English idioms, with definitions or synonyms and examples
English idioms, with definitions or synonyms and examples
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English idioms, with definitions or synonyms and examples
Idioms, with definitions or synonyms |
Examples |
A above board - honest, open |
His business dealings are above board. |
ad lib - improvise, interpolate |
The actor forgot his lines and ad libbed. |
after all - in spite of the situation; nevertheless |
I knew it! After all, I was right! He returned to his hometown after all. |
against the grain - contrary to someone's feelings, principles |
His plan goes against the grain with her because she doesn't like cheating. |
all along - all the time |
I knew about his little secret all along. |
all ears - eager to listen |
I am all ears. |
all of a sudden - suddenly |
All of a sudden, he refused to pay. |
all the same - no difference |
If it's all the same to you, let's start at two. |
all thumbs - clumsy |
He can't fix anything, he's all thumbs. |
apple of one's eye - very dear, precious |
Her son is the apple of her eye. |
apple of discord - subject of envy or quarrel |
This question is an apple of discord in our family. |
as a rule - generally, usually |
As a rule, we offer a 5% discount. |
as far as I know - if I have correct information |
As far as I know, he stayed home all day. |
as far as someone / something is concerned - concerning; in reference to |
As far as I am concerned, both the book and the movie are good. As far as your report is concerned, we'll discuss it tomorrow. |
as for / as to - concerning; in reference to |
As for me, you can always rely on my support. As for your report, we'll discuss it tomorrow. |
as well - also; too |
He knows math and physics as well. |
at all - (not) in the smallest degree |
He doesn't know French at all. I don't like it at all. |
at first sight - from the first glance; at once; at first glance |
It was love at first sight. At first sight, it seems easy to do. |
at odds with - in disagreement |
He is at odds with everyone! |
at random - without order or plan |
He chose those places at random. |
at this point - at this time |
At this point, we can't turn back. |
B backseat driver - a passenger who tells you how to drive |
His wife is a backseat driver always telling him how to drive. |
ballpark figure - approximate estimate (in figures) |
I can give you only a ballpark figure at this time. |
bark up the wrong tree - make a false assumption or wrong choice |
The detective was sure he got a suspect, but he was barking up the wrong tree. |
be about to do something - be close to doing something; be on the verge of doing something |
I was about to leave when you called. I was about to open the door, but something stopped me. |
be all in - be extremely tired |
I'm all in, I'd better go to bed now. |
be back on one's feet - be healthy again or better financially |
He's back on his feet after a long period of debt and unemployment. |
be behind the times - be old-fashioned, outdated |
Some of the managers here are behind the times; their methods are not modern. |
be beside oneself - be very upset, nervous, worried |
She was beside herself with worry / with grief. |
be beside the point - be off the point |
What I said to him privately is beside the point. |
be better off - be in a better situation (financially) |
He'll be better off with a new job. |
be broke - have no money at all; be penniless, bankrupt |
I spent all my money, I'm broke. |
be cut out to be someone; be cut out for it - have the ability to do something |
He is cut out to be a leader. She isn't cut out to be a surgeon. She isn't cut out for it. |
be hard on something or someone - treat roughly |
My son is hard on shoes; they don't last long with him. Life was pretty hard on Tom. |
be high on one's list - be one of the most important things |
A new car is high on my list of priorities. A new TV is not high on my list. |
be in charge of something - be responsible for |
He is in charge of marketing. |
be in good health - be healthy |
She is in good health. |
be in poor health - be not healthy |
She is in poor health. |
be in good shape - be physically fit |
He is in good shape because he exercises regularly. |
be in bad shape - be in bad state |
The patient is in bad shape. His affairs are in bad shape. |
be in the red - be in debt |
Our sales were in the red last year. |
be on one's way |
I'm on my way. |
be on the point of something, be at the point of something - be on the verge of something; be close to doing something |
He was on the point of death two years ago. She was on the point of telling him the truth, but his words stopped her. |
be out of date - be outdated |
This information is out of date. |
be out of sorts - be in bad temper |
Leave him alone, he's out of sorts today. |
