Idioms: come up

'Come up' has a few meanings.

a) First, it has a literal meaning. I could come up to your office on the third floor of a building. If I'm swimming, I need to come up to the surface to breathe.

b) Then, it can be another word for 'come', for example:

"Why don't you come up to my house this weekend?"

In this case, 'my house' might not be up a hill; the speaker just means 'come to my house'. 'Come up' can be used in a casual way, and in friendly invitations like this.

c) Then, you can use 'come up' to mean 'will happen soon':

Sorry, I have to stay home. I have exams coming up...

The deadline is coming up next week.

d) Another use of 'come up' is 'happen' - a problem or situation happens. Often it is sudden or unexpected.

Sorry, I have to go home now. Something's come up. (=A problem has suddenly happened, or your situation suddenly changed.)

The reason for this meeting is that a new problem has come up.

Actually, saying 'something's come up' can be a good excuse if you have to change plans. Perhaps you have a work problem, or a family problem, or a cute guy asked you out, or you feel too tired to go out. If you don't want to give any information, you can just say 'something's come up'. Hahaha...

e) As we saw in this post here, 'come up with' means 'think of an idea'.

Okay, so here's a quick quiz for you. Which meaning of 'come up' is used in each sentence? (Choose from: literal meaning, 'come', 'will happen soon', 'happen suddenly', 'think of'.)

1. I need to work on some errors that have come up.
2. I have to come up with a plan.
3. You should come up here some time; you could stay with me.
4. My wife's birthday is coming up on Tuesday.
5. He came up to my room.

(
Answers:
*
*
*
*
1. 'happen'
2. 'think of'
3. 'come'
4. 'will happen soon'
5. literal meaning (if your room is upstairs) or 'come'

Idiom: be better off

To be better off means to have a better result - to be happier, or richer, or safer, or more successful. When you use this expression, you are comparing one situation with another.

Since he's moved out, we're all better off. (=He was a problem housemate. It's better now he is gone.)

"I'm going to Jake's party.
"You'd be better off staying home and doing your homework."

"Are you coming out for drinks?"
"I'd be better off getting an early night."

Be careful! Don't confuse this with "I'd better be off".

I'd be better off = my situation would be better
I'd better be off = I should leave now

One more tip: if you don't mention a particular situation, 'better off' usually means 'richer'.

I'm better off now that I've stopped dating him. (=Life is better because I'm not dating him.)

I'm better off now than I was ten years ago. (=If you don't give any other information, this means you are richer now.)

How about you? Are you better off in some way now, than five years ago? For example, I'm better off now that I have a good, new car. My old car was always breaking down...

Slang/Idioms: go on, go down

Something weird is going on. Something weird is going down.

Here, both go on and go down mean happen. (Something weird is happening.)

A common casual greeting in English is "hey, what's going on?" or "hey, what's going down?" It's like saying "what's happening?" or "what's new (in your life)?"

If you come into a room, and your friends are looking angry, you could ask 'what's going on?' to learn more about the situation.

'Go down' is much more casual and slangy. 'Go on' is still casual, but is very widely used.

So what's going on in your life right now? Anything good going on? ^_^

Idiom: count on somebody

If you can count on somebody or something, you can trust them. They are reliable.

I can count on my friends to help me if I'm in trouble. I can count on winter being cold. I can count on my friend Michelle to be late every time we meet.

If you can count on something, you can trust it. If you count on something, you depend on it, or need it.

A: Will you get paid tomorrow?
B: I hope so. I'm counting on it. (=I really need this money. I think it will come; if it doesn't come, I will be in trouble.)

A: I'll help you with your computer.
B: I'm counting on you. (=I trust you. I really need your help. Please do it.)

Who can you count on? Can your friends count on you?

Idioms: in a string of

If something is the latest in a line/string/series of something, it is the most recent in a series.

"Single Ladies" is the latest in a string of pop hits by Beyoncé.

He is the latest in a line of great company presidents.

The bombing was the latest in a series of attacks across the country.

This is often used when talking about news events.

If you say something is the "latest", the series might not have finished. For example, in the examples above, perhaps Beyonce will have more pop hits; perhaps there will be more great company presidents.

The last in a series means the series has finished.

"The Long and Winding Road" was the last in a long series of number 1 hits by the Beatles.

In Islam, Mohammed was the last in a line of the prophets of God.

Idioms: break down

Break down has several meanings. Let's look at a few (not all) of them.

If a computer or a car breaks down, it stops working and you cannot use it.

Here, broken-down can be used as an adjective. A broken-down car is a car in really bad condition - probably old, needs a lot of repair.

If a person breaks down, they give in to pressure. A person 'breaking down' can mean 'crying and getting really upset', or 'giving up'.

They had an argument and he broke down in tears.

I am so stressed I just want to break down and cry.

She wouldn't tell the police anything. But after hours of questioning, she broke down and confessed her crime.

If you 'have a break-down', it means you have some kind of emotional crisis; you collapse; you can't cope with the situation.

Have you ever had a machine break down? Have you ever broken down* while you were driving? What did you do? *(=Has your car ever broken down)

Have you ever broken down when you were under pressure? Or were you able to stay tough?

Idioms: see eye to eye, see the light, see the error of one's ways

Let's look at some more 'seeing' idioms.

If you see eye to eye (or eye-to-eye) with someone, you agree with them. You have an understanding, a similar way of thinking.

I never saw eye to eye with my mother-in-law.

If you see the light, it means you suddenly realise something, and change your thinking. It suggests that before, you were deceived or ignorant - now you know the truth.

He used to think studying English was a waste of time. But now he's seen the light, and he studies ten hours a week.

There is a similar expression, see the error of one's ways, which means to realise your mistakes and change your thinking/behaviour.

He used to stay out until 3am every night. But now he's seen the error of his ways and he goes to bed early.

How about you? Who do you see eye-to-eye with? Is there a time when you saw the light and changed your old idea/dislike of something?

Idioms: see stars, see red

Let's look at some seeing idioms.

If you see stars, it means you are dizzy - probably because you hit your head.

It is common to see this in cartoons and comic books. Often, when a character gets hit in the head (for example, someone hits them with a hammer, or they run into a wall), they will see stars. The artist will draw little stars around their head, to show their confusion.

If you see red, however, it means you are angry.

This idiom might come from the sport of bull-fighting. When bulls see the red cape, they become very angry and lose control - they 'see red'.

What makes you see red? For me, liars make me see red. People who aren't fair really make me see red.

Idioms: come up with, put up with

Come up with means to think of an idea or plan.

I'll try to come up with some good examples... ^_^

Can anybody come up with any better ideas?

I've come up with the perfect solution to our problem!

Put up with means to (unhappily) tolerate something you don't like very much.

I've been putting up with my roommate's snoring for a long time.

I can't put up with him any more. I have to break up with him.

How about you? Can you come up with any example sentences? What things or behaviour do you find difficult to put up with?

Idioms: biting

Here are three idioms about biting. ^_^

Bite one's tongue means to say nothing; not react. You are stopping yourself from saying something angry or upset.

I was so angry at him, but I bit my tongue. (=I didn't say anything.)

As the customer continued complaining, the waitress had to bite her tongue.

Bite one's head off means to say something very angry without a good reason. This is common when a person is stressed.

I only asked her if she wanted a cup of tea, and she bit my head off. (=She said something very angry to me.)

'Okay, okay! You don't have to bite my head off.' (=Don't get so upset at me.)

Bite the bullet means to do something you are afraid of, or something unpleasant or unfamiliar.

My teeth hurt, so I have to bite the bullet and go to the dentist.

At first she was too nervous to ask questions in class. Finally she bit the bullet and raised her hand.

So, how about you? When do you have to bite your tongue? When was the last time you bit someone's head off? When was the last time you bit the bullet, and did something you didn't want to do?

Idiom: off the top of one's head

If you think of an idea 'off the top of your head', you thought of it easily, without trying hard.

How many US Presidents can you list? Just off the top of my head, I can think of Lincoln, Washington, Obama, Bush x2, Kennedy, Clinton, Roosevelt... (That means, I very quickly thought of these names. I didn't have to try to remember. I didn't do any research.)

Off the top of my head, it's difficult to think of another example. ^_^

This expression also suggests that your answer is not complete or perfect.
"Do you have any ideas for games for the party?"
"Well... off the top of my head, I could give you a couple of ideas. But I'll think about it some more."

"Off the top of my head, I think we have about twelve days until the party."

How about you? How long is it until Christmas? Imagine you are buying a present for your best friend - what kind of gift does he/she like? Please answer 'off the top of your head'. ^_^

Idiom: go on

'Go on' has several different meanings. One meaning is 'talk too much'. If you go on about something, you talk about it a lot - because you are excited, enthusiastic or upset about it - although other people are not very interested.

When I was a child, I used to go on about video games. These days, I try not to go on too much about my interests.

This expression has a rather negative meaning.
'My friend was talking about his problems.'
'My friend was going on about his problems.'
In this second sentence, you are not very interested in their problems. You think they should talk less about their problems.

'go on and on' is even stronger. If your friend was going on and on about his problems, he was really talking for a long time!

Do you sometimes go on a bit? What do you go on about?

Idiom: behind someone's back

If you do something behind someone's back, you are doing it secretly, so they cannot see or hear you. This is usually used for unkind or sneaky behaviour.

For example, if a child goes to a party behind their parents' backs, the parents did not give permission. If an employee goes behind their boss' back, they do something the boss would not like, without asking the boss.

Another example: there are two teenage girls, Emily and Sarah. Emily is angry because Sarah talked about her behind her back. This means that Sarah pretended she was Emily's friend. However, secretly, she said mean things about Emily to their other friends.

When you were a teenager, did you ever go behind your parents' backs? Did you ever talk about a friend behind their back?