SACK
SACK IN/OUT: to go to sleep for a prolonged period. where are
you guys going to sack in/sact out.
GET THE SACK:dismissed.if the new cleark doesnot work harder he
will get the sack.
GIVE THE SACK:to dismiss from their job. they gave rakesh the
sack for being drunk on duty.
SACK CLOTH AND ASHES: with prepentance. the culprit apologizes
in sack cloth and ashes before the judge.
SADDLE
SADDLE WITH: burdened with . he saddled his partner with balme.
IN THE SADDLE: in a position of power or control. the new
manager had not been in the saddle long when the trouble occured.
SAFE
SAFE AND SOUND: secure,safely.he reached saharanpiut quite safe
and sound. the life is not safe and sound.
BE ON THE SAFE SIDE: to avoid risk or danger. i donot think we
will need much money but i will take my cheque book just to be on the
safe side.
SAIL
SET SAIL: start on a sea voyage. the captain set sail for
calcutta early in march.
SAIL INTO:enter boldly. she sailed into the room.
TAKE IN SAIL: moderate one's ambitions. if you want to rise in
life, you must take in sail.
SALAD
SALAD DAY'S: the time when (someone) was young and
inexperienced. i often walked five km; home from a dance in my salad
days.
SAKE
FOR THE SAKE OF: in the interest of.i did this thing for the
sake of my son. you should for your own sake.
SALT
SALT AWAY: to store up for the future use. he has a pile of
money saleted away.
WORTH ONE'S SALT: deserving the pay that one gets. if he
cannot even do that , he is not worth his salt.
WORTH HIS SALT:efficient. the new engineer is worth his salt
because his supervision is good.
SALT OF THE EARTH: most valuable man; the best. an hard
working, honest man is thesalt of the earth.
SAME
SAME HERE:i/we agree; i/we have the opinion, experience." we
thought that the service inour hotel was dreadful,"-"same here we are
going to complain to the manager."
ALL THE SAME: nevertheless; in spite of this. i am sure i
locked the door, but, all the same, i think i will go and check.
MUCH THE SAME: not very much changed or different. 'how is your
mother'? 'much the same(as she was)'.
SAND
BUILD ON SAND: to try to establish something without enough
security or support. their marriage was build on sand because they had
absolutely nothing in common.
SANDS ARE RUNNING OUT: time is nearly at an end. i think that
the sands are running out for the present prime minister, he will have
to resign soon.
SANDS OF LIFE:maturity. he is ninety and the sands of life are
nearly run out of him.
SATISFACTION
GIVE SATISFACTION:satisfy. we think his work will give
satisfaction.
SAUCE
SAUCE FOR THE GOOSE: to proverb. what is sauce for the
goose is the souce for the gander.
SAVE
TO SAVE ONE'S SKIN: to protect one's ownself. when fire broke
out, every body rushed for the exit so as to save to his own skin.
SAVE ONE'S BREATH: to keep silent because talking will not
help. save your breath, the boss willl never give the day off.
SAVE THE DAY: to bring about victory or success. the forest
fire was nearly out of control when suddenly it rained havily and
saved the day.
SAY
YOU CAN SAY THAT AGAIN: you are absolutely right! ' he is
crazy. you can say that again.
I SAY: surprise or special interest. i say look at pushpa's
new silk saree.
SAY THE WORD: give the order. the army marches when the
general says the word.
THERE'S NO SAYING: it is impossible to guess. there is no
saying what will happen next.
SCALE
ON A LARGE SCALE: they are raised on large scale in assam.
SCARCE
MAKE ONESELF SCARCE: to run away or stay away. as soon as
his mother -in-law arrived, he made himself scarce.
SCARE
MAKE ONESELF SCARE:retire. my uncle has made himself scare
from the service.
SCARE UP: to find, collect or get together with some effort
when needed." will you stay for supper?" she asked." i can scare up
enough for us all."
SCENE
MAKE A SCENE: to lose temper. do not make a scene.
BEHIND THE SCENE: out of sight of the audience or public. it
would be interesting to know what goes on behind the scenes at the
white house.
COME ON THE SCENES: to arrive. we were enjoying ourselves
till you came on the scene.
NOT TO BE SCENE not to be the kind of thin likes, is good at,
i am affraid pollitics is not my scene- i hate arguments.
SCHOOL
SCHOOL MASTER IS ABROAD:eduaction spreading everywhere. the
director of education has started several colleges . it means the
school master is abroad.
SCORE
ON THE SCORE for that reason. he is perfectly healthy, so you
donot need to worry on that score.
SCORE OFF: to make appear foolish esp in conversation. he is
always scoring off his wife in public.
SCOT
SCOT FREE: with any punishment,without the least punishment.
he was released scot free by the judge in the murder case.those
criminals were not punished at all; they got off scot free.
SCRATCH
UP TO SCRATCH: equal to what is required; fit to deal with
one's work. i had catch cold, and an still not up to scratch.
SCRATCH TEAM: a number of people collected casually , not
regular membeers. although we had only a scratch team, we won all four
matches.
SCRATCH ONE'S HEAD: a sign of perplexity. he scratches his
head when he met his wife.
SCREW
SCREW UP: to make a mess of. the treasurer screwed up the
accounts of the society so badly that he had to be fired.
TO PUT ON THE SCREW: to press for payment. unless you put on
the screw he will not pay a paisa.
HAVE A SCREW LOOSE: be mentally deficient, not quite" all
three" . she must have a screw loose to go sking at her age.
SCRUPLE
MAKE NO SCRUPLE: frequently applies to some action which might
involve some of wrong. the solders made no scruple about rodding their
prisoners.
SCRIMP
SCRIMP AND SAVE: to be thrifty or very careful with money. she
scrimp and saves for her sons educatin.
SCROOGE
A SCROOGE: a person who is mean with money. the boss could
afford to pay us all mose, but he is just an old scrooge.
SEA
AT SEA:unaware; confused. we were at sea for three days on our tour.
PUT TO SEA: leave the shore to start on a voyage. we put to
sea in a leaky old boat called the 'terror'.
TO GO TO SEA: to take the naval career. my brother is made
about going to sea.
SEAL
SEALED BOOK: a subject completely unknown. twenty century art
was a sealed book to him.
SEAL OF LOVE: kiss. since his marriage , for the two mother's
he has never put a seal of love on his wife.
GIVE UNDER MY HAND AND SEAL: under my signature. your order had
been given under my hand and seal.
ONE'S LIPS ARE SEALED: one is completely silent. i can tell you
nothing; my lips must be sealed.
SEARCH
SEARCH ME!: i really donot know. ' why does the manager want
to see us?' seach me!
SEASON
FOR A REASON: for a short time. for a reason we shall be a
apart to meet again in heaven .
OUT OF SEASON: unseasonable; at a wrong or inappropriate time.
mangoes are out of season in march.
IN SEASON AND OUT OF SEASON: at all time. he talked of his
tours in season and out of season.
SECOND
AT SECOND HAND: through or from another person. i heard the
news at the second hand.
SECOND THOUGHTS: the proverb second thoughts are best,later,
more mature consideration. on second thoughts, i will not go to the
cinema to night.
SECOND RIGHT: the power of seeing into the future or into
other mysteries. they asked a women with second right where the dead
body was.
SECOND THOUGHT: a change of ideas. your second thoughts are
very often wiser than your first ideas.
:
SECOND CHILDHOOD: when the mind becomes childish again, extreme
age. my grandmother is nearly eighty, and in her second childhood.
COME OFF SECOND BEST: be overcome by superior force. the thief
attacked the innkeeper, but found that he came off second best.
SECOND RATE: applied literally to warships. the play was pretty
second-rate.
SECRET
MAKE NO SECRET OFF: state openly. napolion made no secret of
his hatred in england.
SECURITY
HOLD AS SECURITY: failure repay. the banks are holding the
documets as security against the loan.
SEE
SEE ABOUT: to find out about; attend to. if you are too busy,i
will see about the train tickets.
SEE EYE TO EYE: to agree fully. though we did not usually
agree, we saw eye to eye in the matter of reducing taxes.
SEE STARS: to imagine one is seeing stars as a result of being
hit on the head. when rakesh was hit on the head by the ball, he saw
stars.
SEE LIGHT OF DAY: to be born or begun. the children visited
the old house where their great grand father first saw the light of
day.
TO SEE EYE TO EYE: to agree with. i am sorry that i cannot see
eye to eye with you in this matter.
:
SEE is to penetrate; to discern. i cannot see into his full meaning.
I'LL SEE: i will consider the matter before deciding. may ram
come to dinner to see? i will see.
SEE HOW THE LAND LIES: discover the state or condition of
affairs. we will call on old ramu and see how the land lies.
SEE FIT: decide. i donot see fit to tell you all my idea.
SEE WITH HALF AN EYE: see immediately with no efforts at all.
one could see with half eye that he was ill.
I WILL SEE ABOUT: i will consider it.
TO SEE HOW THE WIND BLOWS: is a nautical phrase applied
metaphorically to affairs on land; it means, to obseve, what
influence, favourable or adverse, is likely to effect the existing
state of things.
TO SEE THE WORD: to see and know the different modes of life
which people follow. my thoughts were bent on seeing the world.
SEE AFTER: take care of. please see after my son.
SEE OFF: accompany to the starting place. i saw her off at the station.
SEE TO IT: to take care. we saw to it that the child was fed and bathed.
SEE THROUGH: help. he saw me throgh my illness.
SEE TO: give one's attention. she is seeing to our affairs.
TO SEE THE LIGHT: to be published. our next book on 1000 jokes
will the see the light next month.
SEED
GO TO SEED: to become careless about one's clothes and
appearace. do not let yourself go to see when you reach middle age!
SEIZE
SEIZE UP: to get stuck and stop working. the car engine seized
up because it overheated.
SELF
SELF WILLED: determined to do , or have, what one wants. i canot
control that child- he is so self willed.
SELL
SELL SHORT: to think less good or valuable than is true. do not
sell the team short the players are better than you think.
TO SELL WELL:to get good price. motor parts sell will in the
bombay market.
SELL OUT: sell completely. cinema tickets sold out.
SEND
SEND AWAY:to order by post. i have sent away for some things
that i saw in the catalogue.
TO SEND WORD: to send a message. the headmaster sent word
through peon to his parents.
A WARM SEND OFF: a start as on a journey. on my transfer to
madras, the whole staff of our office game me a warm send off.
SEND UP: to ridicule. in his latest play, he send up university teachers.
TO SEND ONE TO THE RIGHT ABOUT: to dismiss unceremoniously. the
peon has been sent to the right about for his misbehaviour.
SEND BY: is to send by means of. please send me one copy of
modern commercial correspondence by book post.
SEND FOR: is to send a message requiring. i send for the doctor
without any delay.
SEND DOWN: to expel from university. he was sent down for
setting fire to the university beuildings.
SENSE
OUT OF ONE'S SENSE: is to be insane. this poor man is quite out
of his sense.
COME TO ONE'S SENSES: recover consciousness. he came to his
sense in hospital.
SENSE OF HUMOUR: ability to appreciate what is humorous. he is
a good chap, but hehas no sense of humour whatever.
IN A SENSE: in a certain way. what you said was right in a
sense, but the problem is rather more complex than you seem to think.
