give someone the cold shoulder: treat someone in an unfriendly way

pull someone’s leg: tell someone something that is not true as a joke
lend someone a hand: help someone
do something behind someone’s back: do something without someone knowing about it
stick your neck out for someone: take a risk because you believe in someone
be under someone’s thumb: be controlled by someone
see eye-to-eye with someone: have the same opinion as someone
get something off your chest: tell someone about something that has been worrying you

get across: manage to communicate an idea clearly

speak your mind: express one's opinions frankly (francamente)
think through: think for sometime in effort to understand or make a decision about an idea

it worked like a dream

he turned as white as a sheet
as quick as a flash
they got on like a house on fire
as strong as an ox
as cold as ice
as light as a feather
as cool as a cucumber
as quiet as a mouse
as fresh as a daisy
as clear as mud
as easy as ABC
as solid as a rock

sighed: SOSPIRARE speak breathing out slowly, making a long soft sounds, especially because you are
disappointed, tired, annoyed or relaxed
gasped: ANSIMARE speak while you are breathing in suddenly, for example because you are surprised,
shocked or in pain
yelled: URLARE speak in a loud voice because you are angry excited or in pain or in order to make people
hear you
whined: PIAGNUCOLARE to complain in a way that annoys other people
shrieked: STRILLARE to speak in a very loud voice because you are so scared or angry that you cannot
control yourself
whispered: SUSSURRARE speak very quietly so that other people can’t hear you
muttered: BORBOTTARE speak in a low voice that is difficult to hear, especially because you are annoyed,
embarrassed or talking to yourself
groaned: LAMENTARSI speak in a way that shows that you are unhappy

motorways
seat belt
driving licence
road signs
speed limit
steering wheel
traffic jam
traffic lights
roundabout
petrol station
 TAKE MAKE DO

a call, control, a course, cover, an apology, an attempt, a call, business, a course, harm,
a decision, effect, an interest, changes, a choice, a comment, household chores, research,
offence, place, power, a risk, a complaint, a decision, a test, your best
a test a difference, an improvement,
a mistake, a suggestion,
use of something

wanders: divagare, spaziare

memorise: memorizzare
recall: ricordare, richiamare, rievocare
bewilder: disorientare
have a gift for: avere un dono
grasp: comprendere
articulate: eloquente, scandire
perceive: percepire

pick up: learn something new

catch on: understand
piece together: learn about something by considering all the separate bits of information you have
keep up with: learn at the same speed as someone else
come up with: think of an idea or a plan
hit on: suddenly have an idea or discover something by chance
leap out at: be immediately obvious to someone, or immediately get their attention
talk through: discuss something with somebody in a detailed way

2 part phrasal verb (no object) → catch on

2 part phrasal verb (inseparable) → hit on
2 part phrasal verb (separable) → pick up, piece together, talk through
3 part phrasal verb (inseparable) → come up with, keep up with, leap out at

EXPRESSIONS IN FILMS
NOUNS: adaptation, box office (biglietteria), clichè, cliffhanger (suspense), critic, masterpiece,
portrayal (descrizione), script (descrizione), sequel, twist and turns of a plot
ADJECTIVE: disappointing (deludente), disjointed (disorganico), epic, far-fetched (inverosimile),
fast-moving, flawed (pieno di difetti), gripping (avvincente), uninspiring, inspiring, intriguing,
light-hearted (leggero), low-budget, memorable, mesmerising (fascinante), mind-blowing
(sconvolgente), moving (commovente), risqué (osè), thought-provoking (makes you think),
up-and-coming (emergente)
EXPRESSION: bombed (fallimento), critics panned the film (è stato criticato), grossed (ha realizzato),
the story unfolds (gli eventi si sviluppano), deliver a great performance (about an actor), received rave
reviews (ottime recensione), get a lukewarm reception (è andato benino), a box-office smash (ha avuto
successo nelle vendite), a box-office flop (poche vendite), hit the big screen

