off-road car

OFF-ROAD CAR/ OFF-ROADER

a motor vehicle designed for use away from public roads, esp on rough terrain

Last Sunday I had an opportunity to be a passenger in one of these and it was awesome! 🙂

pl. samochód terenowy

de. der Geländewagen

doomed

DOOMED (duːmd)

to be certain to fail, die or be destroyed

Example: Lacking public support, some early cell phone technology was doomed to failure.

Our expedition was doomed from the very beginning.

pl. z góry skazany na porażkę, zgubę

de. verloren, verdammt, verurteilt

This is a really cool “crystal skull” shot glass and I’d definitely like to have one 🙂

spill the beans

SPILL THE BEANS

to give away a secret or a surprise

pl. wygadać się, wyjawić tajemnicę

de. alles ausquatschen, alles ausplaudern

there was a robber…

There was a robber who wasn’t very decisive. He was dreading everything but he wanted to gain recognition. He had friends who specialized in arson, mugging, shoplifting and smuggling.

The robber decided to commit a serious crime but first, he needed to improve his skills. Unfortunately, he was lazy and put everything off. He procrastinated a lot. He had a habit of making up excuses for himself.

One day, he ran over a dog and the police caught him. He had to pay a fine. When he was coming back home, some vandals knocked him out and he couldn’t come round. When he finally came round, he decided that he was a terrible robber and committed suicide.

Vocabulary:

robber – a thief who steals from someone by threatening violence (pl rabuś; de der Räuber)

decisive – characterized by the ability to make decisions (pl zdecydowany; de entschlossen)

dread – to be afraid of, to fear (pl bać się; de sich fürchten)

gain recognition – to earn attention or favorable notice (pl zyskać uznanie; de die Anerkennung finden)

arson – to set fire on purpose (pl podpalenie; de die Brandstiftung)

mugging – an attack on someone in a public place in order to steal money or other possessions (pl napad uliczny; de der Straßenraub; der Raubüberfall [auf der Straße])

shoplifting – to steal from the shop (pl kradzież sklepowa; de der Ladendiebstahl)

smuggling – secretly importing prohibited goods or goods on which duty is due (pl przemyt; de der Schmuggel)

commit a crime – do sth illegal (pl popełnić zbrodnię; de das Verbrechen begehen)

improve – to make sth better (pl ulepszyć; de verbessern)

put sth off – to delay doing sth (pl odkładać na później; de aufschieben)

procrastinate – to delay doing sth until later (pl zwlekać; de zögern)

make up – to invent (pl wymyślać; de etw erfinden)

run over – to hit sth with a car (pl przejechać; de jdn/etw überfahren)

fine – the money you have to pay when you have broken the law (pl grzywna; de die Geldstrafe)

knock out – to make sb unconscious (pl pozbawić kogoś przytomności; de bewusstlos schlagen)

come round – to regain consciousness (pl dojść do siebie, odzyskać przytomność; de zu Bewusstsein zurückkehren)

commit suicide – to take one’s own life (pl popełnić samobójstwo; de der Selbstmord begehen)

‘out’ phrasal verbs

CONTRACT OUT – to give a job to somebody outside of your company

zaprzestać udziału w jakimś przedsięwzięciu

Example: The company contracts out most of the basic builiding work.

FIGURE OUT – to discover or decide, to to solve a problem

rozwiązać problem, wynaleźć na coś sposób

Example: We had to figure out the connection between the two events.

SELL OUT – to put all of one’s goods or possessions up for sale

wyprzedać się, dobrze się sprzedawać

Example: I wanted to buy some bread but the shop had sold out.

BE A SELLOUT – a person who betrays a cause, organization, principles, etc., esp. for money or personal advantage; traitor

zdrajca, sprzedajny

Example: The Bible tell us that Judas was a sellout.

POINT OUT – to make a comment, to indicate of specify

zwrócić uwagę, wskazywać na coś

Example: The teacher pointed out that the word “get” has several meanings.

BURN OUT – to have no more energy to think and work

wypalić się

Example: Working too hard can cause a person to burn out.

ROLL OUT – to launch, to start selling a new product

stworzyć, wypuścić na rynek

Example: Australia will roll out the prototype of its new jet fighter in January.

BAIL OUT – to rescue somebody from a difficult (financial) situation

wyciągnąć kogoś z kłopotów, poratować kogoś finansowo

Example: I was going to be late with my report, but my roommate lent a hand and bailed me out at the last minute.

 

 

 

not all roses

NOT ALL ROSES also: NOT A BED OF ROSES or NOT ALL MOONLIGHT AND ROSES

if a situation is not all roses, it is not always pleasant

Example: Marriage is not all roses. It can be hard work keeping a relationship together.

pl. nie usłane różami

de. kein Zuckerschlecken

Kate’s holiday

Kate went on holiday. She stayed in a hotel and got a room overlooking the mountains. The view was breathtaking. She felt as if she were on top of the world. She felt glad that she had got her act together and had decided to go on this trip. Before she had a rough time and was in two minds about going there because her husband had just left her. It was difficult for her to adjust to a new situation. But now she was thrilled to bits that her friend had forced her to go and she had managed to grab such an opportunity.

