IDIOMATIC EXPRESSIONS

MINI-LESSON 1.1

1) about to: almost ready to

2) add up: make sense; be logical
3) all at once: suddenly; without warning
4) as a rule: generally; customarily [habitualmente]
5) at ease: not nervous; calm
6) at the drop of a hat: quickly; without any preparation time
7) back out (to): withdraw (an offer) [retirar una oferta]
8) bank on: depend on; count on
9) be my guest: do what you want; feel free [sentirse libre, no dude en]; help yourself
10) be rusty: need practice or review
11) beast me [se me olvido]: I don’t know; I have no idea (often used in response to a question)
12) better of: an improved condition
13) bite off more than one can chew: take on more responsibility than one can handle
14) bound to: certain to; sure to
15) break down: stop functioning (a machine for example)
16) break in (on someone): interrupt
17) break the ice: break through social barriers (as a party)
18) break the news (to someone): inform; give bad news.
19) break up: end (a meeting, for example)
20) break up (with someone): stop being a couple (a boyfriend and girlfriend, for example)
21) a breeze: something very simple and easy to do
23) bring about: cause to happen
24) bring up: (1) raise (a child); (2) introduce (a topic, for example)
25) brush up on: review; study; practice
26) bump into [darse con, chocar con]: meet unexpectedly; run into
27) by and large: mostly; generally; on the whole [en conjunto]
28) by heart [de memoria]: by memory; learned word for word
29) by no means: in no way

MINI-LESSON 1.2

30) call it a day: stop working for the day; go home

31) call off: cancel
32) call on: visit
33) calm down: relax
34) care for: (1) take care of (2) like; feel affection for
35) catch on: become popular
35) catch on (to): understand, learn
36) catch up (with) [alcanzar a]: go as fast as; catch
37) check in (or into): register (at a hotel)
38) check out (of): (1) leave (a hotel) (2) take material (from a library, for example)
39) cheer up: become cheerful; be happy
40) chip in (on/for): contribute
41) clear up: (1) clarify; make understandable (2) become nice and sunny (used to talk about the
weather)
42) come across: find; meet; encounter
43) come around (to): begin to change one´s opinion; begin to agree with
44) come down with: become sick with (an illness)
45) come up with [proponer, conseguir]: think of (an idea)
46) cost an arm and a leg [costar un ojo de la cara]: be very expensive
47) count on: depend on; rely on
48) count out: eliminate; no longer consider as a factor
49) cut off: stop; discontinue(a service for example)
50) cut out for [estar hecho para]: have an aptitude for; be qualified for

MINI-LESSON 1.3

51) day in and day out: constantly; for a long time

52) die down: become less severe; quiet down [calmarse]
53) do over: do again; repeat
54) do without: not have
56) down the drain: wasted; done for no reason (work, for example)
57) dream up: invent; think of; come up with [idear]
58) drop in (on): visit informally
59) drop (someone) a line: send someone a letter
60) drop off: (1) leave something (a package, for example) (2) take (someone) home; let someone
out of a car
61) drop out (of): stop attending (classes, for example)
62) dwell on: focus on; think about too much
63) easy as pie [pan comido]: very simple
64) eyes bigger than one´s stomach: said of people who take more food than they can eat
65) fall behind: not move as quickly as; lag behind [quedarse atras]
66) fall through [venires abajo, fracasar, quedar en la nada]: fail to happen
67) a far cry from: not similar to; not as good as
68) fed up (with) [harto]: not able to tolerate; disgusted with; annoyed by [molesto por]
69) feel free: do something if one wants
70) feel like [tener ganas de]: be inclined to
71) feel like a million dollars: feel very good
72) few and far between: uncommon and infrequent
73) figure out: understand; solve

