Button your lip
“To button your lip” is an idiom meaning to keep quiet about something. Examples: Similar idioms include:
Author: Graham
In the sticks
“In the sticks” means in the countryside, in a remote place, or a long way from anywhere else. Examples: I used to live in the city but now I enjoy being in the sticks....
To bang on about
“To bang on about” is an idiom meaning to talk about something continuously, repeatedly and at length. Someone who bangs on about something can often become annoying. Examples: She’s always banging on about her...
To fly off the handle
When you say that someone “flies off the handle” you mean that they lose their temper – perhaps suddenly and unexpectedly. Examples: He flew off the handle when I told him I had lost...
Split infinitives
Some people say that it is always wrong to split infinitives with an adverb – that is, to use phrases such as ‘to strictly forbid’ or ‘to fully understand’. Others are more tolerant, and...
What is meant by “thick-skinned”?
“Thick-skinned” is an English idiom used about someone who is not easily upset or insulted: “I don’t mind you criticising me. I’m very thick-skinned”. “It’s all right; she won’t feel insulted. She’s quite thick-skinned”....
Words in British English and American English
English is the main language in many countries and has sometimes developed in different ways in different places. Here are some words that are different in British English and American English: British English American...
What does “precarious” mean?
“Precarious” is an adjective meaning dangerous. It is usually used about a particular situation. If I am walking in the middle of a busy road, I am in a precarious situation. If I only...
Adjectival clauses
An adjectival clause (sometimes called a relative clause) is a clause that modifies (or ‘qualifies’) a noun. As with all clauses it must contain a subject and a verb. Examples: The man, who was...
Adjective phrases
Adjective phrases (sometimes called adjectival phrases) are phrases that do the work of an adjective. The main word in an adjective is usually an adjective. The words of an adjective phrase join together to...