to throw a party

Situation #1

Tim: Hey, next Saturday is Grace's birthday..

Joe: Really? We should throw a party for her.

Tim: Good idea! Let's do it! We can have it at my place.

Joe: Perfect!

Situation #2

When I graduated from college, my parents threw a really nice party for me and my friends. My parents have a bog backyard and my dad barbequed steaks for eveyone. My parents had all kinds of food and all my friends had a great time.

Meaning of idiom: to throw a party means that someone organizes or plans a party. Someone usually comes up with the idea or is in charge of planning.

NOTE: In English you cannot say "do a party" or "make a party.." These expressions are incorrect. You must say "throw a party" or "have a party."

This idiom was taken from LSI's textbook titled Speaking Transitions. This book is used at LSI schools to teach Level 4 Speaking and Listening. For more information please visit: http://www.languagesystems.com

To work like a horse

Please read the following letter and try to guess the meaning of the idiom to work like a horse.
Dear Sheila,

How are things with you, my dear sister? I hope all is well.
I am still trying to adapt to New York’s life style. I can’t believe I’ve been here for almost six months now! I have been thinking about moving back to Los Angeles. At least there I have you, Mom and Dad, my friends, and I would be able to get my old job back.
My work schedule is crazy! I work from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. almost everyday. I know I am lucky to have such a well-paying job having just graduated from college, but I work like a horse and then go home and sleep. I don’t have the time or energy to enjoy all the money I am making… I am sorry to be so negative, but I am really upset and have no idea if I’ll be able to do this anymore.
I will write again after I make a decision.
I can’t write anymore now. I have a meeting starting in 3 minutes.

I love you,

Timothy.

What do you think to work like a horse means?

a. to work at the zoo
b. to work too much
c. to work just a little
d. to work dressed as a horse

Meaning:

To work like a horse means to work too much.

This idiom was taken from the LSI level 4 L/S book Speaking Transitions.

To Make Fun of Someone or Something

Please read the following paragraph and try to guess the idiom in bold:

Joseph has been secretly in love with his co-worker Julia for a long time. Last week Julia received an anonymous love letter. The letter was signed by “Your admirer”. She read it to everyone in the office and everyone made fun of the letter. There were a couple of sentences in the letter that everyone in the office repeated over and over again: “ You are like a cake to me. You look good, you make me happy, you make my heart beat faster, and you are sweet…”
Yesterday, Joseph sent an anonymous e-mail to the whole office saying: “Do not make fun of the person who wrote the love letter… He is in love! This is not a joke!”. He signed “ Me” and everyone replied to his e-mail: “Good job, Joseph!”. Joseph can’t understand how everyone knew he was the one who sent the e-mail and everyone in the office is now making fun of him!

What do you think the idiom means?

a. To make someone have fun
b.To laugh at and/or talk about someone or something in an unkind way
c. To write and read while baking a cake
d. To cry in a kind way

The answer is....

b. To laugh at and/or talk about someone or something in an unkind way. To ridicule someone or something.

This idiom was taken from Speaking Transitions, our level 4 Listening and Speaking LSI book!

To get ( something ) out of the way

Idiom of the day:

To get ( something ) out of the way.

Meaning: This idiom is used when a person needs to finish an unpleasant or slightly boring task first. It gives the sense of doing one thing first in order to be able to do what one truly desires.

First Example: I would love to go see a movie with you, but I need to get my homework out of the way first.

Meaning: In this sentence, the speaker wants to finish his homework first in order to be able to go see a movie with his friend.

Here is another example:

Second Example: I want to change my major to biology but before I can do that I need to get some prerequisites out of the way.

Meaning: The speaker can’t (isn’t allowed to) change his major until he completes all the required courses.

Third Example: Alan, get your toys out of my way! I can’t clean the house like this!

Meaning: “Get the toys out of my way” means “put your toys away”. In this sentence, it means to remove the toys physically, because they create an obstacle for mom to clean the house.

This idiom is found in LSI 's Reading Connections book which is used for Level 3 reading.

No problem.

No Problem

Idiom: No problem.

First Example:

Megumi: I’m sorry I can’t give you a ride home from the airport.

Shi-Young: No problem. April said she would pick me up.

Meaning: “No problem” means, “That’s okay; don’t worry about it.” It’s common to say, “No problem,” after someone apologizes.

Here is another example:

Second Example:

Shi-Young: Thanks so much for picking me up from the airport.

April: No problem. It was on my way.

Meaning: In this case, April means that giving Shi-Young a ride wasn’t a big deal. You can use “No problem,” instead of, “You’re welcome,” but it’s a little less formal.

This idiom is from LSI's book "Speaking Transitions," which is used in the Level 4 listening and speaking classes. For more information, please visit http://www.languagesystems.com/

to take advantage of

Idiom: to take advantage of; used as a verb. This idiom can have a positive and negative meaning.

First example: It has been raining for the past two weeks, but today is sunny. Tom has decided to take advantage of the good weather to get some exercise outside.

Meaning: In this example, “to take advantage of” means “to have a good opportunity and use it to get something good for oneself.” This is the positive meaning of the idiom. The weather has been bad for the previous two weeks, but today is a nice day. Tom is able to enjoy the nice weather and has the opportunity to exercise outside.

Here is another example:

Second example: Jennifer, Joe, and Dan are working on a project together. Dan wants to date Jennifer, but Jennifer wants to date Joe. She knows Dan will do anything to impress her. Jennifer takes advantage of Dan and asks him to finish the project by himself. While he is working on the project, Jennifer and Joe go to dinner and a movie.

Meaning: This example shows the negative meaning of “to take advantage of:” “to get something for oneself by hurting someone else.” Jennifer knows that Dan likes her. She uses his feelings to convince him to do the project alone. Then she goes on a date with Joe while Dan finishes the project. When Dan finds out, he will definitely be hurt.

This idiom is from LSI's book "Reading Transitions," which is used in the Level 4 Listening/Speaking classes. For more information, please visit http://www.languagesystems.com/

to pan out

Idiom: to pan out; used as a verb

First example: Stacy was extremely nervous before Tim’s surprise party. She planned on getting him to the party at exactly 8:00, but there was a huge traffic accident on the freeway. Stacy exited the freeway and remembered a shortcut to the restaurant, so she got Tim there just in time. Stacy was happy that everything panned out, and the surprise party was a success.

Meaning: “to pan out” means “to have a successful result.” We generally use this idiom to talk about a difficult or challenging situation. In this example, Stacy was having a problem getting Tim to the restaurant by 8:00 because of the freeway accident. After she remembered the shortcut, she was able to successfully get Tim to the party on time.

Here is another example:

Second example: Jason wanted to start a computer business. He worked for several years and invested a lot of his time and money into the business. Unfortunately, it didn’t pan out, and Jason lost a lot of money. Even though the business failed, Jason learned a lot from his efforts.

Meaning: In this example, Jason failed in his attempt to start a business. Starting a business is very challenging and Jason put a lot of time and money into creating the business. Sadly, it wasn’t successful; the negative form (“didn’t pan out”) is used. This idiom is commonly used in this type of situation.

This idiom is from LSI's book "Speaking Transitions," which is used in the Level 4 Listening/Speaking classes. For more information, please visit http://www.languagesystems.com/