English Vocabulary Chapter 81-90
Chapter 81
Binomials: expressions where two words are joined; example see below
Odds and ends: small, unimportant things; let’s get the main things packed, we can do the odds and ends later. Give and take: a spirit of compromise; a relationship needs a bit of give and take to be successful. Part and parcel: part of, belong to; tears are part and parcel of growing up. Ranting and raving: shouting, very angry; the boss was ranting and raving at us. Rack and ruin: ruined, decayed; the old cottage has gone to rack and ruin. Prim and proper: clean(rather formal and fussy); he’s so prim and proper at work. Rough and ready: poor standard; the hotel was a bit rough and ready. Wine and dine: entertain; she has to wine and dine important clients. Pick and choose: have a wide choice; you can pick and choose, it’s up to you. Leaps and bounds: big jumps; my English is progressing in leaps and bounds. Peace and quiet: peace, calm; it’s nice to have some peace and quiet. Rest and recreation: relaxation; the doctor recommended rest and recreation/R and R. First and foremost: first, most importantly; first and foremost, you must work hard. Here and there: scattered round; there are cafés here and there. On and off: occasionally; we’ve had meetings on and off. Back and forth: to and from somewhere; I’ve been running back and forth all day. To and fro: to and from somewhere; I’ve been running to and fro all day. Down and out: without a home or money; he’s unemployed and down and out.: Out and about: going out; she’s better now, out and about again. Up and down: in both directions; she ran up and down the street. Back to front: the wrong way; you’ve got your sweater on back to front. Sink or swim: survive or fail; he won’t help her, she’ll have to sink or swim. Slowly but surely: gradually; slowly but surely, I realised the boat was sinking. Sooner or later: some day/time; sooner or later, you’ll learn your lesson. All or nothing: she didn’t want to be just friends, it had to be all or nothing. Take it or leave it: well I’m sorry that’s all I can offer, take it or leave it. Give or take: around/about; it’s about the same distance, give or take a few miles. High and dry: all alone; I was left high and dry, with no-one to help me. Safe and sound: safe; I’m glad you’re safe and sound after such a dangerous journey. Chapter 82 Heart of gold: very kind, generous; she has a heart of gold. Good as gold: generous, helpful; he’s as good as gold. Hard as nails: no sympathy for others; she’s as hard as nails. Cold fish: distant, unfriendly; he is rather a cold fish. Awkward customer: difficult person to deal with; he’s such a awkward customer. Pain in the neck: nuisance, difficult; she’s a pain in the neck. Getting on nerves: irritates everybody; he gets on everyone’s nerves. Quick off the mark: very quick; he’s very quick off the mark, he always gets things before everybody else does. Fast worker: You’re a fast worker!You only met three weeks ago, and now you asked him to marry you! Slow off the mark: very slow; I was a but slow off the mark, the job had been filled by the time I got the forms. An odd-ball: very strange; she’s a bit of an odd-ball, very strange! Over the top: exaggerated in behaviour; he’s really over the top. Round the bend: absolutely mad; he’s (gone) round the bend, if you ask me. Middle-of-the-road: very normal, neither left- nor right-wing; my politics are very middle-of-the-road. Teacher’s pet: the person who’s the teacher’s favourite; she’s the teacher’s pet. Top of the class: the person who gets the best marks of class; Mary’s top of the class. Know-all: an irritating person who knows everything; he’s a real know-all. A big-head: someone who thinks he/she is the best and says so; he’s a big-head. A lazy-bones: a person who is very lazy; he doesn’t do a thing, he’s a lazy-bones. One’s head screwed on: be sensible; she’s sensible and knows what she’s doing, she’s has her head screwed on. A head for heights: not suffer from vertigo; don’t ask me to go up that tower, I’m afraid, I don’t have a head for heights. A head like a sieve: bad memory; I’d better write it down, I’ve a head like a sieve. A good head for figures: be good at maths; let Mary check those sums, she has a good head for figures. One’s head in the clouds: unaware of reality; he really has his head in the clouds. Heart in the right place: the person has good intentions, but has done sth wrong; don’t get angry with him, he has his heart in the right place. Square peg in a round hole: a person does not fit in naturally; he should find himself an other job, he’s a big of a square peg in a round hole here. Being miles away: not concentrating on what is happening, thinking about sth else; “Hey! I’m talking to you!” Sorry, I was miles away.’