TAKE LEAVE OF ONE'S SENSES: to become slightly mad. what did
she say that for? she must have taken leave of her senses!
SERVE
SERVE THE PURPOSE: do what one is required to do. we can throw
out these books; they have served their purpose and we donot need them
any more.
TO SERVE OUT: distribute. she served out the sweets among the children.
SERVE AT TABLE: act as a waiter. when the family is at dinner,
the mother serves at the table.
SERVICE
AT YOUR SERVICE: ready to help or be of use. i am at your
serivce if you want to my help; my bicycle is at your service.
BE OF SERVICE TO: to help. can i be of service to you?
HAVE SEEN GOOD SERVICE: to have been well used. this bicycle
has seen good service.
YEOMAN'S SERVICE: good and faithful service. the scourts
rendered yeoman's service in the last kumbh fair at haridwar.
SET
TO SET APART: to reserve. you must set apart something for a rainy day.
SET FREE: to free. the thieves were set free.
TO SET OUT: to start on a journey. heis to set out for delhi next week.
SET SAIL:to begin a sea voyage; start sailing. the ship set
sail for europe.
GET SET: to get ready to start running. get ready! get set! go.
SET AGAINST: to cause to dislike. she set children against their father.
SET ON: to cause, to attack. he set his dogs/man on me.
SET TO: to start to do. they set to, and finished the work thesame day.
TO SET UP: establish. he has set up a cloth shop at karol bagh.
SET IN: to begin. the rains are set in.
TO SET FORTH: to make statement. you must set forth your reason
to prove your contention.
SET DOWN: place on record; write. he will set down the story as
it was told to him.
SET FOOT: enter. i will never set foot in this shop again.
SET AT NAUGHT:defy; disregard completely. she set at naught
every convention of society.
SET PURPOSE: one already decide upon; determined purpose. it
was her set purpose to discover her father's old home.
SET AN EXAMPLE: behave well, do something well. we expect the
older pupils in the school to set an example to the younger ones.
SET BACK: to cause to put off or get behind schedule; slow up.
the cold weather set back the planting by two weeks.
SET THE SEAL: confirm that something is complete. we had a
meeting next day which set the seal on our new business partnership.
SET BY:save. you must set by something for the future.
SET ABOUT: to attack. the two robbers set about the traveller.
SET FOOT IN: enter. he will never set foot in this shop.
SET OFF: start on a journey. he set off to mumbai on friday.
SETTLE
SETTLE DOWN: to work, live ina quite,calm way. rakesh will
settle down after he gets a job and gets married.
SETTLE FOR: to be satisfied wtih; agree to; accept. rajesh
wanted rs500/- for his old car, but he settled for rs3500/-
SETTLE SOMEONE'S HASH: punish someone; defeat . if he
misbehaves again, iam going to settle his hash.
SEVEN
AT SIXES AND SEVEN:disarranged,in confusion and disorder.when
i entered the offter after a week,i found all things at sixes and
sevens. when i reached the home everything was at sixes and seven.
SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD:seven most wonderful places. taj
mahal of agra is one of the seven wonders of the world.
SHACK
SHACK UP WITH: to live with. he has been shacked up with his
secretary for years.
SHADOW
WORN TO A SHADOW:made thin and weary through hard work. she
was worn to a shdow after months of nursing her sick husband.
SHAKE
NO GREAT SHAKES: not very good or important. she has writtne a
book, bbut it is no great shakes.
SHAME
PUT TO SHAME: to make seem to be of poor quality by showing
greater excellance. she works so hard that she puts me to shame.
A BURNING SHAME: agreat and terrible same. it is a burning
shame that young girl should have to be in the street.
SHAME ON YOU: you should be ashamed! you mean you donot make
your own jam? shame on you.
SHAPE
IN ANY SHAPE OR FORM: at all. i donot accept bribes in any shape or form.
IN THE SHAPE OF: in the form of. help arrived in the shape of
passing motorist.
TAKE SHAPE: to develop or grow into a definite form, my book!
garden is gradually taking shape.
SHARP
LOOK SHARP: to be quick or to hurry. bring me the books and look sharp.
SHARP PRACTICE: dishonesty or cheating. there has been
somesharp practise over this contract.
SHEEP
BLACK SHEEP: a person with a bad record. raj is a balck sheep
in our class.
SHEEP'S EYE: a loving; wishful glances. she gave me a sheep's eye.
SHEEP AND GOATS: good and bad . sheep and goats always go together.
SHEER
TO SHEER OFF: to part company with. surinder has sheered off
from the college.
SHEET
THREE SHEETS IN THE WIND: very drunk. i found him three sheets
in the wind.
AS WHITE AS A SHEET: very pale. he was as white as a sheet
after the accident.
STAND IN A WHITE SHEET: behave like penitent. i donot see why i
should stand in a white sheet for something i didnot do.
BETWEEN SHEET: in bed. at eight she was still between sheet.
SHELF
ON THE SHELF: put aside.your plain is still on the shelf.
SHELL
COME OUT ONE'S SHELL:to become more confident and less shy.
she was very quiet and reserved when whe first went to the school, but
she is coming out of her shell a bit now.
SHELL OUT:pay. hurry up! it is your turn to shell out.
SHIELD
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SHIELD: the other point of view. you have
heard, her account of what happened, but there is another side of the
shield.
SHIFT
SHIFT FOR ONESELF: take care of oneself. thanks for your
help; how i can shift for myself.
SHILLING
TO TAKE KIND'S SHILLING: to become a soldier. he has taken
the king's shilling.
TO CUT OFF WITH A SHILLING: to disinherit. my elder brother
cut off my father with a shilling.
SHILLY
SHILLY-SHALLY: waste time trying to reach a decision.
suresh hasnot decided whether he will go or stary; he was always one
to shilly-shally.
SHINE
TAKE A SHINE TO:to become fond of. this boss took a shine to
the new girl.
TAKE THE SHINE OUT OF: make appearance inferior and
unimportant. usha's dress look the shine out of her sisters.
SHIP
SHIP THE THE DESERT: camel. camel is known as the ship of the desert.
SHIPSHAPE: in good order; neat. she left everything
shipshape in her room when she went away.
WHEN MY SHIP COMES IN:when i become rich. we will buy a big
house in the country when our ship comes in.
SHIRT
KEEP ONE'S SHIRT ON: not to become angry. keep your shirt on-
i am not accusing you of anything.
IN ONE'S SHIRT SLEEVES: with the coat off. you work best in
your shirt sleeves.
KEEP ONE'S SHIRT ON: keep calm. despite all irritations keep
you shirt on.
SHIVER
THE SHIVERS:a feeling of horror. the thought of working for
him gives me the shivers.
SHORT
TO RUN SHORT OF:to lack. please give me twenty rupees, i
have run short of money.
IN SHORT: stated briefly. the man, in short, is not be trusted.
SHOE
IN SHOES:in place. i wouldnot like to be in your shoes when
they find out what you have done.
TO STEP INTO ANOTHER'S SHOES: to take another place. when
manager sohan lal retired , surendar kumar stepped into his shoes.
TO KNOW WHERE THE SHOE PINCHES: to know the cuase the troble.
the prime minister should know where the shoe pinches.
DEAD MAN'S SHOES: dead man's property. the dead man's shoes
are being auctioned in the market.
IN A PERSON'S SHOES: in a similar position to him. i should
not like to be in ramesh's ashes when the manager returns from his
holiday.
SHOE ON THE OTHER FOOT: the opposite is true! he was my captain
in the army but now the shoe is on the other foot.
SHOOT
A SHOOTING PAIN: sharp pain. i have a shooting pain on my leg.
SHOOT ONE'S WAD: to spend all of one's money. we have shot out
wad for the summer and cannot buy any new garden furniture.
SHOOT STRAIGHT: to act fairly; deal honestly. you can trust
that sales man; he shoots straight with his customers.
SHOOT UP: to grow quickly. rakesh had always been a small boy,
but when he was thirteen years he old began to shoot up.
SHOOT AHEAD: make extremely rapid progress. the business was
started only three months ago, but it has shot ahead rapidly.
A SHOOTING LICENCE: permission in writing from the govt to kill
with fire arms. do you have a shooting licence.
SHOP
SET UP SHOP: to begin doing something. she set up shop as a
singing teacher.
ALL OVER THE SHOP: spread out everywhere. her office is very
untidy- books and papers all over the shop.
TO SHUT UP SHOP: to close a business. the book seller has now
shut up his shop.
TALK SHOP: discuss one's business. some people do not care
for others and always talk shop.
SHORT
SHORT CUT: a short way from one point to another. the distance
bu the road is two and half miles, but there is a short cut through
garden.
IN SHORT SUPPLY: available in insufficient quntities to meet
the demand. it is difficult to buy 70' clock blades; they are in very
short supply.
SHORT -TEMPRED: easily made angry. my husband is very short
tempered in the mornings.
SHORT ON:lakingin . the book is rather short on illustration,
but has some useful information.
SHORT FOR: an abbreviation of.'vic' is short for victor;
'phone' is short for 'telephone'
SHORT AND SWEET: very short and emphatic. his reply was short
and sweet; get out! he shouted.
RUN SHORT: to become insufficient. our money is running short.
TO CUT SHORT:shorten. the president asked the members to cut
short their speech.
TO COME SHORT: to be less than expected. the goods purchases
for the party have come short.
SHORT: without sufficient. we cannot offer you tea, as we are
short fo sugar.
:
SHORT WEIGHT: less than what was ordered or paid for. the
shopkeeper has given us short weight again.
IN SHORT: ina few words. in short,i didnot like the film at all.
SHOT
A SHOT IN THE LOCKER: a lst reserve of money. this thousand
rupee note is a shot in the locket for me.
LIKE A SHOT: with extreme speed. the frightened thief dashed
away like a shot.
SHOT IN THE DARK: an attempt without much hope. it was just a
shot in thedark, but i got the right answer to the teacher's question.
SHOT IN THE ARM: something inspiring or encouraging. thisloan
is a shot in the arm for the economy.
A BIG SHOT: an important person. he is one of the big shot in
the organisation.
A LONG SHOT: guess , attempt etc, unlikely to beright or
succeed, but worth trying. gussing he would stay at home was along
shot, but it paid off.
SHOULDER
HAVE ONE'S SHOULDERS:sport; beat. it is a terrible
responsibility to have one's shoulders.
TO PUT ONE'S SHOULDER TO THE WHEEL: to make earnest efforts.
itis time you put your shoulder to wheel.
TO RUB SHOULDER WITH: to come in close contact with.
gandhiji rubbed shoulders with the harijans.
STRAIGHT FROM THE SHOULDER: directly and forcibly. i told
that man straigh from the shoulder, just what i thought of his
conduct.
SHOULDER TO SHOULDER: in a united manner. indian forces
marched into the battlefied shoulder to shoulder.
SHOVE
SHOVE OFF: to go away. shove off and leave me alone.
SHOW
GOOD SHOW: that's good. so you have finished that already! good show.
SHOW OFF: to make a show of; to exhibit. she has gone to
the bazaar to show off her new dress.
SHOW UP: appear; befound. mr verma did not show up for the meeting.
SHOW CAUSE: give reasons. the police cannot search the house
without first showing cause.
SHUT
SHUT UP SHOP: close down one's business. they generally shut
up shop at five p.m
SHUT UP: stop talking. will you now shut up.
