as easy as pie: very easy.
"I thought you said this was a difficult problem. It isn't. In fact,
it's as easy as pie."
bad-mouth: say unkind, unflattering, embarrassing (and probably
untrue) things about someone.
A: "I don't believe what Bob said. Why is he bad-mouthing me?"
B: "He's probably jealous of your success."
be a piece of cake: be very easy.
A: "Bob said the test was difficult, but I thought it was a piece
of cake.""
be all ears: be eager to hear what someone has to say.
A: "I just got an e-mail message from our old friend Sally."
B: "Tell me what she said. I'm all ears!"
be broke: be without money.
"No, I can't lend you ten dollars. I'm completely broke
until payday."
be on the go: be very busy (going from one thing or project to
another).
"I'm really tired. I've been on the go all week long."
be on the road: be traveling.
"You won't be able to contact me tomorrow because I'll be on the
road."
be over: be finished; end.
"I can't see you until around 4 o'clock. My meetings won't be over
until then."
be used to (+Ving/noun): be accustomed to; not uncomfortable with.
"It won't be hard to get up at 5:00 AM. I'm used to getting up
early."
beat around the bush: evade an issue; avoid giving a direct answer.
"Quit beating around the bush! If you don't want to go with me,
just tell me!"
beat one's brains out: try very hard to understand or do something.
"Can you help me with this problem? I've been beating my brains out
with it,
but I just can't solve it."
before long: soon.
A: "I'm really tired of working."
B: "Just be patient. The weekend will be here before long."
bent out of shape: needlessly worried about something.
"I know you're worried about your job interview, but don't get bent
out of shape.
You'll do just fine."
bite off more than one can chew: take responsibility for more than one
can manage.
"I'm really behind with my project. Can you help me? I'm afraid I
bit off more than I could chew!"
the bottom line: the most essential information.
"The discussion lasted many hours. The bottom line was that
the XYZ Company isn't for sale."
break someone's heart: make someone feel very
disappointed/discouraged/sad.
"Joe broke his mother's heart when he dropped out of
school."
broke: without money.
A: "Can you lend me 10 dollars?"
B: "I'm afraid not. I'm broke."
buck(s): dollar(s).
"The cheapest tickets for the concert cost 25 bucks. Do you
still want to go?"
bug: annoy; bother.
"I'm trying to concentrate! Don't bug me!"
bull-headed: stubborn; inflexible.
"Don't be so bull-headed. Why can't you admit that others'
opinions are just as good as yours?"
a bundle: a lot of money.
A: "Your new car is really nice."
B: "It should be. It cost me a bundle!"
by oneself: alone and without help.
"I can't do this by myself. Can you help me?"
Don't count your chickens until (before) they hatch (they've hatched).: Don't
assume that something will happen until it has happened.
A: I'm sure that I'm going to win a lot of money in Las Vegas."
B: "Don't count your chickens until they hatch!"
ditch class: skip class.
"You shouldn't have ditched class yesterday. We had an
unannounced test."
drop someone a line: write to someone.
"I haven't written to my parents for a long time. I'd better drop
them a line
today or tomorrow."
drag one's feet: delay; take longer than necessary to do something.
"Joe should have finished his project a week ago. Why is he dragging
his feet?"
an egghead: a very intelligent person.
"Jake didn't make very good grades in school, but his sister
was a real egghead."
every other _____ : alternately; omitting the second one in each group
of two.
"In your essays, please write on every other line. That
will make the
essays much easier to read."
far-fetched: difficult to accept; difficult to believe.
"That story's pretty far-fetched. Nobody's going to believe
it."
feel blue: feel sad and depressed.
"I'm feeling blue because I haven't had any mail except bills
for a long, long time."
fire someone: dismiss someone from a job because of poor performance.
"If you continue to be late for work, the company will fire you."
for ages: for a very long time.
"Where's Marie? I haven't seen her for ages."
get going: leave.
"Look at the time! I'd better get going!"
get it: understand something (often negative).
"I don't get it. What do you mean?"
get lost!: go away
"I wish he'd get lost and stop bothering me. I don't want to
talk to him!"
get on one's nerves: irritate someone; make someone upset.
"I know you like that song, but it's getting on my nerves. Can
you play something else?"
get out of hand: become out of control; become badly managed.
"Your absences are getting out of hand, Bob. You'd better do
something quickly to improve the situation if you want to keep your job."
give someone a hand (1): help someone.
"I can't do this alone. Can you give me a hand?"
grab a bite: get something to eat.
"I'm really hungry. Would you like to grab a bite with
me?"
green: inexperienced.
"I don't think you can depend on Jack to do that job by himself. He's
too green."
in stock: in supply and available to buy / sell.
"I'm sorry, but we just sold our last pair of hiking boots. If you
come back
at the end of the week, however, we should have some more in stock.
in the red: unprofitable; showing a financial loss.