Chapter 83
A face as long as a fiddle: look very depressed/sad; he has a face - a fiddle.
Look down in the dumps: look depressed/sad; she looked down in the dumps.
Like a bear with a sore head: extremely irritable; he was like a bear - head.
Frightened life out of him: frighten him a lot
On cloud nine: extremely happy; Mary seems to be on cloud nine these days. In high spirits: lively, enjoying things; everyone seemed to be in high spirits. Keep one’s chin up: happy despite bad things; she seems to be keeping her chin up. As happy as the day is long: extremely content; Jo’s as happy as the day is long. In a (black) mood: a bad mood/temper; Gerry is in a mood. I could eat a horse!: extremely hungry
Feel all in: exhausted; I’m feeling all in. Under the weather: not very well/ill; you’re looking a bit under the weather. On top form: good physical condition; she looked, and felt, on top form. One’s head go round: dizzy; I suddenly felt as if my head was going round. At death’s door: very sick/ill; I was almost at death’s door last week! As fit as a fiddle: very fit indeed; old nora’s as fit as a fiddle
Scared stiff: very scared
Shaking in our shoes: trembling with fear
Scared out of his wits: very scared indeed
Jump out of your skin: make a big jump because of a sudden sound
Carried away: be fooled
Keep a cool head: stay calm
Be over the moon: to feel very happy (in de wolken) As pleased as Punch: positive; very happy
To feel browned off: negative; bored, unhappy, annoyed
Swell with pride: feel very proud
Get itchy feet: get a desire to travel
On the edge of your seat: to be impatient, waiting for sth to happen
To be up in arms: to be very angry and protesting loudly
To be in two minds: unable to decide
Chapter 84
Be in a fix: be in difficulty
Be in a tight corner: be in a situation that is hard to get out of
Be in a muddle: be confused/mixed up. Take a back seat: not to do anything, let others act instead. Stir things up: do/say things that make the situation worse. Take the bull by the horns: act positively to face and attack the problem. Pour oil on troubled waters: do/say things that calm the situation down. Lay one’s cards on the table: be very open, state exactly what your position is. Keep cards close to chest: hold back information. Get our act together: organise ourselves to respond, informal; this has to be done by next week; we must get our act together before it’s too late. Get a grasp: find out/understand; I’m trying to get a grasp of what’s happening; it’s not easy. Get to the bottom of things: find the true explanation; we need a proper investigation to get to the bottom of things. Get to sit up and take notice: make them pay attention; it’s quite difficult to get people to sit up and take notice. The tide has turned: situation has changed; the tide has turned for us, better days are ahead. Come to a dead end: end stage of a situation; I’m afraid we’ve come to a dead end with our plans. Reach a turning-point: change in a situation; I think I’ve reached a turning-point in my career. See light at end of a tunnel: situation has changed; we can see light … tunnel, finally! It would go a long way: would help a lot; you should say sorry! It would go a long way. Swept under the carpet: ignored; all that trouble last year was swept under the carpet. Buried the hatchet: made peace/stopped fighting each other; the government and the unions have buried the hatchet for the time being. Like a bull in a china shop: be very clumsy
Talk a load of bull: talk nonsense, informal
Let the cat out of the bag: reveal a secret you shouldn’t reveal, often causing problems for other people. Go back to square one: go back to the beginning again; it’s not working, we’ll have to go back to square one. A happy medium: a compromise; the teachers want one thing the students want the exact opposite. I’m sure we can find a happy medium. On tenterhooks: in great suspense; we were on tenterhooks all night waiting for the news from the hospital, they finally rang us at 6.30 am. To go hand in hand: are found in the same place and connected to each other; poverty and crime go hand in hand in this part of town. Toe the line: behave yourself/follow the rules; you’ve been in a lot of trouble lately, you’d better toe the line from now on. Chapter 85 Head and shoulders above: saying people are better than the rest; Mary is head and shoulders above the rest of the