T to W Prepositions / At ... Prepositional Phrases Flashcards
sth (a course, a holiday, etc) is tailored to one’s needs
sth has been designed to provide the things that sb specifically needs
e.g. At Fogey’s holidays we have tailored our tours to meet the specific needs of older holidaymakers.
to talk sense into sb
to persuade sb to stop doing sth foolish
e.g. He wants to give up his job and become a rock star. Someone has to talk some sense into him!
to have (bad / good) taste in sth
to have bad / good aesthetic sense when it comes to choosing things, relationships, places, etc.
e.g. He’s got really good / bad / poor taste in clothes.
to be teeming with people / animals
to be crowded with people or to be full of animals (conveys the idea of a lot of movement)
e.g. The plains below us were teeming with wildlife.
to think nothing of doing sth
to think that sth is normal and not be bothered about it (whereas most people would find it unusual / difficult)
e.g. A lot of people in Japan think nothing of travelling for three hours to get to work.
to thrive on sth
to enjoy and be stimulated by sth that most people would find unenjoyable, difficult and unpleasant.
e.g. He thrives on working under pressure.
to be translated into another language
to be said / written in another language
e.g. Most of his books have been translated into Chinese.
to be unique to one thing / person / place
to belong to or concern only that thing / person / place
e.g. “That is the Windrush tree. It is unique to this island,” she said proudly.
to update sb on sth
to give sb the most recent news about sth [Note: an update on]
e.g. The President said that he wanted to be updated every hour on the progress of the peace talks.
to venture out
to leave a place (and in doing so taking a risk because it might be dangerous outside)
e.g. If you do decide to venture out, please remember to steer clear of the poorly lit streets.
to vie for sth
to compete with sb for sth
e.g. Three construction companies are vying for the contract to build the new town hall.
to be wary of sb / sth / doing sth
not to trust sb because you think they might harm / trick you in some way / to be cautious about (doing) sth because you think it’s dangerous
e.g. I’m very wary of opening my door to strangers.
to withdraw money from a bank
to take money from your bank account
e.g. I’d like to withdraw $30 from my current account, please.
keep sth at bay
(keep sth) away from you so that it does not hurt or trouble you
e.g. We installed an electric fence around the house in the hope that it would keep the bears at bay.
at all costs
whatever happens, used with the verbs ‘avoid’ and ‘prevent’
e.g. Drinking the tap water should be avoided at all costs.
to be / put at a disadvantage
to have a disadvantage / sth gives you a disadvantage
e.g. Obviously, the fact that they had 10 players and we had only 9 put us at a disadvantage.
to be at sb’s disposal
to be available for sb to use
e.g. During your stay, all the hotel’s facilities will be at your disposal.
at gunpoint
with sb pointing a gun at you
e.g. He was robbed at gunpoint.
to be at large
to have escaped and not yet have been caught
e.g. It is reported that the remaining convict, who was still at large last night, has been recaptured.
at the latest
no later than (used with a time or a date)
e.g. Entry forms must reach this office by May 3 at the latest.
at length
for a long time (used for speaking / talking)
e.g. In the interview, Clapton spoke at length about his childhood.
not to be at liberty
(formal) not to have permission or the authority to say / do sth
e. g. I’m afraid I am not at liberty to answer that question.
at long last
finally
e.g. At long last, the local council have put new street lights along Canal Avenue.
at a loss to explain
unable to explain [Note: to be at a loss for words: not to know what to say]
e.g. Her parents were at a loss to explain why she had done such a thing.
When she told me what had happened, I was at a loss for words.
at the most
the maximum (for money and time) e.g. It won't be expensive. It will cost $4 at the most.
at (such) short notice
with (so) little advance warning
e.g. He apologised for telling us about the meeting at such short notice.
at a push
with difficulty
e.g. I can be there by 5 o’clock at a push, but no earlier than that.
at random
not according to a particular system / pattern / method
e.g. Students were chosen at random to fill in a questionnaire.
at this rate
if we continue like this
e.g. We’re losing $100 a day. At this rate, we are going to go bankrupt in six weeks.
to be at stake
to be at risk
e.g. You can’t give up on the expedition now. Too much is at stake!