"We have to do something to increase profit and decrease losses.
We've been in the red for two months in a row."
in time: not late.
"I thought I was going to be late for my flight, but it was delayed,
so I was still in time."
jump to conclusions: decide something too quickly and without thinking
about it or
considering all the facts.
A: "Angela just doesn't like me. She won't even say hello."
B: "You're jumping to conclusions. Actually, she's very shy."
keep an eye on: check something regularly.
"You're busy, so you'll need to keep an eye on the time.
Remember that we have to leave at 4:30."
keep/stay in touch (with someone): remain informed (about someone) /
in contact (with someone) by writing, calling, sending e-mail, etc. on a regular
basis.
"I haven't seen Frank for two or three years but we keep (stay)
in touch by e-mail."
keep one's fingers crossed: hope for the best.
A: "How did you do on the test?"
B: "I think I passed, but I won't know until tomorrow.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed!"
kid (verb): playfully say something that isn't true.
"I was kidding when I said my teacher was a monster. She's
strict,
but she's actually a very nice person."
a know-it-all: someone who acts as if he/she knows everything--as if
no one
can tell him/her anything that he/she doesn't already know.
"Don't try to make any suggestions to Bob. He's a know-it-all
and won't pay attention to anything you say."
lend someone a hand: help someone.
"I can't do this alone. Can you lend me a hand?"
Let sleeping dogs lie.: Don't cause problems by doing something when
it isn't necessary.
"I know that what Julie said made you angry, but let sleeping dogs
lie.
If you say or do anything, you'll only make things worse."
lousy: terrible; very bad.
"Why did you speak so rudely to your grandmother? That was a lousy
thing to do!"
make up one's mind: decide what to do.
A: Where are you going on your vacation?
B: Maybe Canada, maybe Mexico. I can't make up my mind."
No way!: Absolutely not! / Definitely not!
A: "You didn't open this letter addressed to me, did you?"
B: "No way! I'd never read look at else's mail!"
now and then: occasionally; from time to time.
A: "Do you see Jennifer often?"
B: "No, not really. I see her now and then, but not
regularly."
nuts: crazy.
A: "Stuart says some really strange things sometimes."
B: "Sometimes? All the time! He's nuts!"
once in a while: occasionally; from time to time.
A: "Would you like coffee or tea?"
B: "Coffee, please. I drink tea once in a while, but I generally
drink coffee."
pretty (adv.): rather; somewhat.
"That car's pretty expensive. Are you sure you can afford
it?"
pull someone's leg: tease someone by trying to make her/him believe
something
that's exaggerated or untrue.
A: "Wow! Carl has done some really amazing things!"
B: "Don't believe everything he tells you. He was probably pulling
your leg."
rain or shine: (describing something scheduled) no matter what the
weather is.
"We're leaving tomorrow, rain or shine."
read someone's mind: know what someone is thinking.
A: "I'll be you're thinking of what you're going to have for
dinner."
B: "Hey, did you read my mind?"
A: "No. I just know that you're always hungry and lunch was several
hours ago!"
-savvy: knowledgeable about .
"If you're having problems with your hard disk, talk to Jim.
He's very computer-savvy. "
a snap: something that's very easy to do.
A: "Is your job difficult?"
B: "No, actually it's a snap. In fact, it's so easy that it's a
little bit boring."
sooner or later: eventually.
"You've been working too hard for too long. If you don't relax a
little,
sooner or later you're going to get sick."
state of the art: using the latest technology.
"The company is very proud of the equipment in its
computer room. It's state of the art."
take it easy: relax.
"I don't have any special vacation plans. I'm just going to take it
easy."
tough: difficult.
"Question number three is a tough one. Do you know the
answer?"
tricky: easily confused or misunderstood.
"This problem is tricky. I don't really understand it."
two-faced: deceitful; disloyal; someone who pretends to be a friend
but isn't.
"I thought he was my friend, but he's two-faced. He says nice
things
to me when we're together, but makes jokes about me when we aren't.
update: make current; add information to show what has happened
recently.
"I need to update my résumé. It doesn't show what I've done
during the last year."
upside down: with the bottom part on top and the top part on bottom.
"Put the glasses upside down in the dishwasher. If you don't do
that,
they'll fill with water and you'll have to dry them by hand."
used to (+ V): an action that was true in the past but is not true
now.
"Jane used to live in Austin, Texas. She lives in San Francisco
now."
What for?: Why?
A: "Come here for a minute. I need you."
B: "What for?"
B: "What do you need me for?"
What's up?: What's new? What's happening?
"Hi, Dave. What's up?"
wishy-washy: uncommitted; without an opinion of one's own.
"Don't be so wishy-washy. Tell us how you really feel."
a yes-man: someone who tries to get approval by agreeing with
everyone.
A: "Why does the boss think Arnold is so intelligent?"
B: "Because Arnold is a yes-man. He agrees with everything the
boss says!"
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