The English We Speak Flashcards
wing it
In English ‘to wing’ something means to improvise.
Mary spent all weekend partying instead of studying. When I asked her why she wasn’t concerned about the exam, she told me she’d just wing it.
The minister is a great orator. He’s never had a speech ready, he just wings it and people love it.
a wet weekend
A wet weekend means a boring and disappointing time, experience or person
That was a wet weekend, my friends were coming to stay but cancelled at the last minute.
My cousin’s a bit of a wet weekend, he’s got no personality and nothing to say.
I had to do my accounts yesterday – it was like a wet weekend in a paint factory!
to take a stab/shot in the dark
When you say you are ‘taking a stab/shot in the dark’ it means you don’t really know the truth and you are just guessing.
It might be a stab in the dark but I think my football team is in a good place to win the league this season.
I don’t know how many people came to see the show, but I’ll take a stab in the dark and say about 300.
John thought we could sell our old car for £500 – but really he was taking a stab in the dark!
to cut your teeth
‘to cut your teeth’ means to acquire initial practice or experience in a particular job or activity. We could say it’s where you get your basic skills.
Dan cut his teeth on a local newspaper before landing a job on a national daily.
He cut his teeth running the junior football club before becoming a professional referee.
to have a go at someone
‘To have a go at someone’, means to criticise someone.
The boss really had a go at Michaela after she offended our clients.
Susie had a go at her husband last night. He’d forgotten all about her birthday.
Why do you always have a go at me? Why can’t you say something nice?
about
‘About’ means ‘here’, or ‘somewhere near here
Hi, is Sue about? Just need to give her some files.
Will you be about this evening? I want to ask a big favour.
There’s no one about. It’s a bit scary.
Don’t talk like that. There are children about.
to take pot luck at something
if you take pot luck at something, you take a chance that whatever is available will prove to be good or acceptable.
We didn’t know which restaurant to eat at, so took pot luck and chose the one recommended in the guide book.
If you can’t decide which book to pick, take pot luck, I’m sure they’ll all be good to read.
I’m going to take pot luck, and I’m sure the course I choose will be the right one for me.
it beats me
‘it beats me’ – a phrase used for saying that you do not know or understand something.
It beats me how Stephanie ever got that promotion.
A: Can you believe that Dave and Andrea are still married! He’s always bossing her around.
B: It beats me why she stays with him.
It beats me how Jen can afford a new sports car when she only works part-time.
donkey’s year
long period of time
I’m so bored; I’ve been doing this job for donkey’s years!
I haven’t driven a car for donkey’s years; I hope I can remember what to do.
We’ve got to go to Lily’s party; I haven’t seen her for donkey’s years so it’ll be great to catch up.
snowflake
someone who gets offended or upset too easily
A so-called friend of mine deleted a comment I made on his social media page just because I didn’t agree with him. What a snowflake.
There are so many places you can express yourself these days but at the same time everyone gets offended so easily. You can see why it’s called ‘generation snowflake’.
the heat is on
the heat is on’ is an expression you can use to describe a high-pressure situation
The deadline’s tomorrow and we haven’t even started! The heat’s really on now.
The heat is on for United. If they don’t win their last 5 matches they’ll lose their place in the Premier League.
a sting in the tail
a phrase that means something unpleasant and sometimes unexpected happens when doing something good or fun.
We had a great holiday but it had a sting in the tail – when we got home we discovered our house had been broken into.
I love her new book – the story is funny and romantic – but there’s a sting in the tail when someone dies.
Yeah, we all got a pay rise this month, but there’s a sting in the tail – we’re expected to work longer hours.
so done with
If you say you’re ‘so done with’ something – it means you are irritated and bored by it! Often it’s a task that you don’t want to do.
I need a new job. I’m so done with delivering pizza.
I need to get to bed earlier. I’m so done with feeling like a zombie every day.
I’m so done with learning Hungarian. The grammar is so hard!
fuddy-duddy
So a fuddy-duddy is someone who is old-fashioned and sometimes pompous.
Ling thinks I’m an old fuddy-duddy because I don’t drive a flashy sports car.
My dad’s a bit of a fuddy-duddy - he still listens to music on cassette tapes.
The bank has lost many customers over the years, probably due to its fuddy-duddy image.
no great shakes
no great shakes, means not very good or not very impressive.
My sister puts on a good dinner party but she’s no great shakes when it comes to cooking!
That new singer has a great voice but he’s no great shakes at playing the guitar.
The film sequel is no great shakes compared with the first one – there was no story and the special effects were awful!
