Phrases 01

Question 1

to raise a question

Answer 1

to ask a question

“I do not want to raise a question of a political nature.”

Question 2

gut feeling

Answer 2

a personal, intuitive feeling or response

“My gut feeling tells me otherwise”

Question 3

devote time to…

Answer 3

dedicate time

“If I am going to devote time to politics, why shouldn’t I focus on something more immediate?”

Question 4

put faces to names

Answer 4

to meet in person

“It’s good to put faces to names”

Question 5

discriminate among them

Answer 5

distinguish among them

Question 6

by all means

Answer 6

certainly; yes; absolutely.

“I will attempt to get there by all means.”

“Bob: Can you come to dinner tomorrow? Jane: By all means. I’d love to.”

Question 7

every now and then

Answer 7

Occasionally, from time to time; also, periodically.

Also:
- every now and again,
- every once in a while,
- every so often.

“Every now and then I long for a piece of chocolate.”

“We take long walks every now and again”

“Every once in a while he’ll call.”

Question 8

you really ought to know

Answer 8

you really should know

“10 things you really ought to know about George Washington”

Question 9

to tell you the truth

Answer 9

the true or actual state of a matter

“To tell you the truth, I’m confused”

Question 10

out of pocket

Answer 10

1. The person will not be reachable by phone or any means.
   “I will be out of pocket tomorrow.”
2. Using one’s own money
   “The governor paid for the event out of his own pocket.”

Question 11

to wash your hands of somebody/something

Answer 11

To stop being involved with or responsible for someone or something, usually because they have caused too many problems for you

“I should imagine he couldn’t wait to wash his hands of the whole project.”

Question 12

to cut corners

Answer 12

To do something in the easiest, quickest, or cheapest way, often harming the quality of your work

“We’ve had to cut corners to make a film on such a small budget.”

“Companies are having to cut corners in order to remain competitive in the market.”

Question 13

to be/go above and beyond

Answer 13

More than is required; greater than the required amount; typically: be ~ or go ~

“My employees have gone above and beyond lately so I decided to give them a bonus by paying them for five hours that they did not work.”

Question 14

to go against the grain

Answer 14

To do something that is the opposite of what is usually done

“It’s not easy to go against the grain and buy stocks when others are selling them.”

Question 15

months and dates

Answer 15

Next/last October:
“We moved in last October.”
in October:
“You’re going to be busy in October.”
British English
Written: “Today is the 7th September.”
“They were arrested on 6th October.”
Spoken: “the seventh of September”
American English
Written: “The baby was baptized on October 6. “
Spoken: October sixth

Question 16

to retain

Answer 16

Continue to have (something); keep possession of.

“An institutionalized process is more likely to be retained during the times of stress”

Question 17

at the end of the day

Answer 17

Something that you say before you say what you believe to be the most important fact of a situation

“Sure we missed our best player but at the end of the day, John, we just didn’t play well enough to win the game.”

Question 18

badly needed

Answer 18

We needed it very much
“Rationalisation was badly needed.”

Question 19

to become a sore point

Answer 19

To become neuralgic element
“That statement had become a sore point to many delegations.”

Question 20

bird’s eye view

Answer 20

A situation or topic as if viewed from an altitude or distance

“We had a bird’s eye view of the old town from the top of the city walls.”

“Climb to the top of the Eiffel Tower if you want a bird’s eye view of Paris.”

Question 21

by any means

Answer 21

By any way possible.

“I need to get there soon by any means.”

“I must win this contest by any means, fair or unfair.”

Question 22

to withdraw

Answer 22

Remove or take away (something) from a particular place or position.

“Decision to withdraw its Forces from Iraq”

Question 23

even/odd number

Answer 23

Even number is a number that can be exactly divided by 2, such as 2, 4, 6, 8 etc

Question 24

from dusk till dawn

Answer 24

Dusk is the time just before night when the daylight has almost gone but when it is not completely dark.
Dawn is the time of day when light first appears in the sky, just before the sun rises.

Question 25

get a grip

Answer 25

To make an effort to control your emotions and behave more calmly

“Come on, get a grip, we’ve got an important meeting in five minutes.”

“I just think he ought to get a grip on himself - he’s behaving like a child.”

Question 26

Gross Domestic Product (GDP)

Answer 26

The total market value of all the goods and services produced within the borders of a nation during a specified period.

