dial back notifications
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All Types idiom phrasal-verb proverb
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phrasal-verb

dial back notifications

Meaning
to reduce the frequency of alerts or messages
Example
I had to **dial back notifications** because my phone kept buzzing all day.
phrasal-verb

think outside boundaries

Meaning
to think creatively without restrictions or limitations
Example
Designers must **think outside boundaries** to stay innovative.
idiom

happy as a clam

Meaning
very content and comfortable
Example
She looked **happy as a clam** on her vacation.
phrasal-verb

draw up a treaty

Meaning
to prepare an official document or agreement
Example
Diplomats worked late into the night to **draw up a treaty** between the two nations.
B2 idiom

close but no cigar

Almost correct or successful but not quite
Meaning
Almost correct or successful but not quite
Example
He was close to winning the competition, but close but no cigar.
He was close to winning the competition, but close but no cigar.
idiom

feel ten feet tall

Meaning
to feel very proud and confident
Example
He **felt ten feet tall** after completing the challenge.
idiom

read someone like a book

Meaning
to easily understand someone's thoughts and intentions
Example
She can **read him like a book** and always knows when he's lying.
idiom

Sow the seeds

Meaning
To begin a process that will develop in the future.
Example
Her small donations **sowed the seeds** of a larger charity movement.
phrasal-verb

sign on with

Meaning
to officially agree to work or collaborate with someone
Example
The firm has just **signed on with** a global distributor.
idiom

Burn rate

Meaning
The rate at which a startup spends its capital.
Example
Our **burn rate** is too high; we need to cut costs.
idiom

lost in space

Meaning
confused or not paying attention
Example
He looked completely **lost in space** during the lecture.
phrasal-verb

take over for

Meaning
to temporarily handle someone’s virtual responsibilities
Example
Can you **take over for** me while I’m offline?
idiom

bring down

Meaning
to make someone feel sad or to reduce something
Example
Don’t let one rude comment **bring down** your confidence.
idiom

stand tall

Meaning
to act in a proud and confident way
Example
She **stood tall** despite all the criticism.
idiom

black sheep

Meaning
a person who is considered a disgrace to a group or family
Example
He is the **black sheep** of the family.
idiom

keep someone’s word

Meaning
to do what you promise to do
Example
You can trust him; he always **keeps his word**.
idiom

turn dreams into reality

Meaning
to achieve something one has long desired
Example
With hard work and dedication, you can **turn your dreams into reality**.
idiom

a roof over your head

Meaning
a place to live; a shelter
Example
At least we have **a roof over our heads**.
idiom

keep all your eggs in one basket

Meaning
to rely on a single plan or source of success
Example
Don’t **keep all your eggs in one basket** when investing.
phrasal-verb

hint at

Meaning
to suggest or imply something indirectly about the future
Example
The CEO’s comments **hint at** a possible expansion next year.
idiom

pay through the nose

Meaning
to pay a very high price for something
Example
We **paid through the nose** for that concert ticket.
idiom

get the show on the road

Meaning
to begin an activity or journey
Example
Let’s **get the show on the road** and start our trip.
phrasal-verb

point away from

Meaning
to direct attention away from something
Example
He tried to **point away from** the real issue.
idiom

show appreciation

Meaning
to express gratitude or recognition
Example
We should **show appreciation** for our teachers more often.
phrasal-verb

lift out of poverty

Meaning
to help people or nations escape from poverty
Example
International aid has helped **lift millions out of poverty** worldwide.
idiom

join up with

Meaning
to become part of a group or team
Example
She’ll **join up with** the outreach crew tomorrow.
phrasal-verb

open relations with

Meaning
to start official or friendly relations with another country
Example
After years of tension, the two countries agreed to **open relations with** each other.
phrasal-verb

speak up for

Meaning
to defend or support yourself or someone else confidently
Example
You need to **speak up for** yourself when you know you’re right.
idiom

a taste of your own medicine

Meaning
to experience the same unpleasantness you caused to others
Example
He was rude to everyone, but now he’s getting **a taste of his own medicine**.
phrasal-verb

live off

Meaning
to depend on a particular kind of food for living
Example
During college, I mostly **lived off** instant noodles.
idiom