be pressed for time, for money - not to have enough time, money |
I'm pressed for time now. We are pressed for money at the moment. |
be to blame - be responsible for a mistake, for something wrong |
Who is to blame for this awful mistake? Tom is to blame for this mix-up. |
be touch and go - risky; dangerous; uncertain of the result |
He was very sick, and for some time it was touch and go, but he is better now. |
be up and around / about - able to be out of bed after an illness |
He was sick for a month, but now he is up and around. |
be up to one's ears in (work) - be very busy |
I'm up to my ears in work. |
beat around the bush; beat about the bush - avoid giving a clear or definite answer |
Stop beating around the bush! Get to the point! |
beat one's brains out - make great efforts, often unsuccessfully |
He beats his brains out at work, but his boss doesn't even notice his hard work. |
before long - soon |
He will understand before long what a terrible mistake he has made. |
big shot - important person |
He is a big shot around here. |
bite off more than one can chew - try to do more than one can |
I couldn't handle two jobs and family. I really bit off more than I could chew. |
bite the bullet - accept painful but necessary action |
Sometimes you just have to bite the bullet and to do what's necessary to do. |
bite the dust - die; be killed; suffer defeat |
Many of them bit the dust in that war. |
bite the hand that feeds one - repay kindness with evil |
She is so ungrateful! She is biting the hand that feeds her! |
black sheep - a good-for-nothing member of the family |
Their second son is the black sheep of the family; he is good for nothing. |
blind date - a meeting between a man and a woman (who have never met before) arranged by their friends |
She refuses to go on a blind date again because she had bad experience. |
blow it - lose the chance |
He understood that he blew it. |
bottom line - main result; main factor |
The bottom line is, I don't have enough money. |
break someone's heart - hurt deeply |
The news of her death broke his heart. |
break the ice - overcome shyness in making the first step |
The party was dull until someone broke the ice with a joke, and we all laughed. |
break the news - tell new important facts |
CNN is breaking the news right now. |
bring home the bacon - earn the living for the family |
He works very hard at several places to bring home the bacon. |
by all means - definitely, certainly |
Do you need my help? - By all means. |
by heart - by memorizing |
Learn this poem by heart for tomorrow. |
by hook or by crook - by any possible means |
She will get what she wants by hook or by crook. |
by oneself (by myself, by himself, etc.) - alone; on one's own |
She spent the evening by herself. He did it all by himself. |
by the way - incidentally |
By the way, I found the book that you recommended. |
C call a halt to something - terminate, stop something |
His father called a halt to his activity. |
call a spade a spade - use plain, direct words |
He always tells the truth and calls a spade a spade. |
call it a day - consider work finished for the day |
We've been working for ten straight hours. Let's call it a day. |
call the shots - give orders; be in control of something |
He calls the shots in this company. |
call the tune - give orders; be the most important person in some situation |
Since he was paying for it, he called the tune. |
carry weight - be important |
His advice always carries weight here. |
castles in the air - daydreaming about success |
Instead of working hard, he spends time building castles in the air. |
catch someone's eye - attract attention |
This picture caught my eye. |
catch one's breath - stop and rest |
I'm too tired to run further. I need to catch my breath. |
catch someone off guard - catch someone unprepared |
He caught me off guard with his question. |
catch someone red-handed - find someone in the act of doing wrong |
The manager caught the boy red-handed when he was stealing cigarettes. |
close call - a narrow escape; a bad thing that almost happened |
The speeding car almost hit the man. That was really a close call. |
come to one's senses - act normally and reasonably again |
He finally came to his senses, began to work hard, and passed his exams. |
come true - become reality |
His dream came true when he met Kate. |
cross one's mind - occur to someone |
It never crossed my mind that he might be ill. |
cut corners - 1. take a short-cut; 2. limit one's spending |
He ran fast, cutting corners where he could. I have to cut corners this week. |
D do one's best - try very hard |
I did my best to help him in his work. |
do one's bit - do what's needed |
I'll do my bit, you can count on me. |
do someone good - be good for someone |
Fresh air and exercise will do you good |
