| PV01 |
| PV01 |
 |
drop out of sth |
i. |
stop participating or being involved in sth |
You'll never go to college if you drop out of high school. |
| PV01 |
 |
churn (sth) out |
s. |
produce sth quickly and in large amounts |
Chinese factories churn out 40% of the world's solar panels. |
| PV01 |
|
hold out sth |
i. |
have a feeling of hope or optimism |
We can't hold out much hope that the weather will improve. |
| PV01 |
|
take sth out on sb/sth |
s. |
treat sb badly because you are angry |
I know you've had a bad day, but there's no need to take it out on me! |
| PV01 |
 |
bear (sb/sth) out |
s. |
support the truth of something |
I hope that the following pages will bear out that assumption. |
| PV01 |
|
eke (sth) out |
s. |
make up for the deficiencies of |
Migrants send home cash that helps eke out low village incomes. |
| PV01 |
|
fizzle out |
i. |
gradually end in a disappointing way |
It is not a promising thing; probably it will just fizzle out. |
| PV01 |
|
work out at sth |
i. |
add up to a particular amount |
They have worked out at the cost of this program. |
| PV01 |
|
grow out of sth |
i. |
become too tall or too big to wear sth |
When she grew out of her sweater, she gave it to her little brother. |
| PV01 |
|
opt out of sth |
i. |
decide not to be part of a group or system |
Schools and housing associations can opt out of local authority control. |
| PV02 |
| PV02 |
|
rule sb/sth out |
s. |
exclude sb or sth as a possibility |
They cannot rule out the possibility of mistaken identity. |
| PV02 |
|
walk out on sb/sth |
i. |
abandon or leave someone or something |
Ann was inconsolable. How could her husband walk out on her like that? |
| PV02 |
|
wear (sth) out |
s. |
become damaged and useless |
We have to buy you new shoes, because these have worn out. |
| PV02 |
|
phase (sth) out |
s. |
remove or stop using something gradually |
The proposal to phase out the sugar program emerged on Monday. |
| PV02 |
|
take (sth) out |
s. |
obtain an official document or service |
She took out a mortgage on the house to pay for business expenses. |
| PV02 |
|
not be cut out for sth |
i. |
not be the right type of person for sth |
Richard is squeamish, so he's not cut out for being a doctor. |
| PV02 |
|
see (sb) out |
s. |
go to the door with sb to say goodbye |
Andrea saw the last guests out and locked the door. |
| PV02 |
|
stand out |
i. |
be easily seen or noticed |
The skier's red clothes stood out clearly against the snow. |
| PV02 |
|
ask (sb) out |
s. |
invite someone out on a date |
Everyone knows you fancy Helen. Why don't you ask her out? |
| PV02 |
|
break out in |
i. |
be affected by a problem on your skin |
When you have the measles, you break out in spots. |
| PV03 |
| PV03 |
|
run up against sb/sth |
i. |
experience or meet a difficulty or problem |
We didn't know we'd run up against so much opposition. |
| PV03 |
|
liven (sb/sth) up |
s. |
become more interesting and exciting |
She had slipped in a few jokes to liven the speech up. |
| PV03 |
|
stand up to sb/sth |
i. |
refuse to accept unfair treatment from sb |
They are in no position to stand up to hostile superiors. |
| PV03 |
|
conjure (sb/sth) up |
s. |
present to the mind, evoke or imagine |
I cannot help but conjure up the memories of the good old days. |
| PV03 |
|
own up to sb/doing sth |
i. |
admit to having done something wrong |
Last month, her husband owned up to a secret affair with his secretary. |
| PV03 |
|
weigh (sb/sth) up |
s. |
carefully assess someone or something |
They need to weigh up the costs and benefits of regulation. |
| PV03 |
|
draw (sth) up |
s. |
prepare a draft of (a legal document) |
They asked him to draw up proposals for reforming the law. |
| PV03 |
|
slip up |
i. |
make a careless error |
I think I slipped up and sent the check to the wrong address. |
| PV03 |
|
notch (sth) up |
s. |
achieve something |
Marta notched up ten points in the first five minutes of the game. |
| PV03 |
|
face up to sth |
i. |
accept that a difficult situation exist |
He has grown up now, and he must face up to his responsibilities. |
| PV04 |
| PV04 |
 |
end up (doing sth) |
i. |
become eventually, turn out to be |
Mark was late and ended up breaking their dinner date. |
| PV04 |
|
act up |
i. |
(of a thing) fail to function properly |
If the pressure is too low, the heating system will act up. |
