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My English > Deck 19 > Flashcards

Deck 19 Flashcards

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Proverbs and Idioms flashcards
1
Q

a feat

A

an act or achievement that shows great skill or strength

  • ‘The Eiffel Tower is a remarkable feat of engineering.’
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2
Q

a vantage point

A

the way you think about a subject when you are in a particular situation

  • ‘From my vantage point…’
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3
Q

to deride

A

to talk about someone or something as if they are ridiculous and do not deserve any respect

  • ‘Her novel, once derided by critics, is now a classic.’
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4
Q

a grudge

A

a strong feeling of anger and dislike for a person who you feel has treated you badly, especially one that lasts for a long time

  • ‘I don’t bear any grudge against you.’
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5
Q

to be onto someone

A

to have found out that a particular person was involved in a crime

  • ‘He knew the police were onto him.’
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6
Q

a sacrilege [S/U]

A

(an act of) treating something holy or important without respect

  • ‘Muslims consider it sacrilege to wear shoes inside a mosque.
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7
Q

blasphemy [U]

A

something that you say or do that shows you do not respect God or a religion

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8
Q

an extravaganza

A

a large, exciting, and expensive event or entertainment

  • ‘a musical extravaganza’
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9
Q

temperamental

A

A temperamental person is someone whose mood often changes very suddenly

  • ‘Be careful how you approach her - she’s very temperamental.’
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10
Q

staple

A

basic or main; standard or regular

  • ‘Prices of staple foods such as wheat and vegetables have also been increasing.’
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11
Q

to insulate

A

to protect someone or something from harmful experiences or influences

  • ‘Children should be insulated from the horrors of war.’
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12
Q

unparalleled

A

having no equal; better or greater than any other

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13
Q

muted

A

A muted colour is not bright

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14
Q

a cavern

A

a large cave

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15
Q

to tamper with sth

A

to touch or make changes to something that you should not, usually without enough knowledge of how it works or when you are trying to damage it

  • ‘I could see immediately that the lock had been tampered with.’
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16
Q

to disburse

A

​to pay out money, usually from an amount that has been collected for a particular purpose:

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17
Q

a gourmet

A

a person who knows a lot about food and cooking, and who enjoys eating high-quality food

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18
Q

shorthand [U]

A

a method of rapid writing by means of abbreviations and symbols, used especially for taking dictation

  • ‘Their conversations were taken down in shorthand by a secretary.’
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19
Q

mutton [U]

A

the meat from a goat or sheep ate as food

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20
Q

a larder

A

a cupboard or small room used, especially in the past, for storing food in someone’s home

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21
Q

fussy, overfussy

A
  1. not easily satisfied, or having very high standards about particular things
  2. having too much decoration and too many small details, in a way that is not stylish
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22
Q

unrest [U]

A

disagreements or fighting between different groups of people

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23
Q

to squabble

A

to argue over something that is not important

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24
Q

to inculcate

A

​to fix beliefs or ideas in someone’s mind, especially by repeating them often

  • ‘Our coach has worked hard to inculcate a team spirit in/into the players.’
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25
Q

to snort

A

to suddenly express strong feelings of anger, disapproval, or disagreement, either by speaking or in a sound that you make

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26
Q

an antecedent

A

someone or something existing or happening before, especially as the cause or origin of something existing or happening later

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27
Q

stoked

A

excited or euphoric

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28
Q

word for word

A

using exactly the same words

  • ‘She listened to everything I said and repeated it word for word to her mum.’
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29
Q

cropping

A

The art of strategically placing one’s body in a photograph as to make that individual look different than they do in real life

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30
Q

a mock-up

A

a full-size model of something large that has not yet been built, showing how it will look or operate

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31
Q

to absolve

A

(especially in religion or law) to free someone from guilt, blame, or responsibility for something

  • ‘The priest absolved him (of all his sins).’
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32
Q

a pew

A

a long wooden seat with a high back, on which a row of people sit in a church

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33
Q

to wring (out)

A

to twist a cloth or piece of clothing with your hands to remove water from it

  • ‘She wrung out the shirt and hung it out to dry.’
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34
Q

concrete

A

clear and certain, or real and existing in a form that can be seen or felt

  • ‘They think she killed her husband, but they have no concrete evidence.’
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35
Q

to abduct

A

to force someone to go somewhere with you, often using threats or violence
* the UFO abduction

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36
Q

triage [U]

A

the process of quickly examining patients who are taken to a hospital in order to decide which ones are the most seriously ill and must be treated first

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37
Q

to lionise

A

to make someone famous, or to treat someone as if they were famous

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38
Q

a score

A

the music written for a film, play

  • ‘Rodgers wrote the score for/of/to “Oklahoma!”.’
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39
Q

spot on

A

completely accurate; exactly right

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40
Q

pointedly

A

in a very obvious way, usually to express criticism or disapproval

  • ‘He pointedly ignored her after the show.’
41
Q

altogether

A

completely; totally

  • ‘I stopped seeing her altogether.’
42
Q

to string someone along

A

to falsely encourage someone to believe there is hope of a good result

43
Q

to tally

A

to match or agree with something else

  • ‘The numbers on your spreadsheet don’t tally with ours.’
44
Q

to rake

A

to use a rake to make earth level or to collect leaves

  • ‘In the autumn I rake (up) the dead leaves.’
45
Q

to rock

A

to (cause someone or something to) move backwards and forwards or from side to side in a regular way

  • ‘He picked up the baby and gently rocked her to sleep.’
  • ‘a rocking chair’
46
Q

a jig

A

an energetic traditional dance of Great Britain and Ireland, or the music that is played for such a dance

47
Q

an utensil

A

a tool, container, or other article, especially for household use

48
Q

coquettish

A

behaving in such a way as to suggest a playful sexual attraction; flirtatious

49
Q

to finesse sth

A

to deal with a situation or a person in a skilful and often slightly dishonest way

50
Q

to play down sth

A

to make something seem less important or less bad than it really is

  • ‘She finessed the interview by playing down her lack of experience.’
51
Q

a crib

A

Someone’s crib is their home or the place where they are living at present.