“The current rules allow an EU country to run a deficit of as much as 3 per cent of its gross domestic product.”

Question 27

to be a salt of the earth

Answer 27

If you say that someone is the salt of the ​earth, you ​mean that they are a very good and ​honest ​person.

“He was the very salt of the earth”

Question 28

to attach importance

Answer 28

to give importance, to assign meaning

“I don’t attach any importance to my dreams”

Question 29

twist of faith

Answer 29

A fateful event; an unanticipated change in a sequence of events.

“I was in this school by a twist of faith”

Question 30

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Answer 30

Międzynarodowy Fundusz Walutowy

Question 31

to cross someone’s mind

Answer 31

To come into your thoughts as a possibility

“It never crossed my mind that George might be lying.”

Question 32

the backbone of sth.

Answer 32

The most ​important ​part of something, ​providing ​support for everything ​else.

“Farming is the backbone of the country’s ​economy.”

Question 33

to keep/hold somebody/something at bay

Answer 33

To prevent someone from moving closer
Also “to hold somebody at bay”

“He held the police at bay with a gun for several hours.”

“Experts hope the economy will slow enough to keep inflation at bay.”

Question 34

lounge lizard

Answer 34

A ladies-man that frequents night spots where drinks are served. May be part of the live music set, but usually the lizard is at the bar chatting up rich women. Most often seen in a suit that was a fashion statement in the 80s.

“I was a venture capitalist by day and a lounge lizard by night, before I settled down with one of my conquests. “

Question 35

needless to say

Answer 35

It is so obvious that it doesn’t need to be said, but….

“Needless to say, I should have spent more time on the report, but I just didn’t have it.”

Question 36

negligible threat

Answer 36

Minimal threat

“Iraq-based terrorism, once a negligible threat, is now a serious one.”

Question 37

no hard feelings

Answer 37

No anger or resentment.

“I hope you don’t have any hard feelings. No, I have no hard feelings.”

Question 38

an elephant in the room

Answer 38

If you say there is an elephant in the ​room, you ​mean that there is an ​obvious ​problem or ​difficult ​situation that ​people do not ​want to ​talk about.

“No one is willing to speak about an elephant in the room”

Question 39

in the week of October 22

Answer 39

in the week when Monday is Oct 22

Question 40

to work one’s fingers to the bone

Answer 40

to work very hard.

“I worked my fingers to the bone so you children could have everything you needed. Now look at the way you treat me!”

“I spent the day working my fingers to the bone, and now I want to relax.”

Question 41

money talks, bulshit walks

Answer 41

Means that cheap talk will get you nowhere, while money will persuade people to do as you like.

“As the old saying goes, ‘Money talks, bullshit walks’”.

“There’s an old saying that ‘Money talks and bullshit walks’”.

Question 42

verbatim

Answer 42

in the exact words; word for word

“This is a verbatim quote from Duncan Fletcher’s autobiography”

“He quoted the speech verbatim”

Question 43

until further notice

Answer 43

Used to indicate that a situation will not change until another announcement is made

“The museum is closed to the public until further notice”

Question 44

to take up the baton

Answer 44

Accept a particular duty or responsibility

“It was left to the capital’s campuses to take up the baton”

Question 45

in accordance with something

Answer 45

In agreement with something; in conformity with something.

“In accordance with our discussion, I have prepared a contract.”

Question 46

to give (one’s) notice

Answer 46

To formally tell one’s employer that one is quitting one’s job.

“Did you hear that James is leaving? He gave his notice yesterday.”

Question 47

buy into something

Answer 47

If you buy into an ​idea or ​plan, you give it ​your ​support or ​agree with it

“Parents are ​expected to buy into the school’s ​philosophy when they ​enroll ​their ​children.”

Question 48

to be of the same opinion

Answer 48

to agree with someone

“I spoke to Tom about it and he was of the same opinion”

Question 49

on the contrary

Answer 49

used to show that you ​think or ​feel the ​opposite of what has just been ​stated

“I ​thought you said the ​film was ​exciting?” “On the contrary, I ​nearly ​fell ​asleep ​half way through it!”

Question 50

to be back to square one

Answer 50

Back to where one started, with no progress having been made.

“We’re back to square one”

Question 51

to piggyback on what you said

Answer 51

to use something that someone else has made or done in order to get an advantage

“everyone wants to piggyback on the phenomenal success of the TV series.”