Idiom: On a __ scale; used as a prepositional phrase
First Example:
Daniel: Hey Deanna, I was in San Jose the
other day and saw an ad for your company on TV. I didn’t expect to see anything outside of Los
Angeles.
Deanna: Yeah, since we opened the San
Francisco branch, we’ve expanded our advertising. We’re now advertising on a statewide scale.
Daniel: Wow. Have you gotten any new clients out of it?
Deanna: Actually, yes. I just signed a contract with a new client in
Oakland, and I have a telephone meeting with a possible client from Northern
California in half an hour.
Daniel: Wow, that’s great! Congratulations.
Deanna: Thanks.
Daniel: And if you decide you want to
break into the Las Vegas market, let me know.
I have some contacts there.
Deanna: I’ll keep that in mind.
Meaning:
The phrase “on a ____ scale” indicates a measurement of some kind. The “____” is completed with an adjective
that indicates size or range, such as with the example above: “on a statewide
scale.” This means that Deanna is
advertising her company all over the state of California. This idiom can be used with words suggesting
large ranges (“statewide”, “national”, “massive”,
“grand”) and small ranges (“local”, “small”,
“limited”). Look at another
example:
Francisco branch, we’ve expanded our advertising. We’re now advertising on a statewide scale.
Daniel: Wow. Have you gotten any new clients out of it?
Deanna: Actually, yes. I just signed a contract with a new client in
Oakland, and I have a telephone meeting with a possible client from Northern
California in half an hour.
Daniel: Wow, that’s great! Congratulations.
Deanna: Thanks.
Daniel: And if you decide you want to
break into the Las Vegas market, let me know.
I have some contacts there.
Deanna: I’ll keep that in mind.
Meaning:
The phrase “on a ____ scale” indicates a measurement of some kind. The “____” is completed with an adjective
that indicates size or range, such as with the example above: “on a statewide
scale.” This means that Deanna is
advertising her company all over the state of California. This idiom can be used with words suggesting
large ranges (“statewide”, “national”, “massive”,
“grand”) and small ranges (“local”, “small”,
“limited”). Look at another
example:
Deanna: What about your company? Any plans to move out of Las Vegas?
Daniel: Right now, demand doesn’t seem
very high, so we’re only advertising on
a limited scale. We’re doing well locally, so we’re playing it
safe.
Deanna: Yeah, it can be risky to try to
expand too quickly. Glad to hear you’re
doing well though.
Daniel: Thanks.
In this case, Daniel is not advertising on a large scale, preferring to keep his business local, where he is
already doing well.
Daniel: Right now, demand doesn’t seem
very high, so we’re only advertising on
a limited scale. We’re doing well locally, so we’re playing it
safe.
Deanna: Yeah, it can be risky to try to
expand too quickly. Glad to hear you’re
doing well though.
Daniel: Thanks.
In this case, Daniel is not advertising on a large scale, preferring to keep his business local, where he is
already doing well.
This idiom is from LSI’s new edition of “Reading
Horizons,” which will be used in the Level 6 Reading classes. For more
information, please visit https://www.languagesystems.com/
