Idioms and colloquialisms 4

Exercise 1

Choose the correct underlined word to complete each of the idioms in bold. The meaning of each idiom is in brackets after the sentence.

1.You shouldn't try to burn the match / lighter / candle at both ends; you'll exhaust yourself. (to get up early in the morning and go to bed late at night on a regular basis)

2.Once he started looking into the details, he realized what a can of worms / beans / beer they were opening. (a difficult and complicated situation)

3.It was a difficult decision, but he decided to take the goat / cow / bull by the horns and tell his boss that he wanted to leave the company. (to deal bravely or confidently with a difficult situation)

4.Some insurance companies make their customers pay through the ears / nose / mouth for their services. (to pay a lot of money)

5.He knew that what they were doing was wrong, but turned a blind / closed / cold eye to it. (to pretend not to notice, to ignore)

6.Many people like to get off the beaten road / path / track when they take a vacation. (somewhere quiet, where not a lot of people go)

7.If you're pressed / crushed / squeezed for time, we can talk later. (busy, in a hurry)

8.I've been feeling a bit under the thumb / weather / table recently, but I'm feeling better now. (slightly sick)

9.He's a rather boring person, but once in a blue / red / green moon, he'll come out with something really amazing. (very rarely)

10.I'm afraid your request is out of the answer / statement / question. (not possible, unacceptable)

11.He gave us some information that was strictly off the books / record / list. (unofficial, to be kept secret)

12.We don't want to lose land / ground / place in the baseball competition. (to become less successful than the others)

13.Let's have a party at the beginning of the year. It will help to break the ice / mold / air. (to make people feel more friendly and willing to talk to each other)

14.Everybody should say exactly how they feel. That should clear the room / air / feelings. (to help end an argument or disagreement)

15.It's very rude to talk shop / work / jobs when you're out with other people. (to discuss your job with a coworker, usually in a social situation where there are others present)

16.Don't let him stop you; stand your land / place / ground and tell him you won't change your mind. (to refuse to change your mind about something, even when people oppose you)

17.I only just passed my exam. It was a very far / close / exact thing. (something almost did or didn't happen)

18.What's happened? Put me in the picture / story / scene. (to let somebody know what has happened, usually when other people already know)

Vocabulary General

General Vocabulary

Exercise 2

Instructions as above.

1.You've really made a name / title / place for yourself, haven't you? (to become well known, famous and / or respected)

2.Have you seen his house? It's out of this planet / earth / world. (extremely good, wonderful, etc.)

3.He knew I was friendly with his boss, and asked me to pull a few legs / strings / ropes for him. (to use your influence with somebody in order to get something)

4.Donna played / did / went hooky again today; that's the third lecture she's missed this week. (to miss a lesson, class, etc., for no good reason)

5.My bank account's in the black / red / pink again. (to owe money to the bank because you've spent too much)

6.I've completed three out of my five essays already. So far, so good / fine / acceptable. (until now, everything is going well)

7.I'm really angry with Jerry. It's time I had it in / out / over with him. (to tell somebody you are angry with them, and explain why)

8.His theories broke fresh earth / ground / land and changed the way people thought about science. (to do something original or innovative)

9.He said that he had missed his lecture because he had to visit a sick relative, but I don't really think he was on the air/ ground / level. (being honest and telling the truth)

10.It wasn't my fault! Why am I always the one to carry the can / tin / box? (being the person who is considered responsible for something that has gone wrong)

11.University life can seem strange at first, but my advice is to go with the snow / flow / glow and see what happens. (to do what seems the easiest thing in a particular situation)

12.I thought my last essay was really good, so old Professor Clack really rained on my show / carnival / parade when he told me he thought it was terrible. (to spoil something or make it much less enjoyable)

13.The Dean has told me that unless I turn over a new leaf / book / paper, I might be asked to leave the course. (to change your life by starting to be a better person or stopping a bad habit)

14.There are some good restaurants nearby that won't bankrupt / break / rob the bank. (not expensive)

15.I can't talk to you now, I'm afraid. I'm running / walking / jumping a bit late. (to be slightly later than normal)

16.He can be a bit unfriendly, but by and big / large / huge he's OK. (generally)

17.All right, everyone. We've achieved a lot in the last hour or so. Let's take three / four / five. (to have a short break)

18.I don't know exactly what he's up to, but my fifth / sixth / seventh sense tells me he trying to get out of doing his assignment. (a special ability to feel things that you cannot see, hear, touch, smell, or taste)

Metaphor

A metaphor is a word or phrase that means one thing and is used to refer to another thing in order to emphasize their similar qualities. For example, in the sentence “Picasso was the father of the Cubist movement”, the word father is not used in its usual sense to mean someone's male parent. It means that Picasso was the person who started the Cubist movement, or that he was the first one to do it successfully. Father is being used in a metaphorical way. Metaphors are a bit like idioms (see pages 15 – 22), because the words and expressions are not being used with their literal meaning.

