   Hey, Ryan! I forgot to tell you that I took your car yesterday, but it’s fine.

—   What? Who let you do that? You had to ask me first!

—   Why are you so mad at me? You’re so aggressive today. I didn’t even scratch your car, so stop yelling at me!

—   Next time ask me if you want to take something mine or I’ll start taking your stuff without a permission!

To be/ feel disappointed

It means to be upset because something that you hoped for or waited for did not happen. We also feel disappointed when someone or something was not as good as we expected.

The synonym of this word combination is to be not satisfied.

Let’s look at the example.

—   Hey, Larry! I can see that you’ve already met the musicians. Do you like their music and the way they play?

—   Oh, Nicholas! I’m so disappointed by them. It seems that they see their instruments for the first time. I cannot listen to what they play. It’s so awful!

—   Ok, Larry! It’s not a problem. I will find new musicians for you. I need to know, how many hours I have to do that! When does your concert begin?

—   It begins at 5 p.m. You have 4 hours. Nicholas, please, do it as fast as you can!

—   Sure, Larry! I know that this concert is very important for you. I’m going right now!

To be/ feel irritable

It means that the person becomes annoyed very easily. The manner of behavior of irritable people is full of anger, impatience, hostility and sometimes even hate.

Let’s look at the example.

The two men were so irritable today. The man in a red sweater is Thomas. And the man in a blue sweater is Connor. Connor is an inveterate gambler. Yesterday he decided to go to the casino, but he didn’t have any money. The man thought that he could borrow his friend’s money. Connor took it without even asking. He went to the casino and lost all the money. Thomas was so furious when he found it out. The man started yelling at his friend. Connor was unfazed. That made Thomas angry even more. Then he lost his temper and gave his friend a slap. Only after that Connor understood that he made a huge mistake. 

To be/ feel blue

It means to be very sad or depressed. People can feel blue when something bad or awful has happened in their lives. They cannot handle the situation and get depressed.

Let’s look at the example.

—   Dad, what’s wrong? We came to the forest to ski and you don’t look happy at all!

—   Oh, I’m so sorry, Sebastian! I just feel so blue. I don’t like winter. There is no sun, no grass, and no warmth. I can’t wait for summer. It will be sunny and hot. We will take off all these clothes and wear T-shirts and shorts.

—   Come on, dad, you’re so pessimistic today! Winter is also a wonderful season. Look at this shining white snow. It looks so amazing! We should enjoy all seasons!

—   Oh, Sebastian! I’m glad that I have such a smart son. I think you’re right! We must always look on the bright side! Let’s go skiing and have fun!

To be in a black mood

It means to be very sad or depressed.

We say that people are in a black mood when they are not satisfied with their situation. These people can be irritable and aggressive.

They are unhappy and make everyone else unhappy too.

They need some changes, because their lives are full of sadness, sorrow and despair.

Let’s look at the example.

Antonio was in a very black mood. One week ago, he went for a walk with his girlfriend Melissa. They were together for two years. Antonio loved her so much and decided to propose her that day. He took her to the most expensive restaurant, ordered delicious dishes.

Then he asked Melissa to be his wife, but she turned him down. The girl said that she is not ready for serious changes in her life. Since then Antonio stays at home and doesn’t go anywhere at all.

To be/ feel touchy

The people are called touchy when it’s easy to upset, offend or irritate them.

They are usually oversensitive and irascible. You need to be delicate and to have a sense of timing when you talk to such people.

It’s easy to ignite them. That’s why you should never try to talk to these people when they are furious. Wait until they calm down.

The synonyms of this word combination are choleric, pessimistic, tetchy.

Let’s look at the example.

—   Hi, Landon! You look so sad today. Is everything ok?

—   Yeah, everything is just fine, Alex! Maybe you should spend time with someone who is not so sad!

—   Oh, Landon, what’s going on? You’re so touchy today! I can’t even say a word to you!

—   Alex, I had a very bad day, so, please, just leave me alone!

To be/ feel resentful

Resentful people are the people who suffer from very strong and painful bitterness. It happens when someone does something bad or awful to them.

This state can last for a really long time.

The only way to get rid of resentment is to forgive the person who made you feel this way.

Let’s look at the example.

—   Hey, Bobby, why did you tell our boss that I was late for work yesterday? We are colleagues and should have each other’s backs.

—   Oh, please! Stop it! Why are you so resentful? I don’t have to have your back! Jake, you’re not my friend.

—   Bobby, I was late only for 5 minutes! Now our boss won’t make me his editor in chief.

—   Exactly! He will make me his editor in chief! Jake, please, don’t take it close to your heart! It’s just business, nothing personal.

To be in low spirits

It means to feel extremely unhappy and very sad. People are in low spirits when something goes wrong.

We can also say so about the people who don’t feel any pleasure or satisfaction in their lives.

Let’s look at the example.

—   Hi, Frank. How are you?

—   Hi, Sam! I’m in low spirits today.

—   Why is that?

—   Veronica said that it’s very boring to spend time with me. She also said that she would rather spend time with Cole.

—   Frank, don’t worry! You’ll find another friend. And Veronica will come to you sooner or later. She will be begging you to become your friend again.

—   Yeah, you’re right! Girls are so fickle!

We learnt the words and word combinations to speak about people who are not in harmony with themselves. Now let’s find out how to use them in practice

Pay attention! When we use these phrases, we need to put the verb “to be” into the necessary form, which depends on the time of speaking.

If we talk about the present, we use the following forms: am, is, are.

Am is used with the pronoun: I.

Is with the pronouns: he, she, it.

And are with the pronouns: you, we, they.

For example: I am aggressive. She is disappointed. They are irritable.

If we talk about the past, we use the following forms: was, were.

Was is used with the pronouns: I, he, she, it.

And were with the pronouns: you, we, they.

For example: She was blue. You were in a black mood.

If we talk about the future, we use the form: will be.

Will be is used with all the types of pronouns.

For example: She will be touchy. You will be resentful. We will be in low spirits.

Now show us that you understood all the information from this lesson.

Complete the sentences using the words from the box.

Let’s check the right answers.

1. When Harry’s team lost the game, he felt disappointed.

2. The woman was so aggressive today, because her daughter Julia broke her favorite vase on purpose.

3. When Jenifer asked him the same question for the fifth time, Ryan felt irritable.

The following sentences.

Let’s check.

4. When Lucy’s best friend Robin didn’t invite the girl to her birthday party, Lucy felt touchy.

5. Evelyn was in a black mood, because her cat ran away from home two days ago.

6. I’m so resentful with the way you are telling me such awful news. I can’t understand! Why are you smiling?

—   Now we know which words we can use to talk about people who are not in harmony with themselves.

—   We were glad to see you on our lesson. See you soon!