I dioms in focus:

Task 1. Study the following examples and try to understand the underlined idioms in context. Find their Russian equivalents.

1. By sitting up till two in the morning, and rising again at six, Frank Headley burnt the candle of life at both ends.

2. I’ve been working my fingers to the bone to get everything ready in time for the presentation.

3. After a year of keeping your nose to the grindstone and working overtime, you finally get away for that vacation you've dreamed about.

4. Mickey is used to handling dodgy deals but this time he fears he may have bitten off more than he can chew.

5. Since he lost his job, mounting debts were beginning to take a heavy toll on his finances.

6. Financing your studies may seem like a tall order, but there is plenty of help available.

7. The essence of the dead-end job is that it is a juvenile job, offering little opportunity for absorption into the higher grades of the industry.

8. I know it's not the job you'd hoped for, but at least you can use it to get your foot in the door.

9. Could you show me how to use this machine? I can't make head or tail out of the instructions in the manual.

10.As a goal-oriented person, he’ll stick at nothing to get what he wants.

Task 2. Match the following idioms with their corresponding definitions.

burn the candle at both ends work one’s fingers to the bone keep one’s nose to the grindstone bite off more than one can chew take its toll on something a tall order dead end job have got/get/give a foot in the door make head or tail of sth stick at nothing

a) work hard without taking rest b) cause a lot of harm or damage c) have taken the first step towards getting something d) a job without prospects or opportunities for the future e) understand something that is confusing, mixed up f) do everything to accomplish one’s aim g) exhaust, make too great demand on one’s physical or mental resources by overwork h) take on a task that is too difficult i) work very hard manually for a long period of time usually because one needs the money j) a task which is difficult to accomplish

Task 3. Substitute for the underlined phrase an idiom with the same meaning.

1. You’ll find it hard at first but if you do everything to accomplish your aim, you’ll succeed.

2. It’s a bit silly going away on a day-trip after you’ve been on night duty. In this kind of job you can’t overwork.

3. Bob is a very strange guy. Everything he says and does is very strange. I cannot understand him.

4. As a blue collar worker, I work really hard and then the government takes half my income in taxes.

5. The Philips deal also gives Sparc an opportunity to start operating in a new market – consumer electronics.

6. I've only got six weeks before my exams start so I'm trying to work hard without taking any rest.

7. He’s stuck in a job without prospects in the local factory.

8. With two additional jobs, Bill is clearly taking on a task that is too difficult.

9. The disease has caused a horrendous harm in parts of western Africa.

10. Getting a thousand new subscribers is a difficult task to accomplish.

Task 4. Complete the sentences with one of the idioms in focus, paying special attention to the form of the verbs.

1. This part-time work has allowed Frank to ………… and he hopes it will lead to a full-time job.

2. Joseph's been ………… for weeks, taking on two jobs during the week and a third on weekends.

3. Don't ………… . Let someone else help you organize the conference.

4. Meeting the deadline was a …………but finally we managed to complete it just in time.

5. He found himself stuck in a low-paid, ………….

6. The recession is ………… on the housing markets.

7. ‘What does this message say?’ – ‘I don’t know – I can’t ………….’

8. She's ………… at the local factory to support her children.

9. He became more and more irritated by her ability to ………… in order to get to the top.

10. We expect John to get good grades again, since he really …………

Task 5. Translate the following sentences into English using idioms instead of the phrases underlined.

1. Как очень целеустремленный человек, он пойдет на всё для того, чтобы добиться своего.

2. Ключ к успеху лежит в том, чтобы не брать на себя больше, чем ты можешь сделать на самом деле.

3. Трудясь на двух работах одновременно, он подрывал свои силы и в конечном итоге заболел.

4. Она всегда хотела работать в сфере СМИ, но ей потребовалось два года, чтобы попасть на телевидение.

5. Растущая безработица негативно сказывается на потребительских расходах.

6. Он не хотел оставаться на этой неперспективной работе и поэтому ушел из компании, как только нашел более подходящее место.

7. Окончание проекта в срок казалось невероятно трудной задачей, но благодаря общим усилиям, команда достигла поставленной цели.

8. Он говорит на неизвестном мне языке. Я ничего не могу понять.

9. Они работали, не покладая рук, чтобы успеть завершить реконструкцию объекта в срок, указанный в контракте.

10. Стараясь совмещать учебу с работой, она работала и днем и ночью.



UNIT 9

MARKETING MIX