Common American Phrases in Everyday Contexts (246 page)

You been keeping busy?
Go to (Have you) been keeping busy?

You been keeping cool?
Go to (Have you) been keeping cool?

You been keeping out of trouble?
Go to (Have you) been keeping out of trouble?

You been okay?
Go to (Have you) been okay?

You bet
.
AND
You betcha
.
Yes.; You can be quite certain.
B
ILL
: Can I take one of these apples? B
OB
: You bet
.
B
ILL
: Do you like this movie? T
OM
: You betcha.

You bet your boots
!
Go to You bet your (sweet) life!

You bet your life
!
Go to You bet your (sweet) life!

You bet your (sweet) life
!
AND
You bet your boots!; You bet your life!; You bet your (sweet) bippy
.
You can be absolutely certain of something! (Informal and colloquial.)
M
ARY
: Will I need a coat today? B
ILL
: You bet your sweet life! It's colder than an iceberg out there
.
B
ILL
: Will you be at the game Saturday? T
OM
: You bet your boots!

You betcha
.
Go to You bet.

You called? 1
.
a phrase used when one is returning a telephone call, meaning “What did you want to talk about when you called before?”
B
ILL
(answering the phone): Hello? B
OB
: This is Bob. You called?
T
OM
: It's Tom. You called? M
ARY
: Hi, Tom. Yes, I wanted to ask you about these estimates
.
2
.
a phrase said by someone who has been summoned into a person's presence. (Often used in jest, in the way a servant might answer an employer.)
M
ARY
: Oh, Tom. Come over here a minute. T
OM
(coming to where Mary is standing): You called?
T
OM
: Bill! Bill! Over here, Bill, across the street. B
ILL
(panting from running and with mock deference): You called?

You can bank on it
.
Go to You can take it to the bank.

(You can) call me
name. My first name is
my name
.
My name is Wallace, but you can call me Wally.
You can call me Fred. Everyone else does.

You can say that again
!
That is so true or so insightful that it bears repeating.
B
ILL
: Gee, it's cold today! M
ARY
: You can say that again!
B
ILL
: This cake sure is good. F
ATHER
: You can say that again.