|
labor of love
- something done for personal pleasure and not for
money The book that he wrote was a labor of love and he doesn`t expect
to make any money from it.
lady killer
- a man who some women find very charming and
attractive The man in the movie was a lady killer who broke many
women`s hearts before he left them.
lady`s man
- a man who is popular with women He is a lady`s man
who always seems to have a lot of women interested in him.
laid up
- be confined to bed or unfit for work He has been
laid up for a few days because of a cold.
lame duck
- public official who has a short time left to serve in office
and therefore has less power than before He is a lame duck president
so it is difficult for him to get things accomplished.
land on one`s feet
- come out of a bad situation successfully He always
manages to land on his feet no matter how difficult the situation is.
lap up
- eat or drink with the tongue The dog lapped up the
milk that his master had given him.
lap up
- take in eagerly He lapped up the praise that his
boss gave him for the recently completed project.
lash out
- try suddenly to hit someone He suddenly lashed out
and hit the man who was sitting beside him.
lash out
- attack someone with words They were walking along
the beach when she suddenly lashed out in anger at her boyfriend.
last but not least
- in the last place but not the least important Last
but not least he came up to the front of the class to receive his report card.
last straw
- the last insult or mistake that one can endure and which then
causes some reaction The fourth time he came late was the last straw
and we finally fired him.
last word
- the last remark in an argument, the final say in deciding
something She always expects to have the last word when she and her
husband go to the store to buy something important.
laugh off
- not take seriously He laughed off the attempt of his
boss to tell him that he should try and come to work on time.
(not) lay a finger on someone
- not touch someone, not bother to do something (not even a
little) He was told by the police never to lay a finger on his wife
again.
lay an egg
- fail to win the interest or favor of an
audience Although he was supposed to be a good magician, his
performance was terrible and it laid an egg with the audience.
lay away
- save They are trying to lay away some money for
their holiday next year.
layaway plan
- a plan in which one pays some money down and then pays the
rest little by little and the store holds the article until the full price has
been paid He decided to buy the television set on the department
store`s layaway plan.
lay down the law
- tell someone what to do using your power or
influence The new management plans to lay down the law to the workers
regarding long lunch breaks.
lay eyes on
- see I have never laid eyes on a more beautiful dog
in my life.
lay hands on something
- get hold of or find something If I can lay my hands
on a slide projector I will show you the pictures of my trip tonight.
lay hands on someone
- do violence to, harm, hurt He said that if he ever
lays hands on the person who stole his car he will take him directly to the
police.
lay hold of
- get possession of If I can lay hold of a car this
weekend we can go for a drive.
lay in
- store up a supply of something, get and keep for future
use They are trying to lay in as much food as possible before winter
comes.
lay (light) into
- attack physically, do (eat) something with energy He
laid into the steak as soon as the waiter brought it to his table.
lay (light) into
- attack with words As soon as I came into work this
morning she laid (lit) into me about my poor sales performance last month.
lay it on the line
- say plainly so that there can be no doubt, tell
truthfully The librarian finally had to lay it on the line and told
everyone not to bring drinks into the library.
lay it on thick
- praise someone too much He really began to lay it on
thick when he met me at the party.
lay low
- hide, keep out of sight for awhile He decided to lay
low for awhile until his friend forgot that he had damaged his car.
lay off (someone)
- get rid of workers when business is bad Six hundred
workers at the automobile factory were recently laid off.
lay off
- stop bothering, leave alone The players were told by
the coach to lay off teasing the new player so that he could relax before the
game.
lay off
- stop using or taking (drugs/cigarettes) I was told
by my doctor to lay off smoking or I would be very sick in the future.
lay one`s cards on the table
- let someone know one`s position and feelings openly, deal
honestly about something He decided to lay his cards on the table and
tell his boss about the job offer from the other company.
lay out
- spend or pay some money He will have to lay out a
lot of money for his new apartment.
lay out
- plan something They will lay out their plan for the
new building at the next meeting.
lay over
- arrive in one place and wait some time before continuing a
journey We were told that we will have to lay over in London for nine
hours before we go on to Kenya.
lay to rest
- get rid of, put away permanently, stop They have
been trying to lay to rest the rumors about the financial problems in the
company.
lay up
- take out of active service, put in a boat dock or a
garage The weather was getting cold so they decided to lay up their
boat for the winter.
lay up
- collect a supply of something, save for future use,
store They are trying to lay up some canned fruit for the winter.
lay waste
- destroy and leave in ruins, wreck The army troops
laid waste to the enemy territory.
