Page 44 - Conversation 3

(22) Fill your boots

Introduction

Sometimes in life we are presented with an opportunity, and someone tells us to make the most
of it! Maybe it's eating as much as you want in a restaurant or watching as many films as we'd
like to. We have an expression you can use in this situation.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/learningenglish/english/features/the-english-we-speak_2023/ep-230919

Transcript

Neil
Welcome to The English We Speak with me, Neil…

Feifei
...and me, Feifei.

Neil
We’re explaining the phrase 'fill your boots'. It means 'take advantage of a situation, or to get as
much of something as possible'.

Feifei
'Fill your boots'. It sounds like you're telling someone to load their boots with as much as they
possibly can.

Neil
That's a very good way of looking at it, but it's not literal. So, for example, when a supermarket
has a big sale, you might want to fill your boots with all the deals.

Feifei
Yes, you'll buy as much as you can. Or, you have an amazing library, Neil. Can I read some of
your books?

Neil
Fill your boots – read as many as you want. Let’s have some examples!

Examples
I love my local restaurant. It has an 'all you can eat' buffet - you can fill your boots.

Have you watched our videos? Fill your boots and learn as much as you can.

My mum is cooking Christmas dinner. She asked me to go to the supermarket to get food. She
told me to fill my boots and buy as much food as I want!