Scam baiting

Scam baiting

Idioms practice

Vocabulary

Let's have small revision

hold tight

• to wait

• to make yourself continue to do what you are doing or stay where you are although it is difficult or unpleasant

Examples

• Hold tight there and I’ll go and get him.

• I know you're anxious to hear how you did, but just hold tight-they'll let you know the results when they're ready.

• The CEO is urging investors to hold tight until the new product has had a  chance to generate some sales.

run the numbers

to examine the details of a particular financial situation, usually in order to make a decision about it

Examples

• She ran the numbers on her mortgage and realized that refinancing was the right thing to do. *mortgage - ипотека

• I looked at my income and my expenses and thought I had it figured out that I could afford to buy a new car, but when I ran the numbers again, I found that I really didn't have enough money.

tug at someone's heartstrings

to cause strong feelings of love or

sympathy

Examples

• It's the story of a lost child - guaranteed to tug at the heartstrings.

• She knows exactly how to tug at readers' heartstrings.

out of hand

• out of control

• If you refuse something out of hand, you refuse it completely  without thinking about or discussing it

Examples

• Things got a little out of hand at the party and three windows were broken.

• Moving to London is certainly a possibility - I wouldn't dismiss it out of hand.

knock sth on the head

to prevent something from happening, or to finally finish something

Examples

• The company knocked housing market concerns on the head with a 32% rise in full-year profits.

• The closing of the airport knocked our holiday plans on the head.

go too far

to behave in a way that upsets or annoys people

Examples

• His jokes are funny, but sometimes he goes too far.

• Investors are concerned that real estate inflation has gone too far.

Quiz time

Let's have some practice

Multiple Choice

Which of these idioms means to make you feel strong sympathy for somebody?

• hold tight

• tug at your heartstrings

• go too far

Multiple Choice

Which idiom suits this picture?

• run the numbers

• out of hand

• hold tight

Multiple Choice

Person 1: how much would it cost if we provided each student with iPads to use in school?

Person 2: I’m _________ now.

• going too far

• holding tight

• running the numbers

Multiple Choice

If you say that someone or something _____________, you mean that they cause you to feel strong emotions, usually sadness or pity.

• knocks on the head

• tugs at your heartstrings

• is out of hand