do something behind someone's back - do (harmful) things secretively |
I hate people who do things behind my back. He did it behind my back again. |
down to earth - practical |
He's quiet, sensible, and down to earth. |
draw the line - set a limit; impose a restriction |
I draw the line at spending so much on food. He drew the line for her at $100 a day. |
duty calls - must fulfill obligations |
He said, "Duty calls", put on his coat, and left for work. |
E easier said than done |
It's easier said than done, but I'll try to do it. |
eat one's words - take back one's words |
He had to eat his words after her report. |
even so - nevertheless; but |
I work hard. Even so, I like my job. |
every now and then - occasionally |
Every now and then I visit my old aunt. |
every other - every second one |
She washes her hair every other day. |
F fall in love (with) - begin to love |
Tom fell in love with Sue at first sight. |
fall out of love - stop loving |
They soon fell out of love and divorced. |
false alarm - untrue signal; untrue rumor |
I heard that he quit his job, but it was a false alarm. |
a far cry from something - not nearly as good |
His second book wasn't bad, but it was a far cry from his first book. |
feel it in one's bones - expect something bad to happen |
I feel it in my bones that something terrible is going to happen. |
feel like doing something - want to do; be inclined to do something |
I feel like going for a walk. I don't feel like working now, I'm tired. |
few and far between - rare, scarce |
Her visits are few and far between. |
find fault with someone or something - criticize; complain about |
He finds fault with everybody. She always finds fault with my cooking. |
first things first - important things come before others |
First things first: how much money do we have to pay right away? |
fly off the handle - get angry |
He flew off the handle and yelled at me. |
follow in someone's footsteps - do the same thing |
Igor followed in his father's footsteps. He became a doctor too. |
foot the bill - pay the bill |
Her father footed the bill for the party. |
for good - forever |
After her death he left town for good. |
for the time being - for now; at this time |
For the time being, this house is all right for us. |
frame of mind - mental state |
I can't do it in this frame of mind. |
from A to Z - completely; from beginning to end |
He knows this town from A to Z. |
from now on - now and in the future |
From now on I forbid you to go there. |
from the word go - from the very beginning |
He was lying to all of us from the word go. |
G get a grip on oneself - take control of one's feelings |
Stop crying! Get a grip on yourself! |
get carried away - get too excited and enthusiastic about something |
He got carried away with opening a store and lost most of his money. |
get cold feet - be afraid to do something |
He wanted to try it, but he got cold feet at the last moment. |
get even with someone - have one's revenge |
I'll get even with him for everything! |
get in touch with someone - contact someone |
Get in touch with Mr. Smith for help. |
get lost - lose one's way |
She got lost in the old part of town. |
Get lost! (slang) - Lay off! |
I don't want to see you again. Get lost! |
get mixed up - get confused |
I got mixed up, went the wrong way, and got lost. |
get off someone's back - stop bothering someone |
Stop bothering me! Get off my back! |
get one's foot in the door - get an initial opportunity; make the first step in something (e.g., in getting a job) |
Nina was able to get her foot in the door because her friend worked in that company. |
get on one's high horse - behave haughtily towards someone |
Every time I ask her to help me with typing, she gets on her high horse. |
get out of hand - get out of control, beyond control |
If he gets out of hand again, call me right away. The situation is getting out of hand. |
get rid of someone or something - dispose of; discard |
He got rid of his old useless car. |
get to the bottom of something - know deeply |
He usually gets to the bottom of things. |
get to the point - speak directly about the subject; come to the point |
Please get to the point, I don't have much time now. |
Give me a break! - Stop it! Enough! |
Come on, stop it! Give me a break! |
give someone a hand - help someone |
Can you give me a hand with cooking? |
give someone a lift; give someone a ride - take someone to some place by car |
Can you give me a lift to the bank? He gave her a ride in his new Porsche. |
give someone a piece of one's mind - criticize frankly |
She lost my umbrella again, so I gave her a piece of my mind about her carelessness. |
go back on one's word - break a promise |
First he said he would help me, but then he went back on his word. |
