pigs

When pigs fly = never 

 

Example : Sure he'll pay for the drinks -- when pigs fly

worms

A can of worms  

a very complicated situation that causes a lot of problems when you start to deal with it 

:Example 

I just don't know what to do - every solution I can think  

 of would just open up a whole new can of worms 

centipede

   
  
centipede 

a small creature like a worm with a lot of very small legs                                         

hard

hard and not bending: solid, firm, stiff, rigid 

meat that is too hard: tough
 

skin that is old and hard: leathery, calloused
 

hard and easily broken: brittle

tip of English

(Morning, campers! (informal greeting to more than one person
Good morning 

My head's killing me __idiom
I've got a very bad headache

(a hangover (n
a headache from drinking a lot of alcohol

_a fry-up , informal _n
a meal made of fried foods fried egg, mushrooms, bacon etc

to burn the midnight oil __idiom
to study or work until late at night

Who's for...? offer, informal
Who wants
 

You're a pain in the neck __idiom
You're very annoying

calender of quotations

Imagination is the highest kite that one can fly.   (Lauren Bacall)

word of the day christmas

christmas cracker   

a tube of coloured paper that two people pull apart at Christmas in Britain for fun. It  makes a loud sound as it is pulled apart, and usually contains a small toy     

 

go _phrasal verbs

go along

a. to proceed or continue to happen The party was going along fine until the police arrived. Then we had to turn off the music b. go along with someone: to agree with someone or something I go along with what you say. Let's see what the others think about your idea

 

 

go by

a. for time to pass Last month went by so quickly. I can't believe it is nearly your birthday b. to base a decision on something Going by last year's sales figures, we'll need extra staff over summer You should always go by the facts, not others opinions c. to use a different name for yourself When I first met her she went by the name of Sarah, but now she calls herself Zara

go out  

a. to leave your house to go somewhere, usually for fun I went out last night and had a great time at the nightclub Alice went out with the other nurses on New Year's Eve b. to have a romantic relationship with someone Bob and Sally have been going out for ages. When do you think they'll get engaged Have you heard? Tony is going out with Sarah

go down

a. to sink below a surface, usually water The Titanic went down incredibly quickly after it hit the iceberg The sun goes down at 5.50 p.m. today b. to become less or decrease House prices will continue to go down next year c. to be received or accepted in some way The decision to cancel the Christmas holiday went down really badly. The staff are threatening to go on strike The fireworks went down really well with everyone. It was a great display d. to go down with something: to become ill Helen went down with 'flu at Christmas

go off

a. to stop working, especially of electrical things The lights went off suddenly. Fortunately, we had some candles in the kitchen b. to stop liking someone or something I went off the idea of buying a motorbike when I found out how dangerous they are Helen went off her food when she was ill; she didn't want to eat anything c. for food to lose its freshness and become rotten This milk has gone off. Have you got any more in the fridge You can tell when meat has gone off by smelling it

go over

a. to check something carefully for mistakes Before you hand in your essay, go over it and try to spot any spelling mistakes b. to repeat something a lot in order to learn it As an actor, he spends a lot of time going over his lines so that he's word perfect c. to repeatedly think about something, that is perhaps confusing or emotionally stressful I keep going over the meeting in my head. I wish I had said something about their plan to sack so many people. Perhaps I could have changed their mind

to go down with 'fluto become ill with influenza ـ a very heavy cold to go off your foodto not want to eat anything, to lose your appetite

a calendar of quotationsــsmile

    see a face without a smile... give them yours

tip of English

  not in a hurry =There is no rush 

 she lost her job = she got laid off 

she needs to hem her skirt/ it up =she must mend her garment  

cumulative exam= the exam will cover everything  

a drink or medicine that makes you feel happier and gives you more energy= pick-me-up 

she must check back in a few days = she must wait to pick up her order 

hookah

hookah                             

coulours in idioms

 to be in the red = to be in debt; to be overdrawn at the bank. The opposite is to be in the black ( = to be in credit at the bank)

   green = inexperienced, not very competent

  to scream blue murder = to shout very loudly, to   

yell

 to be caught red-handed = to be caught committing  a crime  

out of the blue = completely unexpectedly

 to have green fingers = to be a good gardener, to   

be able to make plants grow well

 to paint the town red = to celebrate

 to do something until one is blue in the face = to do it again and again without getting any results