SICK
SICK AS A PARROT: suffering from a disappointment. i am sick
as a parrot about having to cancel our holiday.
SICK AND TIRED: feeling strong dislike for something
repeated. suresh was sick and tired of always having to wait for
ramesh.
MAKE SICK: to make feel very annoyed, upset. it makes me sick
to see him waste money like that.
SIDE
SIDE-BY-SDE: at the same time. we will solve both questions
side by side.
SIDE WITH:openly sympathize. my mother always sides with my sister.
ON THE SIDE: in another way than through one's ordinary
occupation. he is earning quite a lot on the side as a singer.
PICK SIDES: to select the people for each team before a
game. let's pick sides and start the game.
SIDE WITH: to give support to. do not side with him against us!
TAKE SIDES: to choose to support a particular opinion. every
body in the office took sides in the dispute.
SIGHT
AT FIRST SIGHT: the first time one sees. ram liked sheela at
first sight.
KNOW BY SIGHT: to be able to recognize without ever having
spoken to them. i know her by sight, but we have never been
introduced.
A SIGHT FOR SORE EYES: a most welcome sight. you are a sight
for sore eyes!
KEEP SIGHT OF: to remain close enough to see. we must keep
sight of our original intention.
SIGHT FOR SORE EYES: a very welcome. come in, you are a sight
for sore eyes.
LOSE SIGHT OF: fail to see. at the distance you lose sight of the city.
IN THE SIGHT OF: in the view of; as seen by. inthelight of
the world, they were a happily married couple.
OUT OF SIGHT,OUT OF MIND: said , when something is forgotten
for not having been seen a pretty long time.
OUT OF SIGHT: beyond one's vision. the car moved and was soon
out of sight.
SIGNAL
GIVE THE SIGNAL: indicate by sign. the captain gave the signal
for the men to attack.
SILENCE
RENDER SILENT: make silent. the scenery of kashmir was so
beautiful thatit rendered even the child silent.
SIN
LIVE IN SIN: to llive together without being married. are they
married or they by any chance living in sin.
AS UGLY AS SIN: working by oneself, without help. he runs the
hotel single handed.
SINEWS
SINEWS OF WAR:resources.men and money are the sinews of war.
SINGLE
NOT A SINGLE: not one. there is not a single person that i can trust.
SINGLE HANDED: working by oneself, without help. he runs the
hotel single-handed.
SIT
SIT BACK: to rest and take no part in an activity. he just sat
back and let it all happen.
SIT UP: stay out of bed. he had to sit up all night.
SIT OUT: to remain inactive and wait until the end of they will
try to sit out the crisis.
SIT DOWN: to place oneself in a seat. she sat down and began a story.
SIT BY: to stay near. the nurse was told to sit by the patient
until he woke up.
SIX
SIX OF THE BEST: six strokes with a cane. the old man said that
in his youth schoolboy got six of the best for such behaviour.
KNOCK FOR SIX: to overcome or defeat completely. the news just
knocked me for six.
AT SIXES AND SEVENS: in confusion; completely disorganised. on
the day before the wedding, the whole house was at sixes and sevens.
SIZE
SIZE UP: to form an opinion about the worth, nature of. i am
not very good at sizing people up quickly.
OF A SIZE: of the same size. your coat should fit me- we are
very much of a size.
CUT DOWN TO SIZE: to reducee someone's sense of their own
importance, i will cut this cheeky young rascal down to size.
SKATE
GET ONE'S SKATES ON: to hurry up. i would get my skates on if
i want to get to the cinema by nine o' clock.
SKIN
SKIN-DEEP: on the surface only. his sorrow was skin-deep.beauty
is skin-deep.
SKIN AND BONE: very thin, she was just skin and bone after her illness.
JUMP OUT OF ONE'S SKIN: to get a great fright or shock. i was
day dreaming so i nearly jumped out of my skin when he spoke to me.
GET UNDER SKIN: to annoy and upset greatly. donot let his
comments get under your skin.
BY THE SKIN OF ONE'S TEETH: very narrowly; only just. we escaped
by the skin of our teeth.
SKY
SKY-HIGH: very high. the car was blown sky high by the explosion.
THE SKY'S THE LIMIT: there is no upper limit to the amount of
money that may be spent. choose any present you like - the sky's the
limit!
SLAP
SLAP UP: splendid; excellent. the firm gave its employees
a slap up dinner in the local hotel.
A SLAP IN THE FACE: an insult or rebuff. the miners'
decision to strike was a slap in the face for the goverment.
SLEEP
SLEEP ON: to put off making a decision about. i will sleep on
it and let you know tomorrow.
SLEEP OFF: to recover from by sleeping. she is in bed
sleeping off the effects of the party.
SLEEP IN: to sleep late in the morning; to oversleep. i
slept in by mistake and was very late for work.
LOSE SLEEP OVER: to worry about, donot lose any sleep over the problem.
PUT TO SLEEP: to cause to become unconscious by means of
an anaesthetic.
SLEEP LIKE A DOG: sleep very deeply. i was so exhausted that
i slep like a dog.
SLEEVE
LAUGH UP ONE'S SLEEVE: to laugh secretly. i had the feeling
she waas laughing up her sleeve at something i didnot understand.
SLIDE
LET THINGS SLIDE: do nothing, it is useless to ask parent
help he will merely let things slide.
SLIP
SLIP-UP: a mistake. i am sorry sir, ti was an unintentional slip up.
MAKE A SLIP: make slight error. you have made a slip
somewhere in these accounts.
SLIP OF THE TONGUE: a verbal error,slight mistake made
unknowingly.it is nothing but a slip of tongue. the chairman spoke of
mr sharma as a labout leader-- a slip of the tongue.
SLIP OF THE PEN: an error in writing. by a slip of the pen he
wrote, 'nehru died in 1936'.
MANY A SLIP: expected result, he seems sure that he will pass
the examination, but there is many a slip.
SLOW
SLOW DOWN: to go more slowly than usual. the road was
slippery, so mr rakesh slowed down the car.
IN SLOW MOTION: very much slower than normal. he does
everything in slow motion, so he always takes ages!
GO SLOW: to work less quickly than usual. all out mail is
being delayed as the postal workers are going slow.
SMALL
SMALL FRY: young children. in the park, a sandbox is provided
for the small fry.
SMALL TALK: conversation about unimportant things. i met him
at coffee time and we had a chat, but it was just small talk, nothing
worth repeating.
IN A SMALL WAY: with little money or stock. he is an antique
dealer in a small at home.
SMALL-TIME: not working on a large scale. he is only a small
time crook/ thief.
THE SMALL HOURS:the hours immediately after midnight. she
works into the small hours every night.
SMALL BEER: unimportant. the news is a very small beer.
SMART
LOOK SMART: to be quick. get those files into my office, and
look smart about it
SMASH
SMASH HIT:a very successful performance; song; play; movie.
the school play was a smash hit.
SMILE
SMILE ON: to be favourable to. fate smiled on us.
BE ALL SMILES: to be , or look, very happy. he was all smiles
when he heard the good news.
SMOKE
SMOKE OUT: to force out with smoke, the boys smoked a
squirrel out of a hollow tree.
SNAIL
AT A SNAIL'S PACE: very slowly. she knits beautiful jumpers
but she does them at a nail's pace.
SNAKE
A SNAKE IN THE GRASS: a cheat.beware of him , he is a snake
in the grass.
SNAP
MAKE IT SNAPPY: hurry up. i want an answer, and make it snappy!
SNAP AT: is to endeavour to seize suddenly and eagerly, to
accept eagerly. the dod snapped at the thief and caught his leg.
SNAP ONE'S FINGERS AS: disregard. she was one of those who
snapped their fingers at all regulations.
SNAP UP: to grab eagerly. i saw this bargain in the shop and
snaped it up straight away.
SNEEZE
NOT TO BE SNEEZED AT:not to be treated an unimportant. the
firm pays me rs100/- a month, which is not to be sneezed at.
SO
QUITE SO: i agree; it is you have stated. jamuna is a nice
girl, books, stationary, and so forth.
AND SO FORTH: similar objects; in a similar way. he dealt in
this morning.
SO-SO: in inferior health; not very well. she seems very
so-so this morning.
SO-LONG: good-bye, farewell till we meet again. so long , i
will be back tomorrow.
SOCK
PUT A SOCK IN IT: be quiet. i wish you two would put a sock
in it you have been quarrelling all day.
SOLD
BE SOLD ON: to be enthusiastic about. i am sold on the idea
of a holiday in kashmir.
SORRY
BE/FEEL SORRY FOR: to pity. i am really sorry for that poor woman.
SORT
OUT OF SORT: not in good health. she seems out of sort this morning.
A GOOD SORT: a good fellow. he is a good sort.
SOUL
THE SOUL OF: a perfect example of. she is the soul of honour.
NOT A SOUL: absolutely no one. when i reached the station,
there was not a soul on the railway platform.
SOUND
SOUND OFF: to speak loudlyand freely. she was sounding off
about the price of tea.
SOUP
IN THE SOUP: in serious trouble. if she is found out about it
, we are all in the soup.
SPARE
GO SPARE: become angry or upset. if your father sees the mess
you have made of his workshop he will go spare!
A SPARE TYRE: a roll of fat around the middle of one's body. i
must go on a diet and try to get rid of my spare tyre.
SPEAK
TO SPEAK OF: worth mentioning. he has no talent to speak of.
TO SPEAK VOLUMES FOR: to serve as strong proof. akbar's
liberal donation to different religions speak volumes of his religious
toleration.
PLAIN SPEAKING: unflattering opinion. there was a good deal of
plain speaking , and they parted in anger.
SPEAK FOR: to speak in favour of or in sport of. at the
meeting rakesh spoke for the change in the rules.
SPEAK UP: to speak in a loud or clear voice. the trucker told
the shy boy to speak up.
SPEAK ONE'S OWN MIND: say what one really thinks . i hope that
what i am going to say will not offend anyone, but i feel that what i
am going to say will not offend anyone, but i feel that i must speak
my mind.
SPICK
SPICK AND SPAN:brand new. notes when they come out of currency
office, are spick and span.
SPIN
SPIN A YARN:tell a story. the old man could spin many yarns of his youth.
SPIN OUT: draw out; prolong. i tried to spin out the
conversation until sheela came home.
SPITE
IN SPITE OF: notwithstanding; despite, we are going tp get
married ,in spite of the opposition of her family.
SPOON
SPOON-FEED: to make to easy for someone. some students want
the teacher to spoon feed them the lessons.
TO BORN WITH A SILVER SPOON IN ONE'S MOUTH: born of rich
family. subhash was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
SPOT
IN A SPOT: in trouble. his failure to return the papers on
time put her in a spot.
SPOT CASH: payment in cash. i have sold my car for rs5000 spot cash.
ON THE SPOT: immediately. he drew a revolver and shot his
enemy on the spot.
SPOUT
UP THE SPOUT:pregnant. his girl friend has gone to the doctor
she thinks she is up the spout.
SPUR
SPUR ON: to cause to make greater efforts. the thought of the
prize spured her on.
SPY
SPY ON: to watch secretly. out next door neighbours are
alwahys spying on us.
SQUARE
A SQUARE DEAL: an honest bargain, transaction, you always get
a square deal in that shop.
