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to go out: to stop functioning; to stop burning; to leave home or work
- The lights went out all over the city because of an electrical problem.
- The campers didn't have to put out the fire because it went out by itself.
- Gary isn't here right now; he went out to the store for a moment.
- I have to step out of the office briefly to pick up a newspaper.
out of the question: impossible, not feasible
- Stephen told Deborah that it was out of the question for her to borrow his new car.
- Don't expect me to do that again. It's absolutely out of the question.
to have to do with: to have some connection with or relationship to
- Ralph insisted that he had nothing to do with breaking the window.
- What does your suggestion have to do with our problem?
to wake up: to arise from sleep, to awaken
Compare wake up and get up (Lesson 1) as used in the first example.
- Marge woke up this morning very early, but she did not get up until about ten o'clock.
- My alarm clock wakes me up at the same time every day.
to be in charge of: to manage, to have responsibility for
- Jane is in charge of the office while Mrs. Haig is a business trip.
- Who is in charge of arrangements for the dance next week?
as soon as: just after, when
- As soon as it started to snow, the children ran outside with big smiles on their faces.
- I'm busy now, but I'll meet you as soon as I've finished this work.
to get in touch with: to communicate with, to contact
- You can get in touch with him by calling the Burma Hotel.
- I've been trying all morning to get in touch with Miss Peters, but her phone is always busy.
to have a good time: to enjoy oneself
- We all had a good time at the class reunion last night.
- Did you have a good time at the park? I really enjoyed it.
in no time: very quickly, rapidly
This idiom can be used with the idiom at all to add emphasis to the certainty of the statement.
- Mac said that he'd be ready to leave in no time.
- We thought that the meeting would take two hours, but it was over in no time at all.
to cut down on: to reduce, to lessen
- In order to lose weight, you have to cut down on your intake of sugar.
- The doctor told me to cut back on exercise until my back injury heals.
quite a few: many
- Quite a few students were absent yesterday; in fact, more than half of them were not there.
- We did not expect many people to attend to affair, but quite a few of our friends actually came.
used to: formerly did, had the habit of
This idiom is used to indicate a past situation, action, or habit that does not exist in the present. The idiom is always followed by a simple verb form.
- I used to live in New York, but I moved to California two years ago.
- Kim used to smoke cigarettes, but she stopped the habit last month.
to be used to: be accustomed to
This idiom refers to a situation, action, or habit that continues in the present. The idiom is always followed by a noun or gerund phrase.
- He is used to this climate now, so the changes in temperature do not affect him much.
- I am used to studying in the library, so it's difficult for me to study at home now.
to get used to: to become used to, to become adjusted to
This idiom describes the process of change that allows someone to be used to a situation, action, or habit.
- It took Yoshiko a long time to get used to the food that her American host family served her.
- Mark can't seem to get used to wearing contact lenses; recently he's been wearing his glasses a lot.
back and forth: in a backward and forward motion
- The restless lion kept pacing back and forth along the front of its cage.
- Grandmother finds it relaxing to sit in her rocking chair and move back and forth.
to make sure: to be sure, to ascertain
- Please make sure that you turn off the radio before you go out.
- Could you make certain of the time? I don't want to miss that TV show.
now and then: occasionally, sometimes
Both now and then and once in a while can be preceded by the adjective every. Another idiom with the same meaning and form is every so often.
- I don't see him very often, but (every) now and then we arrange to have lunch together.
- Gary gets a cold (every) once in a while even though he takes good care of himself.
- Every so often my brother and I get together for a camping trip.
- I like to sleep late in the morning from time to time.
to get rid of: to eliminate, to remove; to discard, to throw away
- Jerry tried hard to get rid of the stain on his shirt, but he never succeeded.
- The stain was so bad that Jerry finally had to get rid of his shirt.
every other (one): every second (one), alternate (ones)
- I play tennis with my father every other Saturday, so I usually play twice a month.
- There were twenty problems in the exercise, but the teacher told us only to do every other one. Actually, doing ten problems was difficult enough.
to go with: to match, to compare well in color to design; to date, to accompany
For the first definition, adverbs such as well and poorly are often used.
- That striped shirt goes well with the gray pants, but the pants go poorly with those leather shoes.
- Eda went with Richard for about six months, but now she is going out with a new boyfriend.
first-rate: excellent, superb
- The food served in that four-star restaurant is truly first-rate.
- The Beverly Hills Hotel provides first-rate service to its guests.
to come from: to originate from
This idiom is commonly used in discussion of one's home town, state, or country.
- What country in South American does she come from? She comes from Peru.
- I just learned that he really comes from Florida, not Texas.
- Where did this package come from? The mail carrier brought it.
to make good time: to travel a sufficient distance at a reasonable speed
The adjective excellent can also be used.
- On our last trip, it rained the entire time, so we didn't make good time.
- We made excellent time on our trip to Florida; it only took eighteen hours.
to mix up: to stir or shake well; to confuse, to bewilder
For the second definition, the passive forms to be mixed up or to get mixed up are often used.
- You should mix up the ingredients well before you put them in the pan.
- The teacher's poor explanation really mixed the students up.
- The students think it's their fault that they are mixed up so often.
to see about: to give attention or time to
- Who is going to see about getting us a larger room for the meeting?
- I'll see to arranging music for the wedding of you attend to the entertainment.
to make out: to do, to succeed, to progress
- Charlie didn't make out very well on his final examinations. He may have to repeat one or more classes.
- How did Rachelle make out on her acting audition in Hollywood yesterday?
by heart: by memorizing
- He knows many passages form Shakespeare by heart.
- Do you know all the idioms you have studied in this book by heart?
to keep out: not to enter, not allow to enter
- There was a large sign outside the door that said, "Danger! Keep out!"
- I've told you to keep the dog out of the house.
to keep away (from): to stay at a distance (from); to avoid use of
- Please be sure to keep the children away from the street!
- The signs on the burned-out house said, "Keep Away! Danger Zone."
- It's important for your health to stay away from dangerous drugs.
to find fault with: criticize, to complain about something
- It is very easy to find fault with the work of others, but more difficult to accept criticism of one's own work.
- Mrs. Johnson is always finding fault with her children, but they really try to please their mother.
to be up to: to be responsible for deciding; to be doing as a regular activity
- The second definition is most often used in a question as a form of greeting.
- I don't care whether we go to the reception or not. It's up to you.
- Hi, George. I haven't seen you in a while. What have you been up to?