go for it - make an attempt at something new; give it a try |
If I were you, I would go for it. Go for it! Give it a try! |
go from bad to worse - become much worse |
His business went from bad to worse. |
go out of one's way - try very hard |
He goes out of his way to please her. |
go to one's head - 1. make dizzy; 2. make too proud, conceited |
1. Champagne went to her head right away. 2. His acting success went to his head. |
go to pieces - get very upset; fall apart |
She went to pieces when she heard it. |
go with the flow - lead a quiet life |
She always goes with the flow. |
H have a ball - have a good time |
Yesterday we had a ball at the party. |
have a bone to pick with someone - complain or discuss something unpleasant |
Mr. Brown, I have a bone to pick with you. My mail was lost because of you. |
have a sweet tooth - love eating sweet things |
He has a sweet tooth. |
have a word with someone - talk to someone |
Can I have a word with you? |
have words with someone - argue with someone |
I had words with my coworker today because he used my computer again. |
have it in someone - have the ability |
Laura has it in her to be a good doctor. |
have no business doing something - have no right to do something |
You have no business staying here without my permission. |
have one's back to the wall - be hard-pressed; on the defensive |
I had no choice, I had my back to the wall. |
have one's hands full - be very busy |
He has his hands full with hard work. |
have one's heart set on something - want something very much |
She has her heart set on going to New York. He has his heart set on Betty. |
have pull - have influence |
Does he have pull with the director? |
(not) have the heart to do something - (not) have the courage to do something unpleasant |
I don't have the heart to tell him that he wasn't accepted; he'll be so unhappy. |
hit the nail on the head - say exactly the right thing |
You hit the nail on the head when you said that! |
(not) hold it against someone - (not) blame somebody for doing something |
I lost his book, but he doesn't hold it against me. |
Hold it! - Stop! Wait! |
Hold it! I forgot my key. |
hold one's own - maintain oneself in a situation; behave as needed |
He can hold his own in any situation. We need men who can hold their own. |
hold one's tongue - keep silent; refrain from speaking |
She can't hold her tongue at all. |
I ill at ease - uncomfortable |
She felt ill at ease because of her cheap dress. |
in advance - well before |
He told her about his plan in advance. |
in a nutshell - in a few words |
In a nutshell, my plan is to buy land. |
in care of - write to one person at the address of another person |
I'm going to stay at Tom's house in Chicago. Write to me in care of Tom Gray, 321 Main Street, Chicago, Illinois. |
in cold blood - mercilessly |
He killed her in cold blood. |
in fact - actually; in reality |
In fact, he works as a manager here. |
in general - generally; generally speaking |
In general, he likes to be alone. He described the place only in general. |
in hot water - in trouble; in a difficult situation (especially with the law or one's superiors) |
He said a couple of unpleasant things about the boss's wife, and now he is in hot water. |
in one's element - what one likes |
He's in his element when he's arguing. |
in other words - using other words |
In other words, you left her when she needed your help. |
in plain English - in simple, frank terms |
I didn't really like the concert. In plain English, the concert was terrible. |
the ins and outs - all information about something |
He knows the ins and outs of this business. |
in someone's shoes - in another person's position |
I wouldn't want to be in his shoes now. He lost his job, and his wife is in the hospital. |
in the long run - in the end |
In the long run, it will be better to buy it. |
in the same boat - in the same situation |
Stop arguing with me. We're in the same boat and should help each other. |
in the clear - free from blame |
Pay the bill, and you'll be in the clear. |
in time (to do something) - early enough; before something begins |
I came in time to have a cup of coffee before class. |
it goes without saying - should be clear without words |
It goes without saying that he must pay what he owes right away. |
it's time - should do it right away |
Hurry up, it's time to go. |
It's worth it. It's not worth it. It's (not) worth buying, visiting, watching, etc. |
Watch this film, it's worth it. Don't buy this coat, it is not worth it. This museum is worth visiting. This film is not worth watching. |
J jump at the opportunity - accept the opportunity eagerly |
His boss mentioned a job in Europe, and Peter jumped at the opportunity. |
just as soon - prefer; would rather |
I'd just as soon stay home, I'm tired. |
just in case - to be on the safe side |
