British, informal something that you say in order to tell someone that another person is sexually attracted to thern»Did you see how that girl was looking at you?. a Jack the LadBritish,
Trang 1be on ice
if plans are on ice, they are not going to
be dealt with until some point in the
future Both projects are on ice until the
question of funding is resolved.
put sth on ice. Plans for a women-only
film screening have been put on ice
following threats of legal action.
an ice-breaker • We usually start the
session with an ice-breaker in the form of
a game.
cut no ice with sb
if something cuts no ice with someone, it
does not cause them to change their
opinion or decision • I've heard her
excuses and they cut no ice with me.
ideas
put ideas intosb'shead
to make someone want to do something
they had not thought about doing before,
especially something stupid • (often in
continuous tenses) Don't go putting
ideas into his head We haven't got the
money for a car • Who put all these ideas
into her head about becoming an actress?
ifs
no ifs and butsBritish&Australian
no ifs, ands or butsAmerican
something that you say to a child to stop
them arguing with you when you want
them to do something I want no ifs and
buts, just tidy your room like I told you to!
• No ifs, ands or buts, you're going up to
bed now!
inch ignorance
Ignorance is bliss.
something that you say which means if you do not know about a problem or an unpleasant fact, you do not worry about
it • I wish the newspapers would stop telling us about the dangers of eating meat It seems to me ignorance is bliss.
ill
be ill at ease X
to feel anxious or embarrassed (often+
with) He alwaysfelt a little ill at ease with
strangers • (sometimes+ in) The girl
behind the bar looked ill at ease in her uniform.
It's an ill wind (that blows nobody any good).
something that you say which means most bad things that happen have a good
result for someone But it's an ill wind.
The wettest June in history has replenished the reservoirs.
in You're in there! British, informal
something that you say in order to tell someone that another person is sexually attracted to thern»Did you see how that girl was looking at you? You're in there, mate!
in absentia
inabsentia formal
if something happens to someone in absentia, they are not present when it
happens to them> The court convicted her
in absentia and fined her $500.
inch
be every inchsth
to be a particular kind of person in every
way >He looked every inch the slick, city businessman.
An inch is a small measurement of length It is used in the following phrases connected with a small amount
beat sbto within an inch oftheir life
to attack someone so violently that they
almost die She was beaten to within an
inch of her life on a back street in London.
Trang 2notbudge/give an inch
to refuse to change your opinion or agree
to even very small changes that another
person wants0I keep asking her to think
again, but she won't budge an inch.
o(sometimes+on) He refuses to give an
inch on health and safety issues.
come within an inch ofdoing sth X'
to very nearly do something, especially
something dangerous or excitingoI came
within an inch of losing my life on the
rocks below.
Give sb an inch andthey'lltake a mile.
something that you say which means that
if you allow someone to behave badly at
all, they will start to behave very badly
° I'm always wary about making
concessions to these people Give them an
inch and they'll take a mile.
nottrust sban inchBritish&Australian
to not trust someone at all, 0 He's
charming enough but I wouldn't trust him
an inch.
indian
an Indian summer
a period of warm weather which
sometimes happens in early autumn
° Both the UK and Ireland have been
enjoying an Indian summer over the past
few weeks.
2 a successful or pleasant period in
someone's life, especially towards the
end of their life ° The book describes the
last 20years of Churchill's life, including
his Indian summer as prime minister
between1951and 1955.
in flagrante delicto
in flagrante (delicto) humorous
if someone is discovered in flagrante
delicto they are discovered doing
something wrong, especially having sex
with someone who is not their husband
or wife° She came home to catch her
husband inflagrante delicto with the
next-door neighbour.
influence
under the influence
if someone is under the influence, they
are drunk °Were you serious last night
about wanting a baby or was it just
because you were under the influence?
