[now — now] {coord. adv.} Sometimes… sometimes; by turns; atone time… then at another. — Often used with adjectives that arevery different or opposite, especially to show change. The weatherchanged every day; it was now hot, now cool. The band playeddifferent songs, now fast, now slow; now soft, now loud. Billy ranso quickly he seemed … Читать далее
[hale and hearty] {adj. phr.} In very good health; well and strong. Grandfather will be 80 years old tomorrow, but he is hale andhearty. That little boy looks hale and hearty, as if he is neversick.
[have a heart] {v. phr.}, {informal} To stop being mean; be kind, generous, or sympathetic. Have a heart, Bob, and lend me twodollars. Have a heart, Mary, and help me with this lesson. Hedidn’t know if the teacher would have a heart and pass him.
[in the nick of time] {adv. phr.} Just at the right time; barelysoon enough; almost too late. The doctor arrived in the nick oftime to save the child from choking to death. Joe saw the othercar in the nick of time. Compare: IN TIME.
[air one’s dirty linen in public] or [wash one’s dirty linen in public] {v. phr.} To talk about your private quarrels or disgraces where others can hear; make public something embarrassing that should be kept secret. Everyone in the school knew that the superintendent and the principal were angry with each other because they aired … Читать далее
[once-over] {n.}, {slang} 1. A quick look; a swift examination ofsomeone or something. — Usually used with «give» or «get». The newboy got the once-over from the rest of the class when he came in. Bob gave his paper the once-over before handing it in. 2. or[once-over-lightly] A quick or careless job, especially of cleaning … Читать далее
[snow job] {n.}, {slang}, {informal} 1. Insincere or exaggeratedtalk designed to gain the favors of someone. Joe gave Sue a snowjob and she believed every word of it. 2. The skillful display oftechnical vocabulary and prestige terminology in order to pass oneselfoff as an expert in a specialized field without really being aknowledgeable worker in … Читать далее
[find out] {v.} 1. To learn or discover One morning the baby found out for the first time that shecould walk. I don’t know how this car works, but I’ll soon findout. He watched the birds to find out where they go. Mary wasangry when Jane found out her secret. 2. To get facts; to … Читать далее
[on the move] {adj.} or {adv. phr.} 1. Moving around from place toplace; in motion. It was a very cold day, and the teacher watchingthe playground kept on the move to stay warm. It was vacationtime, and the highways were full of families on the move. 2. Movingforward; going somewhere. The candidate promised that if … Читать далее
[pass muster] {v. phr.}, {informal} To pass a test or check-up; begood enough. After a practice period, Sam found that he was able topass muster as a lathe operator. His work was done carefully, soit always passed muster. Compare: MEASURE UP.
[in a good frame of mind] {adv. phr.} In a happy mood. After arelaxing holiday in the Bahamas, the boss was in a very good frame ofmind. Contrast: IN A BAD FRAME OF MIND.
[laugh up one’s sleeve] or [laugh in one’s sleeve] or [laugh inone’s beard] To be amused but not show it; hide your laughter. Hewas laughing up his sleeve when Joe answered the phone because he knewthe call would he a joke.
[gloss over] {v.} To try to make what is wrong or bad seem right ornot important; try to make a thing look easy; pretend about; hide. Billy broke a window and Mother tried to gloss it over by saying itwouldn’t cost much to have it fixed, but Father spanked Billy anyway. John glossed over his … Читать далее
[due to] {prep.} Because of; owing to; by reason of. His injury was due to his careless use of the shotgun. Joe’s application to the University was not accepted due to his failing English.
[bite one’s head off] {v. phr.} To answer someone in great anger; answer furiously. I’m sorry to tell you that I lost my job, but that’s no reason to bite my head off!
[drink down] {v. phr.} To drink in one gulp; swallow entirely. Steve was so thirsty that he drank down six glasses of orange juice in rapid succession.
[second childhood] {n. phr.} Senility; dotage. «Grandpa is inhis second childhood; we must make allowances for him at the dinnertable,» my mother said, as Grandpa dropped food all over the place.
[do the business] {v. phr.}, {informal} To do what is needed or wanted; get the job done; take proper action. The boys had trouble in rolling the stone, but four of them did the business. When the little boy cut his finger a bandage did the business.
[saving grace] {n. phr.} A single good attribute; a redeemingquality. Felicity is not very attractive but her intelligence andwit are her saving grace.
[for real ] {adj. phr.}, {informal} Not practice or play;earnest, real, serious. The war games were over now. This battlewas for real.
[call it a day] {v. phr.} To declare that a given day’s work has been accomplished and go home; to quit for the day. «Let’s call it a day,» the boss said, «and go out for a drink.» It was nearly midnight, so Mrs. Byron decided to call it a day, and left the party, … Читать далее
[fix up] {v. phr.} 1. To repair. The school is having the oldgym fixed up. 2. To arrange. I think I can fix it up with thecompany so that John gets the transfer he desires. 3. To arrange adate that might lead to a romance or even to marriage. Mary is agreat matchmaker; she fixed … Читать далее
[crack a bottle] {v. phr.} To open a new bottle of alcoholic beverage. On birthdays it is customary to crack a bottle and offer one’s best wishes.
