UNITS 9&10 • PAT Flashcards
blurt something out
uk |blɜːt| us |blɝːt|
verb
1. to say something suddenly and without thinking, usually because you are excited or nervous
* “He blurted everything out about the baby, though we’d agreed to keep it a secret for a while.”
* ”[+ speech] She suddenly blurted out, “I can’t do it!””
* ”[+ that] Late one evening, Gianni blurted out that he loved her.”
catch on
uk |kætʃ| us |kætʃ|
verb
1. to become fashionable or popular
* “I wonder if the game will ever catch on with young people?”
2. to understand, especially after a long time [informal]
* “He doesn’t take hints very easily, but he’ll catch on (to what you’re saying) eventually.”
come out
uk |kʌm| us |kʌm|
verb
1. to go somewhere with someone for a social event [UK]
* “Would you like to come out for a drink sometime?”
2. If a book, record, film, etc. comes out, it becomes available for people to buy or see
* “When does their new album come out?”
3. When the sun, moon, or stars come out, they appear in the sky
* “The clouds finally parted and the sun came out.”
4. If something comes out, it becomes known publicly after it has been kept secret
* “[it comes out that] After her death, it came out that she’d lied about her age.”
* “When the truth came out, there was public outrage.”
5. If information, results, etc. come out, they are given to people
* “The exam results come out in August.”
6. to tell people that you are gay, queer, transgender, non-binary, or another identity that is not heterosexual (= sexually attracted to men if you are a woman and women if you are a man)or cisgender (= having a gender that matches the body you were born with), often after having kept this a secret from them for some time
* “[come out as] He was the first CEO of a major company to come out as gay.”
* “Seeing LGBTQ+ characters represented on television has helped many young people come out to their families.”
come out with something
uk |kʌm| us |kʌm|
verb
1. to say something suddenly and unexpectedly
* “He comes out with the strangest things!”
* “She comes out with some good ideas though.”
dry something up
uk |draɪ| us |draɪ|
verb
1. to dry plates, cups, etc. with a cloth after they have been washed
dry up
uk |draɪ| us |draɪ|
verb
1. If a river, lake, etc. dries up, the water in it disappears.
2. If a supply of something dries up, it ends
* “His main source of work had dried up, leaving him short of money.”
get something across
uk |ɡet| us |ɡet|
verb
1. to manage to make someone understand or believe something
* “[get your point across] We tried to get our point across, but he just wouldn’t listen.”
* “[get a message across] This is the message that we want to get across to the public.”
get around
uk |ɡet| us |ɡet|
verb
1. to travel to a lot of places
* “Spain last week and Germany this week - he gets around, doesn’t he!”
2. to be able to go to different places without difficulty, especially if you are old or ill
* “My grandmother is finding it harder to get around these days.”
get around something
uk |ɡet| us |ɡet|
verb
1. →get round something UK
get through
uk |ɡet| us |ɡet|
verb
1. to succeed in talking to someone on the phone
* “I tried to call her but couldn’t get through.”
* “[get through to] I got through to the wrong department.”
get through something
uk |ɡet| us |ɡet|
verb
1. to succeed in an exam or competition
* “She got through her exams without too much trouble.”
2. to finish something
* “I can get through a lot more work when I’m on my own.”
* “We’ve got a lot to get through today.”
3. to use up something [UK (US go through)]
* “We’re getting through a lot of coffee/toilet paper.”
* “She gets through ten bars of chocolate each week.”
get (someone) through something
uk |ɡet| us |ɡet|
verb
1. to deal with a difficult or unpleasant experience, or to help someone do this
* “I don’t know how I got through the first couple of months after Andy’s death.”
* “We need to conserve our supplies so we can get through the winter.”
let on
uk |let| us |let|
verb
1. to tell other people about something that you know, especially when it is a secret
* “I suspect he knows more than he’s letting on.”
pass on
uk |pɑːs| us |pæs|
verb
1. [polite expression for] die
* “It’s important to remember friends and family who have passed on.”
pass on something
uk |pɑːs| us |pæs|
verb
1. to refuse an opportunity or decide not to take part in something
* “He passed on the chance to be head coach and took a job in Florida.”
pass something on
uk |pɑːs| us |pæs|
verb
1. to tell someone something that another person has told you
* “If he provided us with any information, no one passed it on to me.”
