Phrases 5 Flashcards
Proof is in the pudding 🍮
A: I don’t believe this new flash washing machine can save water and energy.
B: But you haven’t used it yet. The proof is the pudding.
A: This second-hand car does look a bit old – can you still drive it?
B: Well, why don’t you test drive it? The proof is in the pudding.
A: Do you think this will work?
B: I don’t know. But let’s wait and see – the proof is in the pudding.
‘the proof is in the pudding’ to mean you can judge the value or the quality of something only after you have tried it, experienced it or used it.
Frogmarch
The drunken suspect was handcuffed by the police and frogmarched to the waiting police van.
In major sporting events, if you disrupt the game, you risk being frogmarched out of the stadium by security guards.
The presenter told us that his lecture on social dynamics was a must for everyone and so we either all had to sign up voluntarily or he would frogmarch us there himself.
to frogmarch’ means to force someone who is unwilling to move forward or to walk somewhere, often by holding their arms tightly.
Food for thought
The football coach was really disappointed when his team lost 3-0 to an amateur side. But it gave him food for thought.
Mary’s divorce gave her food for thought. She decided to go back to university, get a diploma, and change her life around.
I’m not so sure now. You have indeed given me food for thought.
when you say ‘food for thought’ you mean serious ideas or topics for us to think about.
Give someone food for thought
Butter upچاپلوسی کردن، تعریف کردن
Johnny: I was very impressed with your presentation, Mrs Beany. You are really intelligent and perceptive and…
Mrs Beany: Don’t waste your time buttering me up, Johnny. I’m not raising your salary anytime soon.
The director was always ready to butter up Angelina Jolie. He knew she was looking for her next role and he wanted her in his movie.
To butter someone up or to butter up someone
In English when you say someone ‘is in a jam’ you mean they are in a difficult situation – but that’s a different kind of jam! You are in a jam
Joe Bloggs
Or Tom, Dick or Harry
John Doe and Jane Doe are not real people
A: Bright purple jacket? Sparkly blue skirt? Who wears such outrageous clothes?
B: Well, this fashion designer is popular among the very trendy. These clothes are not for Joe Bloggs!
Listen, this is a very exclusive party I’m inviting you to. Don’t go around talking about it or every Tom, Dick and Harry will end up there.
Detective: The John Doe found at the scene is in the morgue right now. We’re waiting for the DNA test results to identify the body.
. In English, when we want to refer to the average person we can use the name ‘Joe Bloggs’.
Feifei
Ah, I see. So, Joe Bloggs could be any one of us.
Finn
That’s right. Any Tom, Dick or Harry.
Feifei
Oh! Who are they?
Finn
This is another expression we use when we want to talk about lots of people in general; nobody in particular: Tom, Dick or Harry.
in American English, John Doe is a name often used when referring to the victim of a crime whose body hasn’t been identified.
Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater
I know you don’t like the dress, but I think if you make a few changes to it, it will look lovely. It’s such beautiful material. Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater.
Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater. I know the wallpaper is ugly, but this is a lovely house. We can always redecorate.
Don’t throw the baby out with the bathwater’ is an English idiom which means: ‘don’t lose something valuable while we’re getting rid of something else that we don’t want’. So I was talking about your job, Feifei. Just because you find it stressful – that’s the thing you don’t want – don’t stop completely and lose what’s valuable.
Take for a ride
That hotel took me for a ride. When I booked a room they said they’d give me a full cooked breakfast but all I got was a cup of coffee and a piece of toast. I’m never going back there again.
Don’t be taken for a ride. If an offer seems too good to be true, it’s probably not real.
‘taking you for a ride’, we mean he is deceiving you. This company might not even exist – and I’m sure the car is just a fantasy…
Thank you, Rob. I’ll try to be more suspicious of things which sound too good to be true.
this time I’m not using it as an idiom but speaking as an American. Can you give me a ride home in your car?
Like water off a duck’s back
I won’t give up on my singing career just because someone said I’m no good. Criticism is water off a duck’s back to me!
I told John not to drive so fast but it was like water off a duck’s back. Last week he crashed his new car. Thankfully nobody was hurt.
Yes, in English the phrase ‘water off a duck’s back’ means that criticisms or negative things have no effect on you - they’re just like water off a duck’s back - we don’t let them upset or affect us.
Well, don’t take too much notice of it, Feifei. My mother-in-law is the same. But it’s just like water off a duck’s back to me.
Eat humble pie
The factory owner had to eat humble pie after a lot of customers complained about his product.
Peter is so arrogant. He said he could finish the work much quicker than anybody else in the office. I hope he has to eat humble pie.
when we say someone has to ‘eat humble pie’, we mean they have to admit they can’t do something they boasted about. It’s a bit humiliating for them.
Yes, I’m full up!
Feifei
If you can’t finish these, you’re going to have to eat humble pie
Take someone to the cleaners
My husband cheated on me with my best friend! I’m going to get the best divorce lawyer in town and take him to the cleaners!
My team has the best players and we’ll take you to the cleaners in this Sunday’s match!
! I’m very angry with them. Anyway, you can use the phrase in a sports context, too, when one team defeats another one by a large number of points. ‘Take to the cleaners’ is today’s expression in The English We Speak. It used to mean getting money from someone else in a dishonest way but now it can just mean getting a lot of money from someone else.
Phishing
Our bank never sends emails to clients asking them to reply to a message confirming their password. I’m afraid you’ve been a victim of phishing, sir.
I’ve just received an email informing me that I won the lottery. They want my bank details to deposit the prize. But I’ve never entered the lottery. This must be phishing!
. Phishing – with ‘ph’ - is one of those words that’s become popular as we use the internet more and more. It’s the name of a particular kind of fraud on the internet
Give the cold shoulder
After Mary divorced her rich husband all their friends gave her the cold shoulder. She was not invited to their lavish parties anymore.
My brother told our parents I haven’t been studying at all and my marks are low. I’m not happy and I’ve been giving him the cold shoulder. Let’s see if he’s got the message.
It means they are rejecting you or ignoring you.
Viral
A video of First Lady Michelle Obama dancing with a turnip has gone viral on the internet. Hundreds of thousands of people have watched her video in support of healthy eating.
Viral videos are big business nowadays and even marketing companies are posting amateur-looking videos in the hope of cashing in on the trend.
the expression ‘to go viral’ is used for a picture or a video which has become extremely popular by being circulated quickly and broadly on the internet.
Viral video
Go viral
Internet speak: hard copy, to post, a post, snail mail
I’m sending my auntie Marge this lovely birthday card via snail mail. She lives in Japan.
I much prefer using email these days. All I get by snail mail are these marketing leaflets!
This website’s all about how trendy it is to wear fur. I don’t like it at all. I think I’ll post a comment!
Mary has a blog about food and she publishes new posts every day.
I’ll give you a hard copy of my report, Mary. You can read it on the bus, on your way home.
I have a digital copy of my wedding picture as a screensaver at work but I much prefer my hard copy in a frame. It’s much nicer.
Hard copy
