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My English > Deck 21 > Flashcards

Deck 21 Flashcards

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Proverbs and Idioms flashcards
1
Q

to take a rain check (on sth)

A

​used to tell someone that you cannot accept an invitation now, but would like to do so at a later time

  • ‘Mind if I take a rain check on that drink? I have to work late tonight.’
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2
Q

larceny

A

theft of personal property

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3
Q

homely

A

(of a person) unattractive in appearance

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4
Q

at large

A

(especially of a criminal or dangerous animal) at liberty; escaped or not yet captured

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5
Q

a bachelor party

A

a party for a man who is going to get married, to which only his male friends are invited

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6
Q

defamation

A

the act of harming someone’s reputation by saying or writing bad things about them

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7
Q

a wuss

A

a coward (= person who is not brave)

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8
Q

unseemly

A

(of behaviour or actions) not proper or appropriate

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9
Q

cerulean

A

deep blue in colour like a clear sky

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10
Q

to commend

A

to formally and officially praise someone

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11
Q

a bearing on sth

A

relation; relevance

  • ‘The case has no direct bearing on the issues being considered.’
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12
Q

a bloke

A

a man

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13
Q

to nick

A

to steal

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14
Q

a bellend

A

a stupid or annoying man

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15
Q

to say something in a roundabout way

A

to say something indirectly

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16
Q

compliance

A

the act of obeying an order, rule, or request

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17
Q

abhorrent

A

inspiring disgust by being morally very bad

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18
Q

brittle

A

delicate and easily broken

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19
Q

embittered

A

very angry about unfair things that have happened to you

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20
Q

donezo

A

an exclamation to be used when finished wtih something

  • ‘I’m donezo!’
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21
Q

to bump uglies

A

to have sex

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22
Q

to play coy

A

to avoid giving a direct or complete answer

  • ‘When asked about his next book, he played coy.’
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23
Q

haphazard

A

not having an obvious order or plan

  • ‘He tackled the problem in a typically haphazard manner.’
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24
Q

to consort

A

​to spend a lot of time in the company of a particular group of people, especially people whose character is not approved of

  • ‘They claimed he had been consorting with drug dealers.’
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25
Q

a waiver

A

an agreement that you do not have to pay or obey something

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26
Q

ennui [U]

A

a feeling of being bored and mentally tired caused by having nothing interesting or exciting to do

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27
Q

to bemoan

A

to complain or express sadness about something

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28
Q

intrepid

A

extremely brave and showing no fear of dangerous situations

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29
Q

perchance

A

by chance; possibly; perhaps

  • ‘Do you know her, perchance?’
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30
Q

a bee’s knees

A

a highly admired person or thing

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31
Q

frayed

A

with the threads at the edge coming loose

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32
Q

to exonerate

A

to show or state that someone or something is not guilty of something

  • ‘The report exonerated the crew from all responsibility for the collision.’
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33
Q

a stumper

A

a puzzling question

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34
Q

phat

A

excellent

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35
Q

to hit the mark

A

be successful in an attempt or accurate in a guess

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36
Q

in the sticks

A

in the middle of nowhere

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37
Q

to have/keep several balls in the air

A

to try to do several different things at the same time

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38
Q

whimsical

A

playfully quaint or fanciful, especially in an unusual and amusing way

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39
Q

to stonewall

A

to stop a discussion from developing by refusing to answer questions or by talking in such a way that you prevent other people from giving their opinions

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40
Q

reprehensible

A

If someone’s behaviour is reprehensible, it is extremely bad or unacceptable

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41
Q

thine

A

archaic form of yours

42
Q

shrill

A

(of a voice or sound) high-pitched and piercing

43
Q

hark

A

used to tell someone to listen

  • ‘Hark, I hear a distant trumpet!’
44
Q

same old same old

A

used to say that a situation or someone’s behaviour remains the same, especially when it is boring or annoying

  • ‘Most people just keep on doing the same old same old every day.’
45
Q

to strut

A

to walk in a proud way trying to look important

46
Q

to desist

A

to stop doing something, especially something that someone else does not want you to do

  • ‘The soldiers have been ordered to desist from firing their guns.’
47
Q

to clout

A

to hit someone or something hard

48
Q

to stymie

A

prevent or hinder the progress of

  • ‘The changes must not be allowed to stymie new medical treatments.’
49
Q

to skedaddle

A

to depart quickly or hurriedly; run away

50
Q

serene

A

calm, peaceful and untroubled; tranquil

51
Q

frenetic

A

fast and energetic in a rather wild and uncontrolled way

52
Q

an intricacy - intricacies

A

details, especially of an involved or perplexing subject

53
Q

an cobweb

A

a spider’s web, especially when old and dusty

54
Q

semblance [U]

A

a situation or condition that is similar to what is wanted or expected, but is not exactly as hoped for

  • ‘The city has now returned to some semblance of normality after last night’s celebrations.’
55
Q

a celebutante /sɪˈlɛbjuːtɑːnt/

A

a celebrity who is well known in fashionable society

56
Q

draught /drɑːft/

A

denoting beer or cider served from a barrel or tank rather than from a bottle or can

  • ‘draught ale’
57
Q

a next of kin

A

the person or group of people you are most closely related to

58
Q

henpecked

A

A henpecked man is controlled by and a little frightened of a woman, especially his wife.