°Driving under the influence is a very serious offence.
in loco parentis
in loco parentis formal
to be responsible for a child while the
child's parents are absent ° Teachers are
in loco parentis while children are at school.
ins the ins and outsinformal X
the details or facts about something
° (usually+of) I don't know all the ins
and outs of the situation but I gather Roger and Mark haven't been getting on too well.
inside
an inside job X
a crime committed by someone against the organization that they work for°(not
used with the) The computers were taken
from a locked room, which makes it look like an inside job.
have the inside trackmainly American
to have a special position within an organization or a special relationship with a person that gives you advantages that other people do not have ° (often+
with) He thinks I have the inside track with the director so he keeps hassling me for information.
fade/pale into insignificance \
if something pales into insignificance, it does not seem at all important when compared to something else°When your child's ill, everything else pales into insignificance ° With the outbreak of war all elsefades into insignificance.
in situ
in situformal
if something is in situ, it is in its original place°The cavepaintings must be viewed
in situ because they are considered too delicate to be moved to a museum.
Trang 3insult ,/
add insult to injury A
to make a bad situation even worse for
someone by doing something else to
upset them • First of all he arrived an
hour late and then, to add insult to injury,
he proceeded to complain about my choice
of restaurant.
intents
to all intents and purposes
><-in all the most important ways • We've
got a few odd things to finish, but to all
intents and purposes the job is done.
• They redesigned the old model and
created something which was to all intents
and purposes a brand new car.
interference
run interferenceAmerican
to help someone achieve something by
dealing with the people or problems that
might prevent them from doing so
• (usually+for) When it comes tofinding
a hotel room, you'll be glad to have a
tourist guide run interferencefor you.
inverted
in inverted commasBritish&Australian
something that you say when a phrase
you are using to describe something is
the phrase that people usually use but it
does not really show the truth
ID Inverted commas are a pair of
printed marks put at the beginning and
end of a word or phrase to show that
someone else has written or said it
• They were the kind of well-meaning
people that wanted to 'dogood' in inverted
commas.
iron
an iron fist/hand in a velvet glove
something that you say when you are
describing someone who seems to be
gentle but is in fact severe and firm To
enforce each new law the president uses
persuasion first, and then force - the iron
hand in the velvet glove.
an iron manAmerican&Australian
a man who is physically very strong and
can work hard for a long time· He likes to
ivory
think of himself as some sort of iron man who doesn't need sleep like the rest of us.
pump ironinformal
to lift heavy objects for exercise in order
to increase your strength or to improve
your appearance· These days, both men
and women pump ironfor fitness.
rule(sb)with a rod of ironBritish, American&Australian
rule(sb)with an iron fist/handAmerican
& Australian
to control a group of people very firmly having complete power over everything
that they do • For 17years she ruled the
country with a rod of iron.• My uncle rules thefamily business with an iron hand.
strike while the iron is hot
to do something irmnediately while you have a good chance of achieving success
• You may not get a better offer - I'd strike while the iron's hot, if I wereyou.
irons have [a few/a lot etc.] irons in the fire
to have severaljobs at the same time or to have several possibilities of work •If
that job application doesn't work out I've got a couple more irons in thefire.
itchy have itchy feetBritish&Australian, informal
to want to travel or to do something
different Why 've you got all these travel
brochures?Doyou have itchyfeet?
get itchy feet British &Australian, informal» He's been in the samejobfor too long and he's getting itchyfeet.
ivories tickle/tinkle the ivorieshumorous
to play the piano ID The parts of a piano that you press to play it used to be made
of a hard white substance called ivory
• Grandma could tickle the ivories likea
professional.
ivory
an ivory tower .>(
if you are in an ivory tower,you are in a place or situation where you are separated from ordinary life and its
Trang 4problems • How much of the research
done by academics in their ivory towers is
ever read orpublished?
the Ivy LeagueAmerican X,
a group of old and very good colleges in
the north-east of the US • The company
thinks the best management trainees come from the Ivy League.
Ivy LeagueAmerican He doesn't have the Ivy League education of some of his opponents • He hated the Ivy League conformity of the college.
