May 2, 2025 • 9 mins
When I checked out of the hotel, I decided to check out the used bookshop across the street. It has a good reputation, and for sure, it checks out. And I could be wrong, but for some reason it seemed like the security guard there was checking me out.
Today we’re going to talk about a really common phrasal verb that shows up in tons of different situations - “check out.” I’m sure you’ve heard and even used check out before, but at the same time I can imagine you haven’t yet used check out in these various ways. And believe it or not, there are at least 7 different ways we use “check out” in English.
Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript
Visit my website for over 3,000 free English lessons: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/
Today we’re going to talk about a really common phrasal verb that shows up in tons of different situations - “check out.” I’m sure you’ve heard and even used check out before, but at the same time I can imagine you haven’t yet used check out in these various ways. And believe it or not, there are at least 7 different ways we use “check out” in English.
Join my Podcast Learner's Study Group here: https://learn.myhappyenglish.com/transcript
Visit my website for over 3,000 free English lessons: https://www.myhappyenglish.com/
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
When I checked out of the hotel, I decided to
check out the used book shop across the street. It
has a good reputation and for sure it checks out
and I could be wrong, but for some reason, it
seemed like the security guard there was checking me out.
Oh well, check out this podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from
New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael
here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.
And this is Happy English Podcast, Episode eight twenty two,
seven Meetings of check Out. Hello and welcome. Thanks for
(00:57):
joining me for another episode of the Happy English Podcast.
I'm your English teacher Michael, and I'm so glad you've
decided to tune in and check it out, especially because
today we're going to talk about a really common phrasal
verb that shows up in tons of different situations, check out.
(01:21):
I'm sure you've heard and even used check out before,
but at the same time, I can imagine you haven't
used check out in these various ways. And believe it
or not, there are at least seven different ways we
use check out in English. Some are totally every day
(01:44):
in basic, others a little slangy, and one well a
bit dark. So let's get into it and I'll walk
you through each one with natural examples along the way.
Probably the first way you learned to use check out
was related to officially leaving a hotel and paying the bill,
(02:09):
Like when you pack your suitcase and maybe ate way
too much at the breakfast buffet and now it's time
to leave. We say things like what time do we
need to check out tomorrow? Or I already checked out
and left the key at the front desk, or this
(02:29):
hotel lets you check out with an app on your phone.
Of course, the opposite is check in. Next, we use
check out to mean to look at or to investigate something,
especially something you are interested in, And we often use
(02:51):
this meaning of check out when we want to make
a suggestion, like hey, check out this YouTube video it's
it's hilarious, or you should check out that new Italian
restaurant on Fourteenth Street. The pizza is amazing, and by
the way, thank you for checking out this podcast today.
(03:16):
In a similar way, we use check out to mean
verify something or to make sure that something is true.
Imagine your coworker says, you know what I heard the
company is going to create a new management position, And
you respond, really, I didn't know that I should check
(03:40):
that out. Or maybe someone says, hey, I did some
investigating in Jack's story. Checks out That means the facts
seem true, everything makes sense. You'll hear this kind of
use of check out a lot in news reports and
police dramas on TV, and yeah, everyday conversations too. Next up,
(04:07):
the check out that happens at the end of almost
every shopping trip, checking out at the store. This one's
about paying for your items. You shop, you browse, you
fill up your cart, and then it's time to check out.
In other words, it's time to pay the cashier. You
(04:30):
can say things like are you ready to check out?
Or oh my, the line to check out is so long, simple, right,
but a very common use, especially like if you're at
Costco and somehow bought five things you didn't plan to buy.
We've all been there, right. We also use check out
(04:53):
when we take books home from the library. In English,
when you borrow a book, we say check the book
out from the library. I wonder if a lot of
people still do that, Like I checked out three books
from the library this week, and at my local library,
(05:15):
you can check out DVDs too, not just books. When
was the last time you checked out a book at
the library? All right? Time for a slightly different one,
kind of playful, kind of flirty. To check someone out.
(05:36):
This means you're looking at someone that you find attractive.
You're noticing them. It's not always romantic. Sometimes it's just curiosity,
but it's definitely more about appearance. Like maybe you're out
at a club or a bar with a friend and
(05:57):
they say, hey, did you see that guy over there
checking you out? Or maybe you walk into a room
and someone goes, WHOA, he was totally checking you out?
Have you checked out anyone recently? And finally, here's the
(06:18):
darkest version of checkout on the list. Checkout is a
slang term which means to die. Now. I know that
death is a sensitive topic and you may not expect
there to be slang about it, but we used check
out this way either when we don't have a close
(06:43):
relationship with a person who died, or when the death
took place a long time ago. Like I heard that
my old neighbor mister Miller checked out last night. I
didn't really know him well, I just knew he lived
in the neighborhood, so I used checkout, or like my
(07:06):
grandfather checked out in nineteen eighty three. Now, you may
feel uncomfortable using checkout in this way, and that's totally understandable.
Using checkout to mention that someone died comes under the
category of good to know, but maybe not good or
(07:28):
easy to use. Yeah, this one's a little heavy, but
you'll hear it sometimes in movies or TV shows, so
it's good to know and keep in mind. The best
way to remember English like this and any other word
or phrase in English, is to take that word or phrase,
write it in a sentence that's true for you or
(07:51):
true in your world, and then memorize your sentences and
remember this. You can get more practice using your English
when you join my podcast Learner's Study Group. There you
can make new friends join us for live group lessons
every week where we practice these podcast lessons together. Plus
(08:17):
you get access to the PDF, transcript and audio download
for every Happy English podcast in the past and in
the future. And on top of that, each episode has
exercises where you can practice this English point with speaking
and writing checked by me. Yeah. To learn more, just
(08:38):
visit Myhappy english dot com and choose podcast lesson eight
twenty two. Remember learning another language is not easy, but
it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you on
your journey.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please
visit my Happy English dot com. Show your support for
Happy English by leaving us a review. Get English, Get
happy Happy English.
