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My English > Deck 20 > Flashcards

Deck 20 Flashcards

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Proverbs and Idioms flashcards
1
Q

naught

A

nothing

  • ‘All our efforts were for naught.’
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2
Q

to bring somebody to heel

A

to force someone to obey you

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3
Q

a milquetoast

A

a shy, timid or submissive person

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4
Q

to be in the ballpark

A

to be close to the right amount

  • ‘And do you think the projected sales figures are realistic?’ ‘They’re in the ballpark.’
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5
Q

to have a nerve

A

mieć czelność

  • ‘You’ve got a nerve, implying that it was all my fault.’
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6
Q

to second

A

to agree or support a statement

  • I could use a drink.’ ‘I second that (= I agree with you)!.’
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7
Q

furtively

A

in a way that attempts to avoid notice or attention; secretively

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8
Q

adamant

A

impossible to persuade, or unwilling to change an opinion or decision
*adamantly

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9
Q

to stay put

A

to remain in the same place or position

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10
Q

straightforward

A

easy to understand or simple

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11
Q

skittish

A

(of people and animals) nervous or easily frightened

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12
Q

a tribulation

A

a cause of great trouble or suffering

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13
Q

to file away

A

to place in a container for keeping records

  • ‘File these bills and photos, please.’
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14
Q

to set in stone

A

to be very difficult or impossible to change

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15
Q

to swell

A

to become larger and rounder than usual; to (cause to) increase in size or amount
* If music swells, it becomes louder.

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16
Q

copacetic

A

in excellent order

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17
Q

a thingamabob

A

a word used, especially in spoken English, when the name of an object has been forgotten

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18
Q

penance

A

an act that shows that you feel sorry for something that you have done

  • ‘As a penance, she said she would buy them all a box of chocolates.’
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19
Q

abysmal

A

very bad

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20
Q

an ailment

A

an illness

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21
Q

riveting

A

extremely interesting

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22
Q

to debrief

A

to question someone in detail about work they have done for you

  • ‘The pilots were thoroughly debriefed after every mission.’
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23
Q

an infirmary

A

a hospital

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24
Q

conniving

A

A conniving person deceives others for their own advantage

  • ‘He’s a conniving bastard!’
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25
Q

to have the stones to do sth

A

to have balls to do sth; courage

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26
Q

to grasp at straws

A

to make a desperate attempt at saving oneself

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27
Q

to wither on the vine

A

If something withers on the vine, it is destroyed very gradually, usually because no one does anything to help or support it

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28
Q

a cabal

A

a secret political clique or faction

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29
Q

amiss

A

not quite right; inappropriate or out of place

  • ‘There was something amiss about his calculations.’
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30
Q

ixnay

A

Used in rejecting something specified.

  • ‘Ixnay to corporate control!’
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31
Q

leverage

A

power to influence people and get the results you want

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32
Q

to keep (someone) on ice

A

to postpone or delay acting on or interacting with a person

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33
Q

bereft

A

(of a person) sad and lonely, especially through someone’s death or departure

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34
Q

telegenic

A

(especially of a person) appearing attractive on television

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35
Q

derogatory (adj.)

A

showing strong disapproval and not showing respect

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36
Q

a mare

A

(offensive of) a woman

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37
Q

to congeal

A

to change from a liquid or soft state to a thick or solid state

  • ‘The blood had congealed in thick black clots.’
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38
Q

irksome

A

irritating; annoying

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39
Q

to fence in

A

to limit someone’s freedom

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40
Q

to scupper

A

to cause something such as a plan or an opportunity to fail

  • ‘Arriving late for the interview scuppered my chances of getting the job.’
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41
Q

to pilfer

A

to steal things of small value

42
Q

reams of sth

A

a large quantity of something

43
Q

a chaperone

A

an adult who takes care of child actors when they are working

44
Q

to divulge

A

to make something secret known

  • ‘Journalists do not divulge their sources.’
45
Q

to spearhead

A

to lead something such as an attack

  • ‘British troops spearheaded the invasion.’
46
Q

to go through the motions

A

to do something without thinking it is very important or having much interest in it

47
Q

good riddance

A

(spoken as:) Good to be rid of worthless persons or things

48
Q

to low

A

to make the deep, long sound of a cow

49
Q

queasy

A

likely to vomit

50
Q

to rekindle

A

to make someone have a feeling that they had in the past

  • ‘The holiday was the last chance to rekindle their love.’
51
Q

to table

A

to delay discussion of a subject

  • ‘The suggestion was tabled for discussion at a later date.’
52
Q

a change of heart

A

If you have a change of heart, you change your opinion or the way you feel about something:

53
Q

point-blank

A

saying something very clearly in very few words, without trying to be polite or pleasant

  • ‘He asked me to work at the weekend, but I refused point-blank.’
54
Q

to be on the ball

A

to be quick to understand and react to things

  • ‘I didn’t sleep well last night and I’m not really on the ball today.’
55
Q

flamboyant

A

very confident in behaviour, and liking to be noticed by other people, for example because of the way you dress, talk

56
Q

a receptacle

A

a container used for storing or putting objects in

57
Q

square (adj.)

