Thẻ ghi nhớ: McGraw-Hill American Idiom Dictionary | Quizlet

the facts of life

1. the facts of sex and reproduction, especially human reproduction. [My parents told me ___________ when I was nine years old.] 2. the truth about the unpleasant ways that the world works. [Mary really learned ___________ when she got her first job.]

a fine kettle of fish

a troublesome situation; a vexing problem. [What ___________! My husband is not here to meet me at the train station, and there's no phone here for me to call him.]

go to hell in a bucket

to get rapidly worse and worse. [His health ___________ ever since he started drinking again.]

hit the jackpot

to win a large amount of money gambling or in a lottery. [I ___________ in the big contest.]

It cuts two ways.

There are two sides to the situation. [It ___________, you know. It can't always all be my fault.]

the one that got away

the big fish that got away, especially as the subject of a fisherman's story. [___________ is always bigger than the one that got caught.]

wring one's hands

1. To nervously rub one's hands. [He was so upset that he was actually ___________.] 2. To do something ineffective while being upset. [Don't just stand there weeping and ___________! Call the police!]

You are what you eat.

You are made up of the nutritional content of the food you eat. [You shouldn't eat pizza and hamburgers every day. After all, ___________.]

have one in the oven

to be pregnant with a child. [She's got three kids now and ___________.]

the sands of time

the accumulated tiny amounts of time; time passing. [___________ will make you grow old like everyone else.]

call a spade a spade

to call something by its right name; to speak frankly about something, even if it is unpleasant. [Well, I believe it's time to ___________. We are just avoiding the issue.]

call so's bluff

to demand that someone prove a claim or is not being deceptive. [Tom said, "You've made me really angry, and I'll punch you if you come any closer!" "Go ahead," said Bill, ___________.]

call hogs

to snore. [I couldn't sleep at all last night, with Cousin Joe ___________ in the next room.]

call so to account

to ask one to explain and justify one's behavior, policy, performance, etc. [The sergeant ___________ the police officer.]

a can of worms

a very difficult issue or set of problems; an array of difficulties. [This political scandal is a real ___________.]

can take it to the bank

able to depend on the truthfulness of the speaker's statement: it is not counterfeit or bogus. [Believe me. What I am telling you is the truth. You ___________.]

cannot hear oneself think

[a person] cannot concentrate. [Quiet! You're so loud I ___________.]

can't carry a tune in a bucket

unable to sing or hum a melody. [I'd try to hum the song for you, but I ___________.]

can't hit the (broad) side of a barn

cannot aim something accurately. [Please don't try to throw the paper into the wastebasket. You ___________.]

can't see one's hand in front of one's face

unable to see very far, usually due to darkness or fog. [Bob said that the fog was so thick he ___________.]

can't unring the bell

cannot undo what's been done. [I wish I wasn't pregnant, but you ___________.]

card-carrying member

an official member of some group. [Bill is a ___________ of the electricians union.]

carry (a lot of) weight (with so/sth)

to be very influential with someone or some group of people. [Your argument does not ___________ with me.]

carry the weight of the world on one's shoulders

to appear or behave as if burdened by all the problems in the whole world. [Look at Tom. He appears to be ___________.]

carte blanche

freedom or permission to act as one wishes or thinks necessary. [He's been given ___________ with the reorganization of the workforce.]

carve out a niche

to have developed and mastered one's own special skill. [John, you have ___________ for yourself as the most famous living scholar on the Akkadian language.]

carve out a reputation

to have developed a reputation for doing something well. [I worked for years to ___________ as a careful and thoughtful scholar.]

a case in point

a specific example of what one is talking about. [Now, as ___________, let's look at 19th-century England.]

cast a pall on sth

to make an event less enjoyable; to place an unpleasant aura on an event. [The death of the bride's grandmother ___________ over the wedding.]

cast in the same mold

very similar. [The two sisters are ___________—equally mean.]

cast (one's) pearls before swine

to waste something good on someone who doesn't care about it. [To serve them French cuisine is like ___________.]

cast the first stone

to make the first criticism; to be the first to attack. [John always ___________. Does he think he's perfect?]