Take an extra shirt, just in case. |
Just my luck! - Bad luck! Hard luck! |
They lost my job application. Just my luck! |
K keep an eye on someone or something - take care of; watch; look after |
Betty keeps an eye on my sons for me. I'll keep an eye on your dog. |
keep a straight face - try not to laugh |
I tried to keep a straight face but failed. |
keep company - accompany |
She keeps me company quite often. |
keep in mind - bear in mind; consider; remember |
Keep in mind that he is not going to agree easily. |
keep in touch - keep in contact with someone by calling, visiting, sending messages |
Good-by and don't forget to keep in touch! Keep in touch with us. We may have new openings next week. |
keep one's word - fulfill a promise |
You promised, now keep your word. |
keep someone posted - inform someone |
Keep me posted about your plans. |
keep one's fingers crossed - hope that nothing will go wrong |
I have a job interview today. Keep your fingers crossed for me, will you? I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. |
kill time - fill time; spend empty time |
I went to the show to kill time. |
not to know the first thing about something - not to have any knowledge about something |
I don't know the first thing about nuclear physics. |
know the ropes - be very familiar with some business |
He knows all the ropes in this company. |
L last-minute notice - a message (information, instruction) at the last moment leaving little or no time for preparation |
His arrival was a last-minute notice. We didn't have time to prepare for it. |
lay one's cards on the table - be frank and open |
Finally, we asked him to lay his cards on the table and tell us about his plans. |
lay one's life on the line - put oneself in a dangerous situation |
He laid his life on the line to fulfill this task, but nobody appreciated his efforts. |
lead a dog's life - live in misery |
He leads a dog's life. |
leave it at that - stop saying anything else about some matter; leave as it is |
I don't want to argue any further about it, so let's leave it at that. Leave it at that! |
leave word - leave a message |
He left word for you to meet him at the airport at six o'clock. |
let bygones be bygones - forget and forgive bad things in the past |
He said that to you many years ago. Forgive him. Let bygones be bygones. |
let go of something - release the hold |
Let go of my hand, or I'll call the guard. |
let (it) go - forget bad experience; return to normal life |
He's still in despair and can't let go. You can't change anything, so let it go. |
let one's hair down - be relaxed and informal with other people |
She is always so formal. She never lets her hair down. |
let someone know - inform someone |
Let me know when you find a job. |
like father, like son - be like one's parent in something |
Paul won a prize in a chess tournament. Great! Like father, like son! |
little by little - step by step; bit by bit; gradually |
Little by little, they saved enough money for a new car. |
a long shot - an attempt with little chance of success |
Checking the suspect's aunt was a long shot, but the detective was prepared to try anything. |
lose one's temper - become angry |
He loses his temper very often. |
lose one's way - get lost |
I lost my way. Can you help me? |
lose track of someone - not to know where someone is |
I lost track of him years ago. |
lucky break - a lucky chance |
He got his lucky break when he found that job. |
M make a living - earn money to provide for life |
He works hard. His family is large, and he has to make a living somehow. |
make allowance(s) for something - take into consideration when judging |
Don't criticize him so hard; make allowance for his inexperience. |
make a point of - be sure to do something intentionally |
Make a point of asking about his wife's health. Make it a point to be here by ten o'clock. |
make ends meet - have little money to live on |
His doesn't get much money. I wonder how he manages to make ends meet. |
make friends - become friends |
Anton makes new friends easily. |
make fun of someone or something - laugh at; joke about |
He made fun of her German accent. Everyone makes fun of him. |
not to make head or tail of something - be unable to understand or decipher |
I can't make head or tail of his letter. |
make no bones about it - say openly, without hesitation |
I'll make no bones about it: I don't like your attitude to work. |
make room for someone - allow space for someone |
We can make room for one more dog. |
make sense - be logical |
What you say makes sense. |
make the most of something - do the best in the given situation |
Let's make the most of our vacation. |
make up one's mind - decide |
Will you go there? Make up your mind. |
make yourself at home - be comfortable; feel at home |
Come in, please. Make yourself at home. |
