Yes this is synonymous like "that exam was a bitch/a killer", however this is slang and a little outdated. A killer workout might be more commonly used than anything else.
Yes, “killer” is a fairly common word as an adjective. The second definition I haven’t heard. If people do in fact say it, it would be a les offensive alternative to “___ was a bitch.” While still probably not something you should say, calling an exam a bitch is infinitely less offensive than calling a person, especially a woman, a bitch.
Your question is phrased incorrectly. It should read, “Do people often say these? I’ve never heard them.” You do not need “like” since “these” is the object of “say.”
>calling an exam a bitch is infinitely less offensive than calling a person, ~~especially a woman~~, a bitch.
It's just as offensive to most men, just in a very different way. When someone calls a woman a bitch, it is a sexist way to say "jerk." When someone calls a man a bitch, it is more akin to "wimp" or "lackey" depending on context.
It’s definitely offensive to a man, but it doesn’t have the misogyny attached to it. It’s not a slur used against men the way it is a slur used against women.
The closest thing to what you said that would be correct is "Do people often talk like this?"
"Say" is always used to communicate what was said. For example, "He said that his name is Steve." If a sentence doesn't include what was actually said, you should use "talk" instead. For instance, you could say, "Kevin talked with Jennifer" as opposed to "Kevin said 'hello' to Jennifer."
You could instead ask "do people often say this" because then the "say" is directly referring to the things being said. It's the "like" that makes "talk" the correct verb.
Even though there are multiple things you're referring to, native speakers would still use "this" (the singular), rather than "these" (the plural). This is because "this" is referring to a manner of speaking. The two examples are the same manner of speaking so it is singular even if they are slightly different. If they were more distinct you could say "in these ways" or "like they do in these examples" instead of "like this," but a native speaker would never say "like these."
I hope that's helpful
I randomly stumbled on this sub as a native speaker and its a bit crazy how much you instinctively know that is very hard to explain to a non native speaker. Learning english looks extremely difficult.
It's the same for every language, really. Learning a second one really helps you understand the first one better. Or more accurately it helps you know the rules that you instinctively follow. I could not have told you English' cases before I learned German and had to think about the case I should use rather than just doing it instinctively
English is goated though because random nouns don't have genders. It makes it so much easier
Yes, pretty common. Killer can be positive or negative depending on context. It can mean really good, really hard, or really intense.
Man, your carrot cake was killer
I hiked that trail yesterday, it was a killer
Their new apartment has a killer view of downtown
Nope, use and hear this all the time in the UK. Maybe it originated from the US? But it's certainly not uncommon here either. I assume it's not used as much by older people though.
It does mean extreme, good or bad dependent on context. Like, "that test was killer" means the test was very hard, but "that pizza was killer" means it was very good pizza
I don't use that often myself, but it's pretty common
Yeah, to me 'killer' as a figurative adjective can means something like 'intense' or 'impressive' or 'effective', so I agree with the definition given by whatever app you're using.
Similarly, if someone does well, you might say they "killed (it)". Like if your friend acts in a play, and you wnat to say they did well, you might tell them "Wow, you killed it on stage!" and that is similar to "Wow, what a killer performance!"
I'd say it isn't quite the same as '(a) bitch', because called somethig 'a bitch' has negative connotations. So "a bitch of a workout" might mean that it hurt a lot, or was really exhausting (which, for a workout might be what the athlete wants sometimes, but they are emhpasising the negative aspect of it here).
And "a bitch of a performance" or "that performance was a bitch" I think would be a complaint by the actors/crew, to say that it was hard work to put on the play. (You wouldn't tell your friend "Wow, you did a bitch of a performance!" or "Your performance was such a bitch!"; it doesn't seem to make much sense to me.)
I think “killer” as a slang adjective means hard and/or intense. A killer workout was an intense difficult workout. A killer exam was a difficult stressful exam.
I don’t really use it myself that often, but it feels more natural to me to omit the “a”.
>that exam was killer.
>that workout was killer.
Naturally it will depend on how it is quantified since an exam can have “a killer question” but “the question is killer” would be certain question on the exam that could mean the difference between a pass and fail.
Because an exam has many questions or a workout has many exercises, it does not feel natural to me to predicate it with an “a” and the sentence structure where an “a” would be required feels clunky, unnatural, and a bit cheesy to me.
So saying something like “that was a killer workout” is something that feels clunky but saying “that workout was killer” feels a lot more smooth and natural.
I hope this made sense and if you are confused by my wording, let me know and I’ll try to explain with different words.