lead a dog`s life
- live a hard life, work hard and be treated
unkindly He says that he has been leading a dog`s life since he
started his new job.
lead a merry chase
- delay or escape capture by someone, make a person work hard
He led the investigators on a merry chase before they finally
arrested him.
lead by the nose
- have full control of, make or persuade someone to do anything
you want He isn`t very aggressive and always lets his boss lead him by
the nose.
lead off
- begin, start, open The golfer was the first to lead
off in the tournament.
lead on
- insincerely encourage I think he was leading me on
when he told me about the new job.
lead the way
- go before and show how to go somewhere, guide I had
to lead the way because nobody else knew where the new office was located.
lean on
- pressure someone by blackmailing or threats of physical
violence to make the person comply with a request The gang decided to
lean on the small shop owner to get him to sell his property.
learn the ropes
- learn how to do a job He is a new employee and is
still learning the ropes.
leave a bad taste in one`s mouth
- leave a bad impression, make one feel disgusted The
way that the company fired the workers left a bad taste in everyone`s mouth.
leave alone
- don`t disturb someone Please leave me alone so I can
finish this essay.
leave behind
- leave something somewhere I left my coat behind in
the restaurant.
leave hanging (in the air)
- leave undecided or unsettled Whether or not they
will be leaving next year was left hanging in the air at the end of the meeting.
leave (someone) holding the bag
- leave someone else to take the blame He left me
holding the bag when he ran away from the accident.
leave in the lurch
- desert or leave alone and in trouble, refuse to help or
support someone He left me in the lurch when he didn`t come over to
help me although he had promised to earlier in the day.
leave no stone unturned
- try in every way, do everything possible The police
left no stone unturned when they were looking for the little girl who was lost.
leave out
- omit He told me about the accident but he left out
some of the main points.
leave (let) well enough alone
- be satisfied with something that is good enough You
should let well enough alone and be happy with your work schedule the way it is.
left-handed compliment
- an ambiguous compliment interpreted as offensive He
gave her a left-handed compliment when he said that her dyed hair looked nice.
leg man
- someone who performs messenger services, an errand
boy He was working as a leg man for the motion picture company.
leg to stand on
- a firm foundation of facts, facts to support one`s
claims She doesn`t have a leg to stand on as far as her excuses for
not finishing her work goes.
leg work
- physical work He was forced to do all of the leg
work preparing for the meeting because his assistant was sick.
let alone
- certainly not I don`t have enough money to go to a
movie let alone go on a holiday.
let bygones be bygones
- forget about problems that happened in the past We
need to let bygones be bygones and forget about our past differences.
let down
- fail to do as well as expected, disappoint He let
down his parents when he failed the university entrance exams.
let down easy
- refuse or say no to someone in a pleasant way I will
talk to her tomorrow and try and let her down easy about her not getting the
promotion.
let down one`s hair
- relax, act freely and naturally Everybody at the
party let down their hair and had a good time.
let (something) go
- pay no attention to, neglect She seems to be letting
her appearance go since she lost her job.
let go
- allow something to pass, do nothing about
something Although I was angry at his remark I decided to let it go.
let go
- discharge from a job, fire The company has decided
to let go several hundred workers in order to become profitable again.
let go of
- release He let go of the rope and the suitcase fell
from the bus.
let grass grow under one`s feet
- be idle, be lazy, waste time He is always working
hard and is not the type of person to let grass grow under his feet.
let (someone) have it
- hit someone hard He really let the other man have it
when they got into a fight on the bus.
let it all hang out
- not to disguise anything, let the truth be known She
decided to let it all hang out and told her boss about the mistakes she had made
with the new sales account.
let it lay
- forget it, leave it alone You should let it lay and
stop worrying about what she did to you last year.
let it rip
- become involved and make the most of something, really try to
win He let it rip and set off from the shore in the motorboat.
let loose
- set free, give up one`s hold on something, release something
being held They decided to let loose the injured bird that they had
found in the park.
let (someone) know
- tell, inform Let me know when you are ready to go to
the movie.
let off
- discharge (a gun), explode The children let off many
firecrackers during the festival.
let off steam
- get rid of your extra energy or strong feelings by doing some
activity He was very angry at first but he has let off a lot of steam
and has calmed down now.
let (someone) off the hook
- excuse someone from a penalty or promise He let me
off the hook and I didn`t have to stay after work and help clean the office.
let on
- reveal, inform Please don`t let on that you saw me
at the movie last night.
let on
- try to make people believe something, pretend He
tried to let on that he didn`t want the job but actually he does.
let out
- allow to go out or escape I let out our dog this
morning and he hasn`t come home yet.
