20 câu đầu lexical hsg

a budding entrepreneur /ˈpʊd.ɪŋ/

một doanh nghiệp non trẻ

Being a budding entrepreneur, you will have to make a special effort for people to take you seriously.

come in for a good deal of criticism

hứng chịu nhiều chỉ trích

The police came in for a good deal of criticism over their handling of the demonstration.

set eyes on

để mắt, trông chừng

= keep an eye on

set one’s sights on

đặt ra mục tiêu

Young people are ambitious by nature, so they tend to set their sights high on whatever they do

grope to

dò dẫm, lần mò

He blew out the candle and groped to his way to the door

cynical

hoài nghi, bi quan

He developed a cynical attitude after years of frustration in his career .

bewilder

ngăn chặn, làm cho bối rối

When the farmers visited the city the first time, they were bewildered by its complicated traffic system.

facet

khía cạnh

= aspect

The book is about how their basic beliefs and values affect important facets of American life.

a drop in the ocean

muối bỏ bể, giọt nước ở giữa đại dương

The small amount of money donated is just a drop in the ocean, compared to a large sum of money needed.

in the context of

trong bối cảnh

We are doing this work in the context of reforms in the economic, social and cultural spheres.

give preference to sb/sth

ưu ái ai/ cái gì

Some teachers have a tendency to give preference to students with disadvantaged backgrounds such as poor handicapped students.

cling to

gắn chặt với

At the party we found that shy girl clinging to her mother all the time.

live in peace and content

sống trong hòa bình và mãn nguyện

Because of his excellent administration, people lived in peace and content and all previously neglected matters were taken care of.

make oneself P2

khiến bản thân ai đó như thế nào

Can you make yourself understood in Russian?

not in the least

ít nhiều

red herring

thông tin/ hành động đánh lạc hướng

The police investigated many clues, but they were all red herrings

the breadth of sth

sự sâu rộng/đa dạng/ dày dặn của cái gì đó

The job wasn’t giving the breadth of experience he wanted.

be taken to task for sth

bị chỉ trích nghiêm khắc

The government has been rightly taken to task for its health poicy.

mount

triển khai

Companies are joining forces with governments in Africa to mount regional campaigns against malaria.

dribs and drabs

nhỏ giọt

Had we been in control of monetary policy, we would have raised interest rates sharply after the election instead of doing it in dribs and drabs.

cream of the crop

tinh hoa, ưu tú, xuất sắc nhất

Dr. Johnson managed to ensure that the scientists in his research team were the cream of the crop.

spring a surprise on sb

tạo sự bất ngờ cho ai

During the award ceremony, the host decided to spring a surprise on the audience by announcing an additional category for the awards

a glow of satisfaction

cảm giác mãn nguyện

With a glow of satisfaction on his face, Keith received his degree from the principal.

out of character

trái với tính cách thường ngày

It’s quite out of character for Peter to behave so badly.

strike the happy medium

cân bằng

I try to strike the happy medium when I’m on holiday spending half my time doing things and the other half just relaxing.

compendious

xúc tích nhưng vẫn đủ ý chính

We were very glad to receive a compendious description of all the cases.

complacent - tự mãn

compact- nhỏ gọn

compatible- tương thích, hợp nhau

mesmerized

cuốn hút, hấp dẫn

The audience was memorized by the magician’s performance, captivated by every movement and illusion.

mystified = befuddled : làm bối rối, lúng túng

confounded- kinh ngạc

hem and haw

lảng tránh, do dự

When asked about his future plans, he tended to hem and haw, avoiding giving a direct answer.

null and void- hết hiệu lực

once and for all- dứt điểm

nudge

sự động viên khích lệ, cú huých

The teacher used a gentle nudge to encourage the shy student to speak up in class discussions.

shove- xô đẩy

packed up

đóng gói/ hỏng

Despite regular maintenance, the old printer finally packed up right before an important presentation.

give out- kiệt sức

give off- tỏa ra

power on- bật lên

kick up- cản trở

impending

sắp diễn ra

The dark clouds and distant thunder hinted at the impending arrival of a storm, causing people to rush to find shelter.

ephemeral- phù du, diễn ra ngắn ngủi

retrospective- hồi tưởng

critically

nghiêm trọng, nguy kịch

My mother was critically ill last summer but, fortunately, is now making a slow but steady recovery.

