0517 Flashcards
(10 cards)
out of the woods
No longer in danger or dealing with a particular difficulty, though not entirely resolved. Usually used in the negative.
Her surgery went as well as we could have hoped, but she’s not out of the woods yet.
If our sales stay strong, we should be out of the woods by the next quarter.
predicament
I face the same predicament I had on the playground at H A. Jack.
a difficult or unpleasant situation in which you do not know what to do, or in which you have to make a difficult choice
the country’s economic predicament
She went to the office to explain her predicament.
in a predicament
Other married couples are in a similar predicament.
prefect
I’d have to stop off in the prefect’s office to write my name down for detention.
1 an older student in some British schools, who has special duties and helps to control younger students
2 a public official in some countries etc who is responsible for a particular area
patron saint
I was the patron saint of detention.
a Christian saint who people believe gives special protection to a particular place, activity, or person
patron saint of
St. Christopher, the patron saint of travellers
• Andrew Carnegie has been called the patron saint of compassionate capitalism.
affliction
In high school, the attention of girls was not an affliction I suffered from.
something that causes pain or suffering, especially a medical condition
the afflictions of old age
pustule
We’re talking pustules - big, pus-filled blackheads and whiteheads.
medical a small raised spot on your skin containing pus
ravage
They started on my forehead spread down the sides of my face and covered my cheeks and neck and ravaged me everywhere.
to damage something very badly
a country ravaged by civil war
His health was gradually ravaged by drink and drugs.
gangly
The only thing I had going for me was the fact that I was tall, but even there I was gangly and awkward-looking.
gan‧gling
unusually tall and thin, and not able to move gracefully SYN lanky
fringe
In the interest of survival, the smart move was to stay on the fringe, stay out of trouble.
on the fringes (of something)
a) not completely belonging to or accepted by a group of people who share the same job, activities etc
a small group on the fringes of the art world
b) (also on the fringe) at the part of something that is farthest from the centre SYN on the edge of something
Nina remained on the fringe of the crowd.
pluck up the courage
One day, I don’t know how, I plucked up the courage to ask Zaheera for her phone number.
to force yourself to be brave and do something you are afraid of doing
He finally plucked up enough courage to ask her out.
