Idioms and phrases for TOEFL (Part 1)

above all : trước hết, trên hết.
ex: Above all, I'd like to thank my family.

be about to: Sắp, sắp sửa, định làm gì.
ex: The train is about to start - Tàu sắp khởi hành.
ex: He comes when I am about to leave. ( anh ta đến khi tôi chuẩn bị dời đi).

add up: cộng lại, công tất cả lại, có ý nghĩa.
ex: We ADDED UP the bill to check it was correct.
ex: The details of your story do not add up to reality.
ex: She explained why the work wasn't ready, but her story doesn't ADD UP.

all at once: cùng một lúc, thình lình.
ex:  I've had to deal with too many problems all at once.
ex: All at once I felt dizzy and had to lie down.
ex: All at once there was a loud crashing sound.

all of a sudden = all at once

as a matter of fact = actually: Thật ra thì / Đúng ra thì..
ex: I did vote for her, as a matter of fact.

as a rule: thông thường, thường lệ.
ex: As a rule , I get up at 6 am - thông thường, tôt thức dậy lúc 6 giờ sáng.

at the drop of a hat: nhanh, nhanh chóng.
ex: If you need help, just call on me. I can come at the drop of a hat.

at ease: không lo lắng, thỏa mái, bình tĩnh.
ex: After she had met a few people, Mary felt at ease with the group.

ill-at-ease: kết luận; điều suy ra; sự quy nạp.

back out (of) : nuốt lời (lời nói, lời hứa).
ex: You agreed to come. You can't back out now!
ex: They backed out of the deal the day before they were due to sign the contract.

bank on:  trông mong, hay đặt hy vọng vào một người hay một cái gì.
ex: A: "Do you think she'll come?"
      B: "I wouldn't bank on it."

be my guest: cứ tự nhiên.
ex: A: "Can I try out your new bicycle?"
      B: "Be my guest."

be rusty: cần thực hành hoặc xem lại.

beats me : tôi không biết, tôi không có ý kiến.
Note: hay dung It beats me: tôi chụi.
ex: Bill: When are we supposed to go over to Tom's?
      Bill: Beats me.

better off: có lợi hơn, khấm khá hơn, tốt hơn, có hiệu quả hơn.
ex: I think we’ll be better off walking this way.
ex: They're better off not spending money on crisis control.
ex: Since she got the highly paid (high-pay) job, the whole family has been better off.

bite off more than one can chew: cố làm việc gì quá sức mình.
ex: The key to success lies in not biting off more than you can chew.

to be bound to: nhất định, chắc chắn.
ex: Jill's bound to do a good job.
ex: We are bound to tell the truth.

break down : sự hỏng máy (xe, máy).
ex: A: Why are you late?
      B: I’m sorry Boss. My car broke down on the way to work. I had to get it fixed.

break in (on): ngắt (lời);  cắt ngang (câu chuyện) ; gián đoạn.
ex: If you need to talk to me, just break in on me.

break the ice: Thành ngữ này thường dùng để diễn tả làm một việc gì đó để giúp mọi người thư giãn và thoải mái, đặc biệt khi mới gặp.
ex: I never know how to break the ice with someone I've just met at a party.

break the news (to): làm cho điều gì được biết, tiết lộ.
ex: Bob and Mary are getting married, but they haven't yet broken the news to their parents.

break  up: chấm dứt, dừng; chia thành / vỡ thành từng mảnh.
ex: The conference broke up at 5:30 p.m - Hội nghị kết thúc vào lúc 5 giờ 30 chiều.
ex: The mirror broke up. - Tấm gương vỡ thành từng mảnh.

Break up with somebody: chia tay với ai.
ex: She has already broken up with her husband. - Cô ấy đã chia tay với chồng.

a breeze : cái gì đó cực kỳ dơn gian và dễ làm.
ex: Programming is a breeze if you know the basic syntax and constructs.

bring about:  gây ra, đem đến, dẫn tới.
ex: Land reform brought about a great change in the lives of the common people.

bring up: Nuôi nấng, nuôi dưỡng ,dạy dỗ; Gợi, đề cấp đến (một vấn đề để  thảo luận).
ex: She brought up 5 children.
ex: Brown said the issue would be brought up again at the next climate convention.
ex: I hate to bring this up but you still owe me £50.

brush up on: ôn lại, học lại, xem lại.
(brush up (on) sth)
ex: I thought I'd brush up (on) my French before going to Paris.

bump into: tình cờ gặp ai; đụng phải ai/cái gì.
ex: Excuse me. I didn't mean to bump into you.
ex: The child on the bicycle nearly bumped into me.

by and large: nói chung, nhìn chung, hầu như.
ex: It was, by and large, an unexceptional presentation — Nhìn chung, đó là một bài thuyết trình không có gì đặc biệt.

by heart: thuộc lòng, nhập tâp.
ex: You know the telephone number by heart, don't you?
ex: I studied piano for two years, and all I learned to play by heart was "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star."

by no means : không chắc chắn, không có cách nào, không khi nào.
ex: Bob: Did you put this box here? Tom: By no means. I didn't do it, I'm sure.