30 Tough but Very Important Advanced English Phrases for Daily Use
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hello everyone
and welcome back to english with lucy
today i am going to teach you 30
tough but important advanced phrases
that you can use to expand your
vocabulary these are phrases that you
can use
in daily conversation they are advanced
they’re at roughly
c1 level but i think that you can use
them in a natural
and confident way to further help your
understanding
and your learning i have created a free
pdf for you to download
and it also includes a quiz so you can
test your learning
if you would like to download that free
pdf and quiz
all you’ve got to do is click on the
link in the description box
enter your name and your email address
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so let’s begin i’m going to give you the
phrase
i’m going to show you how to pronounce
it with a phonetic transcription
i’ll give you the meaning and i will
give you an
example of the phrase in use these are
all phrases that you’ll hear
native speakers say on a regular basis
but they’re not necessarily things that
you learn in a textbook
you have to learn them in context which
is why i’m providing you with examples
number one a fraction of
a fraction of a fraction of something
is a small or tiny part or amount of
something
an example the plastic folders were a
fraction of the price of the
leather ones that’s a much more advanced
way of saying
cheaper a fraction of the price number
two
is all things considered all things
considered
this means taking everything into
account
all things considered i think we’ve done
a really good job
number three has a similar meaning it’s
not exactly the same though
it’s all in all all in all
it means overall or
mostly all in all i think the response
to the campaign
was very positive number four is
to be bound to to be bound to now you
might notice that i’m saying
to but in the phonetic transcription
i’ve put
and previously i said of all of these
phrases
would typically be used within a longer
sentence
so you would usually use the weak forms
to be bound to something
is to be certain to or to be destined to
an example you’re bound to hear back
from them
soon you’re certain to hear back from
them soon they will help you
they’re bound to help you it’s a really
common expression
number five is to be down to
to be down to this means to be
as a result of for example
the drop in profit was down to the bad
weather over christmas
the drop in profit was as a result of
the bad weather down to the bad weather
i wonder what that was down to i wonder
what that was
as a result of it’s a really nice phrase
number six is to drive somebody up the
wall to drive someone up the wall
and this is to annoy someone or to make
them crazy
my mum always used to say it to me
you’re driving me up the wall lucy
you’re annoying me so much you’re
driving me crazy an example
people who throw their rubbish out of
their car window drive me
up the wall no word of a lie just today
i went on a run
outside the farm and someone had
unloaded what looked like
the entirety of the day’s litter from
mcdonald’s
it’s always mcdonald’s isn’t it number
seven a really nice one
i say this a lot it’s easier said than
done
that’s easier said than done this simply
means
not very easy if something isn’t very
easy it’s easier to say it
than it is to do it an example
i’d like to give our boss some
constructive criticism but that’s easier
said than done
meaning it’s not very easy to criticize
your boss
number eight is for the most part
for the most part this means usually
or in most cases an example i find
running
for the most part very enjoyable usually
in most cases apart from when i fall
over
which is what i did the other day i got
completely muddy my phone landed in a
puddle it wasn’t a good day
but for the most part i enjoy running
number 10
and number 11 go together we have number
10 which is
in high spirits in high spirits which
means
in a cheerful or energetic mood
for example the winning team was in high
spirits
after the award ceremony then we have
number 11 which is the opposite can you
guess what it is
it’s in low spirits in low spirits
and this means in a sad or
fatigued despondent mood
she was in low spirits due to her recent
breakup
this is a more advanced way of saying
someone’s in a bad or a good mood
number 12 is just around the corner
just around the corner that actually
makes sense number 12
is just around the corner it’s here now
it
it means coming very soon if something
is just around the corner
it’s coming very soon an example i felt
stressed when i realized my driving test
is just around the corner number 13
is to make a point of doing something
to make a point of doing something and
this
is to always do something or to take
particular care to do something
an example she always makes a point of
treating
everyone as equals she always takes
particular care to make sure
everyone is treated fairly number 14
is to make ends meet to make ends meet
this means to earn enough money to live
on to earn
just enough money to live on an example
we
always struggle to make ends meet
towards the end of the year
we struggle to have enough money because
christmas is expensive
number 15 is to miss the point
to miss the point this means to fail to
understand the essential or important
part of something
i think you’ve completely missed the
point there you haven’t understood
the important part of what i was saying
you focused on something else
number 16 is narrow-minded
narrow-minded this means prejudiced
or not willing to listen to the views of
others
an example her father-in-law is
extremely narrow-minded and is unable to