MINI-LESSON 1.4

74) fill in [completar]: write in a black (on a application form, for example)
75) fill in (for someone): substitute for
76) fill (someone) in [poner al día] : provide someone missing information
77) fill out: complete (an application form, for example)
78) find out: learn; discover
79) a fish out of water: someone not in his or her normal surroundings [alrededores]
80) follow in one´s footsteps [seguir los pasos de alguien]: do what someone else did (especially
an older relative)
81) for good: permanently; forever
82) for the time being: temporally; for now
83) get a kick out of (doing something): enjoy; have fun doing something
84) get along with: have a good relations with
85) get carried away: go too far; do too much; buy too much
86) get the hang of something: learn how to do something
87) get in one´s blood: become a habit; become customary
88) get in over one´s head: take on too much responsibility
89) get in the way [estorbar]: block; obstruct
90) get in touch with [contactar con]: contact
91) get off: leave (a vehicle)
92) get off the ground [arrancar]: start to be successful
93) get on: board (a vehicle)
94) get over: recover from (an illness)
95) get rid of [deshacerse de, olvidarse de]: discard; no longer have
96) get under way: begin; start
97) give away [donar]: distribute (for free)
98) give (someone) the cold shoulder: act unfriendly toward someone; ignore

MINI-LESSON 1.5

99) give a hand [echar una mano]: applaud [aplaudir]; clap [aplaudir] for
100) give a hand (with): assist [ayudar]
101) go easy on: not punish severely
102) go on (with): continue
103) go overboard [exagerar]: do too much; buy too much
104) go with: (1) accompany (2) look good together; complement (for example, two articles of
clothing)
105) go without saying: be clear; be obvious
106) grow up: mature; become an adult
107) hand in [entregar]: give back to; return
108) hand out: distribute
109) hang on: wait
110) hard to come by: difficult to find
111) have a big mouth: not be able to conceal secrets
112) have a chip on one´s shoulder: be easily angered [enojado]; quarrelsome [peleador]
113) have a heart: be compassionate; show mercy [misericordia]
114) have a hunch: have an intuitive feeling
115) have a work with (someone): talk to someone briefly [brevemente]
116) have on: wear
117) have one´s hands full: be very busy; have a challenging job
118) have the time of one´s life: have fun; have great time
119) hear first hand (from someone): get information directly from someone
120) hear from: be contacted by; be in touch with
121) hear of: know about; be familiar with
122) hit it off (with someone): become friendly (especially at a first meetng)
123) hit the road: leave; go away
124) hold on: wait
125) hold on (to): grasp [agarrar]
126) hold still [quieto]: not move
127) hold up [soportar, retener]: delay [retrasar]

MINI-LESSON 1.6

128) in a nutshell: in summary; in brief

129) in hot water: in trouble
130) in no time: very soon; very quickly
131) in person: face to face (not by telephone, letter, e-mail, etc)
132) in store: in the future; coming up
133) in the dark: not knowing; confused
134) in the long run: over a long period of time
135) in the same boat: in the same situation, having the same problem
136) iron out: solve (a problem)
137) join the club: have the same problem as other people
138) jump to conclusions: form opinions without sufficient evidence
139) keep an eye on [estar pendiente, vigilar]: watch; take care of; look after [cuidar]
140) keep an eye out (for) [mantenerse alerta]: look for
141) keep on (with): continue
142) keep track of: know where something or someone is
143) keep up (with): maintain the same pace as [mantener el mismo ritmo]
144) kill time: spend time doing unimportant things (before an appointment, for example)
145) know like the back of one´s hand: be very familiar with
146) learn the ropes [aprender el manejo de]: become familiar with; get used to; get the hang of
147) leave out: not include; omit
148) leave someone/something alone: not disturb
149) let someone down: disappoint [decepcionar]
150) let up: decline in intensity (rain for example)
151) look after [cuidar]: take care of; mind
152) look for: try to locate
153) look forward to [tener muchas ganas de, contar los días que faltan para]: anticipate (with
pleasure)
154) look into: investigate

MINI-LESSON 1.7

155) look like:

156) look out (for):
157) look over:
158) look up:
159) look up to:
160) make a fool of oneself:
161) make a point of:
162) make ends meet:
163) make sense (of):
164) make up:
165) make up one´s mind:
166) make way for:
167) mean to:
168) mixed up:
170) music to one´s ears:
171) a nervous wreck:
172) next to nothing:
173) no doubt about it:
174) no harm done:
175) not believe one´s ears (for eyes):
176) not think much of:
177) odds and ends:
178) off the cut:
179) an old hand (at):
180) on edge:
181) on end:
182) on hand:
183) on one´s own:
184) on pins and needles:
185) on second thought:
186) on the go:
187) on the tip of one´s tongue:
188) on the whole:
189) out of (something):
190) out of one´s mind:
191) out of order:
192) out of the question:
193) over and over:
194)over one´s head: