IDIOMS / COLLOCATIONS

rack your brains

To try very hard to remember or think of something

go round in circles

Do you think or argue about something without deciding anything or making progress

bone of contention

Something That causes arguments between people

to be at odds with sb

To disagree

start the ball rolling

to start sth happening

To yield Your Needs

Choosing to Nott prioritize, or pursue your own, needs desires, or demands in favor of someone else’s

on the tip of the tongue

If something is on the tip of your tongue, you really want to say it, but then you decide not to

To fight a losing battle

To try to do something that you probably cannot succeed in doing

to put your business on the street

to see something through the Looking Glass of

Means to interpret understand, or perceive something through the lens or influence of another perspective, framework or bias

at full throttle / full throttled at

done with great speed and enthusiasm

be at each other´s throats

fighting

be minded to do sth

to want or intend to do sth

be perched on/above etc something

to be in a position on top of something or on the edge of something

be quick on the draw

to be able to pull a gun out quickly in order to shoot

be tantamount to sth

if an action, suggestion, plan etc is tantamount to something bad, it has the same effect or is almost as bad

be/feel/seem disposed to (do) sth

to have a tendency towards something

bear a grudge against

budget of possibilities

can't / couldn't get a word in edgeways

to get a chance to say something

clear the air

cross swords (with sb)

argue

cut-throat competition

coll

drive sth home

to make sth completely clear to sb

familiarity breeds contempt

an expression meaning that if you know someone too well, you find out their faults and respect them less

from the grip/grasp/clutch of ignorance

being freed from a state of lack of knowledge, understanding, or enlightenment. It implies escaping the limitations and negative consequences of being unaware, often used in philosophical or spiritual contexts

in concert (with sb)

people who do something in concert do it together after having agreed on it

in the grip of constant fear

a state where a person is dominated by, or under the strong influence of, a continuous feeling of fear, often to the point of being unable to escape it

in the midst of sth

if you are in the midst of an event or situation, it is happening around you

in the vicinity (of sth)

in the area around a particular place

ingratiate yourself (with sb)

to try very hard to get someone’s approval – used to show disapproval

keep/hold sb/sth at bay

to prevent something dangerous or unpleasant from happening or from coming too close

layers of understanding

different levels of such things as meaning or misunderstanding

on the rampage

rushing about in a wild and violent way, often causing damage

perch yourself on sth

to sit on top of something or on the edge of something

pick a fight/quarrel (with sb)

to deliberately start a fight

pit sb/sth against sb/sth

to test someone’s strength, ability, power etc in a competition or fight against someone or something else

sb´s makeup

the qualities that a person has, which form their character (sb´s mental, psychological, genetic makeup)

stack the deck

to arrange sth in a dishonest way in order to achieve the result you want

stiff upper lip

someone who has a stiff upper lip does not show their feelings when they are upset

stir things up

to cause an unpleasant emotion or problem

the brink (of sth)

a situation when you are almost in a new situation, usually a bad one (death, disaster, war, collapse

the gist of

the main idea and meaning of what someone has said or written

to be a chatterbox

someone, especially a child, who talks too much (such a)

to be at a loss of words

to be so surprised, shocked, or overwhelmed by something that you can't think of anything to say

to be between a rock and a hard place

faced with two equally undesirable alternatives.

to be in two minds

If you are in two minds, you are uncertain about what to do, especially when you have to choose between two courses of action.

to be long-winded

continuing to talk for too long or using too many words in a way that is boring

to be looking / itching for a fight

to want to fight very much

to be on the horns of a dilemma

to be in a situation in which you have to choose between two equally unpleasant or difficult situations

to bury the hatchet

to clutch one´s head / face

to take or try to take hold of sth or sb tightly, usually in fear, worry or pain

to come to blows (with sb)

arguing/hitting

to come under fire

being attacked with guns or with severe criticism

to drive a wedge bt sb

to do sth that makes people disagree or start to dislike each other

to explain sth in layman's terms

to simplify a complex idea or concept, using language that is easily understood by someone without specialized knowledge or expertise

to give maps to one´s own self

sth that can act as a compass in helping us orient ourselves internally

to give sb the silent treatment

the act of not speaking to someone, or speaking to them very little, because you are angry or upset about something they have done:

to gloss over (unpleasant facts for ex)

to avoid talking about something unpleasant, or to say as little as possible about it

to harp on (sb's bad habits for ex)

to talk about something continuously, especially in a way that is annoying or boring

to have a scrap

noisy argument

to have a smattering of a language

to have a small amount of knowledge about a subject, especially a foreign language

to lose one´s grip

to become less confident and less able to deal with a situation

to patch up your differences

to prop up one´s chin

you are confident, feeling powerful

to roll your eyes

to show that you are annoyed or bored after sb has done or said sth

to say sth under one's breath

in a quiet voice so that no one can hear you

to set tongues wagging

to do something that people will talk about in an unkind way

to shrug your shoulders

in order to say you do not know or you are not interesed

to steer clear of a subject

to avoid someone or something unpleasant or difficult

to stroll toward the edge

to talk a blue streak

to talk very quickly without stopping

to talk about sb behind their back

if you do something behind someone’s back, you do it without them knowing

to talk down to sb

to talk to someone as if they are stupid, although they are not

to talk sb's ear/arm/leg/head off

to talk too much to someone

to talk the hind leg off a donkey

to talk a lot, especially about unimportant things

to tilt one´s head

to move a part of your body, especially your head or chin, upwards or to the side. more attentive vision (of sth), when reading sth interesting, give

to trade recriminations

to twirl your hair

a nervous habit or a way to soothe yourself

to vent your spleen

to express angry feelings

to work through hard feelings

coll

widen out the boundaries of our being

to say that an experience or an emotion has pushed back the limits of your being