52
Q

to weld

A

to combine and form a harmonious or effective whole

53
Q

to clock off/out

A

to leave work, especially by recording the time you leave on a special machine

54
Q

a comfort food [C/U]

A

the type of food that people eat when they are sad or worried, often sweet food or food that people ate as children

55
Q

inconclusive

A

not leading to a firm conclusion or result; not ending doubt or dispute

56
Q

to condone

A

to accept behaviour that is considered morally wrong or offensive

57
Q

to saunter

A

​to walk in a slow and relaxed way, often in no particular direction

  • ‘He sauntered by, looking very pleased with himself.’
58
Q

let alone

A

used to indicate that something is far less likely or suitable than something else already mentioned

  • ‘He was incapable of leading a bowling team, let alone a country.’
59
Q

merely because

A

only because

60
Q

to iterate

A

to constantly repeat one action

61
Q

to outfox

A

to defeat (someone) by being more clever or cunning than them

62
Q

a slack/slack

A

adj. not tight; loose

n. the fact that something is too loose

63
Q

to dispatch

A

to send something, especially goods or a message, somewhere for a particular purpose

64
Q

unadulterated

A

not spoiled or made weaker by the addition of other substances; pure

65
Q

a hermit

A

a person living in solitude as a religious discipline

66
Q

to rat out

A

to expose or reveal incriminating or embarrassing information about someone

67
Q

headspace

A

a person’s state of mind or mindset

68
Q

a hobo

A

a person who has no place to live and no money and who travels to many different places

69
Q

to crash

A

to sleep at someone else’s house for the night, especially when you have not planned it
* also: to go to a party or other event without an invitation

70
Q

to coincide

A

to happen at or near the same time

  • ‘I timed my holiday to coincide with the children’s.’
  • ‘Our views coincide on a range of subjects.’
71
Q

debaucherous

A

displaying bad sexual behaviour, drinking too much alcohol, taking drugs, etc

72
Q

a recluse

A

a person who lives alone and avoids going outside or talking to other people

73
Q

to deteriorate

A

to become worse

  • ‘She was taken to hospital last week when her condition suddenly deteriorated.’
74
Q

to actualise

A

to make a reality of

  • ‘He had actualized his dream and achieved the world record.’
75
Q

to julienne

A

to cut food into short, thin strips

76
Q

inconsiderate

A

not thinking or worrying about other people or their feelings

77
Q

to speak ill of someone

A

to say something bad about someone

78
Q

to belittle

A

to make a person or an action seem as if he, she or it is not important

  • ‘Stop belittling yourself - your work is highly valued.’
79
Q

repellent

A

causing disgust or distaste

80
Q

gallant

A

(of a man) polite and kind towards women, especially when in public

81
Q

canning

A

a method of preserving food in which the food contents are processed and sealed in an airtight container

82
Q

to shuck

A

to remove the shell or natural covering from something that is eaten

83
Q

hectic

A

full of activity, or very busy and fast

  • ‘a hectic schedule’
84
Q

a shiner

A

a bruise near the eye; a black eye

85
Q

scrawny

A

unpleasantly thin, often with bones showing

86
Q

consolation [U]

A

something that makes someone who is sad or disappointed feel better

  • ‘I didn’t know what to say - I just offered a few words of consolation.’
87
Q

a bimbo

A

an attractive but unintelligent or frivolous young woman

88
Q

catatonic

A

If someone is catatonic, they are stiff and not moving or reacting, as if dead.

89
Q

a saphead

A

a weak-minded stupid person

90
Q

a soirée

A

an evening party or gathering, typically in a private house, for conversation or music

91
Q

to skimp on sth

A

to not spend enough time or money on something

  • ‘Many old people skimp on food and heating in order to meet their bills.’
92
Q

to splinter

A

to break into small, sharp pieces

93
Q

to appease

A

to bring to a state of peace, quiet, ease, calm, or contentment

  • ‘to appease an angry king’
94
Q

a feather in one’s cap

A

an achievement to be proud of

  • ‘It’s a real feather in your cap to have such a beautiful girlfriend.’
95
Q

to take sb aback

A

to surprise or shock someone so much that they do not know how to behave for a short time:

96
Q

to portend

A

to be a sign that something bad is likely to happen in the future

  • ‘The eclipses portend some major events.’
97
Q

a potshot

A

a shot that is fired carelessly or with little preparation

  • ‘He was taking potshots at neighbourhood cats.’
98
Q

entre nous

A

between us; privately

99
Q

to pamper

A

to give someone special treatment, making that person as comfortable as possible and giving them whatever they want

  • ‘She pampers her dog with the finest steak and salmon.’

My English (37 decks)

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