to be fair

Meaning
used to introduce a balanced or just opinion
Example
**To be fair**, she did try her best.
phrasal-verb

deal over

Meaning
to repeat the distribution of cards or tasks
Example
Let’s **deal over**; someone missed a card.
idiom

go off the deep end

Meaning
to become very angry or emotional suddenly
Example
She **went off the deep end** when she heard the bad news.
idiom

alien invasion

Meaning
a sudden arrival or overwhelming presence of something unfamiliar
Example
The mall felt like an **alien invasion** during the sale.
idiom

scare the living daylights out of someone

Meaning
to frighten someone very much
Example
The horror movie **scared the living daylights out of** me.
idiom

doomscrolling

Meaning
endlessly scrolling through bad news or negative content online
Example
I stayed up late **doomscrolling** last night.
phrasal-verb

build upon research

Meaning
to use previous studies as a base for innovation
Example
Scientists often **build upon research** to create groundbreaking solutions.
phrasal-verb

heal from

Meaning
to emotionally recover from pain, trauma, or loss
Example
It takes time to **heal from** emotional wounds.
phrasal-verb

point around

Meaning
to show multiple directions or places
Example
The guide **pointed around** the historical landmarks.
phrasal-verb

chill yourself out

Meaning
to make yourself calm and relaxed
Example
You need to **chill yourself out** instead of worrying about everything.
idiom

machine learning

Meaning
A method of data analysis that automates analytical model building.
Example
We used **machine learning** to predict customer behavior.
idiom

all smiles

Meaning
very happy and cheerful
Example
He was **all smiles** after hearing the compliment.
phrasal-verb

shout at

Meaning
to raise your voice in anger at someone
Example
Don’t **shout at** me, I didn’t do anything wrong!
phrasal-verb

light upon

Meaning
to discover or notice something that brings appreciation or gratitude
Example
I **lighted upon** an old letter that reminded me of your kindness.
idiom

pushing the envelope

Meaning
to go beyond the usual limits or boundaries; to innovate
Example
The new startup is really **pushing the envelope** with its groundbreaking technology.
idiom

confide in someone

Meaning
to trust someone enough to tell them secrets
Example
She only **confides in** her best friend.
idiom

lose touch

Meaning
to stop communicating with someone
Example
We **lost touch** after college.
idiom

honor one's promise

Meaning
to keep a promise or commitment
Example
She **honored her promise** to visit the orphanage.
phrasal-verb

point behind

Meaning
to indicate something located at the back
Example
He **pointed behind** to show the exit door.
phrasal-verb

cut across inequalities

Meaning
to affect or involve people of all social and economic levels
Example
Climate change issues **cut across inequalities** and impact everyone.
phrasal-verb

turn out

Meaning
to attend or participate in an event
Example
Thousands of people **turned out** for the annual cultural parade.
phrasal-verb

step on

Meaning
to press down with your foot; to offend or hurt someone's feelings
Example
Be careful not to **step on** anyone’s toes during the meeting.
idiom

make small talk

Meaning
to have a casual conversation about unimportant topics
Example
We started to **make small talk** while waiting for the meeting to begin.
idiom

burst with energy

Meaning
to have a lot of energy and enthusiasm
Example
The children were **bursting with energy** during the game.
idiom

good vibes only

Meaning
to focus only on positive thoughts and energy
Example
This year, I’m living by the motto **good vibes only**.
phrasal-verb

push through with hope

Meaning
to continue trying with faith and optimism
Example
You can **push through with hope** and reach your goal.
phrasal-verb

hang on to

Meaning
to keep something; not to lose hope or belief
Example
You must **hang on to** your vision even in hard times.
phrasal-verb

patch up bugs

Meaning
to fix small errors or issues in software
Example
Developers are working to **patch up bugs** found in the latest release.
phrasal-verb

take part in

Meaning
to join or participate actively in something
Example
Students should **take part in** group discussions to learn better.
idiom

cracks in the wall

Meaning
signs of problems or weaknesses in a system or relationship
Example
There are **cracks in the wall** of their friendship lately.
idiom

