Idioms and phrasal verbs 5 Flashcards
uren aan een stuk
for hours on end
completely
well and truly
erbovenop, in addition to the things already mentioned
into the bargain
veel beter dan de rest
to be streets ahead of the rest of us/head and shoulders above sb
to be lazy
to not do a stroke of work
to like each other, to get on
to get on like a house on fire
I didn’t know what to say
I was lost for words
de hel barstte los
All hell broke loose
to stay out of the way
To avoid sb like the plague
ik kan mijn oren niet geloven
I can’t believe my ears
to be extremely angry
to be up in arms about/over sth
alles uit de kast halen
to pull out all the stops
ik zou m’n … geven om in zijn positie te zijn
I’d give my right arm to be in his position
to be very angry and tell sb off severely
to come down on sb like a ton of bricks
she talks a lot
she doesn’t half talk a lot!
to be very frightened
I was scared to death
to scare sb very much
to scare the life/the living daylights out of sb
iemands gevoelens sparen
to spare sb’s feeling
to talk about sth that is intended to be secret
to let on to sb about sth
uw gezicht verliezen
to lose face
to save your reputation
to save face
accept and deal with sth that is difficult or unpleasant
to face up to sth
to become publicly known
to come to light
to have red cheecks because you are embarrassed
to go red as a beetroot
iets verklappen
to give the game away
iets op uw geweten hebben
to have sth on your conscience
ignore sth or avoid saying sth
to gloss over sth
een broodje-aapverhaal
a pack of lies
trick sb by giving them the wrong information
to pull the wool over sb’s eyes
realise that sb’s not telling the truth
to see through sb/sth
ik zen nie van gisteren ze
i wasn’t born yesterday
maak dat iemand anders wijs!
pull the other one!
het tempo bepalen
to set the pace
to make strong and steady progress with sth
to forge ahead with sth
to make a careless mistake
to slip up
they are good and it will be hard for sb else to do better
to take some beating/be hard to beat
gradually get closer to people you are competing with
to gain ground on sb/to catch up with sb
iets achter de hand hebben
to have sth up your sleeveto
become more exciting or show an increase in activity
to hot up
to give a slight advantage to sb
to tip the balance in sb’s favour
to be more succesful than the others
to come out on top
person who nobody knows much about, who might achieve sth you didn’t expect
a dark horse
nek aan nek staan
to be neck and neck
to do your very best
to give it your all
een droom die uitkomt
a dream come true
succeed in a difficult task
to pull sth off
de prijs betalen voor iets
to pay the price for sth
het veilig spelen
to play it safe
tell sb sth which is not true, as a joke
to pull sb’s leg
you are not being serious and mean it as a joke
tongue in cheek
de slappe lach hebben
to laugh your head off
the joke fell flat
de grap mislukte
het is geen grap meer
it’s gotten beyond a joke
dat is niet om te lachen
it’s no laughing matter
het is van de vrachtwagen gevallen
it fell off the back of a lorry
used when you think sb is being too confident about sth that is going to happen or that they are going to do
Famous last words!
to say that sb is stupid
The lights are on but no one’s home!
ik durf er niet aan denken
I dread to think!
when you don’t know the reasons why sb did sth
for reasons best known to himself
een schoonheidsslaapje
a beauty sleep
very hard to understand
clear as mud
an action or situation that will bring bad luck or spoil an activity
the kiss of death
a need to go to the toilet
a call of nature
Op welke planeet leef jij?
What planet are you on?
ik ben het zo beu als kou pap
I’m sick to death of sth/sick tp the back teeth of sth
ik zal het uit hem kloppen!
I’ll squeeze it out of him!
when sth is too expensive
it’s daylight robbery!
sth is too difficult to understand/imagine
it goes beyond me
u op iemand afreageren
to take sth out on sb
iemand afzetten
to rip sb off
when you wouldn’t be surprised if sb did sth
I wouldn’t put it past sb to do sth
erin trappen
to fall for sth/to be taken in by sth
show that you do not support or agree with sth by not going somewhere or by walking away
to vote with your feet
react very angrily to sb in an unfair way
to jump down sb’s throat
sterk tegen iets zijn
to be dead set against sth
think or talk about sth all the time and think that it is very important
to have a bee in your bonnet
continue to argue against a decision, especially when it is too late to change it or it is not very important
argue the toss
very important
of the essence
if a situation…, you are so involved in it that you forget about other things
to sweep sb along
to remain calm
to keep your wits about you
sth is definitely not true
not by any stretch of the imagination
it is obious/logical that
it stands to reason that…
consider everything that could happen in a situation
to think sth through
een storm in een glas water
a storm in a teacup
be sensitive about or feel offended by sth, as a result of sth that happened in your past
have a chip on your shoulder
refuse to do sth or change your mind about sth
to dig your heels in
have a very difficult task or job to do
to have your work cut out
de koe bij de horens vatten
to take the bull by the horns
stay where you are, without taking any action
sit tight!
in de val stappen
to fall into the trap of doing sth
take action as a result of a decision
to act on/upon sth
het uitmaken
to finish with stb
to be very anxious about sth
to be in a terrible state about sth
not want to eat (because you’re ill or upset
to be off your food
if sth… you’re thinking and worrying about it
to hang over sb’s head
the way you tjink or feel about sth
a frame of mind
to pass an exam without any difficulty
to sail through sth
a thing that is likely to cause sth bad to happen
A recipe for disaster!
spend much of your time doing sth you love
to live and breathe sth
in uw element zijn
to be in your element
u ergens insmijten
to throw yourself into sth
learn a new skill quickly and easily
take to sth like a duck to water
ge kunt hem niet stoppen
there’s no stopping him
decide that sth is a failure and not worth doing anything about
to write sth off
spend time thinking about sth difficult or unpleasant
to dwell on/upon sth
criticize yourself in front of other people
to put yourself down
a small mistake
a slip-up
to develop in a particular way
to pan out
uw hoofd in het zand steken
to bury your head in the sand
to pass quickly through sth
to run through sth
iets in een goed daglicht zien
to see sth in a good light
de verwachtingen inlossen
to live up to sth
