UNITS 13&14 • PAT Flashcards
add up to something
uk |æd| us |æd|
verb
1. to become a particular amount
* “The various building programmes add up to several thousand new homes.”
* “We thought we’d bought lots of food, but it didn’t add up to much when we’d spread it out on the table.”
2. to have a particular result or effect
* “It all added up to a lot of hard work for all of us.”
* “Their proposals do not add up to any real help for the poor.”
break down
uk |breɪk| us |breɪk|
verb
1. If a machine or vehicle breaks down, it stops working
* “Our car broke down and we had to push it off the road.”
2. If a system, relationship, or discussion breaks down, it fails because there is a problem or disagreement.
3. to be unable to control your feelings and to start to cry
* “When we gave her the bad news, she broke down and cried.”
break something down
uk |breɪk| us |breɪk|
verb
1. to remove something from its place by force
* “He threatened to break the door down.”
* “Some of the campers had broken down fences and lit fires that caused a lot of damage.”
build (someone/something) up
uk |bɪld| us |bɪld|
verb
1. to increase or become larger or stronger, or to cause someone or something to do this
* “[build up between] Tension is building up between the two communities.”
* “[build up strength] They gave him soup to build up his strength.”
* “[build up a business] It took her ten years to build up her publishing business.”
build something/someone up
uk |bɪld| us |bɪld|
verb
1. to praise something or someone in a way that will influence people’s opinions; to make a person feel more confident
* “A good teacher builds you up.”
* “For weeks the media has been building up the national basketball team.”
build-up
uk |ˈbɪld.ʌp| us |ˈbɪld.ʌp|
noun
1. an increase, especially one that is gradual
* “The build-up of troops in the region makes war seem more likely.”
2. a situation in which someone or something is praised, advertised, or talked about on the internet, in newspapers, etc.
* “The group got a big build-up before their tour, being touted by many as the next Beatles.”
3. the period of preparation before something happens [UK]
* “There was a lot of excitement in the build-up to the Olympics.”
buy someone off
uk |baɪ| us |baɪ|
verb
1. to pay someone so that they do not cause you any trouble
* “They tried to buy the guard at the bank off but he told the police and the gang was arrested.”
outbuy
outbought | outbought
verb
buy something up
uk |baɪ| us |baɪ|
verb
1. To buy something up is to buy large amounts of it, or all that is available
* “He bought up all the land in the surrounding area.”
carry something over
uk |ˈkær.i| us |ˈker.i|
verb
1. to use or do something at a later time than planned
* “The performance has had to be carried over to/till next week because the repairs to the theatre aren’t finished yet.”
carry (something) over
uk |ˈkær.i| us |ˈker.i|
verb
1. If something from one situation carries over or is carried over into another situation, it is allowed to affect the other situation
* “I try not to let my problems at work carry over into my private life.”
clock something up
uk |klɒk| us |klɑːk|
verb
1. to win or achieve a large number of similar things
* “The Australians have clocked up three gold medals and two silvers in the swimming events.”
club together
uk |klʌb| us |klʌb|
verb
1. If a group of people club together, they share the cost of something between them [UK]
* “If we club together, we’ll be able to get her the complete dinner set.”
drum something up
uk |drʌm| us |drʌm|
verb
1. to increase interest in something or support for something
* “He was trying to drum up some enthusiasm for the project.”
mount up
uk |maʊnt| us |maʊnt|
verb
1. to gradually increase in number or amount
* “It isn’t a good idea to let bills mount up.”
back pay
noun
1. income that should have been paid or was expected at an earlier time
* “Those workers are due a total of approximately $500,000 in back pay, according to union officials.”
pay (something) out
uk |peɪ| us |peɪ|
verb
1. to spend a lot of money on something, or to pay a lot of money to someone
* “I’ve just paid out $500 on getting the car fixed.”
pay something out
uk |peɪ| us |peɪ|
verb
1. to release a piece of rope or cable in a controlled way
size something/someone up
uk |saɪz| us |saɪz|
verb
1. to examine something or someone carefully and decide what you think about it, him, or her
* “Voters are still sizing up the candidates.”
* “The two cats walked in circles around each other, sizing each other up.”
take
uk |teɪk| us |teɪk|
verb
1. to remove something, especially without permission [T]
* “Has anything been taken (= stolen)?”
* “Here’s your pen - I took it by mistake.”
* “[be taken from] All her possessions had been taken from her.”
2. to subtract a number (= remove it from another number) [T]
* “[take something (away) from something] If you take 4 (away) from 12 you get 8.”
|[+ -ing
verb
1. to show someone how to get to somewhere by going there with them [T]
* “[take someone to something] Let me take you to your room.”
2. to go to a social event with someone [T]
* “[take someone to something] Who’s taking you to the dance?”