 once in a blue moon = very rarely, hardly ever

 to see red = to be really angry, really mad

 little grey cells = brains

book

a book about imaginary events: novel, thriller, mystery, horror story, love story, detective story, whodunit
 

books about imaginary events in general: fiction, science fiction, romantic fiction, crime fiction, chick lit informal
 

famous or important novels, poems etc : literature
books about real events: non-fiction
 

a book that gives information: reference book, encyclopedia, textbook
 

a book about someone's life: biography, autobiography, journal, diary
 

someone who writes books: writer, author, novelist

  a book with a hard  cover: hardback /hardcover American English 

a book with a cover made of paper or card: paperback

hand

somebody's left/right hand  in somebody's hand  

the palm of your hand (=the inside surface of your hand)  

the back of your hand (=the outside surface of your hand)  

wave your hand  

clap your hands 

 hold hands with somebody 

shake somebody's hand also shake hands (with somebody) (=as a greeting) 

 take somebody by the hand =hold someone's hand in order to take them somewhere 

join hands =take hold of someone's hand, for example in a dance  

clasp your hands =hold them together tightly 

fold your hands =put them together and rest them on something 

raise your hand also put your hand up British English lift your hand in the air, especially to show that you want to answer or ask a question  

on (your) hands and knees =in a crawling position

with your bare hands =without using a tool, weapon, machine etc

skin

fair/pale skin 

 dark/olive skin  

dark-skinned/fair-skinned  

dry/oily/sensitive skin  

smooth/soft skin 

leathery skin =thick and hard skin   

scaly skin =rough dry skin on animals such as LIZARDs

 good/bad skin (=healthy or unhealthy skin on your face) skin colour/tone  

rub/irritate your skin 

 flap/fold/layer of skin

ship

a ship that carries people: passenger ship, cruise ship, liner, ferry, ro-ro
a ship that carries goods: cargo ship, merchant ship, freighter, oil tanker, super tanker, barge
a small ship: boat, motorboat, powerboat
a ship with sails: yacht, dinghy, sailing ship, sailing boat British English/sailboat American English, catamaran
a fighting ship: warship, aircraft carrier, battleship, cruiser, frigate, destroyer, minesweeper, gunboat, man-of-war old-fashioned
a ship that people live on: houseboat, narrow boat British English
a ship that goes under water: submarine
people on a ship: sailor, captain, passenger, seaman, the crew
parts of a ship: deck, cabin, porthole, engine room, mast, rudder, hullship

Wearing

Wearing

(Dressed( IN WITH . . . ON HAVE . . . ON He was dressed in black He is the man with the black suit on The man has a black suit on She came in a red dress She is the lady with the red dress on The lady has a red dress on They are always in jeans They are the students with jeans on The students have jeans on

Prepositions after Verbs

Prepositions after Verbs
     

ABOUT		AT	IN	OF	ON	OVER
advise	know	aim	assist	advise	agree	argue
agree	laugh	glare	bask	complain	concentrate	battle
argue	lie	grab	cooperate	dream	expound	cry
ask	pray	hit	drown	hear	focus	fight
bother	question	laugh	help	inform	harp	grieve
brag	read	look	interest	know	insist	puzzle
care	remind	rush	invest	learn	report	sigh
complain	say	shoot	participate	remind	speak	worry
contact	sing	snatch	persist	sing	write
cry	speak	stare	steep	speak
do	talk	swing	submerge	talk
dream	teach			tell
fight	tell			think
forget	think
grieve	wonder
harass	worry
hear	write
inform	yell
joke

unpleasant

unpleasant person/behaviour

horrible • unpleasant • nasty • mean • not very nice • obnoxious/objectionable • creep • nasty piece of work

an unpleasant experience

horrible • nasty • unpleasant • not very nice • nightmare

an unpleasant taste or smell

horrible/disgusting/revolting • unpleasant • foul • gross • not very nice • nasty • unappetizing

bad weather

bad weather • awful/terrible/horrible

bad

very bad: awful, terrible, horrible, lousy informal, appalling, ghastly, atrocious, horrendous
 

bad, but not very bad: not very good, mediocre, second-rate, so-so, lacklustre
 

of bad quality: shoddy, inferior, poor quality, cheap, crummy informal
 

bad at doing something: be no good at something
 

very bad at doing something: hopeless, terrible, useless, lousy informal, incompetent
 

morally bad: evil, wicked, immoral, corrupt, sick, perverted, degenerate