a man of his word - a person who keeps promises |
You can depend on his promise to help. He's a man of his word. |
mean well - have good intentions |
He meant well, but it turned out that he spoiled a couple of things for me. |
might as well - maybe it's a good idea |
I might as well telephone him now. |
missing person - someone who is lost and can't be located |
The little boy disappeared. The police registered him as a missing person. |
meet someone halfway - compromise with someone |
He's reasonable and tries to meet his coworkers halfway when possible. |
N never mind - don't worry about it |
I'm terribly sorry. - Never mind. |
no go - impossible, futile, hopeless, useless |
We tried to start the car again and again, but it was no go. |
not a bit - not at all; not in the least |
Are you tired? - Not a bit. |
not to mention - in addition to |
We have three dogs, not to mention two cats. |
no wonder - not surprising |
He ate three big fish. No wonder he's sick. |
now and again - occasionally; now and then |
I meet them now and again at the bank. |
O odds and ends - a variety of small unimportant things or leftovers; bits and pieces |
I went to the store because I needed to buy some odds and ends for my kitchen. |
off the cuff - without preparation |
Off the cuff, I can give you only a rough estimate. |
off the point - beside the point |
What I think about him is off the point. |
off the record - not for the public; unofficially |
Strictly off the record, I think the director is going to get married soon. |
off the top of one's head - without thinking or calculation; impromptu; from memory |
I can't give you the figure off the top of my head, but it may be around a thousand. |
once and for all - decidedly |
You must quit smoking once and for all. |
on credit - not having to pay cash right away |
He bought a car on credit. |
on edge - nervous, irritable |
He's been on edge ever since she left. |
on guard - on the alert |
He's cautious and always on guard. |
on hand - available |
Do you have a calculator on hand? |
on one hand; on the one hand - considering one side of the question |
On one hand, she knows quite a few poems by heart. On the other hand, she can't remember any dates. |
on one's own (on my own, on his own, etc.) - alone; by oneself; independently |
She likes to live and work on her own. She has been on her own for several years. |
on one's toes - alert, attentive, prepared for difficulties |
He was on his toes and produced a very good impression on them. |
on purpose - intentionally |
I didn't do it on purpose, it just happened so. |
on second thought - after thinking again |
I'd like to sit on the aisle. On second thought, I'd like a window seat. |
on the alert - on guard |
He's cautious and always on the alert. |
on the carpet - called in by the boss for criticism |
Yesterday the boss called her on the carpet for being rude to the coworkers. |
on the go - on the move; busy, active |
He is always on the go. |
on the chance; on the off chance - in case; unlikely to happen, but there's still a small chance |
On the chance that you don't find him at work, here's his home address. We went there on the off chance of seeing John. |
on the other hand - considering the other side of the question |
I'd like to have a dog. On the other hand, my wife likes cats. |
on the spot - right there |
I decided to do it on the spot. |
on the spur of the moment - without previous thought or plan |
He bought this car on the spur of the moment, and now he regrets it. |
on the tip of one's tongue - on the verge of saying but unable to remember |
His name is on the tip of my tongue, but I just can't remember it. |
on time - punctually; at the specified time |
Jim is always on time. |
out of one's mind - crazy |
If you think so, you're out of your mind. |
out of one's way - away from one's usual route |
I can't give you a lift to the bank, it's out of my way today. |
out of the question - not to be considered; impossible |
Paying him is out of the question! |
P pack rat - a person who saves lots of unnecessary things |
Why does she keep all those things she never uses? - She is a pack rat. |
pay attention - note something; be attentive to something |
Pay attention to his words. |
pick a fight - start a quarrel |
He often tries to pick a fight with me. |
play one's cards right - choose the right steps in doing something |
If you play your cards right, he'll agree to your plan. |
potluck supper - a surprise meal where nobody knows what dishes other guests will bring |
You know what happened at our last potluck supper? Everybody brought macaroni and cheese, apples, and beer! |
pull the wool over someone's eyes - deceive, mislead someone |
Are you trying to pull the wool over my eyes? It won't do you any good. |
put a damper on something - discourage |