2. to give someone something that another person has given you
* “Could you pass it on to Laura when you’ve finished reading it?”
3. to give a disease to another person
* “It’s possible to pass on the virus to others through physical contact.”
put something across
uk |pʊt| us |pʊt|
verb
1. to express your ideas and opinions clearly so that people understand them easily
* “It’s an interesting idea and I thought he put it across well.”
put yourself across
uk |pʊt| us |pʊt|
verb
1. to express your ideas and opinions clearly so that people understand them and realize what you are like as a person
* “I don’t think I managed to put myself across very well in my interview.”
set something down
uk |set| us |set|
verb
1. to write or print something, especially to record it in a formal document [often passive]
* “The rules of the club are set down in the members’ handbook.”
2. to land an aircraft
set someone down
uk |set| us |set|
verb
1. If a vehicle sets down a passenger, it stops so that the passenger can get out [mainly UK]
* “The cab set us down a long way from our hotel, and we had to walk.”
shout someone down
uk |ʃaʊt| us |ʃaʊt|
verb
1. to prevent someone who is speaking at a meeting from being heard, by shouting
* “She was shouted down when she tried to speak on the issue of abortion.”
speak out
us |spik|
verb
1. to say in public what you think about something such as a law or an official plan or action
* “He spoke out against the school’s admissions policy.”
talk something over
uk |tɔːk| us |tɑːk|
verb
1. to discuss a problem or situation with someone, often to find out their opinion or to get advice before making a decision about it
* “[talk something over with someone] I’d like to talk it over with my wife first.”
talk someone round
uk |tɔːk| us |tɑːk|
verb
1. to persuade someone to agree with you or to do what you want them to do
* “She’s not keen on the idea but we think we can talk her round.”
ask about someone
us |æsk| uk |ɑːsk|
verb
1. to ask for information about someone, especially about his or her health
* “Tell your father I was asking about him.”
for the asking
idiom
1. easily available
* “There are a lot of organizations that have scholarship money for the asking.”
asking for trouble
idiom
1. behaving in a way that is likely to cause problems for you
* “If you wear light shoes for a long walk you’re asking for trouble.”
* “He knows Mom doesn’t like it when he stays out this late. He’s asking for it!”
ask around
uk |ɑːsk| us |æsk|
verb
1. to ask a lot of different people in order to get information or help
* “Our babysitter’s just moved away, so we’re asking around for a replacement.”
read (someone) the riot act
idiom
1. to speak angrily to someone about something they have done and warn that person that they will be punished if it happens again
* “He’d put up with a lot of bad behaviour from his son and thought it was time to read him the riot act.”
in my book
idiom
1. in my opinion
* “She’s never lied to me, and in my book that counts for a lot.”
in someone’s bad books
idiom
1. If you are in someone’s bad books or black books, they are angry with you
* “He’s in Melanie’s bad books because he arrived two hours late.”
* “She hasn’t visited her relatives in Ireland for a long time, so she knows she’s in her aunt’s black books.”
in someone’s good books
idiom
1. If you are in someone’s good books, they are pleased with you
* “I cleaned the bathroom yesterday so I’m in Dad’s good books.”
in someone’s words
idiom
1. used when you repeat what someone said
* “His wife, Mary, was 25 years his junior and, in his words, “my guiding light”.”
discussion
uk |dɪˈskʌʃ.ən| us |dɪˈskʌʃ.ən|
noun
1. the activity in which people talk about something and tell each other their ideas or opinions
* “[hold/have discussions with] We will hold/have discussions with employee representatives about possible redundancies.”
* “[under discussion] The matter is still under discussion (= being considered).”
* “a discussion group/document”
to the letter
idiom
1. If you obey instructions or rules to the letter, you do exactly what you have been told to do, giving great attention to every detail
* “I followed the instructions to the letter and it still went wrong.”
the letter of the law
phrase
1. the exact words of the law and not its more important general meaning
* “She abided by the letter of the law, but not the spirit of the law.”
* “I suppose that his application is valid according to the letter of the law.”
* “The letter of the law prohibits jaywalking, but few police officers will ticket jaywalkers.”
