Idioms Flashcards
To get the hang of it
to learn the skills that are needed to do (something) He was finally getting the hang of his job. She’s getting the hang of driving.
There is no use in verb + ing
There is no point or reason (in doing something).
It’s going to rain soon anyway, so there’s no use hanging the clothes on the line now.
There’s no use asking Dave about the numbers—he can’t even balance his own check book.
You get what you pay for
If you don’t pay a lot it’s probably bad quality.
There is not such thing as a free lunch.
Nothing is free
Money doesn’t grow on trees.
It’s not easy to make money. You have to work hard to make money.
Have a kick to it
It’s spicy
It has a kick to it.
You are behind bars
You are in jail.
Hyperbolic
Over exaggerated
To die for
Extremely good, fantastic
This soup is to die for.
The beach has a view to die for.
To put in
To make an effort to do something.
I tried to put in one hour of exercise every day.
Speak of the devil
Said when a person appears just after being mentioned.
Simmer down
Calm down, chill out
Over the moon
Extremely happy
I’ve been over the moon ever since I got engaged—I just can’t stop looking at my ring!
To pull off
To succeed in achieving something difficult.
To manage to make something happen
Do you think you can pull off this deal?
The early bird gets the worms
If you get up early, you will be successful. You will get what you want.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
Don’t put all your effort and resources in one place. It’s a big risk.
You should apply for several jobs rather than just one. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
I invested in several different stocks. I didn’t want to put all my eggs in one basket.
That’s part of the game
That’s how it’s done
That’s how it works
If you want to play stock market the risk is part of the game.
Meticulous
məˈtikyələs
showing great attention to detail; very careful and precise.
Precise
definitely or strictly stated, defined, or fixed
Have a lot on your plate
To have a large or excessive amount of things to do or deal with.
Adverse
preventing success or development; harmful; unfavorable.
give (someone or something) the benefit of the doubt
: the state of accepting something/someone as honest or deserving of trust even though there are doubts He might be lying, but we have to give him the benefit of the doubt and accept what he says for now.
To retain a favorable or at least neutral opinion of someone or something until the full information about the subject is available.
You’re my sister! Can’t you give me the benefit of the doubt, instead of believing the worst about me right away?
Let’s give him the benefit of the doubt before we start accusing him. There may be a good explanation for the missing money.
Bland
(blænd)
not highly flavored; tasteless; unemotional: a bland response
Exceptional
unusual; not typical.
unusually good; outstanding.
To get around to - verb ing
To eventually do something when one is able to.
I finally got around to cleaning my garage.
Fractional
small or tiny in amount.
Fractional shares
Give or take
Give or take is used to indicate that an amount is approximate. For example, if you say that something is fifty years old, give or take a few years, you mean that it is approximately fifty years old.
So much so that
to such an extent that: His nose wouldn’t stop bleeding — so much so that we had to take him to hospital.
Get canned
To lose a job
To get fired
sidetrack (ˈsaɪdˌtræk)
vb
to distract or be distracted from a main subject or topic
I got sidetracked!
crammed adjective
/kræmd/
crammed (with somebody/something) full of things or people
SYNONYM packed
All the shelves were crammed with books.
The room was crammed full of people.
The article was crammed full of ideas.
That’s a bit of a stretch
Exaggeration
Impeccable
im·pec·ca·ble
(ĭm-pĕk′ə-bəl)
Perfect, with no problem
Her performance was impeccable
Her behavior is impeccable.
im·mac·u·late
/iˈmakyələt/
adjective
(especially of a person or their clothes) perfectly clean, neat, or tidy.
“an immaculate white suit”
Wing it
: to do or try to do something without much practice or preparation I hadn’t practiced the part, so I got up there and winged it.
To chug
to drink a large amount (especially of beer) in a single action/without breathing;
Did you just chug the tea?
To fall out
Eyelashes are falling out.
On-going
on·go·ing
/ˈänˌɡōiNG,ˈônˌɡōiNG/
adjective
continuing; still in progress.
“ongoing negotiations”
The issue has been ongoing.
Word of mouth
If news or information passes by word of mouth, people tell it to each other rather than it being printed in written form.
The story has been passed down by word of mouth.
All talk ( and no action)
Said of one who talks a lot about something that one has not actually done, or will not actually do.
She may brag about donating money to the school, but I know she’s all talk and no action.
Oh, he’s all talk—he’s never had to face real danger.
To take someone up on something
to accept an offer or invitation that someone has made. I’ve decided to take you up on that job offer. Synonyms and related words. To say yes.
To keep one’s powder dry
to be calm and ready for a possible problem in the future
To be ready for a challenge with little warning.
They don’t know how the election will turn out, so for now they’re just keeping their powder dry.
