Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Idioms
Revision
Get off on the right/wrong foot
Vocabulary
Idioms
Close to my heart
In your heart of hearts=in your most secret and true thoughts
Close/dear/near to someone’s heart
A change of heart
A man/woman after your own heart=someone who has the same opinions as you on a
particular subject
Have best interests at heart=to make decisions based on someone’s best interests
I know she was only doing what would benefit her, but she said she had my best
interest at heart.
Someone’s heart is in the right place=used for saying that someone tries to be kind and do
good things even though it does not always seem like this
Have a heart of gold=to be a very kind person
Your heart isn’t in it=if your heart isn’t in it, you do not feel interested or enthusiastic
about something
By heart=parrot fashion
Heart-to-heart=a serious conversation between two people, usually close friends, in which
they talk honestly about their feelings
Vocabulary
Idioms
On the hoof
Put the cart before the horse=to do one thing before another thing that you should have
done first
On the hoof=if you make a decision on the hoof, you do so without thinking about it
carefully first
To get/take the bit between your teeth=to do what you have decided to do in a forceful
and energetic way
She wasn’t interested at first, but she loved it once she got the bit between her teeth.
Straight from the horse’s mouth=directly from someone who knows
To keep a tight grip/rein/hold on something=to control something in a very strict way
Saddle someone with something=to give someone something that is difficult to deal with
Horses for courses=used to say that is important to choose suitable people for particular
activities because everyone has different skills
To put it through its paces=to give something a thorough testing or examination so as to
evaluate its worth, ability, or functionality
A one-horse race
One-horse race=a competition in which one person or horse seems certain to win
Wild horses couldn’t/wouldn’t drag someone somewhere///wild horses couldn’t/wouldn’t
make someone do something=used for emphasizing that someone is determined not to do
Something
To beat/flog a dead horse=to waste time on something that you know is not going to
happen
Dark horse=someone who wins a race, competition, election etc that no one expected
them to win
To get on your high horse=to behave as if you know more or are better than anyone else
To back/pick the right/wrong horse=to support someone or something that succeeds/fails
House or home?
Make yourself at home
To hit/strike home=if something that you say hits or strikes home, people understand it
and accept it
Home truths=unpleasant facts or opinions about you that someone tells
Home and dry=having achieved victory or success, or certain to achieve it
Bored to death
Sick and tired of something///sick to death of something///sick to the back teeth of
something=very unhappy about something
To frighten the life out of someone///to frighten someone to death
A new lease of life
Not for the life of me=used for emphasizing that you cannot remember or understand
something at all
I cannot for the life of me see why he married her.
A fate worse than death=something very bad that could happen to you
The life and soul (of the party)=someone who is very lively at social events
Dice with death=to risk being killed by doing something very dangerous
Bored to death/tears=bored stiff/rigid/silly
Look/feel like death warmed up=to look or feel very ill
Not be able to do something to save your life=to be very bad at doing something