bet
bet (sth) on, make a bet (with sb), safe bet
Collocation
120 cards to learn, plus a reading text that puts the key phrases in context.
120 cards
bet (sth) on, make a bet (with sb), safe bet
Collocation
know/say for certain, certain to do, make certain, certain of/about, a certain (amount of sth)
Collocation
take a chance (on), leave to chance, by chance, by any chance, the/sb's chances of (doing), the chance to do, second chance, last chance, pure/sheer chance, there's every/no chance that
Collocation
waste disposal, at sb's disposal, at the disposal of
Collocation
find yourself (doing), find sb doing, find sth difficult/interesting/etc, find your way
Collocation
green politics, green belt, (give sb) the green light, greenhouse, the greenhouse effect
Collocation
guess at, guess that, guess right, take/make/hazard a guess (at), rough guess, lucky guess, wild guess, educated guess, at a guess
Collocation
happen to do, it so happens that, as it happens
Collocation
thunder and lightning, a bolt/flash of lightning, struck by lightning, at lightning speed
Collocation
push your luck, wish sb luck, trust to luck, bring you luck, the luck of the draw, a stroke/piece of luck, as luck would have it, in luck, with any luck
Collocation
natural completely/totally natural, natural causes, natural ability, natural resources, natural selection
Collocation
nature the nature of, by nature, in nature, Mother Nature, human nature, second nature
Collocation
the odds of doing, the odds are (that), the odds are in favour of/against, against all the odds
Collocation
rain hard/heavily, pour with rain, heavy/light rain, rainbow, rainwater, caught in the rain
Collocation
risk sth on, risk doing, risk one's life, take a risk, run the risk of, put sth at risk, pose a risk to, the risk of, at the risk of doing
Collocation
sun yourself, in the sun, sunbathe, sunlight, sunrise, sunset, sunshine
Collocation
pose a threat (to), face a threat, under threat, threat of, idle threat, bomb threat, death threat
Collocation
weather good/bad/etc weather, freak weather, in all weathers, under the weather, weather forecast, weatherproof
Collocation
light/strong wind, gust of wind, in the wind, winds of change
Collocation
an event such as a flood, lightning or an earthquake that is produced by natural forces, and that people have no control over
The flood was an act of God.
used for saying that something always happens or someone always does something despite bad weather or difficult conditions
We’ll be there, come rain or shine.
having a long period of difficulty finding work and earning money
He’s been down on his luck recently.
be chosen to do something unpleasant
I drew the short straw and had to clean up.
be good at growing plants
She’s got green fingers—her garden is beautiful.
allow something to develop without trying to influence it
Let nature take its course with the situation.
used for emphasising that there is no reason or explanation for something
There’s no rhyme or reason to his decisions.
happening in a way that is sudden and unexpected, and does not seem connected with anything that happened before
The offer came out of the blue.
used for saying people have limited control over what life brings them
It’s just the luck of the draw.
Make colder
Global temperatures will not cool down until we reduce the amount of carbon gasses we release into the atmosphere.
find or see someone or something when you did not expect to
we chanced upon a nice restaurant
meet someone or find something by chance
we came across jin at the supermarket
become cooler, or make something cooler
it's cooled down a lot in the last couple of days
reduce the amount of something, especially money that you spend
I'm trying to cut back on groceries
become weaker or less common and then disappear completely
there used to be wolves here but they have died out
find information by searching carefully
See what you can dig up on the internet on Mr Roberts
dig holes in an area of land
The police have dug the garden up looking for evidence
remove something from under the ground by digging
Archeologists have dug up a bag of coins from Roman times
stop being available
I'm a TV repairman, but work seems to have dried up lately
if something dries up or is dried up, all the water comes out of it
the river has completely dried up
solve or deal with a problem
there are many hurdles still to get over before the new restaurant can open
finish dealing with some work, a subject etc
I've got a lot of work to get through
manage to deal with a difficult situation or stay alive until it is over
how we got through it I will never know
use or finish something
we get through a litre of milk a day
make something hot; become hot
Heat up the baby's milk, would you?
destroy living things so that most or all of them are dead
the pollution killed off all the fish in the lake
if you put something down to a particular reason, you think it has happened for that reason
what do you put your success down to?
make a careless mistake
we can't afford to slip up this time!
appear or be produced suddenly and quickly
a lot of cafés have sprung up around here lately
keep a lot of something so that you can use it later
squirrels store up nuts for the winter
o something that will cause problems in the future
if you ignore this, you're just storing up problems for the future
get rid of something that you no longer want
are you throwing these things out?
if someone in authority thows out a plan, proposal, etc they refuse to accept it
the minister threw out the proposed changes
force someone to leave a place or a group
Charlize was thrown out of the scouts
cause something such as dust or water to rise into the air
as the helicopter landed, it threw up a lot of dust
produce something new or unexpected
the new rules have thrown up a few problems
the work, business or study of farming
I'm thinking of studying agriculture
to be grateful for something
I really appreciate your help
to understand the true nature of a situation, and realise why it is important or serious
I'm not sure you appreciate how important this is
to calculate something in a way that is not exact
The journey was approximated to take about seven hours
not exact, but close to an exact amount, number, time, etc
The approximate time of the incident was 7:30
to believe something is the cause of something else
The failure of the business was ascribed to events beyond anyone's control.
