Hi I am an ESL student and currently travel to USA to learn some English and the culture.   I know sometimes there are hidden meanings in the everyday slangs and recently a male teacher asked me to "have a drink some time with him."  I don't know if it's really have a drink or there's more, you know, romantic hints or something.  And forgive me that I don't quite understand the western culture here.

Anybody could help me out to decode this please?  Thanks.

sometimes there are hidden meanings in things that people say to you. as far as the teacher goes I would keep my social life social and not have a drink with him so there would not be any problem what so ever .pick and choose your friends very carefully and your teacher is not your friend but your teacher. my friends i drink with not my teacher ut the decision is yours.you will find that people say one thing and mean another.

Here in america, I think "havin a drink" is more like goin' on a date.

You know you don't have drinks durin' d day. ok, some people do. But most of the time when i hear people say "let me buy u drink smtime", They mean "let's go on a date and have a drink"

Most of the time, u don't end up drinkin'. so it was just a date. But americans say "drink" anywayz not mindin' whether u drink or not. That's what i think.

have a drink means to actually have a drink

unless you want it to mean something else

what does it mean in your part of the world

have a drink is have a drink ok!!!!!!!!

here it means let us go shack
paraga
shepe
monkey tail
ogogoro
and sometimes beer.
abi, anything else, my people?

here it means let's get drunk!!!!! thereafter anything can happen!!!!!

@knotty
Dats wat it means but dont 4get monkey tail can make u do dat thing or aint want to do,
@ poster
Your teacher is ur teacher,

If he says drink, then drink it is. If it gets farther than that, shoot him in the head

@ Poster

When a Guy says to me " To have a Drink". it usually means they want my defenses down
and a quick way to sex. But Sometimes I jokily say "I rather have the money instead, if you don't mind"

maybe it just means that i.e to have a drink, but the guy is still your teacher (right?)

except if you are the one who fancies a drink with him.

@caradona

yea right the money indeed! but i feel u sha.

to have a drink isnt dat simple oo, just thk it thru,

in my own way, lemme buy u a drink means, u might be going hme wif me today or sme other time

@breeolan

can i buy u a drink then?

@Topic

First of all, congratulations for picking up on the fact that certain phrases "indeed" have meaning; they are cute ways of getting the point across.

"Let's have a drink". If a female or group of friends says this, then it means "let's have a drink".

HOWEVER, if a man says this to you, ESPECIALLY a more mature man such as the professor, it means "I like you and I want to spend time with you". Going to get the actually "drink" is a means to an end. An invite for the said "drink" is usually romantic to sexual in nature. Doesn't always mean you will have sex that night, but an interest is there

A plantonic variation of this is "Let's go get some coffee". Unless it's a first date, then "Let's go for some coffee" can be a safe, yet sophisticated way to get to know someone at a coffee shop (e.g. Starbucks).

Funny, I was just talking to a friend of mine, who was contemplating a "coffee" date. We decided the "coffee" date would be good for her because it's relaxed, non-threatening, with good background music, and she could dress casual.

With the "drink" date, you would have to get dressed a little. A nice dress or pants enemble with heels, makeup, etc. Or a least a nice pair of flats or wedges, whatever, I'm sure you get the point.

So with all this in mind, I hope it's become very clear of what the professor's intentions are. Plainly, he is attracted to you the way a man is attracted to a woman. I would suggest not "going there" with him. But its your call.

But know this; Student/Professor relationships, while common, can blow up in your face, and distract you from your studies. It could put his job on the line for sexual harassment. If you date the professor, be EXTREMELY discreet and mature about it.

in the us

if a guy says lets have a drink it means he is slightly interested and would like to get to know u better. but if a teacher tells u lets have a drink it means he is very interested and would like to get to know u better, problem is its a huge stigma here. something that is frowned upon,so if he is asking u then he definately does not care about rules, and best u stay away from him.

SO YOU GUYZ LOVE DRINK,PLEASE DONT GET URSELF DROKE OOO HEHEHE :d :d :d

lo yes 'have a drink' simply means going out to have a drink lol. you can decide if you want to drink till you are leggless or shitfaced. I go out for drinks with my girlfriend and friends . we sometimes get shitfaced lmao

Carlosein:

@breeolan

can i buy u a drink then?

hahahhhaa, swuooosssh!!

very funny!!!!