let out
- allow to be known, tell They let out the details of
the restructuring plan late last night so we haven`t had time to talk about them
yet.
let out
- make longer or looser (clothes), allow a rope to slip out
little by little I had to go to the tailors to have them let out my
sports jacket.
let out
- dismiss or be dismissed (from class or practice
etc.) Everyone was let out from class early yesterday because of the
bad weather.
let (something) ride
- continue without changing a situation We should
forget about his recent problems at work and just let the whole matter ride.
let sleeping dogs lie
- don`t make trouble if you don`t have to You should
let sleeping dogs lie and not worry about what she said to you last summer.
let the cat out of the bag
- reveal a secret Don`t let the cat out of the bag
about the surprise party for the boss.
let the chips fall where they may
- don`t worry about the results of your actions I am
not going to worry about whether or not the company will go broke or not. I will
let the chips fall where they may.
let up
- become less or weaker, become slower or stop The
rain finally let up around noon so we were able to go back outside.
let up
- do less or go slower or stop, stop working too
hard He was told by his doctor to let up on his work schedule or he
will become sick in the future.
lie in state
- after death a famous person lies in a state of honor (in an
open coffin) so the public can see their body The President lay in
state for three days after his death.
lie in wait
- watch from hiding in order to attack or surprise
someone The police decided to lie in wait for the bank robbers to
appear at the bank.
lie low
- stay quietly out of sight, try not to attract
attention He is very angry at you so I think that you should lie low
for a few days until he calms down.
life of Riley
- a soft easy life, pleasant way of living He has been
living the life of Riley since he retired from his job last year.
lift a finger (hand)
- do something, do one`s share, help Although he is a
nice person he will never lift a finger to help anyone else.
light up
- suddenly look pleased and happy As soon as I told
him about our summer holiday plans his face lit up and he started smiling.
like father, like son
- a son usually acts like his father Like father, like
son the man said as he watched the boy playing baseball exactly like his father.
like a ton of bricks
- strongly or forcefully The news of his retirement
hit me like a ton of bricks.
like crazy
- very fast, with great energy They were running like
crazy but still they couldn`t catch up with their friend.
like hell
- with much effort and energy, not so, untrue I had to
run like hell this morning in order to catch the bus for work.
like mad
- very fast, with great energy I worked like mad but I
was unable to finish the project by noon as I had hoped.
like water off a duck`s back
- without effect, without changing one`s feelings or
opinion He always criticizes his friend who always ignores it so it
falls away like water off a duck`s back.
line up
- take places in line or formation, stand one behind
another We were forced to line up in front of the movie theater for
over one hour.
line up
- adjust correctly First he lined up the two pieces of
wood before he nailed them together.
line up
- arrange, make ready for action We were unable to
line up a speaker for Sunday evening so we will cancel the meeting.
lip service
- support shown by words only and not by action They
paid lip service to the proposal but I don`t think that they really support it.
little by little
- gradually He broke his leg while skiing but little
by little it is getting better.
little frog in a big pond
- an unimportant person in a large group or
organization He transferred to the headquarters branch but he is a
little frog in a big pond and nobody knows him now.
little pitchers have big ears
- little children often overhear things that they are not
supposed to hear Little pitchers have big ears she said when she saw
her daughter standing at the door listening to her talking to her husband.
live down
- remove blame or distrust by good conduct, cause to be forgiven
by not repeating something He is trying to live down his reputation of
being a hard person to work for.
live from hand to mouth
- live on little money Her brother is an artist and
has to live from hand to mouth because he has no money.
live high off the hog
- live very luxuriously or comfortably He has been
living high off the hog since he won the money in the lottery.
live it up
- have a good time He likes to live it up every
weekend when he gets paid.
live out of a suitcase
- stay away from your home with only the belongings in your
suitcase I dislike this job because I am often on a business trip and
must live out of my suitcase.
live up to
- come up to, agree with, act according to He is
trying very hard to live up to his reputation as a smart busnessman.
living end
- great, fantastic, the ultimate She said that her new
boyfriend was the living end.
loaded
- have lots of money His new boss is really loaded.
lock the barn door after the horse is
stolen
- be careful or try to make something safe when it is too
late If you try and prevent a flood after the rains have started it is
like locking the barn door after the horse is stolen.
lock up
- to be assured of success The candidate has already
locked up the nomination to be a candidate for president in the next election.
long face
- a sad look, a disappointed look He had a long face
when he came into work this morning. What is the matter with him?
long haul
- a long distance or trip He is a long-haul trucker
and is always out of town working.
