Id.ioms Flashcards
went down suddenly and fast
take a nosedive
inmediately criticised my idea and refuse to accept it
shoot sb down in flames
Equal
race neck and neck
i’m happy something or someone has gone
good riddance (to bad rubbish)!
Active, doing her usual activities
out and about
hurry up
get your skates on
life is hard and unpleasant
a dog’s life
got ready for a difficult situation by preparing in every way possible
batten down the hatches
if a system or service (..), it cannot deal effectively with all the things it is expected to do or provide
ˌcreak under the ˈstrain
awkard with the hands, unable to do what i want to do
all fingers and thumbs
naked
birthday suit
to surprise everyone
drop a bombshell
face a lot of people who were criticising or attacking
run the gauntlet
survive difficult times
weather the storm
very difficult first experience of something
baptism of fire
no chance at all
not have a cat in hell’s chance
be very surprised
be taken aback
everyone must help
all hands on deck
separate and clear
black and white
a small but real possibility
a fighting chance
to examine a place carefully
have a (good) ˌsniff aˈround
There are plenty more people or possibilities. to cheer up someone
there are plenty more fish in the sea/pebbles on the beach
hard work
blood, sweat and tears
die
breathe your last
extremely smooth
as smooth as silk
you can give someone the opportunity to do something, but you cannot force them to do it
you can lead a horse to the water, but you can’t make him drink
conflict between two different, strong desires or intentions
battle of wills
to cry noisily for a long time because you are very sad
sob your ˈheart out
extremelly unintelligent
as thick as two short planks
extremely clever
as bright as a button
again on the way to achieving something
back on track
you shouldn’t have more of something than you need
enough is as good as a feast
unintentionally did or said something foolish which made your situation worse
shoot yourself in the foot
change make like interesting
variety is the spice of life
started behaving in an unacceptable way
go off the rails
wasting time trying to do something that no succeed
flog a dead horse
very heave
bumper to bumper
Sometimes good, sometimes bad
hit and miss
be the driver
at/behind the wheel
something that happened that only once and was not repeated
a flash in the pan
it is best not to take risks, even if it seems boring or hard work
better safe than sorry
Completely, typical (used about people)
through and through
totally silent
as silent as the grave
you cannot be sure what will happen until the very end of something, often a sports event.
It’s not over until the fat lady sings
very poor
as poor as a church mouse
control a business or organisation firmly and effectively
run a tight ship
drive fastly and badly
drive like a maniac
a summons, invitation, or appeal to undertake a particular course of action
call to arms
angry and ready to fight with, criticize, or punish someone
on the warpath
fits extremely well
fit like a glove
very clearly
as clear as crystal
swear words
four-letter words
Gradually
little by little
later
down the line
defend themselves or something they believed in, in a very determined way
come out fighting
Avoiding (distance a ship should leave between itself and a potential danger such as rocks)
wide berth
You need to take risk to achieve something
nothing ventured, nothing gained
were abandoned
go by the board
very bruised
black and blue
might as well do something more serious as you are goint to be punished
might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb
lost energy or interest
run out of steam
to crush something completely
ˌcrunch somethingˈup
He crunched up the empty pack and threw it out of the window.
to leave quickly
beat a retreat
Damage through everyday use
wear and tear
i promise not to tell a secret
Mum’s the word
you’re keeping it only so that I can’t have it, not because you really want it yourself
dog in the manger
better than everyone else
the cat’s whiskers
doing sth difficult without much experience or ability (informal)
fly by the seat of your pants
affected with combat fatigue
mentally confused, upset, or exhausted as a result of excessive stress
shell-shocked
try to see something good in a bad situation
look on the bright side
became (unemployed)
join the ranks of
You must accept any help you’re offered when you are in a difficult situation
any port in a storm
things are going well up to this point
so far, so good
If people really need to do something, they will find a way to do it
necessity is the mother of invention
doing sth without thinking
do sth on autopilot
Problems always happen together
it never rains but it pours
making good progress
make good headaway
ran extremely fast
run like the wind
Extremely fresh and full of energy
as fresh as a daisy
Samll amount at a time
in dribs and drabs
be pregnant
have a bun in the oven
Fluctuated
wax and wane
cara o cruz
heads or tails
It takes a long time to do important things properly
Rome wasn’t built in a day
changing direction
do a U-turn
you may be happier sometimes when do not know all the facts about a situation
ignorance is bliss
the truth will always become known
truth will out
find the people or things of high quality from a group of mixed quality
sort (out) the sheep from the goats
urinate
answer the call of nature
plus or minus
give or take
for a very long time
until the cows come home
likely to happen soon
in the offing
in control of the situation
in the driving seat
made her feel less confident, by saying or doing something unexpected
leave sb high and dry
in serious dificulty
on the rocks
I’m doubtful that it will happen
I’ll believe it when i see it
sexual partner in addition to the person’s usual partner
a bit on the side
when you know ehat happens next, it’s easy to say what you or others should have done
be wise after the event
behaving in such a way that is likely to cause a major disagreement or fight
be on a collision course
is very successful
be flying high
when you know ehat happens next, it’s easy to say what you or others should have done
Hindsight is a wonderful thing
apologies for swearing
pardon my French
life lacking in excitement and danger
life in the slow lane
There must be some suffering in order to succeed
no pain no gain
start to work or play more effectively or quickly than before
go/move/step up a gear
following closely behind
in sb’s/sth’s wake/ in the wake of sb/sth
stop criticising me!
give me a break!
Extremely dry/thirsty
as dry as a bone
every small place
every nook and cranny
avoid a difficult situation by leaving suddenly
cut and run
Crowds and noise
hustle and bustle
having many romantic or sexual relationships without committing to one partner
play the field
many times
time after time
totally different
chalk and cheese
be dead
be six feet under
going to die soon
not long for this world
died
make the supreme/ultimate sacrifice
their behaviour is reasonable
fair’s fair
calm down! relax!
take it easy
If we really want to achieve something, we can
Where there’s a will there’s a way
got an advantage by acting before their rivals did
steal a march on sb
extremely thin
as thin as a rake
to scream loudly and for a long time, especially in order to protest about something
scream blue ˈmurder (British English)
North American English scream bloody ˈmurder
use the toilet
powder my/your/our nose
use the toilet
spend a penny
Everywhere
here, there and everywhere
stopped
come to a standstill
the first to arrive will get something
first come, first served
delay making a decision
hang fire
in a state of confusion
at sixes and sevens
be about to die
my number was up
extremely boring
as dry as dust
Two people are equally responsible
it takes two to tango
life active, exciting an dangerous
life in the fast lane
from the person concerned
(straight) from the horse’s mouth
All behaviour is acceptable in extreme situations, especially in romantic situations and competitions
All’s fair in love and war
swearing
effing and blinding
