General IELTS preparation and how to score high with a list of idioms 4.
Ielts Transcript
examples
stand ones ground
maintaining your position
the other teams offense was incredibly
aggressive but our defense stood their
ground
carry the torch for
having strong feelings for someone who
can not be yours
suzan carried a torch for him for years
after they broke up
close to home
a comment which is true and makes you
are uncomfortable is close to home
my patients lung cancer diagnosis is
close to home for me because my uncle
recently died of the same thing
cut to the quick
hurting someone deeply or offending them
I can’t even look at her right now that
hurtful remark cut me right to the quick
cook up something
failing to express your emotions
she did not let her grief pour out when
her father passed away it’s not good for
her to cook up her feelings
being ones bonnet
carrying an idea which constantly
occupies your thoughts
it seems that Mike still has a bee in
his bonnet over the criticism he got in
the staff meeting
fish out of water
feeling uncomfortable in unfamiliar
surroundings
Marie was like a fish out of water when
she assumed a manager position at the
company where she had worked as a clerk
for so long
reduced to tears
getting into tears because of someone’s
behavior
he scolded her so much that she was
reduced to tears by the end of the
meeting
in the bag
refers to a situation when you assure
that success is sure
don’t start to think we’ve got this game
in the bag gentlemen I’ve seen teams
make bigger comebacks than this so we
can’t let up
blow up in face
refers to a situation when a plan or
project suddenly fails
Mike was trying to sabotage my campaign
but the plan blew up in his face when I
overheard him talking about it
cut one’s own throat
doing something that will cause your own
failure
you cut your own throat when you told
him to leave how are you going to manage
alone
cook someone’s goose
spoil other person’s chances of success
he thinks he’ll get away with stealing
my idea but I’m going to cook his goose
come up roses
successful end results even though there
may be some initial hiccups
it looked like the negotiations might
break down as any stage but everything
came up roses in the end
chance ones arm
deciding to do something even though the
chances of Seuss’s are very little
I think he’s chanting his anti-dumping
his life savings into yet another
bizarre money-making scheme
Keg not worth the candle
refers to something in which result
versus efforts are two less
Patricia worked very hard to organize
the party but very few guests walked in
the cake wasn’t worth the candle
bottom fell out
refers to a situation when a plan or
project fails
the bottom fell out of the market and I
lost a lot of money
place in the Sun
finding a place in the Sun refers to a
position which provides you all the
success and happiness you want in your
life
your place in the Sun will be assured
when you win this match so please do
your best
sink or swim
fail or succeed
in such a competitive business it’s
always sink or swim for new companies
looking to enter the market
champagne on a beer budget
wanting expensive things that you cannot
afford
my best friend always buys things out of
her budget she has developed a taste for
champagne on beer budget
top dog
very successful group company person
country etc
you’ll only get a truthful answer if you
manage to talk to one of the top dogs
keep up appearances
maintaining an outward show of
prosperity or well-being while hiding
your difficulties
she tried very hard to keep up
appearances as she fell further and
further into credit-card debt
wooden spoon
imaginary prize for the last person in a
race
my friends won a wooden spoon at the
Fashion Show
have the world by its tail
very successful person who can choose
from a lot of opportunities
Samantha landed her dream job after
finishing at the top of her class in
college she has the world by the tail
live beyond means
spending more money than you can afford
they’ve been living beyond their means
for some time now but they’re too proud
to move out of the giant house or give
up their expensive cars
live in an ivory tower
living a lifestyle that saves you from
the real-world problems
if you didn’t spend so much time in your
ivory tower you’d know what people
really think