fatally- chí mạng

feather one’s own net

vơ vét để làm giàu cho bản thân

The owner of the catering firm had been overcharging people in order to feather his own nest. He could not continue to do this when a competing firm was set up in the same neighborhood.

scenery

phông nền cảnh quay

After the interval, the change of scenery brought a grasp of surprise from the audience.

panorama- toàn cảnh

vista- viễn cảnh

minister to sb

chăm sóc ai

= look after

Mrs.White spent most of the morning ministering to her sick daughter.

fend off- né tránh

whip up- trổ tài nấu ăn/ kích động

by accident or design

vô tình hay cố ý

Many people feel that President Donald Trump is, whether by accident or design, starting war with Iran.

clench one’s fist

vô cùng tức giận

The old man clenched his fist and waved it angrily at the naughty children

straight and narrow

sống trung thực

Tom learnt his lesson in the prison and since that time he has stayed on the straight and narrow. He’s a pattern to follow now.

fair and square- ko gian lận, công bằng

safe and sound- bình an vô sự

by my reckoning

theo dự tính, dự đoán của tôi

By my reckoning, they should be here within the hour

send sb on an errand

chạy việc vặt

To stop Mark getting bored, mother sent him an errand.

be held responsible for

chịu trách nhiệm cho

I hope you realized that you will be held responsible for your actions should you get caught.

be open to new ideas

cởi mở với những ý tưởng mới

Although he has been teaching for over twenty years, he is still open to new ideas.

no less

không kém cạnh

A new generation of performers, no less talented than those who by now had become household name, honed their skills before following the same path onto television.

dire warnings

cảnh báo điềm xấu

A new government report delivers dire warnings about climate change and its impacts on the planet.

ominous- đáng ngại

fateful- có tính định mệnh

acute- cấp tính

weather the storm

vượt qua khó khăn

She refuses to resign, intending to weather the storm.

in over one’s head

Vượt quá khả năng của ai

I offered to do the job, but soon found that I was in over my head as it was more difficult than I had thought

knock on wood- trộm vía

off one’s hands- bỏ bớt trách nhiệm

push up daisies- đã chết, được chôn cất dưới mộ

sheer

thực sự

In these times of high unemployment everyone thought my giving up my job was sheer madness.

keep on ice

trì hoãn

= in abeyance

The project will be kept on ice until the new manager comes.

off the peck- ko phù hợp

set a bad precedent

tạo một tiền lệ xấu

It would set a bad precedent if we changed the rules just for one student.

taken in

thu nhỏ kích thước

The problem with losing weight is that, if you succeed, all your clothes need to be taken in.

allocate

phân bố sắp xếp

Linguists allocate languages to a place in the system of language families, based on grammar or other key aspects.

flimsy

thiếu sức thuyết phục

The jury could hardly make a decision because what was claimed to be evidence turned out to be flimsy if not conflicting

without let or hindrance

không gặp trở ngại nào.

Carpooling allows drivers to use certain highways during rush hours without let or hindrance.

ruffled feathers

sự tức giận

The profits from the industrial complex finally smoothed the local residents’ ruffled feathers.

riveting

lôi cuốn

= catchy

She found the detective novel so riveting that she could not put it down.

feel no necessity

cảm thấy không quan trọng

A host family feels no necessity to provide an exchange student with a program of entertainment or travelling. They would rather offer him or her chances to learn about their culture.

hand over fist

kiếm tiền như nước

The variety show turned out to be a big success, and the media corporation made so much money, hand over fist.

ticking all the boxes

đáp ứng mọi tiêu chí

bag and baggage

cuốn xéo

with two sides of the same coins

ưu và nhược

rough voices

âm thanh không rõ ràng

I couldn’t hear what they were saying; they were in the next room, so the voices were rough.

hoarse - làm khàn giọng

muffled- bị bóp nghẹt

booming- vang dội

spick and span

ngăn nắp

Cleaners worked overtime to get the place looking spick and span for the presidential visit.

the talk of the town

chủ đề bàn tán

The introduction of new immigration laws is the talk of the town these days.

let on

lộ ra, tiết lộ

We sometimes copy our homework from each other. Our teacher probably knows, but she never let on that she does.

let up

làm giảm

let off

tha thứ, miễn phạt

a breach of confidence

bội tín, phá vỡ niềm tin

His public announcement of the secret plans was a sheer breach of confidence and was heavily criticized by other members of the council.

apprentice sb to sb

cho ai học việc ai

My father decides to apprentice me to a lawyer though I don’t agree.