girls. (used for people) Miles better: saying a person is better than the rest; she’s miles better than the rest. (used for people) Being streets ahead: further than the rest; when it comes to technology, Japan is streets ahead of most other countries. (used for people/things) Knocks spots off: is the best; when it comes to exam passes, St John’s school usually knocks spots off the other school. (used for people/things) Out of this world: superb/outstanding; that meal was just out of this world (used for things) Dab-hand at: saying a person is good at sth(for manual skills); she is a dab-hand at carpentry, just like her father. First-rate/top-notch: being the very best; he’s really the first-rate/top-notch administrator, the very best. Really on the ball: knows a lot; when it comes to grammar, she’s is really on the ball. Have a way with: good at establishing good relations; Bill has a way with foreign students, the other teachers envy him. Have green fingers: good at gardening; Marjorie really has green fingers, look at those flowers! Got the gift of the gab: good at talking; let him do the talk, he’s got the gift of the gab. The cat’s whiskers/the bee’s knees: thinks she’s wonderful; she thinks she is the cat’s whiskers and the bee’s knees! Like a dog’s dinner: over-dressed in a showy way; he was dressed up like… Being the world’s worst: no-one is worse; when it comes to grammar, he’s the world’s worst. A dog’s breakfast: a mess/very badly done; this essay of yours is really a dog’s breakfast! Take the biscuit: being the worst of all; when it comes to grammar, he really takes the biscuit. Want to have the cake and eat it: wants everything without any contribution from her side; she wants to have her cake and eat it. Butter me up: give false praise in order to get sth; I think he’s just trying to butter me up! You want jam on it: have totally unreasonable expectations/demands; a pay-rise and a company car! You want jam on it, you do! Run down: talk negatively about sth; you shouldn’t run down your own country when you’re abroad. Pick holes: say negative things; why do you always have to pick holes in everything I say? Chapter 86 Talking at cross-purposes: misunderstanding in a conversation; zie blz. 174
Got the wrong end of the stick: misunderstanding in conversation; zie blz. 174
Can’t get a word in edgeways: hard to start a good conversation; zie blz. 174
Can’t make head or tail of what she’s saying: can’t understand a word of what she’s saying; zie blz. 174
Talk down to sb: talk as if the person is higher; the boss always talks down to us. Talking behind my back: saying negative things about me when I’m not there; my work-mates are talking behind my back. Small talk: purely social talk/nothing serious; it was just small talk, nothing more, I promise. Talk shop: talk about work; let’s sit somewhere else, they always talk shop over lunch, and it bores me rigid. Rigid
Talking-point: subject that everyone wants to talk about. Give a talking to: reproach/scold him; it’s gone too far this time. I shall give him a talking to. To start the ball rolling: start the conversation. Out it in a nutshell: say it in a few words
Get to the point: come to the important part of the matter
Speak my mind: say exactly what I think
Wrap up the discussion: finish the discussion
Talk sense: say intelligent, reasonable things
Talk rubbish: say stupid things
Long-winded: say things in a long, indirect way Chapter 87 Buy a real pig in a poke: buy something without examining it properly first; he bought a real pig in a poke when he got that car. Pay over the odds: pay more than the usual rate; we’ll probably have to pay over the odds for a hotel room during the week of the festival. Foot the bill: pay up, usually a large amount; he did $600 worth of damage to the car and his parents had to foot the bill. Real rip-off: made us pay too much, informal; that restaurant was a real rip-off or that taxi-driver really ripped us off. Drive a hard bargain: ask a lot and resist lowering a price; if I were you I’d drive a hard bargain, she’s desperate to buy a flat and wants yours. Make quite a bit of a headway: Got a song on the brain: can’t stop yourself singing a song
Get it off my chest: tell something that’s been bothering you a lot. Have to pay through the nose: pay a huge amount of money
Got to hand it to: admit; you’ve got to hand it to her, she’s a great singer.
