Casual English: Idioms 101 - 200
| www.speakmethod.com |
||
|
Casual English: Idioms 101 - 200 |
|
| Return to Class |
Learn everyday expressions and speak casually. | Sign in |
| Idioms |
Definition |
Sense |
Example |
| break the news |
to
give news that is unexpected
and which may cause people to be upset |
neutral
to negative |
I
told my friend to apply for a
position on our team. Unfortunately, my manager did not like
him. I'll
break the news
to him. |
| can't afford to |
1.
to be unable because of some
risk 2. to not have money for something |
negative |
John
used to go to company
parties, but he can't
afford to right now. His wife had twins, and he's
needed at home. |
| chill out |
relax,
don't worry, stop being
emotional |
neutral,
often used when another
person is negative |
Amy
is always worrying about her
work. I tell her to chill
out, but she only gets more irritable. |
| crunch time |
close
to the deadline, time for
the final effort |
neutral |
It's
crunch time!
Everyone has
to work late tonight. We have to work until the project is
finished. |
| don't give me that cock and bull
story |
don't
tell me a big lie |
negative,
often humorous |
You
are telling me that
you missed class because your third cousin on your mother's
side passed
away and you had to go to the funeral. Don't give me that cock and bull
story! |
| down in the dumps |
depressed |
negative |
Ever
since her dog died and she
failed the exam, she's been down in the dumps. Let's take her to a
movie and cheer her up. |
| educated guess |
a
guess based on some
information or experience |
neutral |
I
did not study enough for that
test! I was able to make educated guesses, but I have no idea what
grade I will get. |
| the fast life |
living
intensely, i.e. working a
lot and/or going to a lot of parties |
neutral
to negative (it's fast
because it might end faster also) |
Right
now, he's living the
fast life in New York. He's so popular, he hired an
online company to
manage his social media accounts. |
| fool around |
1.
to be silly, to joke, to have
fun 2. to cheat on a spouse |
neutral,
positive or negative |
We
decided to play some music on
the sidewalk last weekend. We were just fooling around. She found out that her husband's fooling around on her. She's leaving him! |
| get to the bottom of it |
to
investigate and discover the
truth |
neutral
to positive |
I
think my bank is
charging extra fees. Every month, there is less money than
there should
be. I have to get to
the bottom of it. |
Idioms 101 - 200 Course |
Idioms 141-160 Main Page |