A SQUARE MEAL: a good noourishing meal. her children never
seem to get a square meal.
STAKE
AT STAKE:to be won or lost. a great deal of money is at stake.
STAKE OUT: to watch carefully. the police staked out the
gang's headquarters and waited for them to appear.
STAMP
STAMP OUT: to destroy completely and make disappear. in the
last few years, we have nearly stamped out polio by using vaccine.
A STAMPING GROUND: a place where a person or people can
usually be found. the auction rooms are his stamping ground.
STAND
STAND ON CEREMONY:behave stiffy and ceremoniously. please do
not stand on ceremony, have some more.
STAND OUT FOR: insist upon. the workmen are standing out for
daily wages.
STAND UP: to rise from a sitting posture. the boy stood up as
i came near.
STAND OVER: stand near. she stood over the boy while he washed
his face.
TO STAND ONEE IN GOOD STEAD: to prove helpful. your knowledge
of french will stand you in good stead when you go to france for
higher studies.
STAND AGAINST:to resist; to withstand. no king could stand
against hitler.
STAND OFF: to keep from coming near or winning. the soldiers
defending the fort stood off a large band of indians.
STAND UP TO : to meet with courage. a soldier must stand upto danger.
STAND UP WITH: to be best man or maid of honour at a wedding.
a groom often chooses his brother to stand up with him.
STAND BY: to defend; to agree to support; is to near. the stag
stood by the the edge of the stream.
TO STAND IN NEED OF: is to be in need of. these windowsstand
in need of painting.
TO STAND IN ONE'S OWN LIGHT: to regrain from doinga thing
which seems to other to promise advantage. he stood in his own light
when he refused this appointment.
STAND A CHANCE: have any possiblity.i donot think your horse
stands a chance of winning.
STAND TREAT: almost identical with stand same but an added
sense of generosity. we will go to the cinema, and i will stand treat.
STAND CORRECTED: admit to being wrong. i am sorry for the
mistake- i stand corrected.
STAND DOWN: to withdraw from a contest. two of the condidates
have stood down.
STAND FOR: to tolerate. i wan't stand for her rudeness.
STARE
STARE ONE IN THE FACE:be evident and obvious; confront. you
said you couldnot find the key it is staring you in the face.
START
A FRESH START: a new beginning. let us make a fresh start, and
be friends.
START FOR:is to set out with the aim of reaching a place. when
did he start for england?
TO START FORM A SCRATCH: a very humble beginning. m/s college
book depot started from a scratch, but now their business is thriving.
STEAL
STEAL UPON: creep softly upon. what are these sounds which
steal upon my ear?
STEAM
FULL STEAM AHEAD: at the greatest speed possible. the building
programme was going full steam ahead.
GET,BE(ALL)STEAMED UP: to get or be very upset or angry. it is
useless to get all steamed up about it.
GET UP STEAM: to collect energy to do something . i was just
getting up steam to reach the summit of the mountain.
STEER
STEER CLEAR OF: avoid. if you want to steer of troble; donot get married.
STEP
STEP DOWN: to leave an important position. when the judge become
ill, he had to step down.
STEP ON IT: to get faster; hurry. step on it, or we will be late
for college.
STEP UP: to get or to make go faster or more actively. when
rakesh found he was going to be late, he stepped up his face.
STEP BY STEP: slowly, step by step he taught the dog to obey him.
RETRACE ONE'S STEPS: return in the direction one had come. she
retraced her steps,looking for the purse.
STEP INTO SOMEONE'S SHOES: be appointed to a vacant post because
one is next in line. when the chairman retires, the vice chairman will
step into his shoes.
STICK
STICK UP:to rop witha gun. when the messenger left the bank, a
man jumped out of an alley and stuck him up.
STICK TO: to adhere preservingly. he will stick ot his party to the last.
STICK IN THE MUD: unambitious person. peon ram is a regular old
stick in the mud.
STICK WITH: to stay with; not leave. stick with me until we get
out of the crowd.
STICK BY: to uphold. stick by your friends and they will stick by you.
STICK IT: presetve under difficulties; endure . thiws road is
terrible, but if we can stick it we shall save over a kilometer.
STICK AROUND: to stay or wait nearby. rakesh's father told him
to stick around and they would go fishing.
STOCK
STOCK STILL: absolutely motionless. the boy stood stock still,
too terrified to breathe.
ON THE STOCKS: being made but not finished. we have three
novels on the stock.
STOCK IN TRADE: something one used to help with one's business
salesman usually know a lot of jokes; they are part of their stock in
trade.
STONE
AT STONE'S THROW: very near. my office is siturated at a stone's
throw from my residence.
STONE DEAD: completely dead. the heavy machine fell in him and
kill him stone dead.
STOP
A DEAD STOP: completely dead and sudden halt. the bus came to
a dead stop in the middle of the road.
STOP OFF:to stop at a place for a short time while going
somewhere. we stopped off after school at soda fountain before going
home.
STOP AT NOTHING: do anything, however dangerroud. he is a
dangerous man, who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
STOP COLD: to stop very quickly or with a great force. the
hunter pulled the trigger and stopped the dear cold.
STRAIGHT
STRAIGHT FACE:serious expression which does not let others
see that one is really amused. he tells his ridiculous stores with
such a straight face that many people believe them.
STRAIGHT AWAY: immediately. mr kapoor is at home and will see
you straight away.
STRAIN
STRAIN EVERY NERVE: to try very hard. he strained every nerve
to get his friend acquitted but in vain.
STRAIN ONE'S EYES: tire one's eyes. donot strain youe eyes by
reading such small print.
STRAW
STRAW IN THE WIND: a small sign of what may happen. the
doctor's worried face was a straw in the wind.
THE LAST STRAW: the final trail of endurance. it is the last
straw that breaks the camel's back.
A MAN OF STRAW: an ordinary person. he is a man of straw.
NOT CARE TWO STRAW: care nothing at alll. raj says he hated me-
i donot care two straw.
STRETCH
STRETCH A POINT: to go further, in giving permission than
the rules alllow. the children are only allowed two sweets a day but
we might stretch a point today.
AT A STRETCH: continuously,without a break. he is reading
for seven hours at a stretch as his final examination is fast
approaching. radjakrishnan can speak for many hours at a stretch.
STRICKEN
MAKE IN TEARS: aged. he was stricken in tear i first met him.
STRIDES
MAKE RAPID STRIDES: pregress quickly. his new book" business
letter" is making rapid strides.
STRIKE
TO STRIKE A BARGAIN:to make a deal. i did not go to his
office to strike any bargain but it just happened that way.
STRIKE A BLOW FOR: do something to help.. by publishing such
an article criticizing the goverment, this newpaper has struck a blow
for the freedom of the press.
:
STRIKE ALL OF A HEAP: cause to be very surprised. we did not
expect to hear that news; we were struck all of a heap.
TO STRIKE WHEN THE IRON IS HOT: to act at the right and
opportunate moment, you should not miss this opportunity. strike when
the iron his hot.
STRIKE DOWN:suffering from. she is struck down with small pox.
STRIKE UP: to cause to sound. to begin to sing. strike up the drums.
STRIKE OUT:make violent movement with one's arms or legs. the
swimmer struck out for the shore.
STRIKE OFF:remove from an official list. her names was struck
off the register of doctores.
STRING
STRING ALONG:to deceive; foul; lead on dishonestly. priya was
stringing suresh along for years but she didnot mean to marry him.
STRING UP: to hang. the gang threatened to seize the
prisoness from the jail and string them up.
STRING OUT: to make extend over a great distance. the
telephone poles were strung out along the road as far as we could see.
STRONG
STRONG POINT: a quality etc. in which excels. his ability to
talk to strangers if one of his strong point.
STRONG LANGUAGE: swearing or abuse. the work man used strong
language and embarrased the old lady.
STUCK
STUCK ON:very fond of.. he is stuck on renaissance art.
GET STUCK IN: to start eating. dinner's ready- get stuck in.
STUFF
STUFF AND NONSENSE:rough.you are talking stuff and nonsense at
this time. thatis nonesense! you are too tired to work; stuff and
nonsense.
DO ONE'S STUFF: perform in the expected way. they watched him
while he did his stuff on the trapeze.
SUBJECT
BE SUBJECT TO: to depend on. these plans are subject to your approval.
SUDDEN
ALL OF A SUDDEN: suddenly or unexpected . all of a sudden the
lights went out.
SUIT
SUIT ONESELF: to do what one wants to do. you can suit
yourself whether you come or not.
SUM
THE SUM TOTAL: complete or final total. the sum total of the
cost/damage cannot calcualted.
SUM UP: to put something into a few words. the teacher summed
up the lesson in three rules.
SUM AND SUBSTANCE: gist.Fthe sum and substance of the whole
matter is that the principal must leave the college.
SUN
UNDER THE SUN: in the whole world. there is nothing new under the sun.
CATCH THE SUN: to become sunburnt. you have certainly caught
the sun today; your nose is red.
SURE
SURE AS FATE: beyond a doubt, with absolute certainity. as sure
as fate, i shall get a letter tomorrow telling me to go home.
FOR SURE: definitely or certainly, we donot know for sure that
he is dead.
MAKE SURE: render absolutely certain. i will make sure that the
letter leaves tonight.
TO BE SURE: certainly; of course. he is a nice person, to be
sure, but not very clear.
SWEAR
SWEAR LIKE A TROOPER:use particularly bad language. when i told
the old man i had come to arrest his son, he swore like a trooper.
SWEAR BY: to use as the support. a witness swears by the bible
that he will tell the truth.
SWEAR OFF: to promise to give up something one is in the habit
of using. madhuri swore off candy
SWEAR OUT: to get by swearing that a person has broken the law.
the policeman sware that, the suspect's arrest.
SWEAT
SWEAT BLOOD: to work very hard. rakesh sweated blood to finish
his composition on time.
SWEET OUT: to wait anxiously; worry while waiting. rajesh was
sweating out the results of the college exams.
SWEEP
SWEEP THE BOARD: win every prize. our college athlitcs team
swept the board, winning every event.
SWEEP UP: the dust into a heap. the wind swept up the sand into the mind.
MAKE A CLEAN SWEEP OF: to get rid of every one. the new manager
is going to make a clean sweep of the old staff.
SWEEP SWEEP OFF HIS FEET: to affect with strong emotion. she was
swept off her by dark, handsome stranger.
SWELL
SWELL THE RANKS OF: add to an already large number of people.
surinder has lost his job, and now swells the ranks of the unemplyoed.
SWIM
GO SWIMMINGLY: become a complete success. i am sure your party
will go to swimmingly.
SWING
IN FULL SWING: in full progress. when i reached college, the
debate wasin full swing.
SWOOP
AT ONE FELL SWOOP: in one complete and sudden disaster. he lost
his wife , his son and his home at one fell swoop.
SWITCH
SWITCHOVER : change. we are switching over from coal gas to
north seagas.
SWOLLEN
SWOLLEN-HEADED: too pleased with oneself. he is very swollen
headed about his success.
SWORD
CROSS SWORDS: to quarrel or disagree. i try not to cross
swords with my boss but he is a most unreasonable man.
SWORD OF DAMOCLES: a danger which may come any moment. sword
of damocles is always hanging over the culprit's head as the collector
is very just.
