Idioms in Speech


(1) to do smb a favour,
to do smb a good turn
them too and that you're just dying to do them a favour. It's sort of funny, in a way. (J. Salinger)
2. This is for a friend who's done me a good turn. (1. Mur­doch)
3. "1 came to do you a good turn," she said. (J. Wain)
(2) so far (as yet) — up to now, all the while up to now
1. Hm! May I ask what you have said so far? (B. Shaw)
2. Thirty years ago five doctors gave me six months to live, and I've seen three of them out so far. (D. Cusack)
3. So far you are right. (W. S. Maugham)
(3) to take a fancy to (for) somebody (to take a liking to somebody, to take to somebody) — to become fond of, to like (often followed by immediately)
1. 1 met this young man in the train Just now, and I've taken a fancy to him already.
2. Mr. Short himself had taken a liking to George. (G.Gordon)
3. He had a warm, cheerful air which made me take to him at once. (A. Cronin)
(4) to be all for — strongly in favour of, to want it to be so, definitely to want something
1. Mother, I'm all for Hubert sending his version to the papers. (J. Galsworthy)
2. "I'm ready to welcome what you call half the truth — the facts." — "So am I. I'm all for it." (J. Priestley)
3. Anthony was all for the open fields and his friends, Steve on the other hand took little notice of other children. (G. Gordon)
(5) as a matter of fact — in fact, in reality; to be exact, really
1. "Haven't you finished?" — "As a matter of fact, we haven't begun." (A. Cronin)
2. "Do you happen to have any cigarettes, by any chance?" — "No, 1 don't, as a matter of fact." (J. Salinger)
3. I've been meaning to have a word with you as a matter of fact. (Gr. Greene)
(6) not to care two pins about (not to care a hang, fig, hoot, etc.) — to care nothing
1. I don't care two pins if you think me plain or not. (W. S. Maugham)

على بركة الله نبدا
abide by (something)

- to follow the rules of something
The cleaning staff must abide by the rules of the school.

able to breathe easily again

- to be able to relax and recover from a stressful time or event
My friend was able to breathe easily again when his company did not go bankrupt.

able to do (something) blindfolded

- to be able to do something easily and quickly
The car was easy to fix and we were able to do it blindfolded.

able to do (something) standing on one's head

- to be able to do something easily and quickly
The boy is good at fixing his bicycle. He can do it standing on his head.

able to take a joke

- to be able to let others laugh and joke about you
Our boss is not able to take a joke. We must be careful what we say to him.

about time

- to be something that should have happened earlier
"It is about time that you returned that book to me."

about to (do something)

- to be on the point of doing something
I was about to leave my house when the phone rang.

above all else

- most importantly of all
Above all else, I plan to go to the Natural History Museum when I visit the city.

above and beyond

- to be more than is required
The work that the man did on our house was above and beyond what was required.

above reproach

- to be not deserving of blame or criticism
The actions of the police officer were above reproach.

above suspicion

- to be very honest so that nobody will suspect you
The man's actions are always above suspicion.

absent-minded

- to be forgetful
My grandfather is very absent-minded and he often forgets his keys.

according to Hoyle

- doing something strictly by the rules, doing something the usual and correct way
"According to Hoyle, we should not use this room but probably nobody will complain if we do use it."

according to (someone or something)

- as said or told by someone, in agreement with something, in the order of something, in proportion to something
According to our teacher, there will be no class next week.
We did everything according to the terms of our agreement.

account for (something)

- to provide an answer/explanation for something
The bad weather accounts for the fact that only a few people came to the meeting.

acid test

- a test where the conclusions are beyond doubt
The problem was an acid test of our faith in the new manager.

acquire a taste for (something)

- to learn to like something
We acquired a taste for classical music during our trip to Europe.

across the board

- equally for everyone or everything
The taxes increased across the board and everyone must pay more.

act high and mighty

- to act proud and powerful
The woman always acts high and mighty and nobody likes her.

act one's age

- to behave as a mature person, to behave equal to one's age
My friend never acts her age in public.

act up

- to misbehave
The children began to act up during the field trip.

add fuel to the fire

- to make a problem worse, to make an angry person more angry
The company added fuel to the fire when they criticized the workers.

add insult to injury

- to make a person who already feels bad to feel worse, to make a bad situation worse
Our boss added insult to injury when she refused to let us use the telephone and computers during lunch.

add up

- to total up to a certain amount
I plan to add up the money that I owe to my father.

add up (to something)

- to mean something, to result in something
The things that my friend said about his boss do not add up.

advise against (something)

- to suggest that something should not be done
We were advised against swimming in the river.

afraid of one's own shadow

- to be easily frightened
The small dog is afraid of his own shadow.