Trang 5a jack of all trades X_
someone who has many skills or who
does many different jobs • Bill can do
plumbing, carpentry, or a bit of
gardening - he's a jack of all trades,
really.
a Jack the LadBritish, informal,
old-fashioned
a confident and not very serious young
man who behaves as he wants to without
thinking about other people • Three
children with three different women? Well,
he always was a bit of a Jack the Lad.
jackpot
hit the jackpot >C
to be very successful, often in a way
which means you make a lot of money
• When my second book was published I
thought I'd really hit thejackpot.
jack robinson
before youcan say Jack Robinson
old-fashioned
if you say that something happens before
you can say Jack Robinson, it happens
very suddenly • I offered her a chocolate
but before you could say Jack Robinson
she'd eaten half the box.
jam
jam tomorrow British
something that you want which you are
told you will get soon but which never
appears • Nobody will accept a pay cut,
and it's not enough to promise jam
tomorrow.
be in (a bit of) a jam old-fashioned
to be in a difficult situation I'm in bit of
a jam Could you possibly lend me some
money till next week?
jim crow Jane Doe
Jane Doe American ><
a woman or girl whose name must be kept secret or is not known, especially in
a court of law • A former employee,
referred to only as Jane Doe, is suing the company for unfair discrimination.
jazz
and all that jazz informal
and other similar things • They sell
televisions and all that jazz.
Jekyll
a Jekyll and Hyde
someone whose personality has two different parts, one very nice and the other very unpleasant ;b This phrase
comesfrom the book The Strange Case of
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis
Stevenson.• You can't depend on him to
befriendly - he's a Jekyll and Hyde.
Jekyll and Hyde • Many alcoholics develop Jekyll and Hyde personalities.
je ne sais quoi
a je ne sa isquoi
a pleasant quality which you cannot
describe or name' He's not particularly
attractive but he has a certain je ne sais quoi which uiomenfind irresistible.
jewel
the jewel in the crown
the best or most valuable thing in a group
of things • (often+ of) The island of Tresco,with its beautiful tropical gardens,
is thejewel in the crown of the Scilly Isles.
j iggery-pokery
jiggery-pokery old-fashioned
secret activities that are not honest We suspect there's been some financial jiggery-pokery going on in the accounts department.
jim crow
Jim Crow American
a situation that existed until the 1960sin the south of the US when black people were treated badly, especially by being separated from white people in public places ;b Jim Crow was the name of a black character in a 19th century song
Trang 6and dance act •Jim Crow meant there
were no black kids in white schools.
Jim Crow American » (always before
noun)As soon as he moved to Tenessee, he
became aware of the Jim Crow laws.
jitters
get the jitters informal
to feel anxious, especially before an
important event I always get the jitters
before an interview.
give sb the jitters informal. Don't drive
so fast; You 're giving me the jiuers.
job
a job lot British &Australian
a collection of objects that are bought or
sold together as a groupsI bought a job
lot of furniture at an auction.
do a job onsb/sth mainly American,
informal
to hurt or damage someone or something
• He really did ajob on her, telling her how
much he loved her and then leaving her.
• Someone sure did a job on this table
-there are scratches all over it.
do the job informal x:
if something does thejob, it is suitable
for a particular purpose· Here, this knife
should do the job • I needed to tie the two
parts together and an old stocking did the
job perfectly.
fall down on the job
to fail to do something that you should do
• The armed forces will take over if the
local auihoritiesfall down on the job.
It's more than my job's worth British &
Australian, informal
something that you say in order to tell
someone that you cannot do what they
want you to do because you would lose
your job if you did I'm sorry, but it'd be
money from you.
a Job's comforter old-fashioned
someone who tries to make you feel
happier but makes you feel worse instead
tfbJob was a character in the Bible who
had a lot of bad things happen to him
• She's a real Job's comforter She keeps
telling me I'm going to die soon anyway so
I shouldn't worry about a/Jything.
lie down on the job .X
to not work as hard at something as you should •The new Police Chief fired two officers he accused of lying down on thejob.
jobs
jobs for the boys British & Australian
work that is given by someone who is in
an important position to their friends or members of their farnilysThey operated
a system of jobs for the boys.
Joe B1099s
Joe Bloggs British & Australian
an ordinary person • There's no point asking your average Joe Bloggs what he thinks about opera.
Joe Blow
Joe Blow American &Australian
an ordinary person Television today is geared to your average Joe Blow.
Joe Public »<;
Joe Public British, informal
the public The test of any new product is will Joe Public buy it?
John Bull
John Bull old-fashioned
a character who represents a typical English man or the English people
tfbThis phrase comes from a book called
The History of John Bull written by John Arbuthnot in 1712.• In the cartoon, John
wearing a waistcoat with the British flag on.