accept
that it’s no longer the 1900s
number 17 is on hand
on hand and this means present or
available
an example the counselor is always on
hand to offer a shoulder to cry on
eighteen is on the face of it on the
face of it
and this means apparently but without
knowing all of the relevant facts
an example on the face of it she seems
to have settled in well i don’t fully
know but it seems that she has number 19
is on the verge of on the verge of
this means very near to doing something
or experiencing something
and we nearly always use this with
tears if someone’s on the verge of tears
then they
are nearly crying number 20
this one is very popular people are
liking this one at the moment
it is part and parcel part and parcel
it’s a great one it’s fun to say
this means an essential or integral
component
for example stress is part and parcel of
this profession
it’s an essential component it wouldn’t
be this profession if it wasn’t for
stress i’m not talking about being a
youtuber
i’m thinking of professions such as
being a nurse or something like that
number 21 is to pose a question to pose
a question and this means to raise a
question
and it’s commonly used in the phrase
this poses the question
this raises the question this brings up
the query and topic an example
this poses the question should we be
following the regulations
number 22 is remarkably complex
no i’m not saying it is remarkably
complex the
is remarkably complex it just works with
the number
this means very complicated with lots of
intricate details
these words just go together beautifully
it’s remarkably complex
i love the word remarkably an example
the mosaic was remarkably complex and
beautiful
23 is a roller coaster of emotions
a roller coaster of emotion this means
full of highs and lows happiness sadness
fear shock everything an example
i experience a rollercoaster of emotions
whenever i visit the opera
which is never i’ve never visited the
opera i must
do that post covid number 24
love this one i think you should use
this at every opportunity
it is short and sharp short and sharp
this means quick and concise very brief
an example let’s keep this zoom meeting
short and sharp
quick and concise no one wants to be
here so let’s just make it quick and
efficient
number 25 is to sit on the fence to sit
on the fence and this means to avoid
making a decision or choice for example
she likes to sit on the fence to avoid
confrontation
number 26 is to steal the show to steal
the show
this means to attract the most attention
and praise
for example the last interviewee totally
stole the show
they received the most attention the
best attention
they created the best impression number
27
is to take great pleasure in doing
something
and this means to really enjoy doing
something
sometimes at the expense of others
you can also use the negative form i
take no great pleasure in doing this
if you want to express that you really
don’t get any enjoyment from doing
something that might
negatively affect others an example
she took great pleasure in telling him
he was fired
so she enjoyed breaking his heart but
you know maybe he did something bad
maybe he deserved it who knows
but she took pleasure in it number 28
is to walk on eggshells to walk on
eggshells
this means to be extremely cautious
about one’s words or actions
if you walk on eggshells around somebody
it means you’re choosing your words
you’re desperately trying to not make
them angry or to offend them
an example the boss has a terrible
temper so everyone walks on eggshells
around him
number 29 is without a care in the world
without to care in the world and this
means without
any worries without worrying about
anything
an example i am always anxious and
there’s my husband without a care in the
world he never worries about anything
number 30 we made it it is
worth your weight in gold or worth
something’s weight in gold
if something or someone is worth their
weight in gold
it means that they are very valuable
helpful or
irreplaceable for example we can’t lose
our receptionist she’s worth her weight
in gold she’s amazing she’s so helpful
and useful
it is now time for you to complete the
quiz
so if you’d like to do that you’ve got
to download the free pdf i’ve got
everything we discussed today and the
quiz questions and feel free to show off
your results in the comments section
down below
just click on the link in the
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if you are looking to improve your
listening and you want to
expand your vocabulary i’d just like to
remind you that i also have my vlogging
channel where i vlog
my life here on an english farm in the
countryside
and every vlog is completely fully
subtitled for your learning you can also
connect with me on my social media i’ve
got my instagram
at lucy and my wonderful website which
has got a fantastic pronunciation tool
it is englishwithlucy.co.uk
i will see you soon for another lesson i
don’t know why this requires
extra lipstick it’s because i mean
business
there’s my tiny hair brush here we are i
think i’ve made that look worse
i think you’ve completely missed the
point there you haven’t understood
the important thing this means
an essential or integral is it
integral or integral it must be integral
i’m thinking of the spanish word for
whole
grain aren’t i
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integral integral integral
integral i’ve spent my whole life saying
integral
no integral let me search a different
dictionary i always trust cambridge
integral
integral an example let’s keep this
if you are looking for further listening
practice and you want to
further expand your go go
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