59
Q

to browbeat

A

​to try to force someone to do something by threatening them or persuading them forcefully and unfairly

  • ‘Don’t be browbeaten into working more hours than you want.’
60
Q

a linchpin

A

a person or thing vital to an enterprise or organisation

61
Q

crinkly

A

full of creases or wrinkles; wrinkled

62
Q

to limp

A

to walk slowly and with difficulty because of having an injured or painful leg or foot

63
Q

brazen

A

bold and without shame

64
Q

a misnomer

A

a name that does not suit what it refers to, or the use of such a name

  • ‘It was the scruffiest place I’ve ever stayed in, so “Grand Hotel” was a complete misnomer.’
65
Q

forceps (pl.)

A

​a metal instrument with two handles used in medical operations for picking up, pulling, and holding things

66
Q

poised

A

ready to do a particular thing at any moment

  • ‘The company is poised to launch its new advertising campaign.’
67
Q

to go south

A

to make an escape; to disappear

  • ‘The mugger went South just after the crime.’
68
Q

to garrotte

A

to kill someone by putting a metal wire or cord around their neck and pulling it

69
Q

to rout

A

to defeat an opponent completely

70
Q

to work around the clock

A

to work all day and all night long

71
Q

temerity [U]

A

a willingness to do or say something that shocks or upsets other people

  • ‘She had the temerity to call me a liar.’
72
Q

on the lam

A

moving from place to place to avoid being found or caught

  • ‘Richard has been on the lam for a week now.’
73
Q

a dearth

A

an amount or supply that is not large enough

  • ‘a dearth of new homes in the region’
74
Q

a tadpole

A

a small, black creature with a large head and long tail that lives in water and develops into a frog or toad

75
Q

to bifurcate

A

(of roads, rivers, branches, etc.) to divide into two parts

76
Q

toodles!

A

a shortened anglicised version of the French phrase à tout à l’heure which means goodbye.

77
Q

to tinker with sth

A

to make small changes to something, especially in an attempt to repair or improve it

  • ‘I wish the government would stop tinkering with the health service.’
78
Q

to glean

A

to collect information in small amounts and often with difficulty

  • ‘From what I was able to glean, the news isn’t good.’
79
Q

a lackey

A

a servant or someone who behaves like one by obeying someone else’s orders or by doing unpleasant work for them

80
Q

mottled

A

covered with areas of different colours that do not form a regular pattern

  • ‘mottled skin’
81
Q

a courtship

A

a period during which a couple develop a romantic relationship before getting married

82
Q

to court

A

to be involved with (someone) romantically, with the intention of marrying

  • ‘He was courting a girl from the neighbouring farm.’
83
Q

dejection [U]

A

a sad and depressed state; low spirits

84
Q

inclined

A

likely or wanting to do something

  • ‘No one seemed inclined to help.’
85
Q

weepy

A

feeling likely to cry

86
Q

a frontier

A

a border between two countries

87
Q

to dissipate

A

to (cause to) gradually disappear or waste

  • ‘The heat gradually dissipates into the atmosphere.’
  • ‘His anger dissipated as the situation became clear.’
88
Q

to hover

A

to remain in one place in the air

89
Q

to clamp down on sth

A

to take strong action to stop or limit a harmful or unwanted activity

  • ‘The government is clamping down on teenage drinking.’
90
Q

the brunt of sth

A

​the main force of something unpleasant

  • ‘Small companies are feeling the full brunt of the recession.’
91
Q

an enclosure

A

an area surrounded by fences or walls

  • ‘an enclosure for the horses’
92
Q

stirring

A

causing excitement or strong emotion; rousing

93
Q

to scrutinise

A

to examine something very carefully in order to discover information

94
Q

to cop out

A

to avoid doing something that one ought to do

  • ‘He would not cop out of the difficult tax decisions.’
95
Q

upkeep [U]

A

the cost or process of keeping something, such as a building, in good condition

  • ‘The upkeep of larger old properties is very expensive.’
96
Q

uproar [S/U]

A

a situation in which a lot of people complain about something angrily or make a lot of noise

  • ‘The book caused an uproar in France.’
97
Q

the subject matter

A

the things that are being talked or written about, or used as the subject of a piece of art, etc.

  • ‘The subject matter of the documentary was not really suitable for children.’
98
Q

to excavate

A

to remove earth that is covering very old objects buried in the ground in order to discover things about the past

99
Q

to undulate

A

to move with a smooth wave-like motion

  • ‘Her body undulated to the thumping rhythm of the music.’
100
Q

perverse

A

strange and not what most people would expect or enjoy

  • ‘She took a perverse pleasure in hearing that her sister was getting divorced.’

My English (37 decks)

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