The English We Speak – Give the cold shoulder

Rob
Hi Feifei. What a beautiful woollen shawl you’re wearing! But it looks far too elegant to use for just for another day in the office…

Feifei
I know, Rob. I wanted to give it to Lisa, now that she’s got that promotion…

Rob
Really? But she’s hardly even said hello to you since her promotion and you used to be friends…

Feifei
I know. She’s been giving me the cold shoulder. That’s why I brought this woollen shawl for her.

Rob
Feifei, you do know there’s a difference between Lisa’s shoulders being cold because it’s winter and her ‘giving you the cold shoulder’, don’t you? You can’t just warm her shoulders and be friends again.

Feifei
Yes, I do. In English, someone giving you the cold shoulder means they’re behaving in a way that is not friendly at all and they’re doing it for no obvious reason.

Rob
Yes. It means they are rejecting you or ignoring you. And ‘give the cold shoulder’ is today’s expression in The English We Speak.

Feifei
Let’s hear some examples.

Examples
After Mary divorced her rich husband all their friends gave her the cold shoulder. She was not invited to their lavish parties anymore.

My brother told our parents I haven’t been studying at all and my marks are low. I’m not happy and I’ve been giving him the cold shoulder. Let’s see if he’s got the message.

Feifei
Rob, I know what giving someone the cold shoulder means, but even so I think this shawl might help me get Lisa to change how she’s acting.

Rob
How come?

Feifei
Well, Lisa loves fashion and designer clothes. As soon as she sees me with this lovely shawl, she’ll be impressed and stop ignoring me. She won’t think she’s better than me anymore!

Rob
Well, and if you lend it to her, she might not feel cold anymore… it’s been rather cold in the last few weeks…

Feifei
Yes. This woollen shawl will stop her having cold shoulders and might even stop her giving me the cold shoulder. How about that?

Rob
Now that is a clever use of the English language!

Feifei
Bye.

Rob
Bye bye.