| PV04 |
|
crop up |
i. |
happen or appear, often unexpectedly |
We are discussing the problems that have recently cropped up. |
| PV04 |
|
live up to sth |
i. |
achieve what is expected |
The players failed to live up to their coach's expectations. |
| PV04 |
|
dredge (sth) up |
s. |
mention sth that has been forgotten |
She likes to dredge up unpleasant little facts about the film stars. |
| PV04 |
|
be tied up in sth |
i. |
(of money) not easily available for use |
Her money is tied up in securities and is not available to her at present. |
| PV04 |
|
feel up to (doing) sth |
i. |
have the energy to do something |
I'm exhausted. I feel up to going to Bob's barbecue tonight. |
| PV04 |
|
whip (sb/sth) up |
s. |
encourage strong emotions in people |
We should whip up all the members of the party to discuss it. |
| PV04 |
|
get up to sth |
i. |
do sth, especially sth slightly bad |
Go upstairs and see what the kids are getting up to. |
| PV04 |
|
send (sb/sth) up |
s. |
give an exaggerated imitation of someone |
The comic skit sent up the foolishness of young men in love. |
| PV05 |
| PV05 |
|
doze off |
i. |
start to sleep, especially during the day |
The film was so monotonous that he dozed off in the middle of it. |
| PV05 |
|
hit it off (with sb) |
s. |
like sb and become friendly immediately |
Unfortunately, I didn't really hit it off with my manager. |
| PV05 |
|
ward (sb/sth) off |
s. |
prevent something from harming you |
She may have put up a fight to try to ward off her assailant. |
| PV05 |
|
tick (sb) off (for sth) |
s. |
reprimand or rebuke someone |
The teacher ticked Helen off for being careless. |
| PV05 |
|
trigger (sth) off |
s. |
make something happen very quickly |
It is still unclear what events triggered off the demonstrations. |
| PV05 |
|
rip (sb) off |
s. |
charge sb too much money for sth |
The lack of a meter allows drivers to rip off passengers. |
| PV05 |
|
lay (sb) off |
s. |
stop employing someone |
They did not sell a single car for a month and had to lay off workers. |
| PV05 |
|
see (sb) off |
s. |
accompany sb to their point of departure |
Ann was touched that Brian had come to see her off. |
| PV05 |
|
make off (with sth) |
i. |
hurry away, especially in order to escape |
Thieves broke into the gallery and made off with some paintings. |
| PV05 |
|
knock (sth) off |
s. |
stop doing something, especially work |
Let's knock off work early and go to the football game. |
| PV06 |
| PV06 |
|
pay off |
i. |
be successful and bring good results |
All his hard work paid off, and she finally passed the exam. |
| PV06 |
|
fob (sb) off (with sth) |
s. |
dispose of sth by fraud or deception |
They tried to fob me off with a cheap camera. |
| PV06 |
|
stave (sth) off |
s. |
avert or delay sth bad or dangerous |
She staved off jet lag with a bath and an early night. |
| PV06 |
|
nod off |
i. |
fall asleep, especially unintentionally |
Other kids nod off easily, but can't sleep through the night. |
| PV06 |
|
wear off |
i. |
gradually disappear or stop |
The effects of the anaesthetic will wear off within a few hours. |
| PV06 |
|
live off sth |
i. |
live by growing or finding your own food |
It's a very fertile countryside where you can live off the land. |
| PV06 |
|
fall off |
i. |
decrease in quantity or quality |
The standard of cooking fell off when the old chef left. |
| PV06 |
|
veer off |
i. |
suddenly or sharply change direction |
If you fall asleep while driving, you'll probably veer off the road. |
| PV06 |
|
hold off |
i. |
(of rain or a storm) to not start |
The rain held off just long enough for us to have our picnic. |
| PV06 |
|
pull (sth) off |
s. |
succeed in doing sth that is difficult |
Reducing costs in today's climate will be a difficult trick to pull off. |
| PV07 |
| PV07 |
|
clamp down on sb/sth |
i. |
stop or limit an activity |
The new government promised to clamp down on welfare scroungers. |
| PV07 |
|
back down (on/from sth) |
i. |
take back a demand, an opinion |
He has backed down from the position he took last week. |
| PV07 |
|
pin (sb) down |
s. |
force someone to make a decision |
Did you manage to pin Frank down to a definite date? |
| PV07 |
|
tone (sth) down |
s. |
make sth less forceful or offensive |
You'd better tone down the more offensive remarks in your article. |
| PV07 |