نكمل بعد حمد الله
after a fashion

- poorly, barely adequate
The cleaning staff cleaned the room after a fashion but not very well.

after all

- in spite of what was expected
I have decided to take swimming lessons after all.

after all

- because of the reason given, something needs to be considered
"You don't need to phone him. After all, he never phones you."

after all is said and done

- finally, when everything is settled
After all is said and done the mayor of our city is doing a very good job.

after hours

- after the regular closing or finishing time
The library has a place to return books after hours.

after the fact

- after something has happened
The man said that he was sorry but it was after the fact. He had already caused many problems.

.


against one's will

- to be without a person's consent or agreement
The police took the man to jail against his will.

against the clock

- to hurry to do something before a particular time
We worked against the clock to finish the project.

ahead of one's time

- to have ideas or attitudes that are more advanced than those of others
The ideas of the politician were ahead of his time.

ahead of schedule

- before the time on a schedule that has been decided
We finished our work ahead of schedule.

ahead of the game

- to have done more than necessary
We worked hard all week in order to be ahead of the game on Monday morning.

ahead of time

- earlier than arranged or planned
We started the meeting ahead of time so that we could go home early.

aim at (something)

- to plan or try to reach a target
We are aiming at a big increase in sales next year.

air one`s dirty laundry/linen in public

- to make public something embarrassing that should be a secret
The dinner party became uncomfortable when the host began to air his colleague's dirty laundry in public.

air one's grievances

- to complain (often publicly)
We aired our grievances during the monthly meeting.

air (something) out

- to freshen something by putting it in the open air
We put the blankets outside in order to air them out.

alive and kicking

- to be well and healthy
My aunt is 87 years old and she is very much alive and kicking.

alive and well

- to be well and healthy
The worker is alive and well after the accident.

مشكور يا مستر بس التنسيق مش مظبوط الحاجه اللى انت كاتبها ظللها كلها وبعدين اعمل محازه لليسار

انا اعدت ما كتبته حضرتك بالتنسيق هكذا

نكمل بعد حمد الله
after a fashion

- poorly, barely adequate
The cleaning staff cleaned the room after a fashion but not very well.

after all

- in spite of what was expected
I have decided to take swimming lessons after all.

after all

- because of the reason given, something needs to be considered
"You don't need to phone him. After all, he never phones you."

after all is said and done

- finally, when everything is settled
After all is said and done the mayor of our city is doing a very good job.

after hours

- after the regular closing or finishing time
The library has a place to return books after hours.

after the fact

- after something has happened
The man said that he was sorry but it was after the fact. He had already caused many problems.

.


against one's will

- to be without a person's consent or agreement
The police took the man to jail against his will.

against the clock

- to hurry to do something before a particular time
We worked against the clock to finish the project.

ahead of one's time

- to have ideas or attitudes that are more advanced than those of others
The ideas of the politician were ahead of his time.

ahead of schedule

- before the time on a schedule that has been decided
We finished our work ahead of schedule.

ahead of the game

- to have done more than necessary
We worked hard all week in order to be ahead of the game on Monday morning.

ahead of time

- earlier than arranged or planned
We started the meeting ahead of time so that we could go home early.

aim at (something)

- to plan or try to reach a target
We are aiming at a big increase in sales next year.

air one`s dirty laundry/linen in public

- to make public something embarrassing that should be a secret
The dinner party became uncomfortable when the host began to air his colleague's dirty laundry in public.

air one's grievances

- to complain (often publicly)
We aired our grievances during the monthly meeting.

air (something) out

- to freshen something by putting it in the open air
We put the blankets outside in order to air them out.

alive and kicking

- to be well and healthy
My aunt is 87 years old and she is very much alive and kicking.

alive and well

- to be well and healthy
The worker is alive and well after the accident.







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