Learn English | A new lesson every week
Book your course now

Phrases

Idiom of the Day: Take a Shot

Average: 3.5 (37 votes)

Tired of idiom

This cartoon is based on the idiom take a shot.

Take a shot means 'try to do something; to attempt to do something'.

Examples:

"I don't know the answer to your question, but I'll take a shot anyway."

"I haven't played tennis before but I'm going to take a shot this weekend."

10 Idioms

Average: 3.7 (200 votes)

English is a language that is full of many colourful idioms that describe people and situations in a more interesting way than the typical vocabulary. We've looked at idioms many times before and here are 10 more.

For example instead of saying "he's been doing this for a long time", you can say "He's an old hat at this". This is an especially great way of improving your writing.

English Idioms

Here are some more idioms and their meanings:

Expressions with Time

Average: 1.9 (319 votes)

Complete the sentences with these words to make the correct time expressions:

Expressions with Look

Average: 3 (27 votes)

Definitions:

Look for: try to find something
Look forward to: wait with pleasure for something which is going to happen
Look after: be responsible for or take care of someone or something

Complete the sentences with these expressions:

I'm looking forward to...
I'm looking for...
I'm looking after...

Business English: Making Decisions

Average: 2 (185 votes)

We all have to make decisions every day. Some decisions are simple, some are more difficult.

Decision-making increasingly happens at all levels of a business, and it's an important part of being successful in business.

Do you consider yourself to be a good decision maker? What do you need to do before you make a business decision? What must you do and think about before deciding what decision to take?

Get / Become

Average: 3.7 (75 votes)

The word get has many different meanings in English, such as 'receive'. However, another very common meaning is also 'become'.

For example: “I’m getting cold” means the same as “I’m becoming cold”
The only real difference is that get is more informal and popular to use.

The structure is: GET + ADJECTIVE.

Idiom of the Day: Tired of

Average: 3.2 (20 votes)

Tired of idiom

This joke is based on the meaning of the word insomnia and the idiom tired of:

Insomnia (in-SOM-ne-ah) is a common sleep problem. People who have insomnia have trouble falling asleep at night. As a result, they get too little sleep or have poor-quality sleep.

Phrasal Verbs: Arguments

Average: 2 (146 votes)

Basically, a phrasal verb is a combination of a verb with at least one other word. These can be a verb and an adverb, a verb and a preposition, or even a verb with an adverb and a preposition.

Example: "John flew off the handle." Which means that John became very angry.

Phrasal Verbs

1. grow up - behave responsibly; behave as an adult, not a child.

Body Idioms

Average: 3.6 (13 votes)

An idiom is a phrase (a group of words) which means something different from the meanings of the separate words. "Sally let the cat out of the bag" does not mean that Sally took a real cat out of a real bag. It means that she told a secret by mistake.

How well do you know the folllowing idioms?

Business English Idioms

Average: 4.1 (16 votes)

Are any of you studying English for business purposes? Idioms are really common in the workplace and can be heard everywhere, in offices or on factory floors. Here are seven of the most common.

Business before pleasure - you should finish your work before starting to relax and enjoy yourself.

A done deal - a final decision or agreement.