Mini-Lesson 8.1

Part with – no longer have, get rid of, not be in the company of

Pass up – not accept, not choose

Pass with flying colors – do very well (on a test)

Pat oneself on the back – congratulate oneself

Pay attention (to) – concentrate on, focus on

Pick out – choose, select

Pick up – 1) take smth from a surface; 2) go to a location and get smb or smth; 3) learn (esp. without formal training)

Pick up the tab (for) – pay for

The picture of – a perfect example of smth

Play it by ear – do smth without a definite plan

Mini-Lesson 8.2

Play it safe – choose a cautious plan

Point out - indicate

A pretty penny – a lot of money

Pull one’s leg – joke with smb, make up a story

Push one’s luck – to continue doing smth too long, to keep taking chances

Put aside – save for later, set aside

Put away – return smth to its proper place

Put off – delay, postpone

Put on – begin to wear

Put together – assemble

Put up with – tolerate

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. Vanessa is allergic to tobacco smoke, so she can’t _______________ ____________ ______________ smoking.

2. “That conference you attended in San Diego must have been very expensive.” “Yes, but fortunately, the company I work for ____________ _____________ ____________ ____________ ____________ it.”

3. I asked my teacher to _________ __________ the mistakes that I made in my essay so that I could correct them.

4. “What do you want to do tomorrow?” “I don’t know. Let’s just ____________ ___________ __________ _____________.”

5. “You should get rid of that old leather jacket.” “I know, but I hate to _______________ _____________ it. I’ve had it for years.”

6. “How did you learn how to make such beautiful pottery? Did you take a class in ceramics?” “No, I just picked it up on my own.”

7. “Can you read that sign?” “Just a minute. Let me ______________ my glasses _____________.”

8. It took Linda weeks to _________ _________ that thousand-piece puzzle.

9. This bike cost ________ _________ _______, but I think it was worth it.

10. “I passed the first two quizzes in this class, and I scarcely studies for them at all.” “Well, if I were you, I wouldn’t _______________ my ______________ any further. You should study for the next quiz because it’s going to be a lot harder.”

11. I’ll ____________ _____________ the laundry that you dropped off at the cleaners this morning.

12. The child ____________ ___________ her toys from the floor and then ____________ them _____________ in her toy box.

13. Bert and Mary had to _____________ __________ their dinner party until next weekend because Bert wasn’t feeling well.

14. “Who ________ ________ that tie for you?” “No one. I chose it myself.”

15. “Are you going to take that job?” “No, I decided to ______________ it ______________ because I don’t want to relocate.”

16. ________________ _______________ as I read the directions or you won’t understand what to do.

17. “I finally finished collecting all the materials I need to write my report.” “Great, but don’t be too quick to _________ yourself ________ _______ _________. You still have to write the report and then word-process it.”

18. “How did you do on your final exam?” “Great! I ____________ them all ____________ ______________ ______________.”

19. I’m going to _______ that magazine _______ for now and read it later.

20. I wouldn’t believe a word Lynn told you. She’s just _______ your _____.