SACK IN/OUT: to go to sleep for a prolonged period. where are
you guys going to sack in/sact out.
GET THE SACK:dismissed.if the new cleark doesnot work harder he
will get the sack.
GIVE THE SACK:to dismiss from their job. they gave rakesh the
sack for being drunk on duty.
SACK CLOTH AND ASHES: with prepentance. the culprit apologizes
in sack cloth and ashes before the judge.
SADDLE
SADDLE WITH: burdened with . he saddled his partner with balme.
IN THE SADDLE: in a position of power or control. the new
manager had not been in the saddle long when the trouble occured.
SAFE
SAFE AND SOUND: secure,safely.he reached saharanpiut quite safe
and sound. the life is not safe and sound.
BE ON THE SAFE SIDE: to avoid risk or danger. i donot think we
will need much money but i will take my cheque book just to be on the
safe side.
SAIL
SET SAIL: start on a sea voyage. the captain set sail for
calcutta early in march.
SAIL INTO:enter boldly. she sailed into the room.
TAKE IN SAIL: moderate one's ambitions. if you want to rise in
life, you must take in sail.
SALAD
SALAD DAY'S: the time when (someone) was young and
inexperienced. i often walked five km; home from a dance in my salad
days.
SAKE
FOR THE SAKE OF: in the interest of.i did this thing for the
sake of my son. you should for your own sake.
SALT
SALT AWAY: to store up for the future use. he has a pile of
money saleted away.
WORTH ONE'S SALT: deserving the pay that one gets. if he
cannot even do that , he is not worth his salt.
WORTH HIS SALT:efficient. the new engineer is worth his salt
because his supervision is good.
SALT OF THE EARTH: most valuable man; the best. an hard
working, honest man is thesalt of the earth.
SAME
SAME HERE:i/we agree; i/we have the opinion, experience." we
thought that the service inour hotel was dreadful,"-"same here we are
going to complain to the manager."
ALL THE SAME: nevertheless; in spite of this. i am sure i
locked the door, but, all the same, i think i will go and check.
MUCH THE SAME: not very much changed or different. 'how is your
mother'? 'much the same(as she was)'.
SAND
BUILD ON SAND: to try to establish something without enough
security or support. their marriage was build on sand because they had
absolutely nothing in common.
SANDS ARE RUNNING OUT: time is nearly at an end. i think that
the sands are running out for the present prime minister, he will have
to resign soon.
SANDS OF LIFE:maturity. he is ninety and the sands of life are
nearly run out of him.
SATISFACTION
GIVE SATISFACTION:satisfy. we think his work will give
satisfaction.
SAUCE
SAUCE FOR THE GOOSE: to proverb. what is sauce for the
goose is the souce for the gander.
SAVE
TO SAVE ONE'S SKIN: to protect one's ownself. when fire broke
out, every body rushed for the exit so as to save to his own skin.
SAVE ONE'S BREATH: to keep silent because talking will not
help. save your breath, the boss willl never give the day off.
SAVE THE DAY: to bring about victory or success. the forest
fire was nearly out of control when suddenly it rained havily and
saved the day.
SAY
YOU CAN SAY THAT AGAIN: you are absolutely right! ' he is
crazy. you can say that again.
I SAY: surprise or special interest. i say look at pushpa's
new silk saree.
SAY THE WORD: give the order. the army marches when the
general says the word.
THERE'S NO SAYING: it is impossible to guess. there is no
saying what will happen next.
SCALE
ON A LARGE SCALE: they are raised on large scale in assam.
SCARCE
MAKE ONESELF SCARCE: to run away or stay away. as soon as
his mother -in-law arrived, he made himself scarce.
SCARE
MAKE ONESELF SCARE:retire. my uncle has made himself scare
from the service.
SCARE UP: to find, collect or get together with some effort
when needed." will you stay for supper?" she asked." i can scare up
enough for us all."
SCENE
MAKE A SCENE: to lose temper. do not make a scene.
BEHIND THE SCENE: out of sight of the audience or public. it
would be interesting to know what goes on behind the scenes at the
white house.
COME ON THE SCENES: to arrive. we were enjoying ourselves
till you came on the scene.
NOT TO BE SCENE not to be the kind of thin likes, is good at,
i am affraid pollitics is not my scene- i hate arguments.
SCHOOL
SCHOOL MASTER IS ABROAD:eduaction spreading everywhere. the
director of education has started several colleges . it means the
school master is abroad.
SCORE
ON THE SCORE for that reason. he is perfectly healthy, so you
donot need to worry on that score.
SCORE OFF: to make appear foolish esp in conversation. he is
always scoring off his wife in public.
SCOT
SCOT FREE: with any punishment,without the least punishment.
he was released scot free by the judge in the murder case.those
criminals were not punished at all; they got off scot free.
SCRATCH
UP TO SCRATCH: equal to what is required; fit to deal with
one's work. i had catch cold, and an still not up to scratch.
SCRATCH TEAM: a number of people collected casually , not
regular membeers. although we had only a scratch team, we won all four
matches.
SCRATCH ONE'S HEAD: a sign of perplexity. he scratches his
head when he met his wife.
SCREW
SCREW UP: to make a mess of. the treasurer screwed up the
accounts of the society so badly that he had to be fired.
TO PUT ON THE SCREW: to press for payment. unless you put on
the screw he will not pay a paisa.
HAVE A SCREW LOOSE: be mentally deficient, not quite" all
three" . she must have a screw loose to go sking at her age.
SCRUPLE
MAKE NO SCRUPLE: frequently applies to some action which might
involve some of wrong. the solders made no scruple about rodding their
prisoners.
SCRIMP
SCRIMP AND SAVE: to be thrifty or very careful with money. she
scrimp and saves for her sons educatin.
SCROOGE
A SCROOGE: a person who is mean with money. the boss could
afford to pay us all mose, but he is just an old scrooge.
SEA
AT SEA:unaware; confused. we were at sea for three days on our tour.
PUT TO SEA: leave the shore to start on a voyage. we put to
sea in a leaky old boat called the 'terror'.
TO GO TO SEA: to take the naval career. my brother is made
about going to sea.
SEAL
SEALED BOOK: a subject completely unknown. twenty century art
was a sealed book to him.
SEAL OF LOVE: kiss. since his marriage , for the two mother's
he has never put a seal of love on his wife.
GIVE UNDER MY HAND AND SEAL: under my signature. your order had
been given under my hand and seal.
ONE'S LIPS ARE SEALED: one is completely silent. i can tell you
nothing; my lips must be sealed.
SEARCH
SEARCH ME!: i really donot know. ' why does the manager want
to see us?' seach me!
SEASON
FOR A REASON: for a short time. for a reason we shall be a
apart to meet again in heaven .
OUT OF SEASON: unseasonable; at a wrong or inappropriate time.
mangoes are out of season in march.
IN SEASON AND OUT OF SEASON: at all time. he talked of his
tours in season and out of season.
SECOND
AT SECOND HAND: through or from another person. i heard the
news at the second hand.
SECOND THOUGHTS: the proverb second thoughts are best,later,
more mature consideration. on second thoughts, i will not go to the
cinema to night.
SECOND RIGHT: the power of seeing into the future or into
other mysteries. they asked a women with second right where the dead
body was.
SECOND THOUGHT: a change of ideas. your second thoughts are
very often wiser than your first ideas.
:
SECOND CHILDHOOD: when the mind becomes childish again, extreme
age. my grandmother is nearly eighty, and in her second childhood.
COME OFF SECOND BEST: be overcome by superior force. the thief
attacked the innkeeper, but found that he came off second best.
SECOND RATE: applied literally to warships. the play was pretty
second-rate.
SECRET
MAKE NO SECRET OFF: state openly. napolion made no secret of
his hatred in england.
SECURITY
HOLD AS SECURITY: failure repay. the banks are holding the
documets as security against the loan.
SEE
SEE ABOUT: to find out about; attend to. if you are too busy,i
will see about the train tickets.
SEE EYE TO EYE: to agree fully. though we did not usually
agree, we saw eye to eye in the matter of reducing taxes.
SEE STARS: to imagine one is seeing stars as a result of being
hit on the head. when rakesh was hit on the head by the ball, he saw
stars.
SEE LIGHT OF DAY: to be born or begun. the children visited
the old house where their great grand father first saw the light of
day.
TO SEE EYE TO EYE: to agree with. i am sorry that i cannot see
eye to eye with you in this matter.
:
SEE is to penetrate; to discern. i cannot see into his full meaning.
I'LL SEE: i will consider the matter before deciding. may ram
come to dinner to see? i will see.
SEE HOW THE LAND LIES: discover the state or condition of
affairs. we will call on old ramu and see how the land lies.
SEE FIT: decide. i donot see fit to tell you all my idea.
SEE WITH HALF AN EYE: see immediately with no efforts at all.
one could see with half eye that he was ill.
I WILL SEE ABOUT: i will consider it.
TO SEE HOW THE WIND BLOWS: is a nautical phrase applied
metaphorically to affairs on land; it means, to obseve, what
influence, favourable or adverse, is likely to effect the existing
state of things.
TO SEE THE WORD: to see and know the different modes of life
which people follow. my thoughts were bent on seeing the world.
SEE AFTER: take care of. please see after my son.
SEE OFF: accompany to the starting place. i saw her off at the station.
SEE TO IT: to take care. we saw to it that the child was fed and bathed.
SEE THROUGH: help. he saw me throgh my illness.
SEE TO: give one's attention. she is seeing to our affairs.
TO SEE THE LIGHT: to be published. our next book on 1000 jokes
will the see the light next month.
SEED
GO TO SEED: to become careless about one's clothes and
appearace. do not let yourself go to see when you reach middle age!
SEIZE
SEIZE UP: to get stuck and stop working. the car engine seized
up because it overheated.
SELF
SELF WILLED: determined to do , or have, what one wants. i canot
control that child- he is so self willed.
SELL
SELL SHORT: to think less good or valuable than is true. do not
sell the team short the players are better than you think.
TO SELL WELL:to get good price. motor parts sell will in the
bombay market.
SELL OUT: sell completely. cinema tickets sold out.
SEND
SEND AWAY:to order by post. i have sent away for some things
that i saw in the catalogue.
TO SEND WORD: to send a message. the headmaster sent word
through peon to his parents.
A WARM SEND OFF: a start as on a journey. on my transfer to
madras, the whole staff of our office game me a warm send off.
SEND UP: to ridicule. in his latest play, he send up university teachers.
TO SEND ONE TO THE RIGHT ABOUT: to dismiss unceremoniously. the
peon has been sent to the right about for his misbehaviour.
SEND BY: is to send by means of. please send me one copy of
modern commercial correspondence by book post.
SEND FOR: is to send a message requiring. i send for the doctor
without any delay.
SEND DOWN: to expel from university. he was sent down for
setting fire to the university beuildings.
SENSE
OUT OF ONE'S SENSE: is to be insane. this poor man is quite out
of his sense.
COME TO ONE'S SENSES: recover consciousness. he came to his
sense in hospital.
SENSE OF HUMOUR: ability to appreciate what is humorous. he is
a good chap, but hehas no sense of humour whatever.
IN A SENSE: in a certain way. what you said was right in a
sense, but the problem is rather more complex than you seem to think.