3. to travel somewhere by using a particular form of transport or a particular vehicle, route, etc. [T]
* “I always take the train - it’s less hassle than a car.”
* “She took the 10.30 flight to Edinburgh.”
* “If you take the road on the left, you’ll come to the post office.”
4. to need [T]
* “Parachuting takes a lot of nerve.”
* “Transitive verbs take a direct object.”
* ”[+ -ing verb] His story took some believing (= was difficult to believe).”
5. to wear a particular size of clothes or shoes
* “What size shoes do you take?”
6. If something takes a particular time, that period is needed in order to complete it [L only + noun]
* “The cooking process only takes ten minutes.”
* ”[+ to infinitive] How long does this paint take to dry?”
* ”[+ obj + noun] It took us all day to drive home.”
take
uk |teɪk| us |teɪk|
noun
1. money that is received from sales or as payment for entrance to an event [U]
* “The box office take was huge for the new show.”
2. the filming of a scene (= small part of a film) [C]
* “This scene needed ten takes before we felt it was right.”
weigh someone/something down
uk |weɪ| us |weɪ|
verb
1. If someone or something is weighed down with something, they are carrying a lot of or too much of it
* ”[(be) weighed with] Weighed down with supplies, they found the steep path difficult to climb.”
weigh someone down
uk |weɪ| us |weɪ|
verb
1. to make a person feel worried and unhappy because of problems, responsibilities, and duties
* “[weighed down by] I thought she looked somehow older, weighed down by all her new responsibilities.”
* “[weigh down on] Too much responsibility when too young can weigh down on a child.”
make a big thing (out) of something
idiom
1. to give something too much importance
* “I want a party, but I don’t want to make a big thing of it.”
be big on something
idiom
1. to like something very much
* “I’m not very big on classical music.”
be big of someone
idiom
1. If an action is big of someone, it is kind, good, or helpful. This phrase is usually used humorously or angrily to mean the opposite
* “You can spare me an hour next week? That’s really big of you!”
big name
uk |ˌbɪɡ ˈneɪm| us |ˌbɪɡ ˈneɪm|
noun
1. a famous or important person
* “Are there any big names in the movie?”
* “She’s a big name in politics.”
deal in something
uk |diːl| us |diːl|
verb
1. to buy and sell particular goods as a business
* “They mainly deal in rare books.”
deal with someone
uk |diːl| us |diːl|
verb
1. to talk to someone or meet someone, especially as part of your job
* “She’s used to dealing with difficult customers.”
deal with something
uk |diːl| us |diːl|
verb
1. to take action in order to achieve something or in order to solve a problem
* “How do you intend to deal with this problem?”
* “General enquiries are dealt with by our head office.”
2. to be about or be on the subject of something
* “Her new movie deals with the relationship between a woman and her sick daughter.”
* “The author has tried to deal with (= write about) a very difficult subject.”
deal a blow to someone/something
phrase
1. to cause someone or something, usually a plan or hope, to fail or to be affected very badly
* “The latest trade figures have dealt a severe blow to hopes of an early economic recovery.”
* “The airline industry’s difficulties have dealt a heavy blow to already struggling airports in the region.”
* “Extreme weather conditions have dealt a serious blow to agriculture across the state.”
* “The scandal threatens to deal a fatal blow to the politician’s once promising career.”
* “Another lockdown would surely have dealt the industry a blow from which it couldn’t recover.”
make a deal
collocation
in depth
phrase
1. in a serious and detailed way
* “These issues are explored in depth in her latest book.”
* “I’d like to look at this question in some depth.”
* “The allegations were examined in depth and none of them was proven to be true.”
* “The election results were discussed in some depth.”
* “We will analyse this topic in greater depth later in the chapter.”
in-depth
uk |ˈɪn.depθ| us |ˈɪn.depθ|
adjective
1. done carefully and in great detail
* “an in-depth report/interview/analysis”
hidden depths
collocation
1. serious and positive qualities in someone or something that you do not see immediately
* “Jo has hidden depths.”
* “The most straightforward story may turn out to contain hidden depths.”
the depths of something
idiom
1. the worst period of an extreme and negative emotion or a bad situation
* “[in the depths of] He was in the depths of despair/depression about losing his job.”
* “[in the depth of] The company was started in the depth of the recession of the 1930s.”
* “He wrote the hymn in the depths of despair after losing his first wife in childbirth.”
* “She went between high spirits and the depths of misery.”
* “Even in the depth of depression, I knew I loved him.”
* “It was the depths of the Depression and people were desperate to find work.”
out of your depth
idiom
1. not having the knowledge, experience, or skills to deal with a particular subject or situation
* “I was out of my depth in the advanced class, so I moved to the intermediate class.”
2. in water that is so deep that it goes over your head when you are standing
* “I’m not a strong swimmer, so I prefer not to go out of my depth.”
