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

Read

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!

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.