|
bucket down |
i. |
rain heavily |
As soon as we were inside, the rain began to bucket down. |
| PV07 |
|
come down to sth |
i. |
have sth as the most important part |
I thought I might just as well come down to the point. |
| PV07 |
|
hand (sth) down (to sb) |
s. |
pass something on to a younger person |
This knowledge was handed down in the family from father to son. |
| PV07 |
|
track (sb/sth) down |
s. |
find sb or sth after a thorough search |
We finally tracked him down at his house in London. |
| PV07 |
|
pull (sth) down |
s. |
destroy sth or make it stop existing |
They pulled down the warehouse to build a new supermarket. |
| PV07 |
|
bring (sb/sth) down |
s. |
make sb lose power or be defeated |
Will the disaffection of the young bring down the regime? |
| PV08 |
| PV08 |
|
get down to sth |
i. |
begin to do or give serious attention to sth |
Let's get down to business right away-we'll stop for coffee later. |
| PV08 |
|
boil down to sth |
i. |
have sth as a main or basic part |
The remaining results boil down to the same conclusion. |
| PV08 |
|
jot (sth) down |
s. |
write a short piece of information quickly |
Robert jotted her name down on the back of an envelope. |
| PV08 |
|
play (sth) down |
s. |
make something seem less important |
The government sought to play down the extent of the problem. |
| PV08 |
|
die down |
i. |
become reduced in strength |
It was several minutes before the applause died down. |
| PV08 |
|
step down (as/from sth) |
i. |
resign from an important position or office |
Marco reluctantly agreed to step down as managing director. |
| PV08 |
|
send (sb) down |
s. |
sentence someone to imprisonment |
He was sent down for twenty five years for robbing a bank. |
| PV08 |
|
wind (sth) down |
s. |
gradually reduce work |
The Detroit carmaker said it would now wind down production. |
| PV08 |
|
wolf (sth) down |
s. |
eat something very quickly |
I saw a beggar wolf down a piece of cake in the street last night. |
| PV09 |
| PV09 |
|
dwell on/upon sth |
i. |
keep thinking or talking about sth |
So you made a mistake, but there's no need to dwell on it. |
| PV09 |
|
catch on |
i. |
become popular or fashionable |
Some students started wearing denim, and the idea caught on. |
| PV09 |
|
egg (sb) on |
s. |
incite, urge ahead, provoke |
We cannot let the other side egg us on into a civil war. |
| PV09 |
|
hinge on/upon sth |
i. |
depend on something |
The case hinged on the evidence of the only witness to the killing. |
| PV09 |
|
dawn on sb |
i. |
become known or obvious to someone |
It slowly dawned on me that he might have been mistaken. |
| PV09 |
|
have (sb) on |
s. |
make sb think that sth is true, as a joke |
You really won all that money on a horse? Are you not having me on? |
| PV09 |
|
capitalise on sth |
i. |
use a situation to your own advantage |
The President has lost no opportunity to capitalise on his new position. |
| PV09 |
|
wait on sb/sth |
i. |
act as a servant to somebody |
The staff who waited on us at dinner were excellent. |
| PV09 |
|
pick on sb |
i. |
treat someone badly or unfairly |
We were only freshmen, so the older kids liked to pick on us. |
| PV09 |
|
bring (sth) on |
s. |
cause sth, typically sth unpleasant |
Exhaust fumes made him drowsy and brought on a headache. |
| PV10 |
| PV10 |
|
cotton on (to sth) |
i. |
begin to understand a situation or fact |
It took him some time to cotton on to what she meant. |
| PV10 |
|
bank on sb/sth |
i. |
base one's hopes or confidence on sth |
I trust him, and believe me, you can bank on him too. |
| PV10 |
|
touch on/upon sth |
i. |
speak briefly about something |
The coach touched upon some issues at the press conference. |
| PV10 |
|
stamp on sth |
i. |
stop sth by taking determined action |
All attempts at modernisation were stamped on by senior officials. |
| PV10 |
|
frown on/upon sth |
i. |
disapprove of something |
The Boss will frown on those who come to work late. |
| PV10 |
|
harp on (about sth) |
i. |
complain about something many times |
He's always harping on about a lack of discipline. |
| PV10 |
|
prey on/upon sb/sth |
i. |
try to deceive or harm weaker people |
It's contemptible that these sorts of people prey on the seniors. |
| PV10 |
|
grow on sb |
i. |
become gradually more appealing to sb |
Slowly and strangely, the place began to grow on me. |
