Current Goal: Learn 50 American Phrases in 25 Days!
Hello my friends American accent learning enthusiasts! 😀
Today I’m bringing you another American English phrase I’ve retrieved from GONE series fiction, and the phrase in question is TO CALL SOMEONE OUT ON SOMETHING.
If you go to the Free Dictionary website and type “call out” into the search bar, the description right next to the phrasal verb “to call out” reveals that it means either to summon someone, or to challenge someone.
Well, obviously that’s how this phrasal verb is traditionally used; however, the trend is changing my friends ❗
Nowadays you can’t rely only on the information found in dictionary websites and other sources – the hell, you can’t even take my word for it! – you need to draw your own conclusions as to the meaning of specific phrases.
Ever since I came across this phrase – TO CALL SOMEONE OUT ON SOMETHING – in one of the first books in GONE series, I’ve been hearing it an awful lot in YouTube videos (it’s a phenomenon described in this video), and the meaning of this phrasal verb isn’t just to challenge someone.
More often than not, TO CALL SOMEONE OUT ON SOMETHING is used in the context of:
- pointing out someone’s dishonesty and lies;
- telling someone what you’ve been meaning to tell them for a long time (in which case there’s a certain degree of challenge involved);
- bringing some unspoken truth to the attention of a wider audience (and CALLING OUT those who’ve been guilty of concealing the truth).
As always, you’re welcome to watch the video above where I’m speaking with General American Pronunciation and discussing merits of the phrasal verb TO CALL SOMEONE OUT ON and not only!
See in tomorrow,
Robby 😉
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