sandboxing

Meaning
A security mechanism used to run applications in an isolated environment to prevent potential damage to the system.
Example
By using **sandboxing**, the malware was contained and couldn't affect the rest of the system.
idiom

back up

Meaning
to support or to make a copy of important data
Example
Can you **back up** my explanation during the meeting?
phrasal-verb

carry on bravely

Meaning
to continue with courage despite emotional hardship
Example
He chose to **carry on bravely** after losing his loved one.
idiom

roll up one's sleeves

Meaning
to prepare to work hard or take on a challenge
Example
We need to **roll up our sleeves** if we want to finish this task on time.
idiom

feel off-color

Meaning
to feel slightly ill
Example
I’m feeling a bit **off-color** today.
phrasal-verb

climb toward success

Meaning
to make steady progress toward achieving success
Example
Through hard work and persistence, she continues to **climb toward success**.
idiom

run circles around someone

Meaning
to be much better than someone at something
Example
She can **run circles around** anyone in the debate team.
phrasal-verb

get into shape

Meaning
to become physically fit and healthy through exercise
Example
He started running every morning to **get into shape**.
idiom

a fool and his money are soon parted

Meaning
people who are careless with their money will lose it quickly
Example
He spent all his money on useless gadgets; **a fool and his money are soon parted**.
idiom

put your faith in

Meaning
to trust or believe in someone or something
Example
She decided to **put her faith in** her friends to help her.
phrasal-verb

set up a coalition

Meaning
to form an alliance between parties or groups for political purposes
Example
Opposition leaders worked together to **set up a coalition** government.
idiom

chatterbox

Meaning
a person who talks a lot
Example
My little sister is a real **chatterbox**.
phrasal-verb

phase through

Meaning
to move gradually through stages of change
Example
The company plans to **phase through** several steps to modernize its operations.
idiom

nitpick

Meaning
to find small, unimportant faults in something
Example
Stop **nitpicking** every little mistake I make!
phrasal-verb

shine through challenges

Meaning
to maintain positivity and confidence during difficulties
Example
She always manages to **shine through challenges** with a smile.
phrasal-verb

branch off into

Meaning
to start doing something different from your main work or area of expertise
Example
After several years in finance, he decided to **branch off into** consulting.
idiom

read between the lines

Meaning
to understand the hidden meaning behind something
Example
She said everything was fine, but if you **read between the lines**, you could tell she was upset.
idiom

tear down

Meaning
to demolish or dismantle something
Example
They plan to **tear down** the old shed this weekend.
idiom

take the fall

Meaning
to accept blame for something, often to protect others.
Example
He agreed to **take the fall** for the team’s mistake.
idiom

ahead of time

Meaning
before the expected or planned time
Example
She finished her work **ahead of time**.
phrasal-verb

switch off from

Meaning
to disconnect mentally from work or stress
Example
She **switches off from** emails after yoga class.
idiom

Move heaven and earth

Meaning
To do everything possible to achieve something.
Example
They **moved heaven and earth** to save the project.
phrasal-verb

come over to

Meaning
to visit someone at their place
Example
Why don’t you **come over to** my house this weekend?
phrasal-verb

clean out

Meaning
to completely remove unwanted things from a place
Example
Volunteers worked to **clean out** the polluted river.
phrasal-verb

climb up

Meaning
to move upward using hands and feet
Example
The children **climbed up** the tree to get the kite.
idiom

cold war

Meaning
a state of political hostility and tension between countries without actual warfare
Example
During the 20th century, the United States and the Soviet Union were engaged in a **cold war**.
phrasal-verb

vet out

Meaning
to examine something thoroughly to remove weak options
Example
We **vet out** risky proposals before they reach the board.
phrasal-verb

back down from

Meaning
to withdraw from a position or opinion due to pressure
Example
He never **backs down from** what he believes in.
idiom

the long arm of the law

Meaning
the power and reach of the law to catch criminals
Example
**The long arm of the law** finally caught the escaped prisoner.
phrasal-verb

hand off

Meaning
to transfer a task or responsibility to another person
Example
I’ll **hand off** this report to the marketing team for review.
idiom