Her room was cosy and she wanted to go to sleep because she was exhausted but the weather was so beautiful that she did not want to miss the boat.

She got into her car and started driving. Suddenly she saw a big hole in the street. She hit the brakes but unfortunately she didn’t manage to stop and she drove into the hole. When she left the car, she noticed that she had a flat tire.

“That’s my luck” she thought and smelt an interesting scent. She noticed a wooden cottage and lots of dark smoke which was coming from the chimney. She came closer. It was very slippery and she almost fell down.

She looked through the window and noticed a man sitting by the table and having a feast. Behind his back, she saw a well-equipped kitchen so she decided to come in. She was about to turn the knob when she noticed something else. In the corner, there was something which looked like a tomb. There were flowers and candles all around it. She also saw a wax figure next to it. She got a little scared.

Suddenly, the man stood up and came closer to the fireplace. She saw that he had a cat in his hand and she realized that he wanted to burn it. She cat looked horrified. Then, the man turned around and saw her. She panicked and didn’t know what to do. She started running away…

Vocabulary:

overlooking – used of a height or viewpoint (z widokiem na)

breathtaking – very beautiful, exciting and remarkable (zapierający dech)

on top of the world – very happy and excited (w siódmym niebie)

get your act together – get organized (zebrać się w sobie)

have a rough time – experience a difficult period (mieć problemy, przechodzić przez trudny okres)

be in two minds – be unable to decide, hesitate (nie móc się zdecydować)

adjust – change so as to match or fit (dostosować się, dopasować się)

thrilled to bits – be extremely pleased, very excited (podekscytowany do granic możliwości)

grab – take, catch (chwycić)

cosy – warm and comfortable (przytulny)

miss the boat – lose the opportunity (stracić okazję)

hit the brakes – to step on a vehicle’s brakes hard and fast (depnąć na hamulec)

flat tyre (BrE)/tire (AmE) – a deflated pneumatic tire) (przebita opona)

scent – a distinctive odor, esp. when agreeable. (zapach, zazwyczaj przyjemny)

slippery – causing or tending to cause objects to slip (śliski)

feast – a large carefully prepared meal (uczta)

knob – a rounded handle as on a door (gałka u drzwi)

tomb – a grave or other place of burial. (grobowiec)

horrified – very scared (przerażony)

idioms with cry

CRYBABY- a person who cries or complains frequently with little cause.

pl. beksa

de. die Heulsuse

CRY ONE’S EYES/HEART OUT – to weep inconsolably for a long time

pl. wypłakiwać oczy, płakać rzewnymi łzami

de. sich (DAT) die Augen ausweinen

CRY ON SOMEONE’S SHOULDER – to tell one’s problems to someone else in an attempt to gain sympathy or consolation

pl. wyżalać się, wypłakiwać się komuś

de. jdm sein Leid klagen

CRY OVER SPILT/SPILLED MILK – to regret in vain what cannot be undone

pl. płakać nad rozlanym mlekiem

de. Geschehen ist geschehen

CRY WOLF – to raise a false alarm

pl. podnieść fałszywy alarm

de. blinden Alarm schlagen; Zeter und Mordio schreien

FOR CRYING OUT LOUD! – used to express annoyance

pl. na litość boską!

de. um Gottes willen!

CRY FOR THE MOON – to desire the unattainable

pl. pragnąć gwiazdki z nieba

de. Unmögliches verlangen

A FAR CRY – 1) a long way 2) something very different

pl. 1. być daleko od czegoś (np. o osiągnięciach) 2) bardzo się róźnić od czegoś

de. weit entfernt von etw. sein

yearning

YEARNING  (ˈjɜ:nɪŋ)

prolonged unfulfilled desire or need, longing

pl. pragnienie, tęsknota

de. die Sehnsucht, das Verlangen

5 phrasal verbs you need to know :)

Please watch the video for examples. This guy is awesome and I really recommend watching more of his online lessons 🙂

SET UP

1) to place somebody in an awkward situation – wrobić kogoś

2) to arrange or build a system – zaaranżować coś, ustawić coś

WORK OUT

1) fix a problem – rozwiązać problem

2) fix a relationship (couples) – rozwiązać problem w związku

3) come to a successful end – udać się, powieść się

4) go to the gym – ćwiczyć na siłowni

TURN OUT

1) result – okazać się

2) produce, make, create – wyprodukować coś

CUT OFF

1) to stop suddenly – odcinać, odłączać

2) when driving somebody goes in front of you – zajeżdżać komuś drogę

CATCH UP

to bring up to date, learn about what happened in the past – nadrobić zaległości, odnowić znajomość

Bye 🙂