7/30/2019 Lesson 53 Idioms

1/7

LESSON 53 IDIOMS

What is the meaning of a company operating

'in the red'?Answer:It means that a company is spending more money that it is earning. In other words, they are indebt. It is losing money and is making less profits than last year. Accountants use red to indicatethis on overheads in board meetings. Its income is less than its expenditure-a serious problem,unless it has large reserves or a strategy to return to profitable trading.

When a company is "operating in the red", it means theirexpenses are greater than theirearnings. Therefore, they are not making a profit, which can cause the company to go bankrupt.When a company is "operating in the black", it means just the opposite; they are earning

more money than their overhead (expenses) costs, and are making a profit.

Due to the recent plummeting stock market, many people panicked and sold their stock in someof these companies, which caused a tremendous cash flow problem, resulting in some of thecompanies going bankrupt.

1. IT SERVES YOU RIGHT

serve someone right

Meaning: If you say "it serves you right", you're telling someone that their problem is the resultof their own bad behaviour, and they deserve it.

For example:

You knew it was illegal to smuggle drugs, and now you're in jail. All I can say is it servesyou right.

They're so lazy that it'd serve them right if they failed their exams.

Idiom:

serve (someone) rightTo be deserved under the circumstances: Punish him; it will serve him right for what he has doneto you.

2. WALK A MILE IN MY SHOES

7/30/2019 Lesson 53 Idioms

2/7

Idiom Definitions for 'Walk a mile in my shoes'

This idiom means that you should try to understand someone before criticising

them.

DON'T JUDGE A MAN UNTIL YOU HAVE WALKED A MILE IN HIS BOOTS - "Don'tcriticize another person's work until you've tried to do it yourself; don't judgeanother person's life until you've been forced to live it. The word 'criticize'may be used instead of 'judge' and 'shoes' instead of 'boots.' The main entryis one of the 101 most frequently used American proverbs, according tolexicographer Harris Collis." From "Random House Dictionary of PopularProverbs and Sayings" (1996) by Gregory Y. Titelman (Random House, New

York, 1996).

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board

Example:

If a social welfare officer appears to me to be not doing his job well, I can notcriticize him without knowing the difficulties involved. He will challenge mesaying "you do this job for one month, and I will see how efficiently you willdo it under the present circumstances".

3. I DONT BUY THAT EXPLAINATION

What does the idiom don't buy

explanation mean?Answer:If you "don't buy" something, that means you don't believe it. You're saying you don'tbelieve someone's explanation.

4. EVERY MAN HAS HIS PRICE

Every man has his price 0.01 sec.Every man has his price.Prov. It is possible to bribe anyone as long as you know how much or what to bribe him or herwith. Henchman: I've offered the judge half a million dollars to give you a light sentence, but

he says he can't be bought. Gangster: Keep trying. Every man has his price. Every man has hisprice, and the townsfolk were shocked to discover just how low their mayor's price had been.

5.. YOURE THE BOSS

http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/6/messages/740.htmlhttp://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/6/messages/740.html

7/30/2019 Lesson 53 Idioms

3/7

In a conversation between a superior and an inferior, when the inferior suggests something fromthe position of the superior, and the superior agrees, the response the superior gives to mark theagreement.Michael: "30 percent is bullshit. 25 seems reasonable, I might borrow from you. We'll finish thepaperwork now."Moshe: "You're the boss."

6. LETS MAKE UP

KISS AND MAKE UPkiss and make up1.Lit. [for two people who have been arguing] to kiss each other and apologize. John apologizedto his wife for disagreeing with her, and they finally kissed and made up.2.Fig. to forgive someone and be friends again. They were very angry, but in the end they

kissed and made up. I'm sorry. Let's kiss and make up.

7. I MEAN IT

Your husband cooked dinner. It tastes great. You complimented him on his cooking, buthe didn't seem to believe you. You want to let him know that you really do like it, so yousay:

No, I mean it!

I mean it.

Say this when you've complimented someone, but they don't seem to accept or believe yourcompliment.

A: You're really talented.

B: Yeah, whatever.

A: No, I really mean it!

You look great. I mean it; you really do.

8. COLD TURKEY

http://www.phrasemix.com/phrases/i-mean-ithttp://www.phrasemix.com/phrases/i-mean-it

7/30/2019 Lesson 53 Idioms

4/7

n.Slang1. Immediate, complete withdrawal from something on which one has become dependent,such as an addictive drug.2. Blunt language or procedural method.

2. cold turkey - complete and abrupt withdrawal of all addictive drugs or anything else on whichyou have become dependent; "he quit smoking cold turkey"; "she quit her job cold turkey"drug withdrawal,withdrawal- the termination of drug taking

A faster but unpleasant method of stopping an addictive habit, such as drugs or alcohol. Itmeans that you just totally, completely stop, and never do it again (or at least try to).

Going cold turkey is opposed to stopping it by gradually doing it less and less, or stopping itwith help like special gum or medicine. You don't get any help; you just stop.Lydia tried to smoke only one cigarette a week, but she ended up going back to her oldhabits. She decided to try out going cold turkey.

"Cold turkey" is a term describing the actions of a person who gives up his habit or addictionat a single moment, rather than through gradually easing the process through tapering off orsupplemental medication. The term allegedly derives from the comparison of a cold turkeycarcass and the state of a withdrawing addict -- most notably, the cold sweats and gooseflesh.It is often preceded by the word 'going', as 'going cold turkey'."