Got a finger in every pie: is involved in many different things.
Rise and shine: command to someone to get up, said to someone who doesn’t want to and at a very early hour; Come on! Rise and shine! We’ve got to leave!
Get a bite to eat: have a snack or meal.
Have a nap: a short sleep
Freshen up: wash and tidy oneself
Be ready to crash out: be very tired/ready to sleep almost anywhere
Put our feet up: relax
Watch the box: watch television Chapter 88 Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched = don’t anticipate the future too much
Don’t put all our eggs in one basket = don’t invest all your efforts, or attention in one thing
Never judge a book by its cover = don’t judge people/things by their outward appearance
Never look a gift-horse in the mouth = never refuse good fortune when it’s in front of you
Take care of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves = take care of small sums of money and they will become large sums. When the cat’s away, the mice will play = people will take advantage of someone else’s absence to behave more freely
You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink = you can try to persuade someone but you can’t force them
One swallow doesn’t make a summer = one positive thing doesn’t mean that all will be well
There’s no smoke without fire = rumours usually based on some degree of truth
Too many cooks spoil the broth = too many people interfering is a bad way of doing things
People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones = don’t criticise others’ faults if you suffer from them yourself
Many hands make light work = a lot of people helping makes a job easier Chapter 89 Do without: manage without; we’ll have to do without a holiday this year as money is so short
Do away with: abolish; slavery was not done with until the nineteenth century
Do out of: prevent from having; he did me out of my rightful inheritance
Make for: move in the direction of; let’s make for the city centre and find a restaurant on the way
Make of: think (opinion); what do you make of him? Make off: leave hurriedly; he made off as soon as he heard their car turn into the drive
Make up for: compensate for; the superb food at the hotel made up for the uncomfortable rooms
Make up to: be nice in order to get sth; he made up to her until she agreed to help
Do up: fasten, renovate, put into a bundle
Make out: claim, manage to see, understand, write, complete
Make up: compose, invent, constitute, form, put cosmetics on, prepare by mixing together various ingredients, make sth more numerous or complete
Voor de rest kan je beter de lesjes maken, want dan weet je echt de betekenissen en die kun je dan ook toepassen. Chapter 90 Bring up: raise; my father’s parents brought him up in the country because they thought that the country was better for children
Bring off: succeed; don’t give up. I’m sure you’ll bring it off in the end
Bring on: cause to start; cold winds always bring on her cough. Bring about: cause to happen; the strike brought about a change in the government
Bring back: re-introduce; I hope they don’t bring back capital punishment
Bring down: lower; they promised to bring down taxes but they actually raised them
Bring down: destroy, remove from power; inflation will probably bring down the government
Bring out: introducing; Ford Motors are bringing out an interesting new model in spring
Bring round: persuade; keep trying to persuade him and you’ll bring him round to your point of view
Take after: resemble; doesn’t he take after his father! They even sound the same
Take back: withdraw; I wish I could take back what I said to her
Take in: understand; it’s hard to take in the lectures
Take in: deceived; she was completely taken in by him
Take off: start to improve;sales have taken off now, we’ll make a profit this year
Take off: left the ground; the plane took off two hours later
Take off: imitating; she’s very good at taking off her teacher, she sounds just sounds like her
Take on: employ/accept; we’ll have to take on more staff if we’re to take on more work
Take to: formed an immediate liking for; she took to him at once and they soon became close friends
Take up: start (a hobby); when did you take up golf? Be brought into force: become law; the new regulations will be brought into force in May
Bring to light: revealed; his research brought some interesting facts to light
Be brought to a head: reached a point were changes had to be made; matters were brought to a head when Pat was sacked
Bring into the open: made public; it’s better that everything is brought into the open
Bring out the best in: been good for him; his new girlfriend has brought the best in him
Take advantage of: unfairly use superiority; don’t let him take advantage of you
Take for granted: doesn’t appreciate her qualities; after 20 years of marriage he takes her for granted
Take for granted: assumed; i took it for granted you’d come, you always do
Take control: started organising; she immediately took control of the situation
Take my breath away: surprised; his unkind words took my breath away
Take part in: participated; we took part in a demonstration last Saturday
Take care: looking after, caring for; she loves taking care of small children
Take place: happen; the story takes place in Mexico
Take pride in: draw satisfaction from; he doesn’t seem to take pride in his work
Take in her stride: copes calm; mother always takes everything in her stride, she never makes a fuss
Ook van dit hoofdstuk zou ik de lesjes maken, want dan weet je echt de betekenissen en die kun je dan ook toepassen.