TAKE LEAVE OF ONE'S SENSES: to become slightly mad. what did
she say that for? she must have taken leave of her senses!
SERVE
SERVE THE PURPOSE: do what one is required to do. we can throw
out these books; they have served their purpose and we donot need them
any more.
TO SERVE OUT: distribute. she served out the sweets among the children.
SERVE AT TABLE: act as a waiter. when the family is at dinner,
the mother serves at the table.
SERVICE
AT YOUR SERVICE: ready to help or be of use. i am at your
serivce if you want to my help; my bicycle is at your service.
BE OF SERVICE TO: to help. can i be of service to you?
HAVE SEEN GOOD SERVICE: to have been well used. this bicycle
has seen good service.
YEOMAN'S SERVICE: good and faithful service. the scourts
rendered yeoman's service in the last kumbh fair at haridwar.
SET
TO SET APART: to reserve. you must set apart something for a rainy day.
SET FREE: to free. the thieves were set free.
TO SET OUT: to start on a journey. heis to set out for delhi next week.
SET SAIL:to begin a sea voyage; start sailing. the ship set
sail for europe.
GET SET: to get ready to start running. get ready! get set! go.
SET AGAINST: to cause to dislike. she set children against their father.
SET ON: to cause, to attack. he set his dogs/man on me.
SET TO: to start to do. they set to, and finished the work thesame day.
TO SET UP: establish. he has set up a cloth shop at karol bagh.
SET IN: to begin. the rains are set in.
TO SET FORTH: to make statement. you must set forth your reason
to prove your contention.
SET DOWN: place on record; write. he will set down the story as
it was told to him.
SET FOOT: enter. i will never set foot in this shop again.
SET AT NAUGHT:defy; disregard completely. she set at naught
every convention of society.
SET PURPOSE: one already decide upon; determined purpose. it
was her set purpose to discover her father's old home.
SET AN EXAMPLE: behave well, do something well. we expect the
older pupils in the school to set an example to the younger ones.
SET BACK: to cause to put off or get behind schedule; slow up.
the cold weather set back the planting by two weeks.
SET THE SEAL: confirm that something is complete. we had a
meeting next day which set the seal on our new business partnership.
SET BY:save. you must set by something for the future.
SET ABOUT: to attack. the two robbers set about the traveller.
SET FOOT IN: enter. he will never set foot in this shop.
SET OFF: start on a journey. he set off to mumbai on friday.
SETTLE
SETTLE DOWN: to work, live ina quite,calm way. rakesh will
settle down after he gets a job and gets married.
SETTLE FOR: to be satisfied wtih; agree to; accept. rajesh
wanted rs500/- for his old car, but he settled for rs3500/-
SETTLE SOMEONE'S HASH: punish someone; defeat . if he
misbehaves again, iam going to settle his hash.
SEVEN
AT SIXES AND SEVEN:disarranged,in confusion and disorder.when
i entered the offter after a week,i found all things at sixes and
sevens. when i reached the home everything was at sixes and seven.
SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD:seven most wonderful places. taj
mahal of agra is one of the seven wonders of the world.
SHACK
SHACK UP WITH: to live with. he has been shacked up with his
secretary for years.
SHADOW
WORN TO A SHADOW:made thin and weary through hard work. she
was worn to a shdow after months of nursing her sick husband.
SHAKE
NO GREAT SHAKES: not very good or important. she has writtne a
book, bbut it is no great shakes.
SHAME
PUT TO SHAME: to make seem to be of poor quality by showing
greater excellance. she works so hard that she puts me to shame.
A BURNING SHAME: agreat and terrible same. it is a burning
shame that young girl should have to be in the street.
SHAME ON YOU: you should be ashamed! you mean you donot make
your own jam? shame on you.
SHAPE
IN ANY SHAPE OR FORM: at all. i donot accept bribes in any shape or form.
IN THE SHAPE OF: in the form of. help arrived in the shape of
passing motorist.
TAKE SHAPE: to develop or grow into a definite form, my book!
garden is gradually taking shape.
SHARP
LOOK SHARP: to be quick or to hurry. bring me the books and look sharp.
SHARP PRACTICE: dishonesty or cheating. there has been
somesharp practise over this contract.
SHEEP
BLACK SHEEP: a person with a bad record. raj is a balck sheep
in our class.
SHEEP'S EYE: a loving; wishful glances. she gave me a sheep's eye.
SHEEP AND GOATS: good and bad . sheep and goats always go together.
SHEER
TO SHEER OFF: to part company with. surinder has sheered off
from the college.
SHEET
THREE SHEETS IN THE WIND: very drunk. i found him three sheets
in the wind.
AS WHITE AS A SHEET: very pale. he was as white as a sheet
after the accident.
STAND IN A WHITE SHEET: behave like penitent. i donot see why i
should stand in a white sheet for something i didnot do.
BETWEEN SHEET: in bed. at eight she was still between sheet.
SHELF
ON THE SHELF: put aside.your plain is still on the shelf.
SHELL
COME OUT ONE'S SHELL:to become more confident and less shy.
she was very quiet and reserved when whe first went to the school, but
she is coming out of her shell a bit now.
SHELL OUT:pay. hurry up! it is your turn to shell out.
SHIELD
THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SHIELD: the other point of view. you have
heard, her account of what happened, but there is another side of the
shield.
SHIFT
SHIFT FOR ONESELF: take care of oneself. thanks for your
help; how i can shift for myself.
SHILLING
TO TAKE KIND'S SHILLING: to become a soldier. he has taken
the king's shilling.
TO CUT OFF WITH A SHILLING: to disinherit. my elder brother
cut off my father with a shilling.
SHILLY
SHILLY-SHALLY: waste time trying to reach a decision.
suresh hasnot decided whether he will go or stary; he was always one
to shilly-shally.
SHINE
TAKE A SHINE TO:to become fond of. this boss took a shine to
the new girl.
TAKE THE SHINE OUT OF: make appearance inferior and
unimportant. usha's dress look the shine out of her sisters.
SHIP
SHIP THE THE DESERT: camel. camel is known as the ship of the desert.
SHIPSHAPE: in good order; neat. she left everything
shipshape in her room when she went away.
WHEN MY SHIP COMES IN:when i become rich. we will buy a big
house in the country when our ship comes in.
SHIRT
KEEP ONE'S SHIRT ON: not to become angry. keep your shirt on-
i am not accusing you of anything.
IN ONE'S SHIRT SLEEVES: with the coat off. you work best in
your shirt sleeves.
KEEP ONE'S SHIRT ON: keep calm. despite all irritations keep
you shirt on.
SHIVER
THE SHIVERS:a feeling of horror. the thought of working for
him gives me the shivers.
SHORT
TO RUN SHORT OF:to lack. please give me twenty rupees, i
have run short of money.
IN SHORT: stated briefly. the man, in short, is not be trusted.
SHOE
IN SHOES:in place. i wouldnot like to be in your shoes when
they find out what you have done.
TO STEP INTO ANOTHER'S SHOES: to take another place. when
manager sohan lal retired , surendar kumar stepped into his shoes.
TO KNOW WHERE THE SHOE PINCHES: to know the cuase the troble.
the prime minister should know where the shoe pinches.
DEAD MAN'S SHOES: dead man's property. the dead man's shoes
are being auctioned in the market.
IN A PERSON'S SHOES: in a similar position to him. i should
not like to be in ramesh's ashes when the manager returns from his
holiday.
SHOE ON THE OTHER FOOT: the opposite is true! he was my captain
in the army but now the shoe is on the other foot.
SHOOT
A SHOOTING PAIN: sharp pain. i have a shooting pain on my leg.
SHOOT ONE'S WAD: to spend all of one's money. we have shot out
wad for the summer and cannot buy any new garden furniture.
SHOOT STRAIGHT: to act fairly; deal honestly. you can trust
that sales man; he shoots straight with his customers.
SHOOT UP: to grow quickly. rakesh had always been a small boy,
but when he was thirteen years he old began to shoot up.
SHOOT AHEAD: make extremely rapid progress. the business was
started only three months ago, but it has shot ahead rapidly.
A SHOOTING LICENCE: permission in writing from the govt to kill
with fire arms. do you have a shooting licence.
SHOP
SET UP SHOP: to begin doing something. she set up shop as a
singing teacher.
ALL OVER THE SHOP: spread out everywhere. her office is very
untidy- books and papers all over the shop.
TO SHUT UP SHOP: to close a business. the book seller has now
shut up his shop.
TALK SHOP: discuss one's business. some people do not care
for others and always talk shop.
SHORT
SHORT CUT: a short way from one point to another. the distance
bu the road is two and half miles, but there is a short cut through
garden.
IN SHORT SUPPLY: available in insufficient quntities to meet
the demand. it is difficult to buy 70' clock blades; they are in very
short supply.
SHORT -TEMPRED: easily made angry. my husband is very short
tempered in the mornings.
SHORT ON:lakingin . the book is rather short on illustration,
but has some useful information.
SHORT FOR: an abbreviation of.'vic' is short for victor;
'phone' is short for 'telephone'
SHORT AND SWEET: very short and emphatic. his reply was short
and sweet; get out! he shouted.
RUN SHORT: to become insufficient. our money is running short.
TO CUT SHORT:shorten. the president asked the members to cut
short their speech.
TO COME SHORT: to be less than expected. the goods purchases
for the party have come short.
SHORT: without sufficient. we cannot offer you tea, as we are
short fo sugar.
:
SHORT WEIGHT: less than what was ordered or paid for. the
shopkeeper has given us short weight again.
IN SHORT: ina few words. in short,i didnot like the film at all.
SHOT
A SHOT IN THE LOCKER: a lst reserve of money. this thousand
rupee note is a shot in the locket for me.
LIKE A SHOT: with extreme speed. the frightened thief dashed
away like a shot.
SHOT IN THE DARK: an attempt without much hope. it was just a
shot in thedark, but i got the right answer to the teacher's question.
SHOT IN THE ARM: something inspiring or encouraging. thisloan
is a shot in the arm for the economy.
A BIG SHOT: an important person. he is one of the big shot in
the organisation.
A LONG SHOT: guess , attempt etc, unlikely to beright or
succeed, but worth trying. gussing he would stay at home was along
shot, but it paid off.
SHOULDER
HAVE ONE'S SHOULDERS:sport; beat. it is a terrible
responsibility to have one's shoulders.
TO PUT ONE'S SHOULDER TO THE WHEEL: to make earnest efforts.
itis time you put your shoulder to wheel.
TO RUB SHOULDER WITH: to come in close contact with.
gandhiji rubbed shoulders with the harijans.
STRAIGHT FROM THE SHOULDER: directly and forcibly. i told
that man straigh from the shoulder, just what i thought of his
conduct.
SHOULDER TO SHOULDER: in a united manner. indian forces
marched into the battlefied shoulder to shoulder.
SHOVE
SHOVE OFF: to go away. shove off and leave me alone.
SHOW
GOOD SHOW: that's good. so you have finished that already! good show.
SHOW OFF: to make a show of; to exhibit. she has gone to
the bazaar to show off her new dress.
SHOW UP: appear; befound. mr verma did not show up for the meeting.
SHOW CAUSE: give reasons. the police cannot search the house
without first showing cause.
SHUT
SHUT UP SHOP: close down one's business. they generally shut
up shop at five p.m
SHUT UP: stop talking. will you now shut up.