When I checked out of the hotel, I decided to
check out the used book shop across the street. It
has a good reputation and for sure it checks out
and I could be wrong, but for some reason, it
seemed like the security guard there was checking me out.
Oh well, check out this podcast.
Speaker 2 (00:26):
Welcome to another Happy English podcast, coming to you from
New York City. And here's your English teacher, Michael.
Speaker 1 (00:34):
All right, thank you John, and thanks everyone. It's Michael
here from Happy English and I help people speak English better.
And this is Happy English Podcast, Episode eight twenty two,
seven Meetings of check Out. Hello and welcome. Thanks for
(00:57):
joining me for another episode of the Happy English Podcast.
I'm your English teacher Michael, and I'm so glad you've
decided to tune in and check it out, especially because
today we're going to talk about a really common phrasal
verb that shows up in tons of different situations, check out.
(01:21):
I'm sure you've heard and even used check out before,
but at the same time, I can imagine you haven't
used check out in these various ways. And believe it
or not, there are at least seven different ways we
use check out in English. Some are totally every day
(01:44):
in basic, others a little slangy, and one well a
bit dark. So let's get into it and I'll walk
you through each one with natural examples along the way.
Probably the first way you learned to use check out
was related to officially leaving a hotel and paying the bill,
(02:09):
Like when you pack your suitcase and maybe ate way
too much at the breakfast buffet and now it's time
to leave. We say things like what time do we
need to check out tomorrow? Or I already checked out
and left the key at the front desk, or this
(02:29):
hotel lets you check out with an app on your phone.
Of course, the opposite is check in. Next, we use
check out to mean to look at or to investigate something,
especially something you are interested in, And we often use
(02:51):
this meaning of check out when we want to make
a suggestion, like hey, check out this YouTube video it's
it's hilarious, or you should check out that new Italian
restaurant on Fourteenth Street. The pizza is amazing, and by
the way, thank you for checking out this podcast today.
(03:16):
In a similar way, we use check out to mean
verify something or to make sure that something is true.
Imagine your coworker says, you know what I heard the
company is going to create a new management position, And
you respond, really, I didn't know that I should check
(03:40):
that out. Or maybe someone says, hey, I did some
investigating in Jack's story. Checks out That means the facts
seem true, everything makes sense. You'll hear this kind of
use of check out a lot in news reports and
police dramas on TV, and yeah, everyday conversations too. Next up,
(04:07):
the check out that happens at the end of almost
every shopping trip, checking out at the store. This one's
about paying for your items. You shop, you browse, you
fill up your cart, and then it's time to check out.
In other words, it's time to pay the cashier. You
(04:30):
can say things like are you ready to check out?
Or oh my, the line to check out is so long, simple, right,
but a very common use, especially like if you're at
Costco and somehow bought five things you didn't plan to buy.
We've all been there, right. We also use check out
(04:53):
when we take books home from the library. In English,
when you borrow a book, we say check the book
out from the library. I wonder if a lot of
people still do that, Like I checked out three books
from the library this week, and at my local library,
(05:15):
you can check out DVDs too, not just books. When
was the last time you checked out a book at
the library? All right? Time for a slightly different one,
kind of playful, kind of flirty. To check someone out.
(05:36):
This means you're looking at someone that you find attractive.
You're noticing them. It's not always romantic. Sometimes it's just curiosity,
but it's definitely more about appearance. Like maybe you're out
at a club or a bar with a friend and
(05:57):
they say, hey, did you see that guy over there
checking you out? Or maybe you walk into a room
and someone goes, WHOA, he was totally checking you out?
Have you checked out anyone recently? And finally, here's the
(06:18):
darkest version of checkout on the list. Checkout is a
slang term which means to die. Now. I know that
death is a sensitive topic and you may not expect
there to be slang about it, but we used check
out this way either when we don't have a close
(06:43):
relationship with a person who died, or when the death
took place a long time ago. Like I heard that
my old neighbor mister Miller checked out last night. I
didn't really know him well, I just knew he lived
in the neighborhood, so I used checkout, or like my
(07:06):
grandfather checked out in nineteen eighty three. Now, you may
feel uncomfortable using checkout in this way, and that's totally understandable.
Using checkout to mention that someone died comes under the
category of good to know, but maybe not good or
(07:28):
easy to use. Yeah, this one's a little heavy, but
you'll hear it sometimes in movies or TV shows, so
it's good to know and keep in mind. The best
way to remember English like this and any other word
or phrase in English, is to take that word or phrase,
write it in a sentence that's true for you or
(07:51):
true in your world, and then memorize your sentences and
remember this. You can get more practice using your English
when you join my podcast Learner's Study Group. There you
can make new friends join us for live group lessons
every week where we practice these podcast lessons together. Plus
(08:17):
you get access to the PDF, transcript and audio download
for every Happy English podcast in the past and in
the future. And on top of that, each episode has
exercises where you can practice this English point with speaking
and writing checked by me. Yeah. To learn more, just
(08:38):
visit Myhappy english dot com and choose podcast lesson eight
twenty two. Remember learning another language is not easy, but
it's not impossible, and I'm here to help you on
your journey.
Speaker 2 (08:55):
This podcast is brought to you by Happy English. Please
visit my Happy English dot com. Show your support for
Happy English by leaving us a review. Get English, Get
happy Happy English.
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