For those situations using killer/bitch is normal but I wouldn't say that I hear killer really being used commonly around me. This can also really vary by age. When I imagine someone saying that that was "a killer workout," I would probably expect them to be a millennial. I personally wouldn't usually phrase it like that. Also I'd replace "non-slur" with "non-vulgar" or "non-profane" (if you wanna sound a bit formal). Slurs are usually words that demean a minority (faggot, the n-word, gypsy (debated)) while profanity/vulgarity can refer to most offensive/impolite language (bitch, fuck, shit, ass).
I think to say a killer workout has a positive meaning in that the workout was hard to do but ultimately rewarding.
But I think to use killer in this way may be a little outdated. I think it was very popular in the 90s but I could be wrong.
Yes this is synonymous like "that exam was a bitch/a killer", however this is slang and a little outdated. A killer workout might be more commonly used than anything else.
I’d say it’s probably said more frequently than “Killer” as a noun— though that stat changes if murderers are present
You killed it, is a little more common. Meaning: you did that perfect
You did that perfectly.
You nailed it is even more common then that. Same meaning.
I guess I’m outdated then…
I agree. It is definitely a bit dated. It has a 80/90's killer vibe to it.
What does "... Killer vibe to it" mean?
Exactly. Like I associate "that exam was killer" with movies from like the 1980's or 90's. Maybe even the 70's as very "hippie" type language.
Yes, “killer” is a fairly common word as an adjective. The second definition I haven’t heard. If people do in fact say it, it would be a les offensive alternative to “___ was a bitch.” While still probably not something you should say, calling an exam a bitch is infinitely less offensive than calling a person, especially a woman, a bitch. Your question is phrased incorrectly. It should read, “Do people often say these? I’ve never heard them.” You do not need “like” since “these” is the object of “say.”
>calling an exam a bitch is infinitely less offensive than calling a person, ~~especially a woman~~, a bitch. It's just as offensive to most men, just in a very different way. When someone calls a woman a bitch, it is a sexist way to say "jerk." When someone calls a man a bitch, it is more akin to "wimp" or "lackey" depending on context.
It’s definitely offensive to a man, but it doesn’t have the misogyny attached to it. It’s not a slur used against men the way it is a slur used against women.
I mean, the entirety of the meaning of calling a man a bitch is implying that he is like a woman... aka bad. As such, it's pretty misogynistic.
I think I've heard my mum use the second phrasing, so it might just be a bit of like 1980s slang that has kinda fallen out of use. Idk tho
If I ask "Do people often say like this (or like that??)?" will it be correct?
No, that’s incorrect. You still need an object. You can say “Do people often say it/this/that like this?” or “Do people often say it/this/that?”.
Thank you
They are both correct, but I feel they are mostly casual or informal.
I feel my question was incorrect, wasn't it?
> Do people often use “killer” this way? I’ve never heard it like this before.
Yup. > Do people often say these expressions? // Do people often use the word "killer" like this?
The closest thing to what you said that would be correct is "Do people often talk like this?" "Say" is always used to communicate what was said. For example, "He said that his name is Steve." If a sentence doesn't include what was actually said, you should use "talk" instead. For instance, you could say, "Kevin talked with Jennifer" as opposed to "Kevin said 'hello' to Jennifer." You could instead ask "do people often say this" because then the "say" is directly referring to the things being said. It's the "like" that makes "talk" the correct verb. Even though there are multiple things you're referring to, native speakers would still use "this" (the singular), rather than "these" (the plural). This is because "this" is referring to a manner of speaking. The two examples are the same manner of speaking so it is singular even if they are slightly different. If they were more distinct you could say "in these ways" or "like they do in these examples" instead of "like this," but a native speaker would never say "like these." I hope that's helpful
I randomly stumbled on this sub as a native speaker and its a bit crazy how much you instinctively know that is very hard to explain to a non native speaker. Learning english looks extremely difficult.
It's the same for every language, really. Learning a second one really helps you understand the first one better. Or more accurately it helps you know the rules that you instinctively follow. I could not have told you English' cases before I learned German and had to think about the case I should use rather than just doing it instinctively English is goated though because random nouns don't have genders. It makes it so much easier
Yes, pretty common. Killer can be positive or negative depending on context. It can mean really good, really hard, or really intense. Man, your carrot cake was killer I hiked that trail yesterday, it was a killer Their new apartment has a killer view of downtown
This, I think, is really important. Someone could describe a “killer workout” in a positive or negative way depending on context.
Both of these are common and regularly used.
In America, wouldn’t hear this (ever?) in the UK
I think it’s heavily dialectical, possibly quite generational too.
Nope, use and hear this all the time in the UK. Maybe it originated from the US? But it's certainly not uncommon here either. I assume it's not used as much by older people though.
