Commonly used english part 92 ppsx

tied up - to be busy I was tied up yesterday and did not have enough time to telephone my friend.. time Idioms time after time - repeatedly The teacher told the student time after time

tie up (traffic)

- to slow down traffic, to cause road traffic to stop

The accident tied up the highway traffic for two hours last night

tie up with (someone or something)

- to enter into an association or partnership with someone or something

Our company decided to tie up with a company from Sweden to make the pollution equipment

.

tied to one's mother's apron strings

- to be dominated or dependent on one's mother

The boy is tied to his mother's apron strings and he never wants to leave home

tied up

- to be busy

I was tied up yesterday and did not have enough time to telephone my friend

tight spot

- a difficult situation

We are in a very tight spot since the top salesman quit

tight squeeze

- a difficult financial situation

Our company is in a tight squeeze now that sales are down from last year

tighten one`s belt

- to economize, to spend less money

I will have to tighten my belt until the economy improves

tightfisted with money

- to not want to spend any money

The man is very tightfisted with money and he never likes to spend it at all

tilt at windmills

- to fight battles with imaginary or unimportant enemies or issues

My friend is tilting at windmills by fighting his boss for no reason

time Idioms

time after time

- repeatedly

The teacher told the student time after time to be careful with her spelling

time and time again

- repeatedly, over and over

The teacher told the students time and time again that they must do their homework

time flies

- time passes very quickly

Time flies and suddenly summer was over and autumn had begun

the time is ripe

- exactly the right time has come

The time is ripe to start teaching our child how to brush his teeth

the time of one`s life

- a wonderful time

My cousin had the time of her life when she went to Rome last summer

time off

- free time when one does not have to work

I had some time off last week so I was able to do some extra reading

time out

- the time when a game or other event is temporarily stopped for some reason

During the game we took some time out to rest

time to catch one's breath

- enough time to relax or behave normally

I did not have time to catch my breath because I was working hard all morning

time was (when)

- at a time in the past

Time was when everybody in our town kept their doors unlocked all of the time

tip (someone) off

- to warn/inform someone

The bank tipped off the police that there was going to be a robbery at the bank

tip the balance

- to have important or decisive influence, to decide something

The man's ability to speak French tipped the balance in his favor to get the job at the embassy

tip the scales at (something)

- to weigh a certain amount

The wrestler tipped the scales at over 200 kilograms

tire (someone) out

- to make someone very tired

The climb up the stairs tired the elderly woman out

tired out

- to be very tired

My father was tired out after working hard all day

tit for tat

- equal treatment in return for something, a fair exchange

The government policy was tit for tat to any attacks against its territory

to Idioms

to a fault

- to do something so very well or to be something so good that it is almost bad

My friend is honest to a fault and will not say anything unless it is the absolute truth

to a great/large extent

- mainly, largely

To a great extent everybody in the town has been informed of the new parking

regulations

to a T

- perfectly, exactly

The new job fits me to a T

to and fro

- from one place to another and then back again, back and forth

We went to and fro between the two items as we tried to decide what to buy

to be on the safe side

- to be safe, to be cautious, to be very well prepared

I decided to take my umbrella to school to be on the safe side

to be safe

- to be cautious, to be careful

I took some extra money out of the bank just to be safe and have enough money for the weekend

to be sure

- without a doubt, certainly

"To be sure it would be better to talk to the store manager rather than the clerk."

to beat the band

- very much, very fast

We were working to beat the band in order to finish our work early and go home

to boot

- in addition, also

Our hot water tank is not working and to boot our kitchen stove is also having

problems

to date

- until the present time

To date there is no indication that the workers are going to negotiate a new contract

to heel

- to be under control

The army brought the citizens to heel as soon as they entered the town

to hell and gone

- very much gone, gone to hell

The situation was already to hell and gone when the manager arrived at the office

to no avail

- with no effect, unsuccessful

My complaints to the company were to no avail and nothing was done

to one's heart's content

- as much as one wants

I used the video camera to my heart's content before I had to return it to my friend

to one`s name

- in one`s ownership

The man is a very good dresser although he does not have a penny to his name

to order

- according to a buyer's specifications regarding size/color etc

I bought three suits which were made to order when I visited Hong Kong last year

to pieces

- into broken pieces or fragments, destroyed, not working

My car fell to pieces during my recent trip

to pieces

- very much, greatly

The man loves his little girl to pieces

to put it mildly

- to understate something, to say something politely

To put it mildly the food at the restaurant was some of the worst that I have ever tasted

to say nothing of (someone or something)

- to not even mention the importance of someone or something

The hotel itself was very expensive to say nothing of the cost of the restaurants in the hotel

to say the least

- at the very least, without dwelling on the subject

After walking all day I am tired to say the least

to some extent

- to some degree, partly

My answer to the professor's question was correct to some extent but in general it was not what the professor wanted

to (someone's) liking

- in a way that pleases someone

The cook in my favorite restaurant always cooks the food exactly to my liking

to (someone's) way of thinking

- in someone's opinion

To my way of thinking we should not spend any more money on the new project

to speak of

- important, worth talking about

We did not do anything to speak of during our summer vacation

to the best of one's ability

- as well as one is able

I always play sports to the best of my ability

to the best of one's knowledge

- as far as one knows, from one's knowledge

To the best of my knowledge there have been no telephone calls for me today

to the bitter end

- to the very end

We stayed to the bitter end and watched our team lose very badly to the other team

to the bone

- thoroughly, entirely

I became wet to the bone during the heavy rain

to the contrary

- contrary to what has been stated/thought

Everybody thought that the boy was bored at the dinner but to the contrary he was quite interested

to the core

- all the way through, basically

The local government is corrupt to the core and everybody wants the mayor to leave office

to the ends of the earth

- to the most remote and most inaccessible points on the earth

My professor went to the ends of the earth to find material for his university thesis

to the extent that

- to the degree that, in so far as

"To the extent that I am able, I will be happy to help you."

to the eye

- as it is seen, apparently

To the eye the hotel looked very nice but when we entered it was not very good at all

to the full

- very much, fully

My father always tries to live his life to the full

to the hilt

- to the maximum amount, completely

My friend has been in debt to the hilt since he bought his new car

to the last

- to the end, to the conclusion

We stayed at the party to the last and then helped clean the hall

to the letter

- exactly, precisely

The police officer always follows the law to the letter