Mini-Lesson 6.1

In a nutshell – in summary, in brief

In favor of – in agreement with, supporting

In hot water – in trouble

In no time – very soon, very quickly

In person – face to face (not by telephone, letter, etc.)

In store – in the future, coming up

In the dark – not knowing, confused

In the long run – over a long period of time

In the same boat – in the same situation, having the same problem

Iron out – solve (a problem)

Mini-Lesson 6.2

Join the club – have the same problem as other people

Jump to conclusions – form opinions without sufficient evidence

Keep an eye on – watch, take care of, look after, keep track of

Keep an eye out (for) – look for, watch for arrival or appearance

Keep on (with) – continue

Keep track of – know where smth or smb is, monitor

Keep up (with) – maintain the same speed as

Kill time – spend time doing unimportant things, waste time

Know like the back of one’s hand – be very familiar with

Mini-Lesson 6.3

Lay off – put out of work

Learn the ropes – become familiar with, get used to, get the hang of

Leave out – not include, omit

Leave smth/ smb alone – not disturb

Let smb down – disappoint

Let up – decline in intensity (rain, for example)

Look after – take care of, mind

Look for – try to locate

Look forward to – anticipate (with pleasure)

Look into – investigate, see into

Exercise: Fill in the blanks in the sentences or dialogues with idioms from the list above. There will be one word per blank. It may be necessary to change the verb forms in order for the sentences to be grammatically correct.

1. Will you _____________ ____________ _____________ ___________ my dog while I go in the drugstore?

2. Kathy’s daughter has such short legs that she has hard time __________ ___________ _____________ the other children.

3. The store had to ____________ ___________ a number of clerks because sales went down.

4. “You must be anxious to go on your vacation.” “I certainly am. I’m really _____________ ______________ ___________this trip.”

5. Don’t ___________ ___________ _____________. Maybe your jewelry wasn’t stolen after all.

6. “I need to find a new apartment.” “There must be some vacancies in the building where I live. I’ll ___________ ___________ ____________ ___________ ______________ one.”

7. The company may lose some money now, but ____________ __________ ____________ _____________, this is a good investment.

8. Alex complained that no one invited him to any social events and that he felt _____________ ________________.

9. “Can you hurry over here? I need to see you right away.” “Sure. I’ll be there _____________ _____________ _____________.”

10. “May I help you, sir?” “No, I’m just looking around and trying to ___________ some ____________ until my wife finished shopping.”

11. “Has it stopped raining yet?” “No, but it’s beginning to ___________ __________ a little.”

12. “I can’t go to Daryl’s party this weekend. I have to study.” “Guess, we’re _________ _________ ________ ________. I’ve got to study too.”

13. “Should we stop and spend the night at this motel?” “No, let’s ___________ ____________ driving for a few more miles.”

14. If you find a baby animal in the woods, don’t touch it. Just __________________ it _______________.

15. I _____________ all over town ___________ a good used car, but I couldn’t find one.

16. Stella’s sister __________ __________ her baby while Stella is at work.

17. “If you don’t know how to use this software, why don’t you ask Joanne to help?” “I did ask her, but I’m still ____________ _____________ ______________. I didn’t understand a word she said.”

18. The police are ____________ _____________ the crime.

19. “Did Amanda ever complete her project?” “She’s almost finished. She just has a few minor problems left to _____________ ____________.”

20. Alfred is _____________ ___________ ____________ with his boss because he didn’t finish an important project by the deadline.”

21. “Has Marilyn gotten used to her new job at the bank yet?” “It took her a while, but I think she’s finally ________ _________ _________ there.”

22. Are you __________ __________ ________ this proposal or against it?

23. “Are you familiar with this neighborhood?” “I grew up here, so I _________ it _________ _________ _________ _______ my _______.”

24. “Is your roommate at home now?” “I have no idea. I can never ___________ __________ ___________ his comings and goings.”

25. “I understand you have a new dean over at Business School.” “Yes, his name is Dean Nishimura. He has completely different philosophy of business education from the one Dean Woodford had, so I’m sure that some big changes are ____________ ____________ for us.”