Odds and ends: small, unimportant things; let’s get the main things packed, we can do the odds and ends later. Give and take: a spirit of compromise; a relationship needs a bit of give and take to be successful. Part and parcel: part of, belong to; tears are part and parcel of growing up. Ranting and raving: shouting, very angry; the boss was ranting and raving at us. Rack and ruin: ruined, decayed; the old cottage has gone to rack and ruin. Prim and proper: clean(rather formal and fussy); he’s so prim and proper at work. Rough and ready: poor standard; the hotel was a bit rough and ready. Wine and dine: entertain; she has to wine and dine important clients. Pick and choose: have a wide choice; you can pick and choose, it’s up to you. Leaps and bounds: big jumps; my English is progressing in leaps and bounds. Peace and quiet: peace, calm; it’s nice to have some peace and quiet. Rest and recreation: relaxation; the doctor recommended rest and recreation/R and R. First and foremost: first, most importantly; first and foremost, you must work hard. Here and there: scattered round; there are cafés here and there. On and off: occasionally; we’ve had meetings on and off. Back and forth: to and from somewhere; I’ve been running back and forth all day. To and fro: to and from somewhere; I’ve been running to and fro all day. Down and out: without a home or money; he’s unemployed and down and out.: Out and about: going out; she’s better now, out and about again. Up and down: in both directions; she ran up and down the street. Back to front: the wrong way; you’ve got your sweater on back to front. Sink or swim: survive or fail; he won’t help her, she’ll have to sink or swim. Slowly but surely: gradually; slowly but surely, I realised the boat was sinking. Sooner or later: some day/time; sooner or later, you’ll learn your lesson. All or nothing: she didn’t want to be just friends, it had to be all or nothing. Take it or leave it: well I’m sorry that’s all I can offer, take it or leave it. Give or take: around/about; it’s about the same distance, give or take a few miles. High and dry: all alone; I was left high and dry, with no-one to help me. Safe and sound: safe; I’m glad you’re safe and sound after such a dangerous journey. Chapter 82 Heart of gold: very kind, generous; she has a heart of gold. Good as gold: generous, helpful; he’s as good as gold. Hard as nails: no sympathy for others; she’s as hard as nails. Cold fish: distant, unfriendly; he is rather a cold fish. Awkward customer: difficult person to deal with; he’s such a awkward customer. Pain in the neck: nuisance, difficult; she’s a pain in the neck. Getting on nerves: irritates everybody; he gets on everyone’s nerves. Quick off the mark: very quick; he’s very quick off the mark, he always gets things before everybody else does. Fast worker: You’re a fast worker!You only met three weeks ago, and now you asked him to marry you! Slow off the mark: very slow; I was a but slow off the mark, the job had been filled by the time I got the forms. An odd-ball: very strange; she’s a bit of an odd-ball, very strange! Over the top: exaggerated in behaviour; he’s really over the top. Round the bend: absolutely mad; he’s (gone) round the bend, if you ask me. Middle-of-the-road: very normal, neither left- nor right-wing; my politics are very middle-of-the-road. Teacher’s pet: the person who’s the teacher’s favourite; she’s the teacher’s pet. Top of the class: the person who gets the best marks of class; Mary’s top of the class. Know-all: an irritating person who knows everything; he’s a real know-all. A big-head: someone who thinks he/she is the best and says so; he’s a big-head. A lazy-bones: a person who is very lazy; he doesn’t do a thing, he’s a lazy-bones. One’s head screwed on: be sensible; she’s sensible and knows what she’s doing, she’s has her head screwed on. A head for heights: not suffer from vertigo; don’t ask me to go up that tower, I’m afraid, I don’t have a head for heights. A head like a sieve: bad memory; I’d better write it down, I’ve a head like a sieve. A good head for figures: be good at maths; let Mary check those sums, she has a good head for figures. One’s head in the clouds: unaware of reality; he really has his head in the clouds. Heart in the right place: the person has good intentions, but has done sth wrong; don’t get angry with him, he has his heart in the right place. Square peg in a round hole: a person does not fit in naturally; he should find himself an other job, he’s a big of a square peg in a round hole here. Being miles away: not concentrating on what is happening, thinking about sth else; “Hey! I’m talking to you!” Sorry, I was miles away.’
