1980s Flashcards
The thin end of the wedge
An event or action that is the beginning of something more serious and unpleasant
Flash in the pan
A sudden success that lasts only a short time and is not likely to be repeated
To keep at
Persevere or persist at doing something
Keep at something
To continue to do or work on something
At one’s beck and call
Ready to comply with any wish or command
Go against the grain
To be or do something different from what is normal or natural
Grist to the mill
Something that is useful to someone for a particular purpose
Upset the Apple cart
Spoil carefully laid plans, arrangements
Hoist on one’s petard
To be hurt or to have problems as a result of your plan to hurt others
Live off the fat of the land
The best or richest of anything
To have your cake and eat it too
Have the advantages of something without its disadvantages
Between the devil and the deep blue sea
To have two choices that are equally unpleasant
In hot water
To be in trouble
On the carpet
To be in trouble with someone in authority
It never rains but it pours
When one has bad things happened to you, other bad things follow soon after
A miss is as good as a mile
Coming close to success but failing is no better than failing by a lot
To give oneself airs
Assume a haughty manner, pretend to be better than one is
To have the courage of one’s convictions
Behave according to one’s belief
Out of sight, out of mind
It is used to say someone will quickly be forgotten when they are no longer with you
To come to a dead end
A passage that has no exit
To turn a deaf ear
Refuse to listen or respond to a statement or request
Every cloud has a silver lining
Every sad or difficult situation has a positive or hopeful side
Blow hot and cold
To change your opinion about something often
To let the cat out of the bag
Reveal the secret carelessly or by mistake
To put the cart before the horse
Reverse the proper order of things or events
Be in the same boat
To be in the same difficult situation
Swan song
A final accomplishment or performance, one’s last work
To look a gift horse in the mouth
Be critical or suspicious of something received at no cost
Have an axe to grind
Have a private reason for doing or being involved in something
To wash one’s dirty line in public
Discuss one’s personal affairs in public
To pocket an insult
To receive an affront without open resentment or without seeking redress
To take to one’s heels
Run away
To win laurels
Honour and praise given to someone because of something that they achieved
At large
Not captured
By and by
After a while, soon
The lion’s share
The largest part of something
In black and white
In writing
To bring to book
To punish somebody for doing something wrong
To read between the lines
Perceive or detect a hidden meaning
To stick to one’s guns
Hold fast to a statement, opinion, course of action
To be under a cloud
If somebody is under a cloud, other people think that they have done something wrong and are suspicious of them
By fits and starts / in fits and starts
Frequently starting and stopping again
To back out
Withdraw
To keep out of something
To not become involved with something
Bang into something
To crash into or hit something by mistake
To smell a rat
To suspect that something is wrong about a situation
To burn one’s fingers
To suffer as a result of doing something without realising the possible bad results
Null and void
Cancelled, invalid
To catch up with someone
To find and arrest someone who has committed a crime after searching for them or chasing them
To stand up for someone / something
To defend someone or something that is being criticised or attacked
Slip through
To fail to be noticed
To narrow down
To reduce the number of possibilities or choices
As cool as a cucumber
Very calm and controlled especially in a difficult situation
Have your cake and eat it too
To have all the benefits of a situation while having no disadvantages
In a pickle
In a difficult or unpleasant situation
Takes the cake
To be the worst, most shocking, or most annoying example of something
Sell like hot cakes
To sell quickly
As flat as a pancake
Completely flat
Take something with a pinch of salt
To be careful about believing that something is completely true
Like two peas in a pod
Very similar especially in appearance
Account for
To be the cause of
Carry weight / carry authority or conviction
Exert influence, authority, or persuasion
To fall back on something
To have something to use when you are in difficulty
To be taken aback
To be surprised or shocked
A wild goose chase
A search for something that is impossible for you to find
By leaps and bounds
Very quickly
As cool as a cucumber
Very calm and controlled especially in a difficult situation
To burn midnight oil
To study or work until late at night
