Verb Combinations III

Question 1

to bend the rules

Answer 1

to change the rules slightly on one particular occasion
e.g. The man behind the counter told us that, although it was past midnight, he would bend the rules and give us something to eat.

Question 2

to bow to sb’s demands

Answer 2

(for a government / company) to finally and reluctantly agree to do sth
e.g. After months of strikes and failed negotiations, the management finally bowed to the union’s demands.

Question 3

to cost a bomb

Answer 3

to be very expensive

e.g. You can’t afford a car like that. They cost a bomb.

Question 4

to hail a taxi / cab

Answer 4

to signal to a taxi (so that it stops and picks you up) while you are standing in the street
e.g. He stood in the street, trying to hail a taxi.

Question 5

to issue (sb with) a ticket or permit / licence

Answer 5

to give sb a ticket or permit / licence that they have paid for
e.g. They told me that they would issue me with a new parking permit.

Question 6

to jog sb’s memory

Answer 6

to help sb remember sth

e.g. Perhaps this letter will jog your memory.

Question 7

to level an accusation / a criticism

Answer 7

to accuse / criticise

e.g. Accusations of mismanagement were levelled against the board.

Question 8

to owe sb an apology

Answer 8

to feel that you need to apologise to sb

e.g. “I owe you an apology,” she said.

Question 9

to pin the blame on sb

Answer 9

to say that an innocent person is to blame for sth bad that has happened
e.g. They pinned the blame for the crash on him.

Question 10

to rack one’s brains

Answer 10

to try very hard to think of sth or remember sth

e.g. He racked his brains, trying to remember the caller’s name.

Question 11

to run rings round sb

Answer 11

to be much better than sb and beat them very easily (generally used for sport)
e.g. You think City will beat United? Are you mad? United will run rings round City.

Question 12

to seek advice

Answer 12

to ask (and probably pay) sb (a doctor, a lawyer) for professional advice
e.g. If the symptoms persist, you should seek medical advice.

Question 13

to settle a bill

Answer 13

to pay a bill

e.g. He called the waiter over and settled the bill.

Question 14

to swallow your pride

Answer 14

to decide to do sth even though you think it will cause you to lose some respect
e.g. He would have to swallow his pride and admit his mistake.

Question 15

to tackle a problem

Answer 15

to deal with and try to solve a problem

e.g. The government has introduced these measures to tackle the growing problem of unemployment.

Question 16

to try sb’s patience

Answer 16

to make sb feel impatient / annoyed

e.g. He had been waiting to be served for over twenty minutes and it was beginning to try his patience.

Question 17

to undermine sb’s confidence

Answer 17

to make sb feel less confident

e.g. It is his first ever performance. Don’t be too critical; it will undermine his confidence.

Question 18

to wear thin

Answer 18

1) an excuse or explanation that is beginning to wear thin has been used so often that you are beginning not to believe it.
2) if sb’s patience is wearing thin, they are beginning to feel impatient / annoyed
e.g. He was late again; it was the same old excuse and it was wearing thin.
He’d been waiting for hours and his patience was wearing thin.