english idioms advanced in use unit 10: BINOMIALS

black and white

easy to understand what is right and wrong:

Disarmament [Sự giảm quân bị] isn't a _ issue for me.

→ rõ ràng, phân rõ trắng và đen

neat and tidy

clean and organized

The house is _.

Sara’s work is always very _.

→ rất là gọn gàng, có tổ chức

hit-and-miss

not done in a careful or planned way and therefore not likely to be successful

• The procedure is far too clumsy and _.

• The professor's deafness made conversation a _ affair.

→ được hoàn thiện một cách không cẩn thận, từ đó ko có khả năng thành công cao.

neck and neck

very close or equal:

The two boys ran toward the finish line _.

wear and tear

the damage that happens to an object in ordinary use during a period:

Seat covers on buses take a lot of _.

black and blue

with dark marks on your skin caused by being hit or having an accident:

• His arm was _.

• I never thought he'd beat me _ just for disagreeing with him.

little by little

slowly or gradually:

• _ she came to understand why he had behaved the way he did.

• The first few months in our new country were difficult, but _ we adapted.

→ chậm rãi, từ từ

bumper to bumper

with so many cars that are so close that they are almost touching each other:

By eight o'clock the traffic was _.

→ kẹt cứng (thường dc dùng trong giao thông)

give or take

possibly a little more or less than the amount or time mentioned:

• It'll be ready at 6:00, _ a few minutes.

• It cost £200, _.

→ xấp xỉ bao nhiêu

here and there

in different places:

There were a few books _, but apart from that the room was quite bare.

at sixes and sevens

in a confused, badly organized, or difficult situation:

We've been _ in the office this week.

out and about

active; doing the things you usually do:

The doctor says she's making a good recovery, and she should be _ in a few days' time.

be like chalk and cheese

If two people are like ~, they are completely different from each other:

My brother and I are like _.

hustle and bustle

noise and activity:

• I love the _ of the marketplace.

• I come from New York, so I'm used to _.

  → sự bận rộn, nhộn nhịp, sầm uất

SYN hike of activity, industry, etc.

be all fingers and thumbs

to move your hands in an awkward way:

I'm _ today. That's the second plate I've dropped this morning.

→ tay chân lanh chanh, đụng gì rớt đó

in dribs and drabs

in small amounts, a few at a time

→ từng phần (chứ không gói gọn một lần)

They received donations _.

blood, sweat, and tears

extremely hard work, or the greatest effort possible, in order to achieve something:

• This has been a tough time. We have all put in a lot of _.

• They had given their _ to getting the restaurant up and running.

time after time

again and again:

• _ she gets involved in relationships with the wrong men.

• _ he turned down requests for interviews.

wax and wane

to grow stronger and then weaker again:

His commitment to democracy and free markets has _ with his political fortunes.

→ tăng rồi giảm, giảm rồi tăng; thăng trầm, thịnh suy

through and through

completely:

My mother is Irish _.

every nook and cranny

every part of a place:

• _ of the house was stuffed with souvenirs of their trips abroad.

• Bureaucratic tentacles extend their reach into _ of America.

→ từng ngóc ngách