9. THROWN THEIR HATS IN THE RING

Throw your hat into the ringmore like this...

...other phrases about:

Sport and games

Meaning

Make or take up a challenge, or demonstrate one's willingness to join an enterprise.

If someone throws their hat in the ring, they announce that they want to take part in acompetition or contest. 'Toss your hat in the ring' is an alternative.Thispage:

throw/toss your hat in the ring (American & Australian)to do something that makes it clear you want to compete with other people, especially tocompete for a political position She's seriously considering throwing her hat in the ringand declaring herself a candidate for the election.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/drug+withdrawalhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drug+withdrawalhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/withdrawalhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/withdrawalhttp://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/sport-and-games-phrases.htmlhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drug+withdrawalhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/withdrawalhttp://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/sport-and-games-phrases.html

7/30/2019 Lesson 53 Idioms

5/7

THROWN IN THE TOWEL

throw in the towel and throw in the sponge; toss in the spongeFig. (From boxing, where this is done by a boxer's trainer to stop the fight.) to signal that one isgoing to quit; to quit. When John could stand no more of Mary's bad temper, he threw in the

towel and left. Don't give up now! It's too soon to throw in the sponge.

Verb 1. throw in the towel - give up in the face of defeat of lacking hope; admit defeat; "In thesecond round, the challenger gave up"chuck up the sponge,drop by the wayside,drop out, fall by the wayside, throw in,giveup,quit

10. GONE BELLY UP

Idioms:

go orturn belly up,Informal. to come to an end; die; fail.

go belly up (informal)if a business goes belly up, it fails Factories and farms went belly up because of the debt crisis.

11. INSIDE TRACK*inside trackFig. an advantage (over someone) gained through special connections, specialknowledge, or favoritism. (*Typically: get ~; have ~; give someone ~.) If I could get theinside track, I could win the contract. The boss likes me. Since I've got the inside track,I'll probably be the new office manager.

12. TAKE A CHANCE

take a chance - take a risk in the hope of a favorable outcome; "When youbuy these stocks you are gambling"

13. DRAW THE LINE

draw the line (at something)to set a limit at something; to decide when a limit has been reached. You can make asmuch noise as you want, but I draw the line at fighting. It's hard to keep young peopleunder control, but you have to draw the line somewhere.

Draw the line

When you draw the line, you set out limits of what you find acceptable, beyond whichyou will not go.

draw the line

1. To decide firmly an arbitrary boundary between two things: "Where do you draw the line between yourown decisions and those of your superiors?"(Robert Marion).2. To decide firmly the limit of what one will tolerate or participate in: The officer committed fraud but drewthe line at blackmail.

14. He thought the soup too hot and made a scene about it

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/chuck+up+the+spongehttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drop+by+the+waysidehttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drop+by+the+waysidehttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drop+outhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drop+outhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/fall+by+the+waysidehttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/throw+inhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/throw+inhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/give+uphttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/give+uphttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/give+uphttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/quithttp://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/draw+the+line.htmlhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/chuck+up+the+spongehttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drop+by+the+waysidehttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/drop+outhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/fall+by+the+waysidehttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/throw+inhttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/give+uphttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/give+uphttp://www.thefreedictionary.com/quithttp://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/draw+the+line.html

7/30/2019 Lesson 53 Idioms

6/7

If someone "makes a scene" it means they made a big deal about something,often with yelling and usually attracting a lot of attention from bystanders.

make a scene and create a sceneFig. to make a public display or disturbance. When John found a fly in his drink, he started to

create a scene. Oh, John, please don't make a scene. Just forget about it.

15. PLAY WITH FIRE- play with fire

to be involved in an activity that could be dangerous (usually in continuous tenses) We're playingwith fire if we continue with genetic modification of our food.

Play with Fire

When someone is playing with fire they are doing something that will result in them beingharmed. The full idiom is If you play with fire you are going to get burnt.

'By being late all the time, Paul is playing with fire.'

16.HIT THE CEILING

hit the ceiling and hit the roofFig. to get very angry. She really hit the ceiling when she found out what happened. My dad'llhit the roof when he finds out that I wrecked his car.

Hit the ceiling

If someone hits the ceiling, they lose their temper and become very angry.

17.SEE THE LIGHT AT THE END OF THE TUNNEL

light at the end of the tunnelsomething which makes you believe that a difficult or unpleasant situation will end We'rehalfway through our exams now, so we can see light at the end of the tunnel. Unemploymentis still rising but analysts assure us there is light at the end of the tunnel.

18.TAKE TWO TO TANGO

It takes two to tango.something that you say which means if two people were involved in a bad situation, bothmust be responsible

http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/hit+the+ceiling.htmlhttp://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/hit+the+ceiling.html

7/30/2019 Lesson 53 Idioms

7/7

both people involved in a bad situation are responsible for it She blames Tracy for stealingher husband. Well, it takes two to tango.

19. ITS A DEALIt's a deal.

Okay.; It is agreed. You want to sell me your stereo for $100? It's a deal. Bill: Let's go todinner together tonight. Mary: It's a deal.

20. MADE A BIG SPLASH-make a splashto get a lot of public attention It wasn't a best-seller but it did make quite a splash in Americanliterary circles.

21.