To pull up something
To get information especially on a computer screen
Shady
To be very sneaky, suspect
the person is shady
To keep me on the loop
To keep me posted
Let me know if you plan changes
You could say that again
I agree
nine-to-five job
A job with standard working hours from 9 AM to 5 PM (or close to that range), Monday to Friday.
ac·com·mo·date | \ ə-ˈkä-mə-ˌdāt \
accommodated; accommodating
transitive verb
1 : to provide with something desired, needed, or suited
I needed money, and they accommodated me with a loan.
pitch-black (pĭch′blăk′)
adj.
Extremely dark; black as pitch.
To put you on a brief hold
Can I put you on a brief hold?
Distinctive
having a special quality, style, attractiveness, etc.; notable.
Unique
To decompress
ˌdēkəmˈpres
relieve or reduce the pressure on (something).
2.
INFORMAL•NORTH AMERICAN
calm down and relax.
“Michael sits for a minute to decompress before walking home”
To thrive
To be happy; successful
To grow, to develop well
He is thriving in his new job
The kids are thriving
Grounded -adj
Well balanced, mentally and emotionally stable
Convicted
convicted
/kənˈviktəd/
Learn to pronounce
adjective
having been declared guilty of a criminal offense by the verdict of a jury or the decision of a judge.
“a convicted murderer”
To zone out
To he zoned out
To lose consentration
To stop paying attention
You are not focused anymore
I was zoned out of the conversation.
I completely zoned out.
The medication made me feel zoned out
The handwriting is on the wall
The writing is on the wall
Its obvious
A clear sign that something bad will happen.
Talk to the hand
Im not listening to you.
It’s on the tip of my tongue.
something like a name or word that you know it but cannot remember at a particular moment
anything that is about to appear on one’s mind
problem of forgetfulness
Superficial
Anything superficial has to do with the surface of something. If you’re judging a book by its cover, you’re being superficial. People who worry too much about their clothes and hair may also be considered superficial. The word superficial has to do with appearances and the surface
being at, on, or near the surface: a superficial wound. Fire cupping leaves marks. But it’s just superficial.
Driven
(of a person) relentlessly compelled by the need to accomplish a goal; very hard-working and ambitious.
“my husband is a driven man”
Attentive
Paying close attention; alert or observant: an attentive listener; attentive to detail. See Synonyms at careful.
2. Showing care for the needs or desires of others; caring or courteous. See Synonyms at thoughtful.
Superficial
Someone who doesn’t want anyone to know what they’re really like or who they really are.
If you describe someone as superficial, you disapprove of them because they do not think deeply, and have little understanding of anything serious or important. [disapproval] This guy is a superficial yuppie with no intellect whatsoever.
A matter of time
If it is (only) a matter of time until something happens, it is certain to happen but you do not know when it will happen: It’s only a matter of time before he’s forced to resign. SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases.
To blow my mind
- To impress, overwhelm, or excite one to an extreme degree.
The show of support from everyone has just blown my mind.
I had really low expectations for the movie, but it totally blew my mind.
To have the time of your life
to enjoy oneself very much
Definition of have the time of one’s life
: to enjoy oneself very much : to have a lot of fun He looked like he was having the time of his life.
To Cherish
protect and care for (someone) lovingly.
“he cared for me beyond measure and cherished me in his heart”
To clear up
To solve or explain something.
“he wanted to clear up a few things
2.
tidy something up by removing trash or other unwanted items.
“I keep meaning to come down here and clear up”
To pass something down to someone
To give something to a younger person especially a family
My older sister passed this dress to me.
My grandmother passed this ring to me.
Left and right
in a very quick and uncontrolled way She has been spending money left and right. : in all directions He was calling out names left and right. The police were stopping cars left and right.
Epic (Adjective)
very imposing or impressive; surpassing the ordinary (especially in size or scale)
“an epic voyage”
synonyms:heroic, larger-than-life
big, large
above average in size or number or quantity or magnitude or extent
I couldn’t care less
I don’t care.
Once in a blue moon
Rarely
It’s time for me to head out
I haven’t heard a word
I haven’t heard anything
He moved his way up in the company.
I got a promotion.
To have the upper hand
To have an advantage.
He is so tall that he has the upper hand at the game of basketball.
The business is higher grossing
The business makes a lot of money
Get a move on
Hurry up
A rule of thumb
General principle, general rule
As a rule of thumb, you should try to return business phone calls in less than 24 hours.
As a rule of thumb for dieting, the goal to lose one or two pounds per week.
A people person
Likes talking to people
Very social
He is such a people person.
To have common ground
To find common ground
Similar interests or opinions.
We found common ground when we talk about basketball.
People skills
Good social skills
He’s got good people skills.
ge·ner·ic
/jəˈnerik/
Not specific
Wack
Bad, low quality
This is so wack.
To kick the bucket
To die
To get on my nerves
To become extremely annoying to someone
The car alarm is getting on my nerves.
When my neighbor talks for hours, it gets on my nerves.
To eyeball it
To gauge, estimate or judge by eye; to look or glance at. A good cook can often just eyeball the correct quantities of ingredients. Each geometric construction must be exact; eyeballing it and getting close does not count.
How long have you been in the field?
What field are you in?