VERB +ING VERB + TO-INFINITIVE +ING / TO-INFINITIVE

admit, avoid, carry on, consider, afford, agree, appear, arrange, bgin, bother, can’t bear, can’t
deny, face, feel like, finish, give decide, expect, fail, happen, stand, continue, hate, love,
up, include, keep (on), practise, help, hope, manage, pretend, prefer, start
recommend, risk, suggest, take promise, refuse, seem, volunteer,
up wait
stop to do: you stop one activity because you want or need to do another activity
stop doing: you are doing something and then you stop
remember to do: you remember you need to do something and then you do it
remember doing: you do something and then you remember it later
forget to do: you don’t do something that you intended to do
forget doing: you did something, but now you don’t remember it
like to do: you do something because you think it’s a good idea
like doing: you do something because you enjoy doing it
try to do: you make an effort to achieve something
try doing: you do something as an experiment
mean to do: you intend to do something
mean doing: an action involves something
go on to do: you stop one activity or topic of discussion and start another, new one
go on doing: you continue doing an activity

VERB + OBJ + VERB-ING VERB + OBJ + TO-INFINITIVE VERB + OBJ + INFINITIVE

catch, feel, find, hear, notice, advise, allow, ask, authorise, feel, hear, help, let, make,
overhear, see, watch beg, choose, encourage, force, overhear, see, watch
help, hire, inspire, invite, need,
order, persuade, pick, remind,
send, teach, tell, want, warn

transmit: to pass a disease from one person to another

species: a plant or animal group whose members all have similar general features
parasite: a plant or animal that lives in or on another type of animal and feeds on it
resistant: not harmed or affected by something
prevalent: very common in a particular place or among a particular group
genetic engineering: the practice or science of adding genes to a living thing
contract: to become infected by a disease
chromosome: a structure that exists in cells, often as one of a pair
enzyme: a natural chemical produced by animal and plant cells
genetically modified: a plant or animal that has had its genetic structure changed

outlook: idea of what a situation will be like in the future/ your general attitude to things
drawback: disadvantages
outcome: results
feedback: comments about well or badly someone is doing something
outset: beginning, start
outbreak: sudden start of a war, disease, violence
cutback: reduction of something
crackdown: strong action that someone in authority takes to stop a particular activity
breakthrough: svolta
offspring: prole, discendenza
setback: ostacolo, contrattempo
high-risk: alto rischio
lifetime
worldwide
breaktime
worthwhile: utile, che ne vale la pena
littering: abbandono di rifiuti
designated: designato, destinato
be issued with a fine: essere punito con una multa …
be banned
lodged a formal complaint: presenta una denuncia formale
prosecuted and judged: perseguito e giudicato
suspended sentence: pena sospesa
community service

in addition to
in aid of: in aiuto di
on account of: a causa della
by means of: mediante
on the strength of: sulla base
out of touch with: aver perso il contatto
on behalf of: a nome di
in the process of: in fase di

I am writing to complain/protest about

I am writing on behalf of (facendo le veci di)
I should like to draw your attention to
my second/next/main complaint concerns
to make matters worse (a peggiorare le cose)
I urge you to (ti sollecito)
I demand that you
I would ask you to
might I suggest you..?
the fact/truth/problem is that
what annoys/surprises/amazes me is
yours faithfully (Sir/Madam/name)
yours sincerely (Sir/Madam/name)

landlord/landlady: a person who owns a house or flat that people can rent
move in: start living in a house or flat
tenant: a person who rents a house or flat
flat-hunt/house-hunt: look for a house or flat to live in
do up a property: repair, paint or improve an old property
fully-furnished: a house that you rent with full furniture already in it
put down a deposit: pay money when you start to rent, returned when you stop renting
flat/house share: a house where friends live together
squatter: a person who lives in place without paying rent to the owner
lodger: someone who pays to live in a house with the person who owns it

be at home with
home truths (verità domestiche)
be home and dry (essere sani e salvi)
not be anything to write home about (non è niente di spettacolare)
brings it home to you (ti fa riflettere)
home from home (una seconda casa)
homed in (è arrivata)

quaint: interesting or attractive with a slightly strange and old-fashioned quality