cast one's vote

to vote; to place one's ballot in the ballot box. [The wait in line to ___________ was almost an hour.]

the cat is out of the bag

the secret has been made known. [Now that ___________, there is no sense in pretending we don't know what's really happening.]

catch one's breath

to struggle for normal breathing after strenuous activity. [It took Jimmy a minute to ___________ after being punched in the stomach.]

catch one with one's pants down

to discover someone in the act of doing something that is normally private or hidden. [Some council members were using tax money as their own. But the press ___________, and now the district attorney will press charges.]

catch-as-catch-can

the best one can do with whatever is available. [There were ten children in our family, and every meal was ___________.]

cause (some) tongues to wag

to cause people to gossip. [The way John was looking at Mary will surely ___________.]

center around so/sth

to focus broadly on the details related to someone or something. [The novel ___________ the friends and activities of an elderly lady.]

the center of attention

the focus of people's attention. [She had a way of making herself ___________ wherever she went.]

a certain party

someone you know but whom I do not wish to name. [If ___________ finds out about you-know-what, what on earth will you do?]

the chain of command

the series or sequence of holders of responsibility in a hierarchy. [The only way to get things done in the military is to follow ___________.]

chain of events

a sequence of things that happened in the past, in order of occurrence. [An odd ___________ led up to our meeting on the plane.]

a change of pace

an addition of some variety in one's life, routine, or abode. [Going to the beach on the weekend will be ___________.]

change so's tune

to change someone's manner or attitude, usually from bad to good, or from rude to pleasant. [The teller was most unpleasant until she learned that I'm a bank director. Then she ___________.]

chapter and verse

very specifically detailed, in reference to sources of information. [He gave ___________ for his reasons for disputing that Shakespeare had written the play.]

charm the pants off so

to use very charming behavior to persuade someone to do something. [He will try to ___________, but you can still refuse to take the job if you don't want to do it.]

cheap at half the price

nicely priced; fairly valued; bargain priced. [This item is ___________.]

checks and balances

a system, as in the U.S. Constitution, where power is shared between the various branches of government. [The newspaper editor claimed that the system of __________ built into our Constitution has been subverted by party politics.]

cheek by jowl

side by side; close together. [The pedestrians had to walk __________ along the narrow streets.]

chew one's cud

to think deeply; to be deeply involved in private thought. [He's __________ about what to do next.]

chicken feed

a small amount of anything, especially of money. [It may be __________ to you, but that's a month's rent to me!]

chief cook and bottle washer

the person in charge of practically everything (such as in a very small business). [I'm the __________ around here. I do everything.]

chin music

talk; conversation. [Whenever those two get together, you can be sure there'll be plenty of __________.]

a chip off the old block

a person (usually a male) who behaves in the same way as his father or who resembles his father. [John looks like his father—a real __________.]

chock full of sth

very full of something. [These cookies are __________ big chunks of chocolate.]

a chunk of change

a lot of money. [Tom's new sports car cost a real __________.]

claim a life

to take the life of someone. [The killer tornado __________ six people at the trailer park.]

so's claim to fame

someone's reason for being well-known or famous. [Her __________ is that she can recite the entire works of Shakespeare from memory.]

clean one's act up

to reform one's conduct; to improve one's performance. [I __________, but not in time. I got kicked out.]

a clean sweep

a broad movement clearing or affecting everything in its pathway. [The manager and everybody in accounting got fired in a __________ of that department.]

clear the air

1. to get rid of stale or bad air. [Open some windows and __________. It's stuffy in here.] 2. to get rid of doubts or hard feelings. [All right, let's discuss this frankly. It'll be better if we __________.]

clear one's throat

to vocalize in a way that removes excess moisture from the vocal cords and surrounding area. [I had to __________ a lot today. I think I'm coming down with something.]

climb the wall(s)

to be very agitated, anxious, bored, or excited. [He was home for only three days; then he began to __________.]

cloak-and-dagger

involving secrecy and plotting. [A great deal of __________ stuff goes on in political circles.]

close as two coats of paint

close and intimate. [All their lives, the cousins were __________.]

Close, but no cigar.