She always puts a damper on my plans. |
put in a word for someone - say positive things about someone |
I'd be very grateful if you could put in a word for me when you speak to him. |
put one's best foot forward - try to show one's best qualities; do one's best; do things as quickly as possible |
He put his best foot forward during the interview. Put your best foot forward working at this project. |
put one's finger on it - indicate exactly; point out the exact cause, fault, name, etc. |
I can't put my finger on it. He was able to put his finger on the exact cause of the computer malfunction. |
put one's foot down - object strongly |
Her father put his foot down when she said she wanted to marry Alan. |
put one's foot in it / into it; put one's foot in one's mouth - do or say the wrong thing; make a blunder; make a fool of oneself |
He put his foot in it when he told the boss that his younger daughter wasn't pretty at all. |
Q quite a bit (of) - much; a lot (of) |
I had quite a bit of trouble with that car. |
quite a few - many; a lot of |
He wrote quite a few good stories. |
R rack one's brain - try hard to think |
He racked his brain to solve the puzzle. |
read between the lines - find or understand the implied meaning |
His books are not easy to understand. You have to read between the lines. |
Remember me to your family. - Say hello to your family for me. |
Please remember me to your family. |
right away - immediately |
It' very important to do it right away. |
ring a bell - remind someone of something familiar but half-forgotten |
Annabel Lee? Yes, it rings a bell, but I can't place it right now. |
rock the boat - make the situation unstable |
Peter always rocks the boat when we discuss the company's spending policy. |
rub elbows with; rub shoulders with - spend time together; mingle |
He doesn't rub elbows with the rich and famous. |
rub it in - embarrass even more by reminding repeatedly of some mistake, failure, etc. |
I know I shouldn't have done it, and I apologized. There is no need to rub it in. |
rub someone the wrong way - irritate, annoy; make angry |
His remarks rub many coworkers the wrong way. |
S save face - try to change the negative impression produced |
He said a stupid thing, and then he tried to save face by saying he misunderstood me. |
save one's breath - stop useless talk |
There's no use talking to him about his spending habits, so save your breath. |
scratch the surface - study something superficially |
He examines all the facts closely, he doesn't just scratch the surface. |
search high and low - search everywhere |
I searched high and low for my lost cat. |
see eye to eye - agree with each other |
They see eye to eye on many things. I don't see eye to eye with him. |
see red - become very angry |
She sees red every time she remembers how he lied to her about it. |
serve someone right - get what someone deserves |
It serves him right that he didn't get that job. He despised all the other candidates. |
serve one's purpose - be useful for some purpose |
I doubt that hiring this man will serve your purpose. |
a shot in the dark - a wild guess |
My answer was just a shot in the dark. |
show promise - be promising |
This young actor shows promise. |
sleep on it - postpone a decision till next morning |
Don't make a decision now. Sleep on it. |
a slip of the tongue - a mistake |
It was just a slip of the tongue! |
slip (from) one's mind - forget |
It slipped my mind that she asked me to do it. |
smell a rat - suspect deceit; suspect that something is wrong |
I'm not sure what it is, but I smell a rat. |
so far - up to now |
So far, I have read three books by Stephen King. |
so much the better - it's even better |
If he can pay cash, so much the better. |
spill the beans - tell a secret |
Who spilled the beans about our plan? |
stand a chance - have a chance (usually, have no chance) |
He doesn't stand a chance of getting it. They don't stand a chance of winning the game. |
stand to reason - be obvious, logical, naturally true |
It stands to reason that studying spelling will let you improve your writing skills. |
straight from the shoulder - frankly, honestly, openly |
Why should you spare his feelings? Give it to him straight from the shoulder. |
T take a dim view of something - disapprove of something |
My sister takes a dim view of the way I raise my children. |
take a break - stop for rest |
Let's take a break, I'm tired. |
take advantage of something - use for one's own benefit; to profit from |
We took advantage of the low prices and bought a computer and a monitor. |
take a stand (on something) - make a firm decision about something |
People need to take a stand on the issue of nuclear weapons. |
Take care! - Good-bye and be careful! |
Take care now! See you tomorrow. |