I agree that the most common US interpretation is that it means he has an interest in you and would like to spend some time getting to know you outside of the typical setting that you both either work in, play in etc, So based on the US culture, I'd say he is interested in you and would like to talk with you i.e Get to know you better - in a slightly more than friendly way. Kind of like saying - "Hey, lets meet in an open social setting, talk one-on-one and see if we strike a chord with each other, "

Since most peeps don't outright toast people out here when it comes to the initial stages of dating, typically asking someone out then takes the form of a prelude to dating - "Hey would you like to meet for a drink, or for coffee, or for dinner, or for a movie, etc" without really being so upfront that there is an interest in dating you.

I guess I should add that the event or place he invites you to should also clue you in to what the motive could be - for example, if its a coffee date, it could be simply an interest in being friends or just learning more about something they find intriguing about you - like your culture, accent etc

Now, for drinks, especially because it means having an alcoholic beverage, it weighs heavily on the side of having an interest in you, but, of course, nothing is 100% unless he spells it out. Its just the norm in this culture that a drink is not just a drink.

well i think he wants to get to know u beta, aw well will depend on wot happens then, its more or less a date

Well, when I was single and in America , and I ask a woman out for a drink and

she actually go out with me she end up paying me what I spent that day in kind.

Those were the days sha. so make sure the guy is not like me and most expecially

don't have a drink with your teacher. A word is enough for the wise.

@Poster

are you sure you are an ESL student.

I wonder.

hi thanks everyone!  i think i've got the point!

but what if i graduated from the ESL school later and then he asked?  is it appropriate to have a drink with him because i just wanted to make friends, 

jj1623:

hi thanks everyone! i think i've got the point!

but what if i graduated from the ESL school later and then he asked? is it appropriate to have a drink with him because i just wanted to make friends,

Word of advise (let me save you time and energy), First to answer your question, no there is nothing wrong with "a drink" later on. But very few men simply want to be "just friends". That's just the reality. And certainly not in this case. Please don't try to set yourself up to be the exception to the rule, because you will just get hurt.

As for me sha, Let have a drinks means, gal i wanna know you beta

@jj1623,

hi thanks everyone! i think i've got the point!

but what if i graduated from the ESL school later and then he asked? is it appropriate to have a drink with him because i just wanted to make friends,

Obviously, you have developed a very very very sooooffffftttttt spot for this white-bearded, bald-headed , coke-bottle googled prof. (even though I never met him!) and bent on having a feel of him . . . common dude, is he the only one you can make friend with? See plenty of US nairalanders living in US you no want ve drink with us, abi becos we never ask you?

For your 411 I've just included my email addy in my profile - an invitation to e-drink!


ATTENTION MR. ADMIN,

Did you program forum to be transforming our slangs to queen's english? Naira-landers changed to Nairaland users!But see "Naira-landers" on this line did not change - garbage in, garbage out - - that's computer for you!

Nice job though.

i think u shuldn't b very concious bt still behave neutral lik notin's appenin,cos he didint say more dan avin a drink.dnt start actin like he's asked u out!

as 4 wen u r graduate,if he isnt seein u as a drunk y nt u can ave a drink.bt can i ask y u r feelin he's still gonna b askin u 4 a drink wen u're graduated if he's just a frend.or r u aviv a crush on him

Having a Drink sometime.
you all forgot the sometime.
Its like an empty promise.
Its like saying how are you without really wanting to know your problems.

Let's "have a drink" could mean 'to be more intimate'. Wanting to know more about a person. However, the literary understanding could apply too, that is, just taking a drink for leisure. So it all depends on  the individual who is asking for it; what such a person has in mind, to a large extent, determines the meaning.

I'm a buy you a drink, uh uh I'm o take you home with me, I got money in the bank . . .
Lol!
Song came to mind wen i saw the topic.
He may just mean socializing, maybe he finds you interesting and wants to know more bout nigeria.
how did he say it and wat was his body language like?
was he staring at you uncomfortably?
that could give a hint.
keep us posted.