Commonly used english part 93 potx

Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 921 to the nth degree - to the greatest degree possible, extremely We made an effort to the nth degree but we were unable to successfully complete the project. to the tune of (an amount of money) - to the amount or extent of an amount of money The damage that he did to his car was to the tune of about $2000. to the wall - into a place from which there is no escape The credit agency pushed the man to the wall and he finally had to declare bankruptcy. to whom it may concern - to the person to whom something applies I do not know the name of the sales manager so I will address the letter, "to whom it may concern." to wit - namely, that is to say There were several important people at the dinner, to wit the mayor, the city manager, and the chief financial officer of the city. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 922 . toe the line/mark - to obey the rules and do what one is expected to do The children were forced to toe the line when the new teacher arrived. toing and froing (on something) - to be moving back and forth on an issue, to be changing one's mind about something My father and mother have been toing and froing for several weeks about whether or not I can go to Japan to study. tone (something) down - to make something less harsh or strong, to moderate something The union leader was forced to tone down his language after the strike became violent. tongue-in-cheek - insincere, joking The speaker made several tongue-in-cheek remarks about the politician. too bad - worthy of sorrow or regret It is too bad that the university decided to close the bookstore last year. too big for one`s britches/boots - to feel more important than one really is Our new boss is too big for his britches and needs to change his behavior. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 923 too clever by half - to be very confident of your own intelligence but in a way that irritates other people My friend is too clever by half. He thinks that he knows everything which is very annoying. too close for comfort - to be dangerously close The edge of the road was too close for comfort so I moved the car away from it. too good to be true - to be almost unbelievable The offer was too good to be true and I did not believe that it was possible. too many irons in the fire - to have too many things that you are trying to do My friend has too many irons in the fire at the moment and has no time for other things. too much of a good thing - to be more of a good thing than is good or useful The new company policy was too much of a good thing and finally they decided to change it. toot/blow one's own horn - to boast or praise oneself My friend is always tooting his own horn when he thinks that he has done something well. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 924 tooth and nail - fiercely, as hard as possible The man decided to fight tooth and nail to transfer to another department of the company. top-drawer - to be of the best or most important kind When my friend buys a new car he always buys a top-drawer model. top-notch - to be excellent, to be the best They had a top-notch cook at the restaurant but he left last month. top (someone or something) - to do or be better than someone or something The young woman topped everyone in her class with the excellent job that she did in her exam. top (something) off - to add to the difficulty of a situation or something I lost my car keys and to top it off I also lost my wallet. top (something) off with (something) - to end or terminate something with something else The conference was topped off by a large dinner on the last day. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 925 topsy-turvy - to be upside down, to be in disarray My apartment was topsy-turvy so I stayed home to clean it up. torn between (two things) - to be troubled by a choice or dilemma I was torn between going to the library or going to a movie. toss a salad - to mix the ingredients of a salad with dressing My friend asked me to toss the salad when we were making dinner. toss off (an answer) - to make or say something easily without trying or thinking hard The boy was able to easily toss off the answer to the question when the teacher asked him. toss off (something) - to drink something rapidly We tossed off a couple of drinks before we went home for the evening. toss off (something) - to throw something off of oneself or something I tossed off my jacket before I got into the car. toss one's cookies - to vomit I tossed my cookies after eating the bad food at the restaurant. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 926 toss (someone) out of (somewhere) - to force someone to leave, to dismiss someone The boys were tossed out of the restaurant for their bad behavior. touch Idioms touch a sore spot/point - to mention a sensitive matter that will upset someone I touched a sore spot when I began to talk about my friend's problems at work. touch and go - uncertain, in a dangerous situation It was touch and go whether the girl was going to survive after the car accident. touch base with (someone) - to talk to someone, to meet someone briefly I plan to touch base with my cousin before I go to the wedding next week. touch off (someone) - to make someone very angry I touched off my friend when I said something that she did not like. touch off (something) - to cause something to fire or explode by lighting the fuse The fire at the oil refinery touched off an explosion that destroyed many tanks. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 927 touch off (something) - to start something The arrest of the labor leader touched off a riot among the workers. touch on/upon (something) - to speak or write briefly about something The news article about the company touched on their previous legal problems. touch up (something) - to paint over small imperfections of something I asked the repair shop to touch up several places on my car where the paint was scratched. touch up (something) - to improve something with small additions or changes My essay will be finished after I touch up some of the weak spots. . touched (in the head) - to be crazy The woman is touched in the head and it is difficult to know what she will do next. touched by (someone or something) - to be emotionally affected or moved by someone or something Everybody in the movie theater was touched by the performance of the dying actress. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 928 a tough act to follow - a good performance that is difficult to follow The first singer was a tough act to follow and the other singers in the contest were nervous. a tough break - an unlucky event, a misfortune The musician received a tough break when he became sick immediately before the music contest. tough it out - to endure a difficult situation I want to quit my job but for now I plan to tough it out. tough row to hoe - a difficult task to undertake Learning the written language of China was a tough row to hoe for the university students. tourist trap - a place that is overpriced and attracts tourists My friend thinks that Hawaii is a tourist trap and he does not want to go there for his holiday. a tower of strength - a person who provides strong and reliable support The man has been a tower of strength to his sister since her husband died. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 929 toy with (someone or something) - to tease someone, to play or fiddle with something The woman in the bank was toying with me when she began to ask me many questions. track (someone or something) down - to search for someone or something I have been trying to track down an old Beatles album for many months. trade in (something) - to exchange something old or used for something new My friend traded in his old car for a new one. trade on (something) - to use a fact or a situation to one's advantage The woman trades on her beauty and never helps other people. train one's sights on (something) - to have something as a goal, to direct something or oneself toward a goal The young man is training his sights on joining the top team in the city. travel light - to travel with very little luggage We always travel light when we go on a holiday. travesty of justice - an act of the legal system that is an insult to the system of justice The court trial was a travesty of justice and nobody was happy with the results. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 930 tread on (someone`s) toes - to do something that offends someone I do not want to tread on my supervisor's toes because she is the most powerful person in this company. treat (someone) - to pay for someone else My friend treated me to a dinner at a nice restaurant. trial and error - a way of solving a problem by trying different possible solutions until you find one that works We worked by trial and error until we found a solution to the parking problems at our apartment building. trial balloon - an announcement or experiment with the purpose of finding out what people think about an idea or product We sent up a trial balloon to see who would support our plan to introduce the new product. trials and tribulations - problems and tests of one's courage and perseverance My aunt has gone through many trials and tribulations in her life. trick of the trade - a smart/quick/skillful way of doing something The man knows many tricks of the trade in the publishing business. . fiercely, as hard as possible The man decided to fight tooth and nail to transfer to another department of the company. top-drawer - to be of the best or most important kind When my friend. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 925 topsy-turvy - to be upside down, to be in disarray My apartment was topsy-turvy so I stayed home to clean it up. torn between (two things) - to be. an old Beatles album for many months. trade in (something) - to exchange something old or used for something new My friend traded in his old car for a new one. trade on (something)