SICK
SICK AS A PARROT: suffering from a disappointment. i am sick
as a parrot about having to cancel our holiday.
SICK AND TIRED: feeling strong dislike for something
repeated. suresh was sick and tired of always having to wait for
ramesh.
MAKE SICK: to make feel very annoyed, upset. it makes me sick
to see him waste money like that.
SIDE
SIDE-BY-SDE: at the same time. we will solve both questions
side by side.
SIDE WITH:openly sympathize. my mother always sides with my sister.
ON THE SIDE: in another way than through one's ordinary
occupation. he is earning quite a lot on the side as a singer.
PICK SIDES: to select the people for each team before a
game. let's pick sides and start the game.
SIDE WITH: to give support to. do not side with him against us!
TAKE SIDES: to choose to support a particular opinion. every
body in the office took sides in the dispute.
SIGHT
AT FIRST SIGHT: the first time one sees. ram liked sheela at
first sight.
KNOW BY SIGHT: to be able to recognize without ever having
spoken to them. i know her by sight, but we have never been
introduced.
A SIGHT FOR SORE EYES: a most welcome sight. you are a sight
for sore eyes!
KEEP SIGHT OF: to remain close enough to see. we must keep
sight of our original intention.
SIGHT FOR SORE EYES: a very welcome. come in, you are a sight
for sore eyes.
LOSE SIGHT OF: fail to see. at the distance you lose sight of the city.
IN THE SIGHT OF: in the view of; as seen by. inthelight of
the world, they were a happily married couple.
OUT OF SIGHT,OUT OF MIND: said , when something is forgotten
for not having been seen a pretty long time.
OUT OF SIGHT: beyond one's vision. the car moved and was soon
out of sight.
SIGNAL
GIVE THE SIGNAL: indicate by sign. the captain gave the signal
for the men to attack.
SILENCE
RENDER SILENT: make silent. the scenery of kashmir was so
beautiful thatit rendered even the child silent.
SIN
LIVE IN SIN: to llive together without being married. are they
married or they by any chance living in sin.
AS UGLY AS SIN: working by oneself, without help. he runs the
hotel single handed.
SINEWS
SINEWS OF WAR:resources.men and money are the sinews of war.
SINGLE
NOT A SINGLE: not one. there is not a single person that i can trust.
SINGLE HANDED: working by oneself, without help. he runs the
hotel single-handed.
SIT
SIT BACK: to rest and take no part in an activity. he just sat
back and let it all happen.
SIT UP: stay out of bed. he had to sit up all night.
SIT OUT: to remain inactive and wait until the end of they will
try to sit out the crisis.
SIT DOWN: to place oneself in a seat. she sat down and began a story.
SIT BY: to stay near. the nurse was told to sit by the patient
until he woke up.
SIX
SIX OF THE BEST: six strokes with a cane. the old man said that
in his youth schoolboy got six of the best for such behaviour.
KNOCK FOR SIX: to overcome or defeat completely. the news just
knocked me for six.
AT SIXES AND SEVENS: in confusion; completely disorganised. on
the day before the wedding, the whole house was at sixes and sevens.
SIZE
SIZE UP: to form an opinion about the worth, nature of. i am
not very good at sizing people up quickly.
OF A SIZE: of the same size. your coat should fit me- we are
very much of a size.
CUT DOWN TO SIZE: to reducee someone's sense of their own
importance, i will cut this cheeky young rascal down to size.
SKATE
GET ONE'S SKATES ON: to hurry up. i would get my skates on if
i want to get to the cinema by nine o' clock.
SKIN
SKIN-DEEP: on the surface only. his sorrow was skin-deep.beauty
is skin-deep.
SKIN AND BONE: very thin, she was just skin and bone after her illness.
JUMP OUT OF ONE'S SKIN: to get a great fright or shock. i was
day dreaming so i nearly jumped out of my skin when he spoke to me.
GET UNDER SKIN: to annoy and upset greatly. donot let his
comments get under your skin.
BY THE SKIN OF ONE'S TEETH: very narrowly; only just. we escaped
by the skin of our teeth.
SKY
SKY-HIGH: very high. the car was blown sky high by the explosion.
THE SKY'S THE LIMIT: there is no upper limit to the amount of
money that may be spent. choose any present you like - the sky's the
limit!
SLAP
SLAP UP: splendid; excellent. the firm gave its employees
a slap up dinner in the local hotel.
A SLAP IN THE FACE: an insult or rebuff. the miners'
decision to strike was a slap in the face for the goverment.
SLEEP
SLEEP ON: to put off making a decision about. i will sleep on
it and let you know tomorrow.
SLEEP OFF: to recover from by sleeping. she is in bed
sleeping off the effects of the party.
SLEEP IN: to sleep late in the morning; to oversleep. i
slept in by mistake and was very late for work.
LOSE SLEEP OVER: to worry about, donot lose any sleep over the problem.
PUT TO SLEEP: to cause to become unconscious by means of
an anaesthetic.
SLEEP LIKE A DOG: sleep very deeply. i was so exhausted that
i slep like a dog.
SLEEVE
LAUGH UP ONE'S SLEEVE: to laugh secretly. i had the feeling
she waas laughing up her sleeve at something i didnot understand.
SLIDE
LET THINGS SLIDE: do nothing, it is useless to ask parent
help he will merely let things slide.
SLIP
SLIP-UP: a mistake. i am sorry sir, ti was an unintentional slip up.
MAKE A SLIP: make slight error. you have made a slip
somewhere in these accounts.
SLIP OF THE TONGUE: a verbal error,slight mistake made
unknowingly.it is nothing but a slip of tongue. the chairman spoke of
mr sharma as a labout leader-- a slip of the tongue.
SLIP OF THE PEN: an error in writing. by a slip of the pen he
wrote, 'nehru died in 1936'.
MANY A SLIP: expected result, he seems sure that he will pass
the examination, but there is many a slip.
SLOW
SLOW DOWN: to go more slowly than usual. the road was
slippery, so mr rakesh slowed down the car.
IN SLOW MOTION: very much slower than normal. he does
everything in slow motion, so he always takes ages!
GO SLOW: to work less quickly than usual. all out mail is
being delayed as the postal workers are going slow.
SMALL
SMALL FRY: young children. in the park, a sandbox is provided
for the small fry.
SMALL TALK: conversation about unimportant things. i met him
at coffee time and we had a chat, but it was just small talk, nothing
worth repeating.
IN A SMALL WAY: with little money or stock. he is an antique
dealer in a small at home.
SMALL-TIME: not working on a large scale. he is only a small
time crook/ thief.
THE SMALL HOURS:the hours immediately after midnight. she
works into the small hours every night.
SMALL BEER: unimportant. the news is a very small beer.
SMART
LOOK SMART: to be quick. get those files into my office, and
look smart about it
SMASH
SMASH HIT:a very successful performance; song; play; movie.
the school play was a smash hit.
SMILE
SMILE ON: to be favourable to. fate smiled on us.
BE ALL SMILES: to be , or look, very happy. he was all smiles
when he heard the good news.
SMOKE
SMOKE OUT: to force out with smoke, the boys smoked a
squirrel out of a hollow tree.
SNAIL
AT A SNAIL'S PACE: very slowly. she knits beautiful jumpers
but she does them at a nail's pace.
SNAKE
A SNAKE IN THE GRASS: a cheat.beware of him , he is a snake
in the grass.
SNAP
MAKE IT SNAPPY: hurry up. i want an answer, and make it snappy!
SNAP AT: is to endeavour to seize suddenly and eagerly, to
accept eagerly. the dod snapped at the thief and caught his leg.
SNAP ONE'S FINGERS AS: disregard. she was one of those who
snapped their fingers at all regulations.
SNAP UP: to grab eagerly. i saw this bargain in the shop and
snaped it up straight away.
SNEEZE
NOT TO BE SNEEZED AT:not to be treated an unimportant. the
firm pays me rs100/- a month, which is not to be sneezed at.
SO
QUITE SO: i agree; it is you have stated. jamuna is a nice
girl, books, stationary, and so forth.
AND SO FORTH: similar objects; in a similar way. he dealt in
this morning.
SO-SO: in inferior health; not very well. she seems very
so-so this morning.
SO-LONG: good-bye, farewell till we meet again. so long , i
will be back tomorrow.
SOCK
PUT A SOCK IN IT: be quiet. i wish you two would put a sock
in it you have been quarrelling all day.
SOLD
BE SOLD ON: to be enthusiastic about. i am sold on the idea
of a holiday in kashmir.
SORRY
BE/FEEL SORRY FOR: to pity. i am really sorry for that poor woman.
SORT
OUT OF SORT: not in good health. she seems out of sort this morning.
A GOOD SORT: a good fellow. he is a good sort.
SOUL
THE SOUL OF: a perfect example of. she is the soul of honour.
NOT A SOUL: absolutely no one. when i reached the station,
there was not a soul on the railway platform.
SOUND
SOUND OFF: to speak loudlyand freely. she was sounding off
about the price of tea.
SOUP
IN THE SOUP: in serious trouble. if she is found out about it
, we are all in the soup.
SPARE
GO SPARE: become angry or upset. if your father sees the mess
you have made of his workshop he will go spare!
A SPARE TYRE: a roll of fat around the middle of one's body. i
must go on a diet and try to get rid of my spare tyre.
SPEAK
TO SPEAK OF: worth mentioning. he has no talent to speak of.
TO SPEAK VOLUMES FOR: to serve as strong proof. akbar's
liberal donation to different religions speak volumes of his religious
toleration.
PLAIN SPEAKING: unflattering opinion. there was a good deal of
plain speaking , and they parted in anger.
SPEAK FOR: to speak in favour of or in sport of. at the
meeting rakesh spoke for the change in the rules.
SPEAK UP: to speak in a loud or clear voice. the trucker told
the shy boy to speak up.
SPEAK ONE'S OWN MIND: say what one really thinks . i hope that
what i am going to say will not offend anyone, but i feel that what i
am going to say will not offend anyone, but i feel that i must speak
my mind.
SPICK
SPICK AND SPAN:brand new. notes when they come out of currency
office, are spick and span.
SPIN
SPIN A YARN:tell a story. the old man could spin many yarns of his youth.
SPIN OUT: draw out; prolong. i tried to spin out the
conversation until sheela came home.
SPITE
IN SPITE OF: notwithstanding; despite, we are going tp get
married ,in spite of the opposition of her family.
SPOON
SPOON-FEED: to make to easy for someone. some students want
the teacher to spoon feed them the lessons.
TO BORN WITH A SILVER SPOON IN ONE'S MOUTH: born of rich
family. subhash was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
SPOT
IN A SPOT: in trouble. his failure to return the papers on
time put her in a spot.
SPOT CASH: payment in cash. i have sold my car for rs5000 spot cash.
ON THE SPOT: immediately. he drew a revolver and shot his
enemy on the spot.
SPOUT
UP THE SPOUT:pregnant. his girl friend has gone to the doctor
she thinks she is up the spout.
SPUR
SPUR ON: to cause to make greater efforts. the thought of the
prize spured her on.
SPY
SPY ON: to watch secretly. out next door neighbours are
alwahys spying on us.
SQUARE
A SQUARE DEAL: an honest bargain, transaction, you always get
a square deal in that shop.