John Doe American ./~
a man or boy whose real name must be kept secret or is not known, especially in
a court of law The patient was referred
to in court documents as John Doe.
John Hancock
yourJohn Hancock American, humorous
your signature tfbJohn Hancock's signature was the first signature on the American Declaration of Independence
in 1776 • If you put your John Hancock on
Trang 7the last page we'll be finished with the
formalities.
Johnny-come-Iately
a Johnny-come-Iately old-fashioned
someone who has only recently started a
job or activity and has suddenly become
very successful •She denies suggestions
that she's a Johnny-come-lately; saying
that she has worked for years to get her
own show.
Johnny-on-the-spot
Johnny-on-the-spot American, informal
someone who is immediately ready to do
something, especially to help someone
• This guy had just gotten a flat tire, and
there I was, Johnnv-on-the-spot with my
tools in the back of the car.
John Q Public American, humorous
the public>You have to ask yourself what
about the government overspending.
joie de vivre
joie de vivre
a feeling of happiness and enjoyment of
life •She will be remembered above all for
her kindness and her great joie de oiore.
joke
get/go beyond a joke ).(
if a situation gets beyond a joke, it
becomes extremely serious and worrying
• He's drunk more nights than he's sober
these days - this has gone beyond a joke.
the joke's onsb
something that you say which means
someone who tried to make other people
seem silly has made themselves seem
silly instead •The burglars managed to
lock themselves into the house until the
police arrived, so thejoke's on them!
joker
the joker in the pack
someone or something that could change
a situation in a way that you do not
expect The independent candidate is the
joker in the pack in this election.
judgment joking
You're joking! informal
something that you say when you are very surprised by what someone has just told you > 'They're getting married, you know' 'You're joking! They've only known each other a month '
jolly
be jolly hockey sticks British, humorous
if a woman or situation is jolly hockey sticks, the woman or the people involved
in that situation belong to a high social class, and often talk in a very happy way that seems false· Well, she's okay, but a little jolly hockey sticks, if you know what
I mean.
Joneses keep up with the Joneses
to try to own all the same things as people you know in order to seem as good as them • Her only concern in life was keeping up with the Joneses.
joy jump for joy »;
to be very happy about something good that has happened Tina jumped for joy when shefound out she'd be in the team.
judgment
a judgment call American
a decision someone has to make using their own ideas and opinions rb In sport, a judgment call is a decision made
by an official in a competition using their own opinion of what they have seen •It's
a judgment call- do we go by plane or risk taking the car to the conference?
sit in judgment on/oversb
to say that what someone has done is morally wrong, believing yourself to be better· We none of us have the right to sit
in judgment on our fellow man.
Trang 8jugular
go for the jugularinformal
to criticize someone very cruelly by
talking about what you know will hurt
them mosttbThe jugular is a large vein
that carries blood to the heart
Cunningham, who usually goes
straight for the jugular, seemed
strangely reluctant to say anything.
juice
stew inyourown juice/juicesinformal
if you leavesomeoneto stew in their own
juice, you leave them to worry about
something bad that has happened or
something stupid they have done' She'll
calm down - just leave her to stew in her
oumjuicesfor a bit.
jump
get althe jump onsb/sth mainly
American, informal
to start doing something before other
people start, or before something
happens, in order to get an advantage for
yourself If I leave work early on Fridays
I can get ajump on the traffic.
jury the jury is (still) out
if the jury is still out on a subject, no decision has been made or the answer is not yet certain' (usually+on) The jury's
still out on whether animal experiments are really necessary.• We asked people to comment on the latest malefashions, but it seems thejury's out.
just
notbe just a pretty facehumorous
if someone is not just a pretty face, they are not only attractive but also intelligent
• 'How did you know that?' 'Well, I'm not just a pretty face, you know '
be just the jobBritish&Australian
be just the ticketBritish, old-fashioned
to be perfect for a particular purpose' He needed a car to pick her up in and Will's sports car seemedjust thejob.
getyourjust deserts
if you get your just deserts, something bad happens to you that you deserve because of something bad you have done
• Did you read about the burglar whose own house was broken into? He really got hisjust deserts.