On cloud nine: extremely happy; Mary seems to be on cloud nine these days. In high spirits: lively, enjoying things; everyone seemed to be in high spirits. Keep one’s chin up: happy despite bad things; she seems to be keeping her chin up. As happy as the day is long: extremely content; Jo’s as happy as the day is long. In a (black) mood: a bad mood/temper; Gerry is in a mood. I could eat a horse!: extremely hungry
Feel all in: exhausted; I’m feeling all in. Under the weather: not very well/ill; you’re looking a bit under the weather. On top form: good physical condition; she looked, and felt, on top form. One’s head go round: dizzy; I suddenly felt as if my head was going round. At death’s door: very sick/ill; I was almost at death’s door last week! As fit as a fiddle: very fit indeed; old nora’s as fit as a fiddle
Scared stiff: very scared
Shaking in our shoes: trembling with fear
Scared out of his wits: very scared indeed
Jump out of your skin: make a big jump because of a sudden sound
Carried away: be fooled
Keep a cool head: stay calm
Be over the moon: to feel very happy (in de wolken) As pleased as Punch: positive; very happy
To feel browned off: negative; bored, unhappy, annoyed
Swell with pride: feel very proud
Get itchy feet: get a desire to travel
On the edge of your seat: to be impatient, waiting for sth to happen
To be up in arms: to be very angry and protesting loudly
Be in a tight corner: be in a situation that is hard to get out of
Be in a muddle: be confused/mixed up. Take a back seat: not to do anything, let others act instead. Stir things up: do/say things that make the situation worse. Take the bull by the horns: act positively to face and attack the problem. Pour oil on troubled waters: do/say things that calm the situation down. Lay one’s cards on the table: be very open, state exactly what your position is. Keep cards close to chest: hold back information. Get our act together: organise ourselves to respond, informal; this has to be done by next week; we must get our act together before it’s too late. Get a grasp: find out/understand; I’m trying to get a grasp of what’s happening; it’s not easy. Get to the bottom of things: find the true explanation; we need a proper investigation to get to the bottom of things. Get to sit up and take notice: make them pay attention; it’s quite difficult to get people to sit up and take notice. The tide has turned: situation has changed; the tide has turned for us, better days are ahead. Come to a dead end: end stage of a situation; I’m afraid we’ve come to a dead end with our plans. Reach a turning-point: change in a situation; I think I’ve reached a turning-point in my career. See light at end of a tunnel: situation has changed; we can see light … tunnel, finally! It would go a long way: would help a lot; you should say sorry! It would go a long way. Swept under the carpet: ignored; all that trouble last year was swept under the carpet. Buried the hatchet: made peace/stopped fighting each other; the government and the unions have buried the hatchet for the time being. Like a bull in a china shop: be very clumsy
Talk a load of bull: talk nonsense, informal
Let the cat out of the bag: reveal a secret you shouldn’t reveal, often causing problems for other people. Go back to square one: go back to the beginning again; it’s not working, we’ll have to go back to square one. A happy medium: a compromise; the teachers want one thing the students want the exact opposite. I’m sure we can find a happy medium. On tenterhooks: in great suspense; we were on tenterhooks all night waiting for the news from the hospital, they finally rang us at 6.30 am. To go hand in hand: are found in the same place and connected to each other; poverty and crime go hand in hand in this part of town. Toe the line: behave yourself/follow the rules; you’ve been in a lot of trouble lately, you’d better toe the line from now on. Chapter 85 Head and shoulders above: saying people are better than the rest; Mary is head and shoulders above the rest of the girls. (used for people) Miles better: saying a person is better than the rest; she’s miles better than the rest. (used for people) Being streets ahead: further than the rest; when it comes to technology, Japan is streets ahead of most other countries. (used for people/things) Knocks spots off: is the best; when it comes to exam passes, St John’s school usually knocks spots off the other school. (used for