The penny dropped

mọi chuyện đã sáng tỏ

It took me several seconds to grasp the meaning of her statement, but finally the penny dropped.

dispense with

không cần đến

He decided to dispense with the services of the maid and do the homework himself.

depose- phế truất

dispose- vứt bỏ

stand sb in good stead

có lợi cho ai

I’m hoping that this work experience will stand me in good stead in my future career.

impressionable

dễ bị ảnh hưởng

You should bear in mind that children of tender years are notoriously impressionable.

impervious /ɪmˈpɜːv.i.əs/

trơ lì/ không thấm nước

impersonal /ɪmˈpɜː.sənəl/

khách quan

level-headed

bình tĩnh

Paul’s a useful person in an emergency - level-headed and decisive.

Going through the motions

làm cho có, hời hợt

= token participation

He says he’s been investigating my complaint, but I feel he’s just going through the motions.

be given over to sth

dành riêng cho, trọn thời gian cho

This week’s program is given over to a profile of an eminent scientist.

get to the bottom of sth

tìm ra gốc rễ của cái gì

Inspector Morts was determined to get to the bottom of the mystery.

cloud one’s judgement

che mờ lý trí

Take care that your love for him doesn’t cloud your judgement.

really much too hard

thực sự quá khó

This project is really much too hard for the level of this class.

inadvertently

vô tình

The board had to apologize to Jeremy since his name was inadvertently omitted from the list.

snobbishly- khinh người

inalienably- ko thể tách rời

pompously- phô trương, thích lên mặt

credible

đáng tin

The student’s excuse wasn’t credible at all. Nobody in the classroom was convinced by the far-fetched story he told.

credential- chứng nhận

creditable- đáng khen ngợi

credulous- nhẹ dạ cả tin

at a standstill

bế tắc ngừng trệ

Despite numerous diplomatic efforts, the negotiations between the two nations were at a standstill, which threatened the stability of the region

at loggerhead- xung đột, đối đầu

settle up

thanh toán lại, trả lại sau

If you pay the bill now, I will settle up with you later.

pay off- trả hết nợ

pay out- chi trả 1 khoản tiền lớn

walk a thin/fine line

giữa 2 thái cực mong manh

He was walking a fine line between being funny and being rude.

stand out a mile- nổi bật

jump on a bandwagon- chạy theo phong trào

ride for a fall- hành động liều lĩnh có nguy cơ thất bại

throbbing headache

đầu đau nhói, đau đầu như búa bổ

Mary has got such a throbbing headache that she can’t concentrate on her studies. I think she should see a doctor.

compromise

làm tổn hại, hủy hoại

Defeat at this stage would compromise their chances of reaching the final of the competition.

see it through

theo đuổi, kiên trì đến cùng

The course would take me three years to complete, but I was determined to see it through.

gain it on- đuổi kịp, tiến sát

read it over- đọc kĩ

spell it out- giải thích từng li từng tí

plant the seeds of compassion

gieo mầm của lòng trắc ẩn

The teacher successfully planted the seeds of compassion in her student’s heart.

across the board

toàn diện

The improvement has been across the board, with all divisions either increasing profits or reducing losses.

jump for joy

nhảy lên vì vui sướng

Rowena jumped for joy when she heard she'd won the first prize.

dress flashily

ăn mặc sặc sỡ

Anna often dresses flashily when going to the parties in order to attract her friend’s attention.

soberly = plainly - nhã nhặn, giản dị

immunization program

chương trình tiêm chủng

The government also supports childhood immunization programs.

jog one’s memory

gợi nhớ về điều gì

It’s a long time since you saw her, but this photo may jog your memory.

green around the gills

xanh xao, buồn nôn, sợ xanh mặt

His driving is so bad that I always turn green around the gills when I am sitting with him in the car.

around the bend

làm cho mất trí, điên cuồng

in a fog

mơ hồ

off his trolley

điên rồ, lẩm cẩm

complication

biến chứng

The operation was a success, but the patient died of complications.

after-effects: di chứng

ramifications: hệ lụy

disinterested

khách quan, vô tư

The dispute was eventually resolved by a disinterested decision of the arbitrator.

uninterested: thờ ơ, ko quan tâm