The English We Speak: Off the scale
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This BBC podcast is supported by ads outside the UK. Hello and welcome to The English We Speak, where we explain phrases used by fluent English speakers so that you can use them as well. I'm Feifei. And I'm Beth. How are you, Feifei? I'm doing great, thank you. What are we learning in this programme?

Well, we are learning off the scale. Now, I heard this when I was chatting to a friend about her holiday. She said that she went to an amazing restaurant and the food was off the scale. Ah, yes, off the scale. It's a funny expression because scale makes it sound like the food is being made.

measured, but that's not what she meant, I guess. Yeah, exactly. She meant that the food was so good that it can't be rated on a normal scale. So we use off the scale to say that something goes beyond what is expected and it's usually used in a positive way.

For example, an influencer said the restaurant around the corner serves the most authentic Chinese food and since then bookings have been off the scale. Oh, well maybe I should try and get in there then. Here are some more examples of off the scale. Last week I went to see my local football team beating their closest rivals and the celebrations were off the scale.

My boyfriend cooked me dinner yesterday and he made this amazing roast chicken. It was delicious. It was just off the scale. Oh yes, I remember passing my driving test. The sense of achievement afterwards, it was just, it was off the scale. It felt amazing.

So, off the scale is used when something is beyond the usual limits and though it's normally used positively, it can be negative too and we can also use it to describe an adjective. Yes, for example, if someone is really annoying you, you might say they're annoying or…

Or even off the scale annoying. Or maybe you're so hungry, you could say you're off the scale hungry, which means exceptionally hungry. And that's all from us. We'll be back next time with another useful English phrase. See you then. Bye. Ever started a new job and had no idea what people were talking about? You're not alone. It was probably all business jargon.

In our new series, we talk about the strange words and phrases people use at work that not everyone understands. Search for Learning English for Work in your podcast app or head to our website, bbclearningenglish.com. Yoga is more than just exercise. It's the spiritual practice that millions swear by.

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You just get sucked in so gradually.

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