bustling: full of noise and activity in a pleasant and interesting way
welcoming: friendly and pleasant, especially to someone who has just arrived at a place
sprawling: built over a wide area in a way that is not carefully planned and maybe ugly
run-down/shabby: in bad condition because no-one has spent money on repairs …
cosmopolitan: where people from many different countries and cultures live
steeped in: having a lot of a particular quality or thing
renowned for: famous/well-known for
atmospheric: suggestivo
crowded: affolatto, tanto frequentato
filthy: sporco, lurido, sudicio
hilly: collinare, montuoso
historic: storico, antico
industrial: industriale, del lavoro
isolated: isolato
magnificent: magnifico, splendido, grandioso
picturesque: pittoresco, suggestivo, caratteristico
spotless: immacolato, pulitissimo
thriving: fiorente, prospero, rigoglioso
touristy: turistico
vibrant: vivace, dinamico
well-connected: ben collegato
well-off: benestante, agiato

launch a marketing campaign: make public a series of things such as adverts or commercials that try to
persuade a person to buy a product
freebies: things given to you that you don’t have to pay for
cold calls: unexpected phone calls or visit by someone trying to sell you something
endorse: say in public or in ad that you like a product
brand name: the name that a company chooses for its particular product or group of products
billboards: large boards used for advertisements in an outside public place
word-of-mouth publicity: people talking to each other about and recommending a product
banners: an advertisenìments on a website

soul-destroying: used to describe a situation that makes you very unhappy because you think it will never
improve
heart-stopping: very frightening
heartwarming: making you feel happy, usually because other people are being kind
hair-raising: very frightening, but often exciting at the same time
breakneck: very fast, at breakneck speed
ear-splitting: very loud
eye-catching: attractive or unusual and therefore noticed
eye-opening: used to describe a situation that shows you something surprising that you didn’t know before
nail-biting: used to describe a situation that makes you very excited, worried or tense
mind-blowing: extremely impressive, exciting or shocking (informal)

clear fair
cover picked up
since point
see your point get to the point
proved your point missed the point
on the point of up to a point (partly but not completely)
have a point (have a strong argument) the point of no return
spot tip
account hard
draw catch
looking up
lift your spirits
walking/floating on air
over the moon
on top of the world/ on cloud nine/ in seventh heaven
lit up
looking bright for the future
light at the end of the tunnel
brightened up
feeling blue
looking gloomy/ bleak (cupo)
feeling down/ low
heart sank (cuore sprofondò)
cast a shadow over something (gettare un'ombra su qualcosa)
low spirit
feeling down in the dumps (sentirsi giù di morale)

follow in someone’s footsteps: have the same ambition as someone else

enrol on: put your name on an official list of students
serving an apprenticeship: learn about a job by actually doing it
gave him valuable insight into: get a chance to understand something or learn more about it
settle in: get used to
find his feet: become familiar with something new
overcome setbacks: succeed in dealing with problems
put on hold: stop something from happening now, but it may happen later
has lots of aspirations and drive: ambitious and willing (disponibile)
get on in life: be successful
try his hand at: do an activity for the first time, to see if you like it
accomplished: succeeded in doing something
never looked back: had no regrets
the top of his game: the best you can be at something
end up: do something after you have done lots of other things

find something puzzling: trovare qualcosa di misterioso

get the wrong end of the stick: misunderstand something (colloquial)
imply something: implicare qualcosa
make a gaffe: make an embarrassing mistake in public, especially one that upset someone
make a witty remark: say something (clear and funny)
misinterpret something/ someone: fraintendere qualcuno o qualcosa
offend someone unintentionally: make someone upset and angry without meaning to
take something literally: prendere qualcosa alla lettera
talk at cross purposes: when two people think they’re talking about the same thing but in fact they aren’t
understand nuances: understand slight differences that may be difficult to notice but are important

brought up: star discussing

pointed out: tell someone something
picked up on: talk in more detail about something that someone has mentioned
spoke out: state your opinion firmily and publicly to protest against or defend something
cut in: interrupt
make out: understand someone or something with difficulty
talking down to: talk to someone as if you think they are not as clever or as important as you
spell out: explain something very clearly, often because someone has not understood
get through to: make someone understand what
turn to: change from one subject to another