Weird and wonderful words. You might most frequently use OxfordDictionaries.com to double-check the spelling or pronunciation of a word, or to find a synonym for a common term.
But sometimes you might want to learn a new and unfamiliar word – one which you probably won’t need in everyday conversation or writing, but which is fun, interesting, and unusual. We’ve brought together a list of some weird and wonderful words, from aa (a kind of volcanic lava) all the way to the Zyrian language. Along the way you’ll encounter words for ‘resembling an ostrich’, ‘a bird’s wishbone’, and the technical term for the big toe… See more from Word lists. ESL/EFL speaking lessons - Complaining (talking about complaints in English) What are complaints?
Complaints are expressions of "displeasure or annoyance" in response to an action that is seen by the speaker as unfavorable. Suppose you want to complain about the pizza you have just ordered because it's too salty, what are the expressions needed to express and respond to complaints? Complaining: Here are expressions you can use when complaining: I have a complaint to make. ... Responding to complaints Positive response to complaints: I'm so sorry, but this will never occur / happen again. 300 Most Difficult SAT Words - Vocabulary List. Visual Idioms: Search results for spring to mind. Visual Idioms: Search results for beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Meaning:Each person has their own opinion about what or who is beautiful.
What one finds ugly, another may find very attractive.Example sentence: Personally, I don't think she's very pretty but my brother finds her gorgeous. Well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Questions for you to answer: People say that beauty is not only what we can see? Visual Idioms: Search results for break the ice. Meaning:When you try to break the ice, you try to become friends with someone or initiate a conversation.
You make people who have not met before feel more relaxed and comfortable with each other.You get something started. Visual Idioms: Search results for see the glass as half full. Meaning:If you see the glass as half empty, you believe that a situation is more bad than good.
If you see the glass as half full, you believe that a situation is more good than bad. Example sentence: John and Mary are so different; he always sees the glass as half empty while she is an eternal optimist.
Visual Idioms: Search results for light at the end of the tunnel. Meaning:Someone or something that makes you feel happy and hopeful, especially in a difficult situation.
Example sentence: My wife is such a ray of sunshine for me. She's always helpful, sensitive and considerate to me when I most need it. Visual Idioms: Search results for stand up and be counted. Visual Idioms: Search results for go through the roof. Visual Idioms: Search results for cloud nine. Meaning: If you say you are on cloud nine, you are very happy.
Example sentence: I could see that she was on cloud nine when she learned the news. But I wasn't so happy. Visual Idioms: Search results for every cloud has a silver lining. Meaning:It is always possible to get something positive out of a situation, even if it's unpleasant, difficult or even painful.You can benefit from every bad thing that happens to you.Every bad situation has some good aspect to it.Example sentence: I know we've lost all our money but we can always start again.
Every cloud has a silver lining. Visual Idioms: Search results for a bird's eye view. Meaning:A view from high aboveA hasty look at something, a brief survey lacking details Example sentences: Brno looks wonderful from a bird's-eye view.
The book provides a bird's-eye view of some of the methods but it doesn't go into much detail so I'll get another one. Visual Idioms: Search results for fine feathers make. Meaning:This proverb means that if you dress elegantly, people will think you are elegant.
Example sentence: She never wears anything cheap - only designer clothes, even though she's not financially well-off. Visual Idioms: Search results for there's no rose. Meaning:This proverb means that to enjoy a beautiful or pleasant thing, you must sometimes endure something difficult, or even painful. Example sentence: It's a well-paid job and I get on very well with my boss.
What I don't like is that I often have to work long hours. Well, there's no rose without a thorn. Questions for you to answer: Why do roses have thorns on them? Visual Idioms. Visual Idioms: Search results for barrel. Meaning:A bad person influences everyone he or she comes into contact with, making them bad too. Example sentence: This boy is the rotten apple that spoils the barrel.
Visual Idioms: Search results for hang someone out to dry. Meaning:If you hang somebody out to dry, you defeat or punish them.It also means that you get someone into trouble, by making them take the blame for a bad situation. You abandon someone who is in need or in danger, for example a colleague. Example sentence: Once I find out who's vandalized my house, I swear I'll hang them out to dry.
Visual Idioms: Be like watching grass grow. Meaning:If you say that watching an activity is like watching grass grow, you mean that it is very boring. Example sentence: I tried to concentrate on their performance but it was so boring; it was like watching grass grow. Questions for you to answer: Have you recently seen a film that was so boring that watching it was like watching grass grow? Some people would say that watching golf is like watching grass grow. Visual Idioms: Search results for reinvent the wheel.
Visual Idioms: Search results for be the bee's knees. Visual Idioms: Search results for out of the blue. Meaning:This adverb describes an event that occurs unexpectedly, without any warning or preparation Note: We rarely see a thunderbolt striking out of a blue sky on an average sunny day. This blue stands for the blue sky. Example sentence: We were sitting on the beach drinking fruit cocktail while out of the blue a huge wave appeared on the horizon. Visual Idioms: Search results for have butterflies in. Meaning:When you have butterflies in your stomach, you feel very nervous. You have a nervous feeling in your stomach, for example before an important event or in danger.
Visual Idioms: Search results for bottle up feelings. Visual Idioms: Search results for wine and dine. Visual Idioms: Have green fingers. Meaning:If you have green fingers (or a green thumb) you are very good at gardening and looking after flowers and plants, you are good at keeping plants healthy and making them grow. Visual Idioms: No matter how you slice it... Meaning:This means that no matter what your perspective is, no matter how you try to describe something, the result is the same. Visual Idioms: Take care of number one. Visual Idioms: Out of the blue. Meaning:This adverb describes an event that occurs unexpectedly, without any warning or preparation Note: We rarely see a thunderbolt striking out of a blue sky on an average sunny day.
This blue stands for the blue sky. Visual Idioms: Search results for wake up and smell the coffee. Meaning:You say this to tell someone that they should try to understand the true facts of a situation or that they should give more attention to what is happening around them. We use this idiom when someone doesn't realise what is really happening or is not paying enough attention to events around them.Example sentence:
Visual Idioms: As the twig is bent, so is the tree inclined. Meaning:This proverb means that a grown person will act the way he or she was taught to act as a child. Visual Idioms: Be on the expensive side. Visual Idioms: Search results for things slide. Visual Idioms: A piece of cake. Visual Idioms: Paper over the cracks. Visual Idioms: A glass ceiling. Visual Idioms: A blue-eyed boy. Visual Idioms: Search results for coming up roses. Visual Idioms: Search results for the sun rises and sets. The World Cup Shed. 25 Words That Have A Totally Different Meaning When You Move To London.
Visual Idioms-Hana Tichá. English Learning - Collocations. English Learning box. Make language learning part of your daily life. Foreign Language Vocabulary, Grammar, and Readings. English flashcard sets e ferramentas de estudo. Collocations (communicating) flashcards. Speller: Present Simple Question. Learn: Present simple questions. Cards: Present Simple Verbs. Creator. Word Spy. Brainstorm and mind map online.
Flocabulary - Educational Hip-Hop. Popplet. Telescopic Text © Joe Davis 2008.