people/things) Out of this world: superb/outstanding; that meal was just out of this world (used for things) Dab-hand at: saying a person is good at sth(for manual skills); she is a dab-hand at carpentry, just like her father. First-rate/top-notch: being the very best; he’s really the first-rate/top-notch administrator, the very best. Really on the ball: knows a lot; when it comes to grammar, she’s is really on the ball. Have a way with: good at establishing good relations; Bill has a way with foreign students, the other teachers envy him. Have green fingers: good at gardening; Marjorie really has green fingers, look at those flowers! Got the gift of the gab: good at talking; let him do the talk, he’s got the gift of the gab. The cat’s whiskers/the bee’s knees: thinks she’s wonderful; she thinks she is the cat’s whiskers and the bee’s knees! Like a dog’s dinner: over-dressed in a showy way; he was dressed up like… Being the world’s worst: no-one is worse; when it comes to grammar, he’s the world’s worst. A dog’s breakfast: a mess/very badly done; this essay of yours is really a dog’s breakfast! Take the biscuit: being the worst of all; when it comes to grammar, he really takes the biscuit. Want to have the cake and eat it: wants everything without any contribution from her side; she wants to have her cake and eat it. Butter me up: give false praise in order to get sth; I think he’s just trying to butter me up! You want jam on it: have totally unreasonable expectations/demands; a pay-rise and a company car! You want jam on it, you do! Run down: talk negatively about sth; you shouldn’t run down your own country when you’re abroad. Pick holes: say negative things; why do you always have to pick holes in everything I say? Chapter 86 Talking at cross-purposes: misunderstanding in a conversation; zie blz. 174
Can’t get a word in edgeways: hard to start a good conversation; zie blz. 174
Can’t make head or tail of what she’s saying: can’t understand a word of what she’s saying; zie blz. 174
Talk down to sb: talk as if the person is higher; the boss always talks down to us. Talking behind my back: saying negative things about me when I’m not there; my work-mates are talking behind my back. Small talk: purely social talk/nothing serious; it was just small talk, nothing more, I promise. Talk shop: talk about work; let’s sit somewhere else, they always talk shop over lunch, and it bores me rigid. Rigid
Talking-point: subject that everyone wants to talk about. Give a talking to: reproach/scold him; it’s gone too far this time. I shall give him a talking to. To start the ball rolling: start the conversation. Out it in a nutshell: say it in a few words
Get to the point: come to the important part of the matter
Speak my mind: say exactly what I think
Wrap up the discussion: finish the discussion
Talk sense: say intelligent, reasonable things
Talk rubbish: say stupid things
Long-winded: say things in a long, indirect way Chapter 87 Buy a real pig in a poke: buy something without examining it properly first; he bought a real pig in a poke when he got that car. Pay over the odds: pay more than the usual rate; we’ll probably have to pay over the odds for a hotel room during the week of the festival. Foot the bill: pay up, usually a large amount; he did $600 worth of damage to the car and his parents had to foot the bill. Real rip-off: made us pay too much, informal; that restaurant was a real rip-off or that taxi-driver really ripped us off. Drive a hard bargain: ask a lot and resist lowering a price; if I were you I’d drive a hard bargain, she’s desperate to buy a flat and wants yours. Make quite a bit of a headway: Got a song on the brain: can’t stop yourself singing a song
Get it off my chest: tell something that’s been bothering you a lot. Have to pay through the nose: pay a huge amount of money
Freshen up: wash and tidy oneself
Be ready to crash out: be very tired/ready to sleep almost anywhere
Put our feet up: relax
Watch the box: watch television Chapter 88 Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched = don’t anticipate the future too much
Don’t put all our eggs in one basket = don’t invest all your efforts, or attention in one thing
Never judge a book by its cover = don’t judge people/things by their outward appearance
Never look a gift-horse in the mouth = never refuse good fortune when it’s in front of you
