Lesson 3 · Street Talk 3 Vocabulary List

to inform someone of important or disturbing information

"Break the news gently."

"The doctor gently broke the news to the family that their father had not survived the surgery."

the state in which one loses all one's confidence and willingness to continue doing something

"He gets cold feet and calls off the wedding."

"He gets cold feet and calls off the wedding three days before the ceremony."

to finally reveal or admit the truth about something

"You need to come clean."

"The guilty employee finally decided to come clean and admitted to stealing money from the company cash box."

to accept and confront the punishment or consequence of one's wrongdoings or irresponsible actions

"It is time to face the music."

"After cheating on the test he knew he would have to face the music when the teacher found out."

to suddenly become angry

"Dad flew off the handle."

"My boss flew off the handle when he found out that the important project had been delayed again."

to give something particularly one's possessions to someone, often unwillingly

"Fork over the cash right now."

"You need to fork over the cash before I give you the concert tickets."

used to refer to someone who has a good judgment and is intelligent enough to make wise decisions

"She has a good head on her shoulders."

"Despite his young age my son has a good head on his shoulders and makes wise decisions."

used for saying if the worst possible or most difficult thing happens

"If worst comes to worst, we can sleep in the car."

"If worst comes to worst, the company can apply for emergency credit to cover the shortfall."

used when a situation reaches a critical point and one must take action in order to deal with it

"When push comes to shove, he always helps."

"When push comes to shove he will always support his family even if it means sacrificing his own happiness."

to intentionally not take action or not address an issue or problem, especially when one should have, often resulting in a negative consequence

"Let it slide this time."

"I usually let small mistakes slide but this error is too serious to ignore completely."

used to state that one has adopted a different opinion

"On second thought, let's stay home."

"On second thought let us not go to the beach today because the weather forecast says it will rain."

someone who is a highly valued and reliable partner, often someone essential to a person's success or well-being

"She is my right arm."

"Her assistant has become her right arm, handling all the crucial details of the business."

to use force, threats, or coercion to make someone do something against their will

"Do not strong arm the weaker students."

"The big guy tried to strong-arm the smaller kid into giving him his lunch money every single day."

to walk closely with one's arm linked through another's

"They walked arm in arm."

"The elderly couple walked arm in arm through the park enjoying the beautiful autumn afternoon together."

the most fundamental, minimal elements or components required for something to function or exist, without any extras or non-essential details

"We packed only the bare-bone essentials."

"The survival kit contained only the bare bone essentials for staying alive in the wilderness."

physically demanding, intense, or capable of causing injury, particularly to the bones, often used to describe strenuous or brutal activities

"The climb was bone-breaking."

"The climbers faced a bone-breaking ascent up the sheer cliff face, testing their endurance."

used to describe someone who is habitually lazy or unwilling to work or exert effort

"Don't be a lazybones."

"He's such a lazybones that he always avoids doing his chores around the house."

someone that is very unintelligent or foolish

"That pea brain forgot again."

"The pea brain could not understand the simple instructions and assembled the furniture incorrectly."

to tell someone to stop talking or to ignore their irritating remark, implying that their opinion is unimportant or not worth listening to

"Blow it out your ear."

"When he started complaining about the minor issue, I just wanted to tell him to blow it out his ear."

an excessive amount of verbal input, usually referring to someone talking too much or giving a long-winded explanation

"He got an earful."

"After being late for the third time, she received a stern earful from her boss."

no longer facing a difficulty, danger, or punishment

"You are off the hook this time."

"The evidence was weak so the suspect was let off the hook by the judge yesterday."

a large quantity or number of something, typically used in an informal context

"I have a bunch."

"A whole bunch of people showed up unexpectedly, filling the entire house."

slick or flattering words often used to manipulate

"His line was smooth."

"The con artist used a smooth line to convince the elderly woman to invest her savings."

to change one's mind or undo something that has been done, said, or promised

"We must turn back."

"The expedition had to turn back due to the sudden onset of a severe blizzard."

good hearing

"He has a good ear."

"The musician has a remarkable ear for harmonies, allowing him to compose complex melodies."