Lesson 6

Under the weather... hang up…. count on…. make friends….out of order… get to…
few and far between…. look over… have/take time off…. go on… put out… all of a sudden
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Under the weather: not feeling well, sick
Ø John stayed home from work because he was feeling under the weather.
Ø When you catch cold, you feel under the weather.
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To hang up: to place clothes on a hook or hanger (S), to replace the receiver on the phone at the end of a conversation (S)
Ø Would you like me to hang up your coat for you in the closet?
Ø The operator told me to hang the phone up and call the number again.
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To count on: to trust someone in time of need (also: to depend on)
Ø I can count on my parents to help me in an emergency.
Ø Don’t depend on Frank to lend you any money, he doesn’t have any.
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To make friends: to become friendly with others
Ø Patricia is a shy girl and doesn’t make friends easily.
Ø During the cruise Ronald made friends with almost everyone on the ship.
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Out of order: not in working condition
Ø The elevator was out of order, so we had to walk to the tenth floor of the building.
Ø We couldn’t use the soft drink machine because it was out of order.
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To get to: to be able to do something special, to arrive at a place, such as home, work, etc. For the second definition, do not use the preposition to with the words home or there.
Ø The children got to stay up late and watch a good movie for the family.
Ø I missed the bus and couldn’t get to the office until ten o’clock.
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Few and far between: not frequent, unusual, rare
Ø The times that our children get to stay up late are few and far between.
Ø Airplane travel is very safe because accidents are few and far between.
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To look over: to examine, to inspect closely (also: to go over, to read over, to check over) (S)
Ø I want to look my homework over again before I give it to the teacher.
Ø The politician went over his speech before the important presentation.
Ø You should never sign any legal paper without checking it over first.
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To have (time) off: to have free time, not to have to work (also: to take time off (S)
The related form (S) to take time off is used when someone makes a decision to have free time, sometimes when others might not agree with the decision.
Ø Every morning the company workers have time off for a coffee break.
Ø Several workers took the afternoon off to go to a baseball game.
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To go on: to happen, to resume, to continue (also: to keep on)
Ø Many people gathered near the accident to see what was going on.
Ø I didn’t mean to interrupt you. Please go on.
Ø The speaker kept on talking even though most of the audience had left.
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To put out: to extinguish, to cause to stop functioning (S)
To put out has the same meaning as to turn off (lesson 1) for a light fixture.
Ø No smoking is allowed in here. Please put out your cigarette.
Ø The fire fighters worked hard to put the brush fire out.
Ø Please put out the light before you leave. Okay, I’ll put it out.
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All of a sudden: suddenly, without warning (also: all at once)
Ø All of a sudden Ed appeared at the door. We weren’t expecting him to drop by.
Ø All at once Millie got up and left the house without any explanation.
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E X E R C I S E S
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Choose the appropriate idiomatic expression to substitute for the italicized word or words in each sentence below. Idioms from previous lessons are indicated by number.
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1. The businessman inspected the contract carefully before signing it.
a. looked over
b. looked out (lesson 5)
c. counted on
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2. What’s happening, John? The smoke alarm is ringing but there’s no fire!
a. putting out
b. going on
c. hanging up
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3. The dark clouds rolled in quickly and it began to rain without warning.
a. all along (lesson 2)
b. out of order
c. all of a sudden
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4. When do you think that we’ll arrive at the hotel this evening?
a. get on (lesson 1)
b. go on
c. get to
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5. I’m busy this week, but I hope to have time free next week.
a. to take my time
b. to have time off
c. to check over
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6. Gradually, I’m learning how to play tennis, thanks to my kind instructor.
a. Little by little (lesson 2)
b. All at once
c. Few and far between
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7. It’s nice to know that I can trust you to help me when I need it.
a. count on
b. check over
c. make friends
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8. The phone is making noise because you forgot to replace the receiver.
a. to go over
b. to take place (lesson 4)
c. to hang up
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9. He’s so careful when he plays sports that injuries are unusual for him.
a. under the weather
b. few and far between
c. out of order
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10. The students were happy because they were able to leave class early.
a. took time off
b. went on
c. got to
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Fill in each blank with the appropriate form of an idiomatic expression from this unit only.
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Tina: What’s wrong, Matt? You look________________.
Matt: I know. I don’t feel well.
Tina: You looked fine an hour ago. It must have happened __________________
Matt: It did. I was talking to Mike on the phone, and after I _________________
the receiver, it hit me.
Tina: Wow. Do you think that you can still _______________ my paper for me
later? You’re good at finding my mistakes.
Matt: Of course, Tina. You can ________________ me to do that for you. First,
though, I’d like to lie down.
Tina: Okay. Would you like me to ______________ the light?
Matt: Thanks. I’ll be fine in a while.