| PV10 |
|
reflect on/upon sb/sth |
i. |
influence people's opinion of sb or sth |
Before sleep overtook us, we reflected on our last few days' climbing. |
| PV10 |
|
getting on for |
i. |
approaching (a specified time, age) |
She was getting on for fifty, a handsome, tall woman, very well-dressed. |
| PV11 |
| PV11 |
|
sink in/into sth |
i. |
become completely known or understood |
It took a moment for the implications of what he was saying to sink in. |
| PV11 |
|
let (sb) in on sth |
s. |
allow someone to share a secret |
He was a real wally, so the others didn't let him in on their plan. |
| PV11 |
|
set in |
i. |
begin and seem likely to continue |
This rain looks as if it has set in for the rest of the day. |
| PV11 |
|
barge in |
i. |
enter somewhere rudely |
I tried to stop him from coming through the door, but he just barged in. |
| PV11 |
|
bump into sb |
i. |
meet by chance, encounter unexpectedly |
We bumped into Sofia when we were in Rome last week. |
| PV11 |
|
consist in (doing) sth |
i. |
be based on or depend on something |
Happiness does not consist in how many possessions you own. |
| PV11 |
|
talk (sb) into sth |
s. |
persuade someone to do something |
I didn't want to move abroad, but Fred talked me into it. |
| PV11 |
|
come in for sth |
i. |
receive blame or criticism |
Stephen came in for sharp criticism from women's groups. |
| PV11 |
|
lay (sth) in |
s. |
collect and store sth to use in the future |
They should lay in plenty of food in case they're cut off when it snows. |
| PV11 |
|
tie (sth) in (with sth) |
s. |
match or agree with something |
Her description tied in with that of the other witness. |
| PV12 |
| PV12 |
|
drink (sth) in |
s. |
experience sth with great enjoyment |
Sandra drank in the beauty of the woodland scene. |
| PV12 |
|
flood in/into sth |
s. |
enter a place in large numbers or amounts |
Refugees continue to flood into neighbouring countries. |
| PV12 |
|
result in sth |
i. |
cause a particular situation to happen |
The closure of the import department resulted in over 50 redundancies. |
| PV12 |
|
have it in for sb |
s. |
be determined to criticize or harm sb |
Mandy had it in for me - I could tell by the look in her eyes. |
| PV12 |
|
eat into sth |
i. |
use up a quantity of profits, resources |
Unfortunately, the cost of selling can eat into our profits. |
| PV12 |
|
turn in |
i. |
go to bed in the evening |
I'm going to have to turn in. I'm not used to these late nights. |
| PV12 |
|
be done in |
i. |
be very tired, exhausted |
They were completely done in after the long climb. |
| PV12 |
|
stand in (for sb) |
i. |
do sb else’s job temporarily |
Can you stand in for Ann at the meeting next month? |
| PV12 |
|
rake (sth) in |
s. |
earn or receive a large amount of money |
The dealers can rake in another ten or fifteen per cent on the takings. |
| PV12 |
|
blend in (with sb/sth) |
i. |
look like things nearby |
The fish settles on the sandy ocean bottom where it blends in perfectly. |
| PV13 |
| PV13 |
|
bargain for/on sth |
i. |
expect or be prepared for something |
We hadn't bargained for such a dramatic change in the weather. |
| PV13 |
|
vouch for sb/sth |
i. |
say that sb or sth is honest, true |
I've read this report carefully, and I can vouch for its truthfulness. |
| PV13 |
|
account for sth |
i. |
be the explanation or cause of something |
How can we account for the recent population explosion? |
| PV13 |
|
settle for (doing) sth |
i. |
be happy or satisfied with |
He couldn't find any cola, so he had to settle for orange juice. |
| PV13 |
|
answer for sth |
i. |
accept responsibility for something |
Their coach must answer for the team's poor performance. |
| PV13 |
|
fall for sth |
i. |
be deceived by something |
She must have been pretty gullible to fall for that old trick. |
| PV13 |
|
fend for yourself |
i. |
take care of and provide for yourself |
Our concern restricts their ability to fend for themselves. |
| PV13 |
|
make for somewhere/sth |
i. |
go in the direction of a particular place |
Richard pushed carelessly past her and made for the door. |
| PV13 |
|
fish for sth |
i. |
try to get sth, without asking directly |
She's always fishing for compliments about her looks. |
| PV13 |
|
want for sth |
i. |
lack something that you really need |
He's ensured that his children will want for nothing. |
