“Some people are just genetically predisposed to alcoholism, I guess.”

English Lesson: Some people are just genetically predisposed to alcoholism, I guess.

You have a friend who drinks too much. You and another friend are talking about him. Your friend wonders why this guy has a drinking problem while other people don't, so you give your opinion.

Some people are just genetically predisposed to alcoholism, I guess.

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(sentence), I guess.

You can end your sentence with "...I guess" when you're either not very sure about something:

A: It's not working.

B: You have to have a password, I guess.

You can also use this phrase when you're not happy about something:

I'll stay here and keep working, I guess.

Another phrase that you can use in this situation is "I suppose," which is a little more formal:

A: Is it OK if I send you the payment online?

B: Yeah, I suppose.

alcoholism

When a person can't stop drinking alcohol, we call that problem "alcoholism". You can use the word "alcoholism" like this:

Alcoholism and drug addiction are major issues in our society.

My family has a history of alcoholism.

A person who has this problem is "an alcoholic":

I'm a recovering alcoholic.

(someone) is genetically predisposed to (a health problem)

Being "genetically predisposed to" a health problem means that you're more likely to have that problem than most people because the problem runs in your family:

Some people are genetically predisposed to certain kinds of cancer.

This phrase sounds academic or scientific.

The word "genetically" comes from "gene", which is a piece of information that is passed from parents to children. Some other ways that we use "genetically" are:

  • genetically modified organism is a plant or animal whose genes have been changed by scientists.
  • Identical twins are genetically identical because they have the same genes.

Being "predisposed to" something just means that that thing often happens. You can use it like this:

That breed of dog is naturally predisposed to violence.

I'm predisposed to believe people when they tell me something.