The following exercises look at some common metaphors that are used in different situations.

Exercise 1: achievements, ideas, and theories

Metaphorically, achievements, ideas, and theories are often seen as buildings, with an idea or the process of achieving something being similar to the process of building, and the failure of something being similar to the destruction of a building. Metaphorically, ideas are also like plants, and developing an idea is like getting plants to grow.

Complete sentences 1 – 20 with a word or expression from the box. In several cases you will need to change the form of the words. The first one has been done for you.

1.The newspaper article threatened the whole ____edifice_____ of government, from the President all the way down to grass-roots politicians.

2.The company directors were convinced people would want their new product, but then early research and negative feedback began to _______________ of doubt in their minds.

3.His argument was carefully _______________ and was extremely difficult to dispute.

4.Her ideas were carefully _______________ by a series of results showing that they had been put into practice and actually worked.

5.Superstitious beliefs are _______________ in many cultures, and nothing can change these beliefs.

6.He was the chief _______________ of the country's new economic policies.

7.The new government _______________ for radical changes to the voting system, all of which would be implemented over the next five years.

8.The invention of the microchip was a _______________ achievement.

9.The contract acted as a _______________ for future cooperation between the two organizations.

10.The business was started in 1986, and over the next 20 years was _______________ into one of the most powerful companies in the country.

11.The new constitution was _______________ traditional values and a desire for progress.

12.The website is _______________, but we hope to have it up and running by the end of the month.

Vocabulary General

Metaphorically, when you have gwednloke about something, it is like shining a light on it (and when you lack this, it is like being in darkness).

7.(A) His new career opened the door to a whole new way of life.

(B)Having a University degree is arguably the key to success in life.

(C)Age should be no barrier to success.

Metaphorically, having the roitpoytupn to do something is like having a door or other entrance opened for you.

8.(A) We unearthed some useful facts and figures.

(B)Her latest book is a goldmine of useful information.

(C)We left no stone unturned in our search for the truth.

Metaphorically, when you oeidrvsc things such as facts and information, it is similar to finding them by digging or searching in the ground.

9.(A) He originally set out to become a priest, but became involved in politics instead.

(B)At the age of 24, things took an unexpected turn for him.

(C)After six years in the same job, I decided to move on.

Metaphorically, a ilef or raecer path is like a journey.

10.(A) They put a lot of pressure on him to make change his mind.

(B)The country was dragged reluctantly into war.

(C)I'm sorry to press you for an answer, but we need to know your plans.

Metaphorically, when you ecfro someone to do something, it is like putting physical pressure on them (for example, by pulling or pushing them).

11.(A) He was very sharp-witted and could always be relied on to come up with an astute comment when asked.

(B)She has a keen intellect and makes sure that everyone knows it.

(C)He was an incisive critic who always researched his subject thoroughly before passing comment on it.

Metaphorically, eengintecill is like a knife, a blade, or another sharp object.

12.(A) We covered a lot of ground at the meeting.

(B)I'd like to return to the point I was making earlier.

(C)After three hours, we finally arrived at a decision.

Metaphorically, a veoantcirosn or nosisidscu is like a journey, with the people who are speaking going from one place to another.

13.(A) We need to address the social ills that are at the root of crime.

(B)The country was paralyzed by a series of natural and man-made disasters.

(C)Drugs such as heroin and cocaine are seen as a cancer at the very heart of society.

Metaphorically, a beprmol is like an illness.

14.(A) The speaker received a very warm welcome from the audience.

(B)We had several good ideas, but they poured cold water on all of them.

(C)I was disappointed because his response was rather lukewarm.

Metaphorically, anesismuht and nicetxetem are like heat, and a lack of these is like cold or wet.

15.(A) The biography mainly dealt with his years at the top.

(B)Many people commented on his rapid ascent up the ladder.

(C)His greed and lack of integrity eventually led to his downfall.

Metaphorically, being fucsuscsel is like being high up, and uraelfi is like falling or being low down.

Vocabulary General