A red herring

Meaning
A misleading clue or distraction intended to divert attention from the real issue.
Example
The new law was just a **red herring** to distract from the corruption scandal.
phrasal-verb

pool resources for

Meaning
to combine money, labor, or materials for a joint project
Example
The governments **pooled resources for** regional development projects.
idiom

gray matter

Meaning
intelligence or brainpower
Example
It takes a lot of **gray matter** to solve such a complex problem.
idiom

rocket science

Meaning
something very complicated or difficult to understand
Example
Coding isn’t **rocket science** if you practice regularly.
phrasal-verb

falter on

Meaning
to hesitate or make mistakes while doing something
Example
She **faltered on** a few words during her speech.
idiom

buckle under the strain

Meaning
to give in to stress or pressure
Example
She refused to **buckle under the strain** and kept going.
phrasal-verb

throw on

Meaning
to put on clothes quickly and carelessly
Example
She just **threw on** a sweater and ran out the door.
phrasal-verb

open out of yourself

Meaning
to express your true feelings freely; to become emotionally available
Example
It's healthy to **open out of yourself** when you're feeling overwhelmed.
idiom

Nothing ventured, nothing gained

Meaning
you can’t achieve anything if you don’t take risks
Example
He decided to invest because **nothing ventured, nothing gained**.
idiom

burst of inspiration

Meaning
a sudden feeling of creativity or motivation
Example
He wrote the poem in a **burst of inspiration**.
idiom

get off on the right foot

Meaning
to start a relationship or activity in a positive way
Example
We **got off on the right foot** during our first meeting.
idiom

balance of trade

Meaning
the difference between a country's exports and imports
Example
A negative **balance of trade** can weaken a nation's currency.
idiom

hold the fort

Meaning
to be in charge while someone is away
Example
Can you **hold the fort** while I'm at the meeting?
idiom

the tip of the iceberg

Meaning
a small visible part of a much larger problem
Example
The few complaints we received are just **the tip of the iceberg**.
idiom

a rollercoaster of emotions

Meaning
to experience very high and very low emotional states in a short time
Example
The week was **a rollercoaster of emotions**, with moments of joy and sadness.
idiom

head to head

Meaning
to be in direct competition or disagreement
Example
The two leaders went **head to head** in the debate.
phrasal-verb

speak up for yourself

Meaning
to express your opinions or defend your feelings confidently
Example
You need to **speak up for yourself** if something feels unfair.
idiom

game changer

Meaning
an idea or event that changes everything significantly
Example
The new app was a real **game changer** for the company.
phrasal-verb

plan ahead for

Meaning
to prepare for something in advance
Example
We must **plan ahead for** deadlines to avoid last-minute stress.
phrasal-verb

tear into

Meaning
to attack or criticize someone fiercely
Example
The coach **tore into** the players after their poor performance.
idiom

map out

Meaning
to plan something in detail
Example
We should **map out** our marketing strategy for the next quarter.
phrasal-verb

take over responsibilities

Meaning
to start having control or responsibility for something
Example
After the manager resigned, she **took over responsibilities** temporarily.
idiom

clean up your act

Meaning
to start behaving more responsibly.
Example
You need to **clean up your act** if you want that promotion.
phrasal-verb

breathe through fear

Meaning
to calm yourself by breathing slowly during fear or anxiety
Example
When panic hits, **breathe through fear** to steady your nerves.
idiom

keep something under wraps

Meaning
to keep something secret
Example
They managed to **keep the project under wraps** until the launch day.
idiom

chart a new course

Meaning
to plan a new direction or strategy
Example
After the crisis, the CEO decided to **chart a new course**.
idiom

to put one's foot in one's mouth

Meaning
to say something embarrassing or inappropriate by mistake
Example
I really **put my foot in my mouth** when I mentioned her ex-boyfriend.
idiom

Early adopter

Meaning
Someone who starts using a new product before others.
Example
**Early adopters** often help startups refine their products.
idiom

take a detour

Meaning
to take an indirect route
Example
We had to **take a detour** because of road construction.
idiom

drag on

Meaning
to continue for too long and become boring
Example
The meeting **dragged on** for hours.
phrasal-verb

add in

Meaning
to include a small polite comment or detail
Example
If I may, I’d like to **add in** one more observation.