[hail from] {v.}, {informal} To have your home in; come from; befrom; especially, to have been born and raised in. Mrs. Gardnerhails from Mississippi. Mr. Brown and Mr. White are old friendsbecause they both hail from the same town.
[sponge bath] {n.} A bath with a cloth or sponge and a littlewater. During the drought the family had only sponge baths. Thefamily took sponge baths because they had no bathtub.
[pay one back in his own coin] {v. phr.} To retaliate. Jimrefused to help Bob when he needed it most, so Bob decided to pay himback in his own coin and told him to go and look for help elsewhere.
[too bad] {adj.} To be regretted; worthy of sorrow or regret;regrettable. — Used as a predicate. It is too bad that we are sooften lazy. It was too bad Bill had measles when the circus cameto town.
[horselaugh] {n. phr.} A loud, sarcastic, and derisive laugh. When the speaker praised politics as one of the oldest and noblestprofessions, his audience of college students gave him a horselaugh.
[get a move on] {informal} or {slang} [get a wiggle on] {v. phr.}To hurry up; get going. — Often used as a command. Get a move on, or you will be late.
[show in] or [out] or [up] or [to the door] {v. phr.} To usher;conduct; accompany. «My husband will show you in,» Mary said to theguests when they arrived at the door.
[cowboy] {n.}, {slang}, {informal} A person who drives his car carelessly and at too great a speed in order to show off his courage. Joe’s going to be arrested some day — he is a cowboy on the highway.
[cast] or [shed] or [throw light upon] {v. phr.} To explain; illuminate; clarify. The letters that were found suddenly cast a new light on the circumstances of Tom’s disappearance. Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity threw light upon the enigma of our universe.
[have the last laugh] or [get the last laugh] {v. phr.} To makesomeone seem foolish for having laughed at you. Other schoolslaughed at us when our little team entered the state championship, butwe had the last laugh when we won it. Compare: HE LAUGHS BEST WHOLAUGHS LAST, TURN THE TABLES.
[carrot and stick] {n. phr.} The promise of reward and threat of punishment, both at the same time. John’s father used the carrot and stick when he talked about his low grades.
[hush up] {v.} 1. To keep news of from getting out;prevent people from knowing about. It isn’t always easy to hush upa scandal. 2. {informal} To be or make quiet; stop talking, crying, or making some other noise. — Often used as a command. «Hush up,»Mother said, when we began to repeat ugly gossip.
[up to one’s ears] {adv. phr.} Immersed in; covered with. «Around final examination time,» Professor Brown explained, «I amalways up to my ears in work.»
[equal to] {adj. phr.} Able to meet, do, or control; able to dosomething about. The situation took quick thinking, but John wasequal to it. When a guest upset the coffee pot, Mrs. Smith’s tactand quickness of mind were equal to the occasion.
[farfetched] {adj.} Exaggerated; fantastic. Sally told us somefarfetched story about having been kidnapped by little green men in aflying saucer.
[self-possessed] {adj.} Confident; sure of one self. Before hemade his first million, he used to be shy, but afterwards he becamevery self-possessed.
[have one’s fling] {v. phr.} To have one or more romantic and Orsexual experiences, usually before marriage. Jack has had his flingand now seems to be ready to get married and settle down.
[down-at-heel] or [down-at-the-heel] or [down-at-the-heels] {adj.} Poorly kept up or dressed shabby; not neat; sloppy. John is always down-at-the-heels, but his sister is always very neat. Old houses sometimes look down-at-the-heel.
[set to] {v.} 1. To make a serious beginning. Charlie took ahelping of turkey, grabbed his knife and fork, and set to. 2. Tostart to fight. One man called the other a liar and they set to.
[in consequence] {adv. phr.} As a result; therefore; so. Jenniegot up late, and in consequence she missed the bus. You studiedhard, and in consequence you passed the test.
[in a hole] or [in a spot] {adj. phr.}, {informal} In anembarrassing or difficult position; in some trouble. When therestaurant cook left at the beginning of the busy season, it put therestaurant owner in a hole. Compare: BEHIND THE EIGHT BALL, IN THEHOLE.
[make the most of] {v. phr.} To do the most you can with; get themost from; use to the greatest advantage. She planned the weekendin town to make the most of it. George studied hard. He wanted tomake the most of his chance to learn. The teacher went out of theroom for five minutes and … Читать далее
[out of all proportion] {adv. phr.} Disproportionate; lopsided. The news coverage of the sensational celebrity double murder hasgrown out of all proportion, obscuring the international news.
[make a day of it] {v. phr.}, {informal} To do something all day. When they go to the beach they take a picnic lunch and make a day ofit. Compare: MAKE A NIGHT OF.
[more than one could shake a stick at] {adj. phr.}, {informal} Verymany; a great many; more than you can count. There were more peopleat the game than you could shake a stick at. I had moreassignments for homework than I could shake a stick at.
[bottom out] {v. phr.} To reach the lowest point. According to the leading economic indicators the recession will bottom out within the next two months.
[tight money] {n. phr.} The opposite of inflation, when money ishard to borrow from the banks. The government decided that tightmoney is the way to bring down inflation.