A SQUARE MEAL: a good noourishing meal. her children never
seem to get a square meal.
STAKE
AT STAKE:to be won or lost. a great deal of money is at stake.
STAKE OUT: to watch carefully. the police staked out the
gang's headquarters and waited for them to appear.
STAMP
STAMP OUT: to destroy completely and make disappear. in the
last few years, we have nearly stamped out polio by using vaccine.
A STAMPING GROUND: a place where a person or people can
usually be found. the auction rooms are his stamping ground.
STAND
STAND ON CEREMONY:behave stiffy and ceremoniously. please do
not stand on ceremony, have some more.
STAND OUT FOR: insist upon. the workmen are standing out for
daily wages.
STAND UP: to rise from a sitting posture. the boy stood up as
i came near.
STAND OVER: stand near. she stood over the boy while he washed
his face.
TO STAND ONEE IN GOOD STEAD: to prove helpful. your knowledge
of french will stand you in good stead when you go to france for
higher studies.
STAND AGAINST:to resist; to withstand. no king could stand
against hitler.
STAND OFF: to keep from coming near or winning. the soldiers
defending the fort stood off a large band of indians.
STAND UP TO : to meet with courage. a soldier must stand upto danger.
STAND UP WITH: to be best man or maid of honour at a wedding.
a groom often chooses his brother to stand up with him.
STAND BY: to defend; to agree to support; is to near. the stag
stood by the the edge of the stream.
TO STAND IN NEED OF: is to be in need of. these windowsstand
in need of painting.
TO STAND IN ONE'S OWN LIGHT: to regrain from doinga thing
which seems to other to promise advantage. he stood in his own light
when he refused this appointment.
STAND A CHANCE: have any possiblity.i donot think your horse
stands a chance of winning.
STAND TREAT: almost identical with stand same but an added
sense of generosity. we will go to the cinema, and i will stand treat.
STAND CORRECTED: admit to being wrong. i am sorry for the
mistake- i stand corrected.
STAND DOWN: to withdraw from a contest. two of the condidates
have stood down.
STAND FOR: to tolerate. i wan't stand for her rudeness.
STARE
STARE ONE IN THE FACE:be evident and obvious; confront. you
said you couldnot find the key it is staring you in the face.
START
A FRESH START: a new beginning. let us make a fresh start, and
be friends.
START FOR:is to set out with the aim of reaching a place. when
did he start for england?
TO START FORM A SCRATCH: a very humble beginning. m/s college
book depot started from a scratch, but now their business is thriving.
STEAL
STEAL UPON: creep softly upon. what are these sounds which
steal upon my ear?
STEAM
FULL STEAM AHEAD: at the greatest speed possible. the building
programme was going full steam ahead.
GET,BE(ALL)STEAMED UP: to get or be very upset or angry. it is
useless to get all steamed up about it.
GET UP STEAM: to collect energy to do something . i was just
getting up steam to reach the summit of the mountain.
STEER
STEER CLEAR OF: avoid. if you want to steer of troble; donot get married.
STEP
STEP DOWN: to leave an important position. when the judge become
ill, he had to step down.
STEP ON IT: to get faster; hurry. step on it, or we will be late
for college.
STEP UP: to get or to make go faster or more actively. when
rakesh found he was going to be late, he stepped up his face.
STEP BY STEP: slowly, step by step he taught the dog to obey him.
RETRACE ONE'S STEPS: return in the direction one had come. she
retraced her steps,looking for the purse.
STEP INTO SOMEONE'S SHOES: be appointed to a vacant post because
one is next in line. when the chairman retires, the vice chairman will
step into his shoes.
STICK
STICK UP:to rop witha gun. when the messenger left the bank, a
man jumped out of an alley and stuck him up.
STICK TO: to adhere preservingly. he will stick ot his party to the last.
STICK IN THE MUD: unambitious person. peon ram is a regular old
stick in the mud.
STICK WITH: to stay with; not leave. stick with me until we get
out of the crowd.
STICK BY: to uphold. stick by your friends and they will stick by you.
STICK IT: presetve under difficulties; endure . thiws road is
terrible, but if we can stick it we shall save over a kilometer.
STICK AROUND: to stay or wait nearby. rakesh's father told him
to stick around and they would go fishing.
STOCK
STOCK STILL: absolutely motionless. the boy stood stock still,
too terrified to breathe.
ON THE STOCKS: being made but not finished. we have three
novels on the stock.
STOCK IN TRADE: something one used to help with one's business
salesman usually know a lot of jokes; they are part of their stock in
trade.
STONE
AT STONE'S THROW: very near. my office is siturated at a stone's
throw from my residence.
STONE DEAD: completely dead. the heavy machine fell in him and
kill him stone dead.
STOP
A DEAD STOP: completely dead and sudden halt. the bus came to
a dead stop in the middle of the road.
STOP OFF:to stop at a place for a short time while going
somewhere. we stopped off after school at soda fountain before going
home.
STOP AT NOTHING: do anything, however dangerroud. he is a
dangerous man, who will stop at nothing to get what he wants.
STOP COLD: to stop very quickly or with a great force. the
hunter pulled the trigger and stopped the dear cold.
STRAIGHT
STRAIGHT FACE:serious expression which does not let others
see that one is really amused. he tells his ridiculous stores with
such a straight face that many people believe them.
STRAIGHT AWAY: immediately. mr kapoor is at home and will see
you straight away.
STRAIN
STRAIN EVERY NERVE: to try very hard. he strained every nerve
to get his friend acquitted but in vain.
STRAIN ONE'S EYES: tire one's eyes. donot strain youe eyes by
reading such small print.
STRAW
STRAW IN THE WIND: a small sign of what may happen. the
doctor's worried face was a straw in the wind.
THE LAST STRAW: the final trail of endurance. it is the last
straw that breaks the camel's back.
A MAN OF STRAW: an ordinary person. he is a man of straw.
NOT CARE TWO STRAW: care nothing at alll. raj says he hated me-
i donot care two straw.
STRETCH
STRETCH A POINT: to go further, in giving permission than
the rules alllow. the children are only allowed two sweets a day but
we might stretch a point today.
AT A STRETCH: continuously,without a break. he is reading
for seven hours at a stretch as his final examination is fast
approaching. radjakrishnan can speak for many hours at a stretch.
STRICKEN
MAKE IN TEARS: aged. he was stricken in tear i first met him.
STRIDES
MAKE RAPID STRIDES: pregress quickly. his new book" business
letter" is making rapid strides.
STRIKE
TO STRIKE A BARGAIN:to make a deal. i did not go to his
office to strike any bargain but it just happened that way.
STRIKE A BLOW FOR: do something to help.. by publishing such
an article criticizing the goverment, this newpaper has struck a blow
for the freedom of the press.
:
STRIKE ALL OF A HEAP: cause to be very surprised. we did not
expect to hear that news; we were struck all of a heap.
TO STRIKE WHEN THE IRON IS HOT: to act at the right and
opportunate moment, you should not miss this opportunity. strike when
the iron his hot.
STRIKE DOWN:suffering from. she is struck down with small pox.
STRIKE UP: to cause to sound. to begin to sing. strike up the drums.
STRIKE OUT:make violent movement with one's arms or legs. the
swimmer struck out for the shore.
STRIKE OFF:remove from an official list. her names was struck
off the register of doctores.
STRING
STRING ALONG:to deceive; foul; lead on dishonestly. priya was
stringing suresh along for years but she didnot mean to marry him.
STRING UP: to hang. the gang threatened to seize the
prisoness from the jail and string them up.
STRING OUT: to make extend over a great distance. the
telephone poles were strung out along the road as far as we could see.
STRONG
STRONG POINT: a quality etc. in which excels. his ability to
talk to strangers if one of his strong point.
STRONG LANGUAGE: swearing or abuse. the work man used strong
language and embarrased the old lady.
STUCK
STUCK ON:very fond of.. he is stuck on renaissance art.
GET STUCK IN: to start eating. dinner's ready- get stuck in.
STUFF
STUFF AND NONSENSE:rough.you are talking stuff and nonsense at
this time. thatis nonesense! you are too tired to work; stuff and
nonsense.
DO ONE'S STUFF: perform in the expected way. they watched him
while he did his stuff on the trapeze.
SUBJECT
BE SUBJECT TO: to depend on. these plans are subject to your approval.
SUDDEN
ALL OF A SUDDEN: suddenly or unexpected . all of a sudden the
lights went out.
SUIT
SUIT ONESELF: to do what one wants to do. you can suit
yourself whether you come or not.
SUM
THE SUM TOTAL: complete or final total. the sum total of the
cost/damage cannot calcualted.
SUM UP: to put something into a few words. the teacher summed
up the lesson in three rules.
SUM AND SUBSTANCE: gist.Fthe sum and substance of the whole
matter is that the principal must leave the college.
SUN
UNDER THE SUN: in the whole world. there is nothing new under the sun.
CATCH THE SUN: to become sunburnt. you have certainly caught
the sun today; your nose is red.
SURE
SURE AS FATE: beyond a doubt, with absolute certainity. as sure
as fate, i shall get a letter tomorrow telling me to go home.
FOR SURE: definitely or certainly, we donot know for sure that
he is dead.
MAKE SURE: render absolutely certain. i will make sure that the
letter leaves tonight.
TO BE SURE: certainly; of course. he is a nice person, to be
sure, but not very clear.
SWEAR
SWEAR LIKE A TROOPER:use particularly bad language. when i told
the old man i had come to arrest his son, he swore like a trooper.
SWEAR BY: to use as the support. a witness swears by the bible
that he will tell the truth.
SWEAR OFF: to promise to give up something one is in the habit
of using. madhuri swore off candy
SWEAR OUT: to get by swearing that a person has broken the law.
the policeman sware that, the suspect's arrest.
SWEAT
SWEAT BLOOD: to work very hard. rakesh sweated blood to finish
his composition on time.
SWEET OUT: to wait anxiously; worry while waiting. rajesh was
sweating out the results of the college exams.
SWEEP
SWEEP THE BOARD: win every prize. our college athlitcs team
swept the board, winning every event.
SWEEP UP: the dust into a heap. the wind swept up the sand into the mind.
MAKE A CLEAN SWEEP OF: to get rid of every one. the new manager
is going to make a clean sweep of the old staff.
SWEEP SWEEP OFF HIS FEET: to affect with strong emotion. she was
swept off her by dark, handsome stranger.
SWELL
SWELL THE RANKS OF: add to an already large number of people.
surinder has lost his job, and now swells the ranks of the unemplyoed.
SWIM
GO SWIMMINGLY: become a complete success. i am sure your party
will go to swimmingly.
SWING
IN FULL SWING: in full progress. when i reached college, the
debate wasin full swing.
SWOOP
AT ONE FELL SWOOP: in one complete and sudden disaster. he lost
his wife , his son and his home at one fell swoop.
SWITCH
SWITCHOVER : change. we are switching over from coal gas to
north seagas.
SWOLLEN
SWOLLEN-HEADED: too pleased with oneself. he is very swollen
headed about his success.
SWORD
CROSS SWORDS: to quarrel or disagree. i try not to cross
swords with my boss but he is a most unreasonable man.
SWORD OF DAMOCLES: a danger which may come any moment. sword
of damocles is always hanging over the culprit's head as the collector
is very just.
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