long haul
- a long period of time during which work continues or something
is done He has decided to stay here for the long haul and will not
return to his home country for awhile.
long shot
- a bet or other risk taken though not likely to
succeed It was a long shot that he would get the job so he was very
happy when he did get it.
look after someone
- take care or attend to someone She has been looking
after her mother since her recent illness.
look a gift horse in the mouth
- complain if a gift is not perfect Even if you don`t
like the present from the company you shouldn`t complain. Remember don`t look a
gift horse in the mouth.
look at the world through rose-colored
glasses
- see only the good things about something, be too
optimistic I told him not to be so naive and always look at the world
through rose-colored glasses.
look down one`s nose at someone or
something
- show your dislike of someone or something He always
looks down his nose at the other members of his class.
look down on someone
- regard with contempt or a feeling of superiority She
looks down on the activities and life of most small towns.
look for
- think likely, expect They are looking for John to
become the next sales director of the company.
look for
- try to find, search for, hunt She has been looking
for her credit card all morning but she can`t find it.
look forward to something
- anticipate with pleasure He`s been looking forward
to the concert for a long time.
look in on
- go to see, make a short visit with, make a call
on Could you please look in on the baby and see if she is sleeping.
look into
- investigate or check something They have been
looking into the cause of the accident for many months.
look like a million dollars
- look well and prosperous, appear healthy and
happy He was looking like a million dollars when I saw him at the
party last weekend.
look like the cat that ate (swallowed) the
canary
- seem very self-satisified like you have just had some kind of
success He looked like the cat that ate the canary when he came in
with a smile on his face.
look on
- be a spectator There were over a hundred people who
gathered to look on after the accident.
look out
- take care, be careful, be on guard Look out! There
is a large truck coming down the highway.
look out
- be alert or watchful, keep looking for
something Could you please look out for any old Elvis Presley records
that you may find.
look out
- provide protection and care Please look out for my
sister when she stays with you this summer.
look over something
- inspect, survey or examine Please take some time to
look over these documents before you sign them.
look to
- attend to, get ready for, take care of She is a
wonderful nurse and spends a great deal of time looking to the needs of her
patients.
look to
- go for help to, depend on He always looks to his
mother for help when he has a problem.
look (something) up
- search for something in a dictionary or other
book I`ll look up their name in the telephone book.
look (someone) up
- seek and find When I was in New York I looked up my
friend from university.
look up to
- think of someone as a good example to copy, respect
someone I always look up to the president of our company as someone I
would like to be like.
loose ends
- without something definite to do He has been at
loose ends since he lost his job.
lord it over
- act as the superior and master of someone, be bossy over
someone She likes to lord it over the other members of the staff since
she became a supervisor.
lose face
- be embarrassed or ashamed by an error or failure, lose
dignity He lost face when his employees decided not to support him
during the meeting.
lose ground
- go backward, become weaker, not improve The
government has been losing ground in their fight against inflation.
lose heart
- become discouraged She has begun to lose heart in
her studies to learn the piano.
lose one`s marbles
- go crazy or act irrationally He seems to have lost
his marbles and doesn`t make any sense at all.
lose one`s shirt
- lose a lot of money I think he is going to lose his
shirt on that new business venture.
lose one`s way
- become lost The first time she went to New York City
she lost her way.
lose one`s temper
- become angry He lost his temper when the child broke
the dish.
lose out
- fail to win, miss first place in a contest He lost
out on a chance to go to Mexico City because he was too busy with other things.
lose sight of
- forget, fail to see Don't lose sight of the main
reason that you are planning to go on the business trip.
lose touch with
- fail to keep in contact or communication with
someone I lost touch with everyone who I worked with at my summer job.
lose track of
- lose contact with someone (or something) I`ve lost
track of many of my friends from high school.
loudmouth
- a noisy, boastful or foolish talker He is a
loudmouth and nobody at work likes him.
louse up
- throw into confusion, make a mess of, spoil She
loused up her job interview and has no chance at all now to get the job.
lover`s lane
- a hidden road or walkway where lovers walk or park in the
evening After the movie they drove to the local lover`s lane.
lowdown
- the inside facts of a matter, the total truth I met
with him after the presentation and he gave me the lowdown on the new computer
equipment.
luck out
- suddenly get lucky when it looks like you won`t
succeed He lucked out with the concert tickets and was able to get
four of them.
lucky star
- a certain star or planet which is thought to bring a person
good luck and success in life You should thank your lucky star that
you don`t have to go to work on a rainy day like today. 
Idiom Quizzes - L
| 