The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence: Daily Vocabulary

(TESOL Worksheets--Daily Vocabulary)

Youtube Video--Google: docs, pub Slideshow (slides, pub)
(This is re-purposed from my lesson on proverbs).



Today's vocabulary is a proverb. A proverb is a wise saying that gives you advice about how to live your life. Today's proverb is: The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. What does this mean? Well, imagine a typical American neighborhood. There are houses and then around the house is a yard. The yard is the outside area. The yard has a lawn. A lawn is the area where the grass grows. Grass, as you know, is--when it's healthy is green. When it's not healthy it looks brown or yellow. So, of course, everyone wants green grass in their yard--healthy green grass in their own yard. Now between the yards is a fence. So the fence separates your yard from your neighbor's yard. Now, according to this proverb, when you look over the fence to see the grass in your neighbor's yard, your neighbor’s grass looks greener to you. So the grass  always looks greener in your neighbor's yard. The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence. Now, according to this proverb, your neighbor is looking over the fence at your grass and your neighbor thinks that your grass looks greener. So essentially, the proverb means: whatever you don't have looks better than what you do have.
For example, imagine this conversation:
“I hate working in an office all day. I wish I had a job where I could work outside. I want to be a farmer.”
“If you were a farmer, then you would wish you had an office job. You know what they say: The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.”
Very often people will use this proverb in its shortened form.  They will just say: “The grass is always greener” and they will leave the rest of the proverb unsaid. So you'll often hear people say, “Well, you know what they say, the grass is always greener,” and then the rest of the proverb is left unsaid.