Everybody knows the importance of learning some phrasal verbs, idioms and colloquial expressions, especially when you live in a foreign country. We always learn a lot of them by communicating with native speakers or watching movies and series. In this post, you learn some phrasal verbs, idioms and expressions to communicate in a more natural way when speaking English in a foreign country.
* be/come under fire – being attacked with guns or with severe criticism.
The president has come under fire for vetoing the bill to cut taxes.
* stop the rot – to take action against something bad, before it spreads and becomes worse.
We must try to stop the rot before the whole system is corrupted.
* talk sth up – describe or discuss something in a way that makes it sound better than it is.
* neck and neck – If two competitors are neck and neck, they are level with each other and have an equal chance of winning.
The journalists talked up the latest opinion-poll figures, which now put the candidates neck to neck in the elections.
* in the final analysis – used to state a basic truth after everything has been discussed and considered.
In the final analysis it will just come to a point who the voters choose to believe.
* a war of words – serious or angry discussions about something that people disagree on, especially discussions that continue for a long time.
Politicians in California, Illinois, and other states engaged in an escalating war of words.
* put the house in order – to solve your own problems.
The new president promised to put the house in order.
* not give/move an inch – refuse to change an opinion, decision.
The senior member of the government did not give/move an inch during the debate.
* give sb the benefit of the doubt – treat sb as if their behaviour is honest or correct, even though you are not certain that it is.
The members who had not broken any rules deserved to be given the benefit of the doubt.
I hope you learned some new phrasal verbs and idioms today, see you next time!
Source: Idioms and Phrasal Verbs – Advanced / Ruth Gairns and Stuart Redman – Oxford