Preview（腕試し）

Kyoko: You look sleepy.

Makiko: Yeah, I'm really sleepy. The meeting was scheduled to last one hour, but it just went on and on.

　

Makiko means:

A. The meeting was exactly one hour.

B. The meeting was much longer than one hour.

C. The meeting ended quickly.

D. The meeting was a lot of fun.

　

Quick Glossary （用語辞典）

continue = 続く

lecture = 講議

emphasis = 強調

　

Examples（例文）

This idiom means "to continue without stopping" and "to continue for a long time." It is usually, but not always, used in a negative sense.

The meeting went on and on for hours. I thought it would never end.

Some investors in the U.S. expected the economic boom to go on and on, but I thought it would come to a swift end.

You can even extend this idiom for emphasis.

The lecture was only scheduled to last an hour, but it went on and on and on.

　

Exercises （練習）

Choose the best answer.

1. Linda said she a had a short story to tell me about her vacation, but she just ____________ on and on. I really felt like running away.

A. going

B. went

C. gone

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2. Be careful not to ask Andrew about computers. He's a real computer maniac, so if you ask him a question, you can be sure he ____________ on and on until you're completely bored.

A. will go

B. goes

C. going