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   Bella (tutor) Hi, welcome to MicroEnglish. Your manager asks
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   Bella (tutor) how the report is going, then asks again ten minutes later.
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   Bella (tutor) And again. How would you describe that pressure?
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   Bella (tutor) In this B2 lesson, we'll practise breathing down someone's
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   Bella (tutor) neck, get the grammar right, and find a tactful way to describe
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   Bella (tutor) the problem.
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   Bella (tutor) You open the report, but another message arrives: finished
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   Bella (tutor) yet? My manager is breathing down my neck about this report.
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   Bella (tutor) The expression describes someone watching or checking you very
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    Bella (tutor) closely, often pushing you to finish. The repeated
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    Bella (tutor) attention makes you feel pressured. They don't need to stand
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    Bella (tutor) near you.
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    Bella (tutor) One agreed update may be helpful. Constant checks
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    Bella (tutor) can feel intrusive. Breathing down my neck presents the
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    Bella (tutor) attention as unwelcome or excessive. It's the speaker's
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    Bella (tutor) view, not proof that the other person is behaving badly. A
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    Bella (tutor) deadline can explain the pressure, but a deadline alone doesn't
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    Bella (tutor) establish close monitoring.
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    Bella (tutor) Use the verb breathe, with an e at the end, not
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    Bella (tutor) the noun breath. Change the tense as usual: she's
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    Bella (tutor) breathing; she was breathing; he breathes. The
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    Bella (tutor) possessive identifies the person under pressure: my neck,
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    Bella (tutor) his neck, or their necks for several people. Keep
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    Bella (tutor) down in the expression.
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    Bella (tutor) Say it in connected chunks: my manager's, breathing
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    Bella (tutor) down, my neck. Here, manager's means
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    Bella (tutor) manager is. In breathing, the th sound
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    Bella (tutor) is voiced, as in this. Notice the spelling loses
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    Bella (tutor) the final e before ing. Avoid breathing
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    Bella (tutor) on my neck when you mean monitoring; that suggests actual breath
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    Bella (tutor) touching you.
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    Bella (tutor) Follow the pattern on our gauge. Someone keeps checking.
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    Bella (tutor) You feel watched or hurried, perhaps because Friday's deadline
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    Bella (tutor) is close. Then you ask for room to work. These
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    Bella (tutor) are stages in one situation, not three separate meanings.
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    Bella (tutor) The central idea stays the same: uncomfortable attention
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    Bella (tutor) from another person.
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    Bella (tutor) A customer sends six messages while you pack an order. The
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    Bella (tutor) customer keeps breathing down my neck about the delivery. About
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    Bella (tutor) adds the topic; you can leave it out when the situation is
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    Bella (tutor) clear. Keep plus breathing highlights repetition.
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    Bella (tutor) This expression can describe customers, relatives, or
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    Bella (tutor) colleagues, as well as managers.
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    Bella (tutor) The idiom is informal and often critical. Saying
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    Bella (tutor) you're breathing down my neck directly to someone can sound
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    Bella (tutor) accusing. With a trusted friend, it may be a natural complaint.
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    Bella (tutor) At work, explain what would help: could we agree
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    Bella (tutor) on one update after lunch? That gives the other person a practical
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    Bella (tutor) response.
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    Bella (tutor) Now listen to four short conversations, two British
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    Bella (tutor) and two American. Choose the conclusion supported by the words
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    Bella (tutor) you hear. Pay attention to repeated actions and what the
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    Bella (tutor) speaker wants to change. After each answer, you'll hear
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    Bella (tutor) the same conversation again with the words on screen.
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    Bella (tutor) Alice is preparing a budget. Listen for why she
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    Bella (tutor) wants the messages to stop.
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    George Another message from the finance team?
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    George Yes. They're breathing down my neck, checking every
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    Alice few minutes.
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    Alice Would fewer messages help?
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    George Definitely. Each one makes me lose count.
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    Bella (tutor) She needs time to focus. The checks arrive every few
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    Bella (tutor) minutes, and she says they interrupt her counting. The attention
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    Bella (tutor) is slowing her down.
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    George Another message from the finance team?
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    George Yes. They're breathing down my neck, checking every
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    Alice few minutes.
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    Alice Would fewer messages help?
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    George Definitely. Each one makes me lose count.
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    Bella (tutor) Roger and Jessica discuss his apartment search. What bothers
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    Bella (tutor) him about the calls?