* “I believe that we must follow the letter of the law strictly if we want to be equitable.”
letter bomb
uk |ˈlet.ə ˌbɒm| us |ˈlet̬.ɚ ˌbɑːm|
noun
1. a small bomb that is put in an envelope or parcel and posted to someone
letterbox
uk |ˈlet.ə.bɒks| us |ˈlet̬.ɚ.bɑːks|
noun
1. a rectangular hole in the door or in a wall near the entrance of a house or other building, through which letters, etc. are delivered [C UK (US mail slot)]
2. a metal container in the street or other public place in which you can put letters for them to be collected and sent to someone else [C UK (US mailbox)]
3. a way of showing widescreen images on a screen that is not intended for this, by having an empty area, usually black, at the top and bottom of the screen, or a screen with empty areas like this [C/U theatre & film, media specialized]
* “I don’t see what’s wrong with watching films in letterbox.”
* “People are watching movies on the 10-inch letterbox screen of their mobile devices.”
letterbox
uk |ˈlet.ə.bɒks| us |ˈlet̬.ɚ.bɑːks|
verb
1. to display a widescreen image on a screen that is not intended for this by having empty areas, usually black, at the top and bottom of the screen [T usually passive theatre & film, media specialized]
* “The discs included widescreen, letterboxed versions of films, rather than full-frame versions.”
* “21:9 aspect ratio films are letter-boxed with narrow bars at the top and bottom.”
take notice
phrase
1. to give attention to something
* “I asked him to drive more slowly, but he didn’t take any notice.”
* “Take no notice of what your mother says - she’s just in a bad mood.”
* “At the time, few took much notice of the event.”
* “A few years ago, everyone would stare but now no one takes any notice.”
* “Nobody seemed to take much notice, or perhaps they pretended not to.”
* “Sam is just being silly - don’t take any notice.”
a paper chase
idiom
1. the activity of dealing with many different documents in order to achieve something
* “To receive even the smallest amount of financial aid from a college, it’s a real paper chase.”
paper over something
uk |ˈpeɪ.pər| us |ˈpeɪ.pɚ|
verb
1. to hide an unpleasant situation, especially a problem or disagreement, in order to make people believe that it does not exist or is not serious
* “He tried to paper over the country’s deep-seated problems.”
paper round
uk |ˈpeɪ.pə ˌraʊnd| us |ˈpeɪ.pɚ ˌraʊnd|
noun
1. the job, often done by children, of taking newspapers to people’s homes
paperwork
uk |ˈpeɪ.pə.wɜːk| us |ˈpeɪ.pɚ.wɝːk|
noun
1. the part of a job that involves writing letters and reports and keeping records
2. the written records connected with a particular job, deal, trip, etc.
* “I’ve kept all the paperwork for the car.”
put/set pen to paper
idiom
1. to start to write
* “It’s time you put pen to paper and replied to that letter from your mother.”
the pen is mightier than the sword
idiom
1. said to emphasize that thinking and writing have more influence on people and events than the use of force or violence
pen pusher
uk |ˈpen ˌpʊʃ.ər| us |ˈpen ˌpʊʃ.ɚ|
noun
1. a person who has an office job that is not interesting
pen pal
uk |ˈpen ˌpæl| us |ˈpen ˌpæl|
noun
1. someone who you exchange letters with as a hobby, but usually have not met
* “I’ve got a pen pal in Australia.”
print on demand
uk |ˌprɪnt ɒn dɪˈmɑːnd| us |ˌprɪnt ɑːn dɪˈmænd|
noun
1. a way of producing books or other documents in which copies are printed only after they have been ordered
bring someone to book
idiom
1. to punish someone and make that person explain their behaviour
read between the lines
idiom
1. to try to understand someone’s real feelings or intentions from what they say or write
* “Reading between the lines, I’d say he isn’t happy with the situation.”
take something as read
idiom
1. to accept that something is true without making sure that it is
* “I just took it as read that anyone who applied for the course would have the necessary qualifications.”
on the record
idiom
1. If you say something on the record, you state it publicly
* “None of the company directors were prepared to comment on the record yesterday.”
off the record
idiom
1. If someone says something off the record, they do not want it to be publicly reported
* “She made it clear that her comments were strictly off the record.”
the last straw
idiom
1. the latest problem in a series of problems, that makes a situation impossible to accept
* “The last straw was when the company fired most of the managers.”
say your piece
idiom
1. to say what you are obviously wanting to say
* “Just say your piece and then go.”
