Source:www.englishonline.org.cn

You’re listening to British Council’s English Online and I’m Nina.

Today on Language Snacks we take a look at the expression fire away.

Let’s listen to the dialogue.

A: ...so that concludes my presentation today and I will now be happy to answer any questions you may have.

B: Er, thank you for such an interesting talk. Could I just ask one question about the plans for a new building that you mentioned at the beginning?

A: Yes, of course. Fire away.

The expression fire away is an invitation to ask questions about anything you want. It's often used as a friendly and informal reply to someone who has said 'can I ask you something?', and is the same as saying 'go ahead'.

Informal expressions like this can be used occasionally in formal situations, like the presentation example above, to make you sound relaxed, friendly and confident. It's important that your body language matches this message though, so try to smile when you say it!

“fire away”其实和火没有什么关系。当有人想向你提问的时候，你可以说”fire away”，意思和”go ahead”是一样的。这种说法通常来说适用于比较随意的场合。当然，像对话里的情景，说”fire away”也是恰当的，可以让提问的人感觉到比较轻松、随意的气氛，让你本人显得比较自信。

So, about today’s language snack, any questions? Fire away.

And that’s it for now – join us again for some more Language Snacks.

You’ve been listening to English Online – the podcast for English learners in China.

Exercise

1. What does fire away mean?:

a) you can ask me anything you want

b) it's safe to fire the gun

c) I think I can smell something burning

2. Which other expression has the same meaning as fire away?

3. Is fire away a friendly or unfriendly thing to say?

Answers

1. a

2. go ahead

3. friendly

（英国使馆文化教育处提供）