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    Roger Dad calls three times a day to ask if I've found
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    Roger an apartment.
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    Roger He must be worried.
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    Jessica I know, but it feels like he's breathing down
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    Roger my neck.
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    Bella (tutor) The frequency bothers him. He recognises his father's
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    Bella (tutor) concern, but three calls a day feel like too much checking.
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    Roger Dad calls three times a day to ask if I've found
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    Roger an apartment.
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    Roger He must be worried.
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    Jessica I know, but it feels like he's breathing down
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    Roger my neck.
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    Bella (tutor) A theatre deadline is approaching. Listen for the arrangement
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    Bella (tutor) George would prefer.
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    Alice Are the costumes ready? Opening night's tomorrow.
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    Alice Nearly. I can't sew with you breathing down my
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    George neck.
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    George How can I keep track, then?
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    Alice Let me send you photos at five.
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    Bella (tutor) He wants one update at an agreed time. His offer
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    Bella (tutor) to send photos at five would replace the repeated checks without
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    Bella (tutor) leaving Alice uninformed.
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    Alice Are the costumes ready? Opening night's tomorrow.
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    Alice Nearly. I can't sew with you breathing down my
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    George neck.
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    George How can I keep track, then?
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    Alice Let me send you photos at five.
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    Bella (tutor) Jessica has a new garden coordinator. What has changed in her
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     Bella (tutor) working day?
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     Roger How's the new garden coordinator?
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     Roger Great. One evening update, and nobody breathing
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     Jessica down my neck.
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     Jessica Better than sending photos every hour!
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     Bella (tutor) She receives less intrusive supervision. One evening
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     Bella (tutor) update contrasts with the old hourly photos, and “nobody
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     Bella (tutor) breathing down my neck” shows that Jessica feels less pressured.
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     Roger How's the new garden coordinator?
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     Roger Great. One evening update, and nobody breathing
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     Jessica down my neck.
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     Jessica Better than sending photos every hour!
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     Bella (tutor) Your turn. Say: the client's breathing down my
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     Bella (tutor) neck. Then replace the client with someone from an imaginary
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     Bella (tutor) situation. Keep the verb and possessive clear. Finally,
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     Bella (tutor) think of a tactful request that would help, such as asking
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     Bella (tutor) for one update time.
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     Bella (tutor) Does the person have to be nearby? No; messages
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     Bella (tutor) can create the same feeling. Is it neutral? Usually
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     Bella (tutor) not: you're expressing discomfort with the attention. In
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     Bella (tutor) a formal complaint, concrete details are clearer. For
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     Bella (tutor) example, say that requests for updates arrive every ten minutes
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     Bella (tutor) and interrupt your work.
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     Bella (tutor) For the form, remember that breathe is the verb and
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     Bella (tutor) breath is the noun. The neck belongs to the person
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     Bella (tutor) feeling watched, so change the possessive to match. About
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     Bella (tutor) is optional: she's breathing down my neck is complete
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     Bella (tutor) when your listener already knows what the pressure concerns.
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     Bella (tutor) Visit this lesson on MicroEnglish dot com for interactive
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     Bella (tutor) dictation. Type what you hear and check your answers. You
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     Bella (tutor) can also ask the AI tutor about a sentence you've written.
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     Bella (tutor) The first dictation is free; further practice and tutor
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     Bella (tutor) access depend on membership and available credits.
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     Bella (tutor) In the comments, invent a situation where someone keeps checking
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     Bella (tutor) your progress. Write one sentence with the idiom, then
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     Bella (tutor) add a polite request for a change. You can use a coach,
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     Bella (tutor) customer, or relative. Ask any questions you still have
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     Bella (tutor) about the expression. Thanks for joining me today.

Elige tu respuesta en cada pregunta y luego abre la respuesta para comprobarla.

1. Pregunta 1

   What does the expression 'breathing down my neck' mean?

   A Someone is watching or checking you very closely. B Someone is standing too close to you. C Someone is talking to you about a report.
   Comprobar respuesta Conversar con el tutor
2. Pregunta 2 Escuchar la frase de nuevo

   Who can you safely say 'My manager's breathing down my neck' to?

   A A close friend when you're venting after work B Your company director when you're in a job review C Your manager when you're in an official interview
   Comprobar respuesta Conversar con el tutor
3. Pregunta 3 Escuchar la frase de nuevo

   Your senior colleague offers to watch your screen and teach you a shortcut. Which phrase fits?

   A Looking over my shoulder while I'm learning B Breathing down my neck while I'm learning C Sticking her neck out while I'm learning
   Comprobar respuesta Conversar con el tutor