speak/talk out of turn
idiom
1. to say something that you should not have said
* “I’m sorry if I spoke out of turn, but I thought you already knew.”
so to speak
idiom
1. used to explain that what you are saying is not to be understood exactly as stated
* “In that relationship it’s very much Lorna who wears the trousers, so to speak (= Lorna makes all the important decisions).”
on speaking terms
idiom
1. friendly enough to talk
* “We had an argument, but we’re back on speaking terms now.”
speaking as someone
idiom
1. with the experience of being this type of person
* “Speaking as a mother of four, I can tell you that children are exhausting.”
talk your way into/out of something
idiom
1. to persuade people that you should do something/not do something by the reasons you give
* “He talked his way into the job.”
* “You might be able to talk your way out of most things but you still have to wash the dishes!”
talk some sense into sb
idiom
1. to help someone to think about a situation in a reasonable way
* “She won’t listen to me - can you try to talk some sense into her?”
speak/talk of the devil
idiom
1. something you say when the person you were talking about appears unexpectedly
* “Did you hear what happened to Anna yesterday - oh, speak of the devil, here she is.”
tell it like it is
idiom
1. to describe a situation honestly without avoiding any unpleasant details
* “I want a newspaper that tells it like it is, without any opinion or political bias.”
chance would be a fine thing
idiom
1. said when you would very much like something to happen but there is no possibility that it will
* "”You should relax a bit more.” “Chance would be a fine thing.””
on the understanding
idiom
1. according to someone’s promise or statement
* “We purchased the computer on the understanding that it could be returned within ten days.”
put in a good word for someone
idiom
1. to say positive things about someone
* “I really need a job and I was hoping you might put in a good word for me with your boss.”
spread the word
idiom
1. to communicate a message to a lot of people
* “We’ve arranged a meeting for next Thursday so if you see anyone do spread the word.”
say the word
idiom
1. used to tell someone that you will do what they want at the time they ask you
* “You only have to/Just say the word, and I’ll come and help.”
from the word go
idiom
1. from the start of something
* “[right from the word go] The bridge-building project had problems with funding right from the word go.”
word-of-mouth
uk |ˌwɜːd.əvˈmaʊθ| us |ˌwɝːd.əvˈmaʊθ|
adjective
1. given or done by people talking about something or telling people about something
* “We get most of our work through word-of-mouth recommendations.”
* “word-of-mouth publicity”
in other words
idiom
1. to explain it more clearly
* “He was economical with the truth – in other words, he lied.”
nothing to write home about
idiom
1. not exciting or special
* “Their performance was nothing to write home about.”
big mouth
uk |ˈbɪɡ ˌmaʊθ| us |ˈbɪɡ ˌmaʊθ|
noun
1. If someone is or has a big mouth, they often say things that are meant to be kept secret
* “He has such a big mouth.”
* “He went and opened his big mouth and told them the whole story.”
come clean
idiom
1. to tell the truth about something that you have been keeping secret
* “[come clean with] I thought it was time to come clean with everybody.”
* “[come clean about] I thought it was time to come clean about what I’d been doing.”
get something off your chest
idiom
1. to tell someone about something that has been worrying you or making you feel guilty for a long time
* “I had spent two months worrying about it and I was glad to get it off my chest.”
get the wrong end of the stick
idiom
1. to not understand a situation correctly
* “Her friend saw us arrive at the party together and got the wrong end of the stick.”
give your word
idiom
1. to promise
* “He gave his word that he would marry her and she had no cause to doubt him.”
hear (something) through/on the grapevine
idiom
1. to hear news from someone who heard the news from someone else
* “I heard through the grapevine that he was leaving - is it true?”
keep someone posted
idiom
1. to make sure someone knows what is happening, esp. in a situation that is quickly changing
* “The doctors kept me posted about her condition.”
pull something out of a/your hat
idiom
1. to do something unexpected that suddenly improves a bad situation (UK pull something out of the bag/hat)
lay your cards on the table
idiom
1. to be honest and not hide what you are thinking or doing
* “I’m going to lay my cards on the table here, and say that I don’t know what to do.”
speak volumes
idiom
1. If something speaks volumes, it makes an opinion, characteristic, or situation very clear without the use of words
* “She said very little but her face spoke volumes.”
