idioms and collocations

Personality - idioms and collocation

 

Heart of gold - to be very kind and generous

She has a heart of gold.

Easy-going - relaxed and not easily upset or worried

an easy-going attitude/manner

a friendly, easy-going type of guy

Hard as nails - not feeling or showing any emotions such as sympathy, fear or worry

Pain in the neck - someone or something that is very annoying

That child is a real pain in the neck.

Keep your head - to stay calm despite great difficulties

She kept her head under pressure and went on to win the race.

Bad-tempered - describes a person who becomes angry and annoyed easily

She's very bad-tempered in the mornings!

Illness and treatment – collocation

 

Catch a cold - to contract a cold (a common respiratory infection.) (Use with catch is more frequent.)

 Please close the window, or we'll all catch cold. I take cold every year at this time.

 

Allergic to cats

 

High blood pressure -  a medical condition in which the force of the blood against the walls of the arteries as the blood travels through them is greater than is considered healthy

 

Twist your ankle- is a common medical condition where one or more of the ligaments of the ankle is torn or partially torn.

 

Food poisoning - an illness usually caused by eating food that contains harmful bacteria

 

Heart attack - a serious medical condition in which the heart does not get enough blood, causing great pain and often leading to death

John had a heart attack three years ago.

 

Clothes and fashion - idioms and collocation

 

Dressed to kill - intentionally wearing clothes that attract sexual attention and admiration

 

Fit like a glove - to be the perfect size and shape for someone:

I love these pants because they fit like a glove and they're so comfortable

 

Pull your socks up - to make an effort to improve your work or behaviour because it is not good enough

He's going to have to pull his socks up if he wants to stay in the team.

 

In your shoes  -  used when you want to tell someone what you would do in their situation

If I were in your shoes, I think I'd write to her rather than try to explain over the phone.

 

A sleeveless t-shirt

 

Nylon stockings

 

Crime and punishment - collocation

Community service -  work that people do to help other people without payment, and which young criminals whose crime was not serious enough for them to be put in prison are sometimes ordered to do

Capital punishment - punishment by death, as ordered by a legal system

Death with murder

Drug   dealing          

Charge penalty - A punishment established by law or authority for a crime or offense.

Commit a crime

Weather - collocation

Thick fog

Heavy showers

Bright sunshine

Strong winds

Clear skies

Icy roads  

Feelings - idioms

Sick and tired of - to have experienced too much of someone or something with the result that you are annoyed:

I’m sick of him whining about money.

Scared stiff

Over the moon - to be very pleased

She was over the moon about/with her new bike

Down in the dumps - unhappy

She's a bit down in the dumps because she's got to take her exams again.

Worn out - describes something which can no longer be used because it is so old or because it has been damaged by continued use

I've got old 'Fawlty Towers' videos which are almost worn out, I've played them so many times.

worn-out clothes/carpet/equipment

Fed up - bored, annoyed or disappointed, especially by something that you have experienced for too long

I'm fed up with my job.

He got fed up with all the travelling he had to do.

The body - idioms

Give me a hand - to help someone

These tax cuts will give industry a helping hand.

Put your foot in it - to say something by accident which embarrasses or upsets someone

I really put my foot in it with Alison. I had no idea she was divorced.

Pulling my leg - to try to persuade someone to believe something which is not true as a joke

Is it really your car or are you pulling my leg?

On the tip of my tongue - If something that you want to say is on the tip of your tongue, you think you know it and that you will be able to remember it very soon

Her name is on the tip of my tongue.

Get it off your  chest

Learn by heart - to learn something so well that it can be written or recited without thinking; to memorize something. 

The director told me to learn my speech by heart. I had to go over it many times before I learned it by heart.

 

Music - idioms and collocation

Music to my earsm - to be something that you are very pleased to hear

The rattle of the letterbox was music to my ears - the letter had arrived at last.

A good ear for the music - the ability to perceive various qualities of musical sounds, such as pitch, loudness, and timbre, and to sense the functional relations between sounds in a musical system and in musical compositions.

Blow your own  trumpet - to tell everyone proudly about your achievements

Out of tune - singing or playing notes that are at the wrong pitch (= level) or that do not agree with others being sung or played

I'm afraid the piano is out of tune.

Face a tune

A monotonous voice - staying the same and not changing and therefore boring

a monotonous job

a monotonous voice

Business and advertising - collocation

Head office        the most important office of an organization or company, or the people working there

Paul was transferred to our head office in London.

Head office have asked for a report.

Make somebody  campaign

Set up a company

Merge with other company - to join with someone or something. 

Advertising redundant

Market research - the collection and examination of information about things that people buy or might buy and their feelings about things that they have bought

Market research shows that demand for small cars will continue to grow.