A

equal; ​

If two people are all square, one of them has paid off a debt to the other and neither now owes or is owed any money.

58
Q

to brief

A

to give someone detailed instructions or information

  • ‘We had already been briefed about/on what the job would entail.’
59
Q

in a jiff

A

a very short time; a moment

  • ‘I’ll have breakfast ready in a jiff.’
60
Q

insolvent

A

(especially of a company) not having enough money to pay debts, buy goods, etc.

61
Q

to line up

A

to organise or arrange for something to be done

  • ‘Lee had already lined up a good lawyer to handle his case.’
62
Q

to snap

A

to suddenly become unable to control a strong feeling, especially anger

  • ‘When she asked me to postpone my trip to help her move to her new house, I just snapped (= got angry).’
63
Q

to bluster

A

to speak in a loud, angry, or offended way, usually with little effect

64
Q

to kip / a kip [S/U]

A

sleep

  • ‘I must get some kip.’
65
Q

pertinent

A

relating directly to the subject being considered

‘a pertinent remark’

Note: The opposite is irrelevant.

66
Q

to bamboozle

A

to trick or confuse (someone)

67
Q

cooped up

A

If you say that someone is cooped up, you mean that they live or are kept in a place which is too small, or which does not allow them much freedom.

68
Q

to right a wrong (wrongs)

A

to correct something bad or wrong that someone has done

69
Q

flowery

A

(of speech or writing) full of elaborate or literary words and phrases

70
Q

a sorority

A

a society for female students in a university or college.

71
Q

to stoop

A

to bend the top half of the body forward and down

  • ‘Something fell out of her coat pocket and she stooped down and picked it up.’
72
Q

to iron out sth

A

to put something into a finished state by solving problems, removing differences, or taking care of details

73
Q

probation

A

a period of time when a criminal must behave well and not commit any more crimes in order to avoid being sent to prison

74
Q

haze

A

something such as heat or smoke in the air that makes it less clear, so that it is difficult to see well

75
Q

to get the wrong end of the stick

A

to not understand a situation correctly

76
Q

a boon

A

something that is very helpful and improves the quality of life

77
Q

unfettered

A

not limited by rules or any other controlling influence

  • ‘Poets are unfettered by the normal rules of sentence structure.’
78
Q

to enshrine

A

to contain or keep something as if in a holy place

  • ‘A lot of memories are enshrined in this photograph album.’
79
Q

perfunctory

A

done quickly, without taking care or interest

80
Q

a pariah

A

a person who is not accepted by a social group

81
Q

to loom

A

to appear as a large, often frightening or unclear shape or object

  • ‘Dark storm clouds loomed on the horizon.’
82
Q

a gurney

A

a light bed on wheels used to move patients in a hospital

83
Q

an impostor

A

a person who pretends to be someone else in order to deceive others

84
Q

a wake

A

an occasion when the family and friends of a dead person meet after a dead person has been buried to drink and talk about the person’s life

85
Q

coy (adj.)

A

intentionally keeping something secret

  • ‘She’s very coy about her age.’
86
Q

destitute

A

extremely poor and lacking the means to provide for oneself

  • ‘The charity cares for destitute children.’
87
Q

a fringe

A

the outer or less important part of an area, group, or activity

  • ‘the southern fringe of the city’
88
Q

knackered

A

extremely tired

89
Q

needless to say

A

of course, as you would expect

90
Q

to abscond

A

to go away suddenly and secretly in order to escape from somewhere

91
Q

an accomplice

A

a person who helps someone else to commit a crime or to do something morally wrong

92
Q

flimsy

A

very thin, or easily broken or destroyed

93
Q

to gird (up) one’s loins

A

to prepare and strengthen oneself for future actions, typically ones that may be dangerous or difficult

94
Q

to take the piss (out of) sb

A

to make a joke about someone or make someone look silly

95
Q

to confer with sb

A

to exchange ideas on a particular subject, often in order to reach a decision on what action to take

  • ‘I need some time to confer with my lawyer.’
96
Q

a qualm

A

an uncomfortable feeling when you doubt if you are doing the right thing

  • ‘She had no qualms about lying to the police.’
97
Q

absence makes the heart grow fonder

A

This means that when people we love are not with us, we love them even more.

98
Q

on the fly

A

while in motion or progress

99
Q

game

A

willing to do things that are new, difficult, or that involve risks

100
Q

intermittent

A

not happening regularly or continuously; stopping and starting repeatedly or with periods in between

  • ‘intermittent rain’

My English (37 decks)

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