to send someone to a particular place, especially in order for them to work there
I've been assigned to the office in Manchester
to believe that something is the result of a particular situation, event or person's actions
Police attributed the accident to the bad weather
an event that causes you to feel very sad, disappointed or shocked
Failing to get into university was a real blow
an event that causes a lot of damage or makes a lot of people suffer
Many people lost their lives in the catastrophe
to make something happen, usually something bad
What caused the building to collapse?
a situation in which separate things happen by chance at the same time or in the same way
It's just a coincidence that Sandra and I were both in New York at the same time
a plant grown for food, usually on a farm
Coffee is an important crop in Brazil
to use magic powers to make bad things happen to someone
I have such bad luck that sometimes I think I've been cursed
intended, not done by chance or by accident
I'm sure what she did wasn't deliberate
to calculate something or discover it by examining evidence
Investigators have determined that the crash was the result of human error
a long period of time when there is little or no rain and crops die
The drought means that there's an increased risk of fire
to leave a building or other place because it is not safe
When the alarm went off, everyone evacuated the building
to treat someone unfairly in order to get some benefit for yourself
In some countries, children are exploited in factories
to use natural resources such as trees, water or oil
We could make a lot of money if we exploit our natural resources in the right way
a serious lack of food that continues for a long time and makes people become ill or die
We're raising money to help victims of the famine
a power that some people believe controls everything that happens in their lives
I like to just leave things to fate
if water floods a place, it covers it
The river flooded the whole city.
to change frequently
The price of gold has fluctuated quite a lot in recent months
to see or know something that will happen in the future
We don't foresee any problems
fuels such as coal or oil
Burning fossil fuels gives off carbon dioxide
something with very unusual features that make it very different from other things of its type
People think I'm a bit of a freak because I like silent films
to risk money or something valuable in the hope of winning more if you are lucky or if you guess something correctly
I never gamble what I can't afford to lose
an increase in the average temperature of the Earth
It's difficult to deny that global warming is really happening
green plants that are growing somewhere or used as decoration
I like living here because there's quite a lot of greenery
the type of place that an animal normally lives in or a plant normally grows in
The panda is threatened by the disappearance of its habitat
done in a way that does not seem to be carefully planned or organised
The town seems to have grown in quite a haphazard way
the time when a crop is collected
Everyone helps during the harvest
to collect a crop from the fields
They were harvesting the grapes when we were in France
something that could be dangerous or cause damage or accidents
Dad suddenly braked because he saw a hazard in the road
a violent storm with extremely strong winds and heavy rain
A hurricane is expected to hit the coast this evening
not deliberate
Not inviting William was entirely inadvertent, I assure you
a natural tendency to behave in a particular way that people and animals are born with
Birds build nests by instinct
involved in an important way in making something happen
He was instrumental in saving the company
someone or something that is jinxed has a lot of bad luck
You must be jinxed if you've been hit by lightning three times
how certain it is that something will happen
The likelihood of success is quite low
something that people believe brings them luck
I always take my lucky charm into the exam with me
to move slowly without a particular direction or purpose in mind
We meandered around the park
a minor mistake or accident
We had a few mishaps on the way, but at least we're here now
to become physically different from others of the same type as a result of a genetic change
Radiation has caused plants in the area to mutate
something very bad that happens and causes a lot of damage or kills a lot of people
It's not possible to prevent most natural disasters
the chances of something happening
What are the odds on winning the lottery?
to choose someone or something from a group
Mrs Kay picked me to help her give out the books
a situation in which you do not know what to expect, but you hope that it will be good
it's just pot luck what the weather will be like for our holiday
chosen or happening without any particular method, pattern or purpose
Think of a random number
things such as coal, trees and oil that exist in nature and can be used by people
The country's main resource is the vast oil fields
if something is scarce, there is not very much of it
Badgers are becoming increasingly scarce in Britain
a piece of evidence that something is happening or that something exists
There were signs that someone had been there before us
a plant or animal group whose members all have similar general features
Scientists have discovered a new species of monkey
to consider or discuss why something has happened
He refused to speculate on what might happen
happening in a natural way without being planned or thought about
Leaving my job was a spontaneous thing
to make someone feel suddenly frightened or surprised by doing something they do not expect
Liam startled me when he suddenly appeared next to me
a group of numbers that represent facts or describe a situation
But the statistics simply don't support that view
lost or without a home
The number of stray dogs is becoming a real problem
to move away from the correct place or path
Little Red Riding Hood's grandmother warned her not to stray from the path
a belief that things such as magic or luck have the power to affect your life
You don't believe that old superstition about the number 13, do you?
believing in the power of magic or luck
I'm quite superstitious, so I never walk under ladders
to happen
Perhaps we will never know what transpired that night
the fact that something is not known or has not been decided
The passengers began to get angry because of the uncertainty
to rock slightly from side to side, or to make something do this
The statue wobbled and then fell over
A short text using 23 of the key phrases. Tap a highlighted phrase for its meaning.
When my aunt and uncle retired last year, they traded the and of Los Angeles for the peace and quiet of a small in southern France. They said they were tired of living in a right next to an . Now they live in a on the .
In their new town everything is quite different from the of L.A., where the are and you can count on spending hours in .
Instead, the of the city center are lined with that are now home to and specializing in the .
The best day to visit is Saturday, when there’s an in the . You can buy souvenirs from the and have lunch at one of the in the area. There’s virtually no street crime here, in contrast to the of L.A.
Is there anything that my aunt and uncle miss about Los Angeles? Well, they do miss the . But they’re past the age where being in a place with a is important to them.