Life would be a lot easier if we always had "all the time in the world" to get our work done — which is another way of saying "lots of time" — but that doesn't happen often! Here are some phrases to help you talk about time.
If you have to write a report and you know it won't take long, you might tell your boss, "Don't worry, I'll have it done 'in no time.'"
However, if your boss thinks you're taking too long and wants you to hurry up, she might say, "OK, but 'time is of the essence.'" The word "essence" in this phrase means "the most important thing."
And if you were still working on the report just hours or minutes before the meeting where it had to be presented, someone may tell you that the "clock is ticking." This phrase comes from the sound a clock makes, and we use it to let people know that time is running out to do something.
Sometimes you have to travel to get to important meetings, but it's often hard to know what the traffic will be like and how long it will take you to get there. If there are no traffic jams and you're making good progress, you could say, "We're 'making good time' so we won't be late."
It's important to be on time for meetings, but sometimes it's even better to get there early — or "ahead of time." You might say to a coworker, "If we get there ahead of time, we can make sure we have everything we need."
※ 本课的中文版本不是直译，而是把这些英语短语转换成了中文里地道的对应说法，方便学生直接学到能用的中文表达。