Some effort came close to succeeding, but did not succeed. [Jill: How did you do in the contest? Jane: __________. I got second place.]

close ranks

to move closer together in a military formation. [The soldiers __________ and marched on the enemy in tight formation.]

close up shop

to quit working, for the day or forever. [It's five o'clock. Time to __________.]

clown around (with so)

to join with someone in acting silly; to act silly together. [The kids are having fun __________.]

coat and tie

a jacket or sports coat and necktie. [My brother was not wearing a __________, and they would not admit him into the restaurant.]

cock-and-bull story

a hard-to-believe, made-up story; a story that is a lie. [I asked for an explanation, and all I got was your ridiculous __________!]

coffee and Danish

a cup of coffee and a Danish sweet roll. [__________ is not my idea of a good breakfast!]

coin a phrase

to create a new expression that is worthy of being remembered and repeated. [He is "worth his weight in feathers," to __________.]

cold, hard cash

cash, not checks or credit. [I want to be paid in __________, and I want to be paid now!]

collect one's thoughts

to take time to think through an issue; to give some thought to a topic. [I'll speak to the visitors in a moment. I need some time to __________.]

come a cropper

to have a misfortune; to fail. [Bob invested all his money in the stock market just before it fell. Boy, did he __________.]

come down in the world

to lose one's social position or financial standing. [Mr. Jones has really __________ since he lost his job.]

come down to earth

1. to arrive on earth from above. [An angel __________ and made an announcement.] 2. to become realistic; to become alert to what is going on around one. [You are having a spell of enthusiasm, John, but you must __________. We can't possibly afford any of your suggestions.]

come full circle

to return to the original position or state of affairs. [The family sold the house generations ago, but things have __________ and one of their descendants lives there now.]

come hell or high water

no matter what happens. [I'll be there tomorrow, __________.]

come home (to roost)

1. [for a fowl or other bird] to return to its home, as for a night's rest. [The chickens __________ in the evening.] 2. [for a problem] to return to cause trouble. [As I feared, all my problems __________.]

come into the world

to be born. [Little Timmy __________ on a cold and snowy night.]

come out in the wash

to work out all right. [Don't worry about that problem. It'll all __________.]

come out on top

to end up being the winner. [I knew that if I kept trying, I would __________.]

come to a bad end

to have a disaster, perhaps one that is deserved or expected; to die an unfortunate death. [The dirty crook __________!]

come to a boil

1. [for a problem or situation] to reach a critical or crucial stage. [Everything __________ after Mary admitted her guilt.] 2. [for someone] to get very angry. [Fred was __________, and clearly he was going to lose his temper.]

come to a pretty pass

to encounter a difficult situation. [This project has ___________. I don't know how we can possibly finish on time.]

come to grief

to experience something unpleasant or damaging. [In the end, he ___________ because he did not follow instructions.]

come to grips with so/sth

to begin to deal with someone or something; to face the challenge posed by someone or something. [I found it hard to ___________ Crystal and her problems.]

come to one's senses

to begin thinking sensibly. [I'm glad he finally ___________ and went on to college.]

come unglued

to lose emotional control; to break out into tears or laughter. [When Sally heard the joke, she almost ___________.]

come up for air

1. to stop what one is doing for a different activity or rest. [Whenever you get off the phone and ___________, I have a question for you.] 2. to stop kissing for a moment and breathe. [Don't those kids ever ___________?]

come what may

no matter what might happen. [I'll be home for the holidays, ___________.]

come within an ace of sth

to come very close to [doing] something. [I ___________ leaving school. I'm glad you talked me out of it.]

come within an inch of doing sth

almost to do something; to come very close to doing something. [I ___________ going into the army.]

come-hither look

an alluring or seductive look or glance, usually done by a woman. [She had mastered the ___________, but was not ready for the next part.]

commit sth to memory

to memorize something. [The dress rehearsal of the play is tomorrow night. Please make sure you have ___________ by that time.]

compare apples and oranges

to compare two entities that are not similar. [Talking about her current book and her previous bestseller is like ___________.]

cook so's goose

to damage or ruin someone. [I ___________ by not showing up on time.]