Let's Get to the 'Root of the Problem'
2022-05-08
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1And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English.
2On this program we explore words and expressions in the English language.
3Today we talk about an important part of every plant - the roots.
4The roots of most plants grow below the ground.
5There, they have some very important jobs.
6The roots anchor the plant.
7They secure it in the ground.
8Roots also take in water and minerals to feed the plant.
9And in many plants, the roots store food and nutrients.
10So, roots are the foundation of the plant: the supporting structures.
11And that gives us our first expression: "to put roots down."
12When you put roots down, you make a place your home by creating connections.
13You get a job and maybe buy a house.
14You also make friends and join activities.
15You might start a family.
16As your children start school, your ties to the school and other parents are also roots.
17All these things connect you to a place.
18Each connection makes it harder for you to leave.
19Just like the roots of a plant, they ground you.
20If you want to move a plant, you must be careful not to disturb the roots too much.
21If you do, you could kill the plant.
22And that brings us to another way we use the word root.
23The root can also be the start or cause of something.
24For example, I could say that my love of mystery stories is rooted in my childhood full of Agatha Christie books!
25Now, problems have roots too.
26So, people could say that a small town's problems are rooted in a lack of good jobs.
27That suggests our next expression: Get to the root of the problem.
28When we get to the root of the problem, we get to the cause of it.
29You can also strike at the root of a problem if you are looking for a way to solve it.
30Sometimes we use the verb "dig" to go with some root expressions.
31As we said, roots are underground. You must dig to reach them.
32So, we could say, "A lack of jobs is just one issue. To get to the root of the city's larger problem, we must dig deeper."
33Here's an example:
34A: I just heard that the city council is going to add more money to this year's school budget.
35B: That's good news! But I'm not sure more money is going to fix high truancy rates and poor classroom behavior.
36A: Well, it can't hurt.
37B: True. But to really help students, we need to get to the root of the education problem.
38A: And what do you think the root of the problem is?
39B: I think the "roots" to that problem are vast and complex.
40Now for our final expression.
41There is a common saying in English that involves roots.
42You may hear people say that money is the root of all evil.
43That expression comes from the Bible: "The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil."
44While it may not be root of all evil, I'm sure that greed has caused quite a few problems.
45And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories. Until next time, I'm Anna Matteo.
1And now, Words and Their Stories from VOA Learning English. 2On this program we explore words and expressions in the English language. 3Today we talk about an important part of every plant - the roots. 4The roots of most plants grow below the ground. There, they have some very important jobs. The roots anchor the plant. They secure it in the ground. Roots also take in water and minerals to feed the plant. And in many plants, the roots store food and nutrients. 5So, roots are the foundation of the plant: the supporting structures. And that gives us our first expression: "to put roots down." 6When you put roots down, you make a place your home by creating connections. You get a job and maybe buy a house. You also make friends and join activities. You might start a family. As your children start school, your ties to the school and other parents are also roots. 7All these things connect you to a place. Each connection makes it harder for you to leave. Just like the roots of a plant, they ground you. 8If you want to move a plant, you must be careful not to disturb the roots too much. If you do, you could kill the plant. 9And that brings us to another way we use the word root. The root can also be the start or cause of something. 10For example, I could say that my love of mystery stories is rooted in my childhood full of Agatha Christie books! Now, problems have roots too. So, people could say that a small town's problems are rooted in a lack of good jobs. 11That suggests our next expression: Get to the root of the problem. When we get to the root of the problem, we get to the cause of it. You can also strike at the root of a problem if you are looking for a way to solve it. 12Sometimes we use the verb "dig" to go with some root expressions. As we said, roots are underground. You must dig to reach them. So, we could say, "A lack of jobs is just one issue. To get to the root of the city's larger problem, we must dig deeper." 13Here's an example: 14A: I just heard that the city council is going to add more money to this year's school budget. 15B: That's good news! But I'm not sure more money is going to fix high truancy rates and poor classroom behavior. 16A: Well, it can't hurt. 17B: True. But to really help students, we need to get to the root of the education problem. 18A: And what do you think the root of the problem is? 19B: I think the "roots" to that problem are vast and complex. 20Now for our final expression. There is a common saying in English that involves roots. You may hear people say that money is the root of all evil. That expression comes from the Bible: "The love of money is the root of all kinds of evil." 21While it may not be root of all evil, I'm sure that greed has caused quite a few problems. 22And that's the end of this Words and Their Stories. Until next time, I'm Anna Matteo. 23Anna Matteo wrote this story for VOA Learning English. 24___________________________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26anchor -v. to hold something firmly in place 27truancy -n. to miss school without permission 28vast -adj. very great in size, amount or extent 29greed -n. a selfish desire to have more of something (especially money)