take care of someone or something - look after; see that something is done properly |
Can you take care of my dog while I'm away? Tom takes good care of his car. |
take hold of something - hold, grasp something |
Take hold of this rope and pull. |
take into account - take into consideration; consider |
You must take into account her old age. |
take it easy - relax; be calm |
Take it easy, everything will be OK. |
take something for granted - accept as given |
Mother's love is always taken for granted by children. |
take someone's breath away - surprise or impress someone |
That great view took my breath away. |
take one's time - do something without hurry |
Don't hurry. Take your time. |
take someone's word for it - believe |
Take my word for it, he won't go there. |
take pains - try hard to do it well |
He took pains to make his report perfect. |
take part in something - participate in something |
Mary is going to take part in the show. |
take place - happen |
The accident took place on Oak Street. |
take one's mind off things - distract from fixed ideas or gloomy thoughts |
Go to a concert or a movie to take your mind off things. |
take steps - take action; take measures |
We need to take steps against it. |
take the words right out of someone's mouth - say the same before someone else says it |
I was about to say the same! You took the words right out of my mouth. |
take time - take a long time |
It takes time to get used to a new place. |
take time off - be absent from work |
He took time off to attend the wedding. |
take turns - alternate doing something one after another |
We went to Minsk by car. We didn't get tired because we took turns driving |
That's just the point. - That's it. |
That's just the point! I hate this job! |
that will do - it's enough |
Stop reading; that will do for now. |
the writing on the wall - a sign of future events (usually, trouble) |
The plane crashed. Tim said he saw the writing on the wall about that flight. |
not to think much of something - not to think highly of something |
I don't think much of her cooking. |
till one is blue in the face - try very hard |
I repeated it till I was blue in the face! |
to be on the safe side - not to take any chances |
Take an extra key, just to be on the safe side. |
to make a long story short - in short |
To make a long story short, we won. |
to say the least - to make the minimum comment about something |
The film was boring and long, to say the least. |
try one's hand at something - test one's abilities in something new |
I want to try my hand at painting. She decided to try her hand at writing stories. |
turn over a new leaf - make a fresh start in life, in work |
He promises to quit alcohol for good and to turn over a new leaf. |
turn the tables - reverse the situation (exchanging places with the opponent) |
He beat me at chess twice last week. But now I hope to turn the tables (on him). |
turn the tide - reverse the course of events |
The new evidence turned the tide, and the defendant was acquitted of charges. |
twist someone's arm - force someone to agree |
They twisted his arm to sell the house. |
U under the weather - feeling a little ill, a little unwell |
I'm a little under the weather today. |
up-and-coming - showing promise of future success |
He is an up-and-coming young lawyer who might help you with your case. |
up in arms - hostile to; in strong protest against something |
The employees are up in arms about the new retirement rules. |
up in the air - undecided, unsettled |
My vacation plans are still up in the air. |
up to date - modern, latest, current |
His reports are always up to date. |
(not) up to par - (not) equal in standard |
His behavior isn't up to par. |
used to do something - did something regularly in the past but not now |
He used to live on Maple Street. I used to play the piano when I was in school (but I don't play it now). |
W walk on air - be very happy |
He has been offered a great job. He is walking on air now. |
waste one's breath - speak uselessly, to no purpose |
Don't waste your breath trying to make him do it. He won't change his mind. |
watch one's step - behave prudently; be careful |
You have to watch your step in this business. |
wet blanket - a pessimist, a killjoy who dampens enthusiasm and spoils everyone's fun |
Remember what a wet blanket he was last time? Please don't invite him again. |
What's the matter? - What is it? |
What's the matter? What happened? |
which way the wind blows - what the real situation is |
He knows which way the wind blows and always acts accordingly. |
white lie - unimportant lie |
A white lie is told to spare your feelings. |
word for word - in the same words |
Tell me word for word what he said. |
would rather - prefer |
I'd rather stay home today. |
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