Take care of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves = take care of small sums of money and they will become large sums. When the cat’s away, the mice will play = people will take advantage of someone else’s absence to behave more freely
You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink = you can try to persuade someone but you can’t force them
There’s no smoke without fire = rumours usually based on some degree of truth
Too many cooks spoil the broth = too many people interfering is a bad way of doing things
People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones = don’t criticise others’ faults if you suffer from them yourself
Many hands make light work = a lot of people helping makes a job easier Chapter 89 Do without: manage without; we’ll have to do without a holiday this year as money is so short
Do away with: abolish; slavery was not done with until the nineteenth century
Do out of: prevent from having; he did me out of my rightful inheritance
Make for: move in the direction of; let’s make for the city centre and find a restaurant on the way
Make of: think (opinion); what do you make of him? Make off: leave hurriedly; he made off as soon as he heard their car turn into the drive
Make up for: compensate for; the superb food at the hotel made up for the uncomfortable rooms
Make up to: be nice in order to get sth; he made up to her until she agreed to help
Make out: claim, manage to see, understand, write, complete
Make up: compose, invent, constitute, form, put cosmetics on, prepare by mixing together various ingredients, make sth more numerous or complete
Voor de rest kan je beter de lesjes maken, want dan weet je echt de betekenissen en die kun je dan ook toepassen. Chapter 90 Bring up: raise; my father’s parents brought him up in the country because they thought that the country was better for children
Bring off: succeed; don’t give up. I’m sure you’ll bring it off in the end
Bring on: cause to start; cold winds always bring on her cough. Bring about: cause to happen; the strike brought about a change in the government
Bring back: re-introduce; I hope they don’t bring back capital punishment
Bring down: lower; they promised to bring down taxes but they actually raised them
Bring down: destroy, remove from power; inflation will probably bring down the government
Bring out: introducing; Ford Motors are bringing out an interesting new model in spring
Bring round: persuade; keep trying to persuade him and you’ll bring him round to your point of view
Take back: withdraw; I wish I could take back what I said to her
Take in: understand; it’s hard to take in the lectures
Take in: deceived; she was completely taken in by him
Take off: start to improve;sales have taken off now, we’ll make a profit this year
Take off: left the ground; the plane took off two hours later
Take off: imitating; she’s very good at taking off her teacher, she sounds just sounds like her
Take on: employ/accept; we’ll have to take on more staff if we’re to take on more work
Take to: formed an immediate liking for; she took to him at once and they soon became close friends
Take up: start (a hobby); when did you take up golf? Be brought into force: become law; the new regulations will be brought into force in May
Bring to light: revealed; his research brought some interesting facts to light
Be brought to a head: reached a point were changes had to be made; matters were brought to a head when Pat was sacked
Bring out the best in: been good for him; his new girlfriend has brought the best in him
Take advantage of: unfairly use superiority; don’t let him take advantage of you
Take for granted: doesn’t appreciate her qualities; after 20 years of marriage he takes her for granted
Take for granted: assumed; i took it for granted you’d come, you always do
Take control: started organising; she immediately took control of the situation
Take my breath away: surprised; his unkind words took my breath away
Take part in: participated; we took part in a demonstration last Saturday
Take care: looking after, caring for; she loves taking care of small children
Take place: happen; the story takes place in Mexico
Take pride in: draw satisfaction from; he doesn’t seem to take pride in his work
Take in her stride: copes calm; mother always takes everything in her stride, she never makes a fuss
Ook van dit hoofdstuk zou ik de lesjes maken, want dan weet je echt de betekenissen en die kun je dan ook toepassen.
REACTIES
:name
:name
:comment
1 seconde geleden