English Phrase Collection

with bated breath

2012-10-20T00:04:00.002+02:00

widely used but wrong form: baited breath

meaning:
if you wait for something with bated breath, you feel very excited or anxious while you are waiting and you probably hold your breath

source

examples:

They listened with bated breath for the announcement about the winner.
We stood there with bated breath while the man hung on the side of the bridge.
We were waiting with bated breath for the prizes to be announced.
She waited with bated breath for their host to emerge from the shadows.

turn out to be...

2012-05-16T20:00:00.000+02:00

meaning:
to develop or become someone or something in the end,

to become apparent or known

Busted prostitutes in Nanning turn out to be men

examples:

It turned out to be rumour.
The rookie( new player) turned out to be the team's best hitter.
33 Conspiracy Theories That Turned Out To Be True
Facebook has turned out to be the biggest social network website all over the world.
In the end he's turned out to be right on almost everything.
iPad turns out to be big business in mobile computing.
Even a mistake may turn out to be the one thing necessary to a worthwhile achievement. - by Ford, Henry.

it goes without saying/ needless to say

2012-05-15T23:34:00.000+02:00

1. It goes without saying
meaning:
something that you say when you believe that what you will say next is generally accepted or understood

It goes without saying that we're delighted about .... the new baby / my husband's payrise /..etc.
It goes without saying that success is the product of hard work.
It goes without saying that over time in an essentially finite world such a growth curve cannot be sustained article
It should go without saying that a person should be allowed to marry whomever they choose.

forrás

2. It is needless to say / there is no need to say so

Needless to say I didnt't get the position.
(it is) Needless to say I agree with you on the health risk of it .
(it is) Needless to say I agree with you that it is very expensive but...
Sound quality is, needless to say, near perfect.

cut corners

2012-05-10T12:00:00.000+02:00

meaning:

1. to take shortcuts, go the shortest way

2. to do something in the easiest, quickest, or cheapest way, often harming the quality of your work

examples:

He cut corners going home in a hurry. (1)
We've had to cut corners to make a film on such a small budget.
Don't cut corners with travel insurance on your 2012 holiday !
15 Great Ways to Cut Corners and Save Some Real Cash
Cutting corners in production led to a definite loss in product quality.

in the long run

2012-05-09T20:21:00.000+02:00

meaning:
after a very lengthy period of time

"Time doth fly: Man must die"

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/deed.en

examples:

In the long run we will all die.
Natural or organic food may seem expensive, but in the long run, it works out to be cheaper.
A U.S. study has found that diets don't work in the long-run with about two-thirds of dieters putting back the weight they lost.
In the long run Wikileaks strengthens democracy.
Stocks outperform bonds in the long run.

antonym:: in the short run (over a short period of time)

the last straw

2012-05-06T02:03:00.000+02:00

or: the last straw which breaks the camel's back
meaning:
a small addition to a burden which causes it to exceed the capacity.

source: Red Planet Cartoons

examples:

Claire had a bad day in school yesterday. She lost her favourite book, then she fell down, and when she realized she had broken her glasses, that was the last straw and she began to cry.
For me, this was the last straw.
The last straw came when an old man stared at me and I could see in his eyes he was undressing me.

how come...?

2012-05-05T23:39:00.000+02:00

meaning:
Why? How so? How is it so? How is that?

Remrandt, Self-portrait

examples:

How come you are late? ( Why are you late? )
You are wearing your best shoes today. How come?
How come you're not attending the conference?
How come I never have enough time?