Well, it was used in the 70s by Queen. Does that count as older people? I'm 40, rural British, definitely a well-used word/turn of phrase here.
Ah ok. I personally never hear or use it in the UK. I think it’s definitely more of an American phrase
Its decades old slang from the US, but it spread around to other groups since then, partially from movies.
You never played video games, such as Mortal Combat? People say "killer moves" or "killer combos" often. It is a bit childish I admit.
Yeah, these sound normal/natural to me.
Yes
never heard 2nd definition, 1st everyone knows of though it’s a bit dated and mostly older people use it
It's informal slang, and it's slightly dated, but yeah it's pretty common. Most common among the 25-40 age bracket I think (at least in the US)
Not unironically in BE, at least not in my circles (young people)
It seems a bit outdated, but everyone will know what you mean if you do say it
It does mean extreme, good or bad dependent on context. Like, "that test was killer" means the test was very hard, but "that pizza was killer" means it was very good pizza I don't use that often myself, but it's pretty common
Which app ?
WordUp
Pretty common. In Australian indigenous English "deadly" is a common way of saying something is really good.
Yeah, to me 'killer' as a figurative adjective can means something like 'intense' or 'impressive' or 'effective', so I agree with the definition given by whatever app you're using. Similarly, if someone does well, you might say they "killed (it)". Like if your friend acts in a play, and you wnat to say they did well, you might tell them "Wow, you killed it on stage!" and that is similar to "Wow, what a killer performance!" I'd say it isn't quite the same as '(a) bitch', because called somethig 'a bitch' has negative connotations. So "a bitch of a workout" might mean that it hurt a lot, or was really exhausting (which, for a workout might be what the athlete wants sometimes, but they are emhpasising the negative aspect of it here). And "a bitch of a performance" or "that performance was a bitch" I think would be a complaint by the actors/crew, to say that it was hard work to put on the play. (You wouldn't tell your friend "Wow, you did a bitch of a performance!" or "Your performance was such a bitch!"; it doesn't seem to make much sense to me.)
It's slang, so you won't see it in a textbook or formal documents. But reasonably common in most English speaking countries.
Off topic but what app is that?
WordUp!
I think “killer” as a slang adjective means hard and/or intense. A killer workout was an intense difficult workout. A killer exam was a difficult stressful exam.
I don’t really use it myself that often, but it feels more natural to me to omit the “a”. >that exam was killer. >that workout was killer. Naturally it will depend on how it is quantified since an exam can have “a killer question” but “the question is killer” would be certain question on the exam that could mean the difference between a pass and fail. Because an exam has many questions or a workout has many exercises, it does not feel natural to me to predicate it with an “a” and the sentence structure where an “a” would be required feels clunky, unnatural, and a bit cheesy to me. So saying something like “that was a killer workout” is something that feels clunky but saying “that workout was killer” feels a lot more smooth and natural. I hope this made sense and if you are confused by my wording, let me know and I’ll try to explain with different words.
you got your answer, i want to say what the hell are these AI images for
Its a very common way of speaking english, yes.
"That was a killer ____" I've heard a lot
I went to a killer show last week. It was sick. Balls to the wall.
Yes! Totally. I've heard and used both. Add profanity to add emphasis.
The fact that you asked this is rad.
For those situations using killer/bitch is normal but I wouldn't say that I hear killer really being used commonly around me. This can also really vary by age. When I imagine someone saying that that was "a killer workout," I would probably expect them to be a millennial. I personally wouldn't usually phrase it like that. Also I'd replace "non-slur" with "non-vulgar" or "non-profane" (if you wanna sound a bit formal). Slurs are usually words that demean a minority (faggot, the n-word, gypsy (debated)) while profanity/vulgarity can refer to most offensive/impolite language (bitch, fuck, shit, ass).
What's the app you are using?
I think to say a killer workout has a positive meaning in that the workout was hard to do but ultimately rewarding. But I think to use killer in this way may be a little outdated. I think it was very popular in the 90s but I could be wrong.
yeah ive heard both ways, tho it feels a bit outdated i dont think ive heard it recently
Yup, I use them all the time. "God, that last shift at work was a killer." "Hey, these apples are killer! I'll go buy more tomorrow."
What app is that?
Yes that is common. Means very difficult.
You should watch the pitch meeting scene in Trainwreck
which dictionary is that?
oh my god are we still using this ai app
Yes it’s just an expression. American English can be overly dramatic lol
Yes, both are in common use. Personally, I use them both, often.
yep, both are very common
eh... sort of. it was very popular in the late 90s or early 2ks. i haven't heard it regularly lately, but it's still around.
Slang is common.