Idioms y Phrasal Verbs en Inglés: Guía Completa con Ejemplos para Practicar

Idioms

Very successful – to sell like hotcakes
Unexpectedly – out of the blue
To be starving – I could eat a horse
To help – to lend a hand
To memorize – to learn by heart
A sympathetic listener – a shoulder to cry on
Not much money – peanuts
To agree – to see eye to eye
Sound / look familiar – to ring a bell
Just and no more – by the skin of your teeth
To have a great relationship – to get on like a house on fire
Full of energy – full of beans
Don’t panic – take it easy
Fed up – sick and tired
Just in time – in the nick of time
Catch doing something wrong – catch red-handed
Not speaking – cat got your tongue
Feel out of place – feel like a fish out of water
To say what is troubling you – get your problems off your chest
To ignore – to give the cold shoulder

Phrasal Verbs

Leave the ground – take off
To choose – pick out
Stop being friends – fall out
Put on extra clothes – wrap up
Have none left – run out of
To extinguish – put out
To faint – pass out
To start something new – take up
To do exercise – work out
To find by chance – come across
To be hit by a vehicle – knock down
To disappoint – let down
Enter a house to steal – break into
To demolish – blow up
To register – check in
To dress very well / wear a costume – dress up
To invent – make up
To go at the same level – catch up
To postpone – put off

Idioms (2º ESO)

Very easy – a piece of cake / as easy as pie
Not my favourite thing – not my cup of tea
Get an excellent mark – pass with flying colours
Very happy – over the moon
Have no idea – don’t have a clue
To joke – pull your leg
To make a mistake – put your foot in it
Favourite pupil – apple of my eye
To feel nervous – have butterflies in your tummy
A nuisance – a pain in the neck
As good as gold
As red as a tomato
As black as coal
As white as a sheet / a ghost
As cunning as a fox
As busy as a bee
As blind as a bat
As pretty as a picture
As ugly as sin
To feel ill – under the weather
El colmo – final straw
Do two actions at once – kill two birds with one stone
Not very often – once in a blue moon
To go crazy – lose your head
To give away a secret – let the cat out of the bag
Rain heavily – rain cats and dogs
To die – kick the bucket
Very expensive – cost an arm and a leg
Good luck – break a leg
Pregnant – have a bun in the oven
A troublemaker – a bad egg
Relaxed – as cool as a cucumber
Mad – nuts
Clever – smart cookie
Give away a secret – spill the beans
So different – like chalk and cheese
Suspicious – fishy
Lazy person – couch potato

Phrasal Verbs (Opuestos y más)

Opposite of put on clothes – take off
Opposite of drop somebody off – pick up
Opposite of hand out – hand in
Opposite of turn down – turn up
Relax – chill out
Wait – hang on
Become an adult – grow up
Stop working – break down
To die – pass away
Feel better – cheer up
Go quickly – hurry up
Take care of – look after
See if clothes fit – try on
Put in the rubbish – throw away
Copy notes – write down
Consult a book – look up
Be careful – look out
Speak louder – speak up
Stop a habit – give up
Have a relationship with – get on with
Continue – carry on
Discover information – find out
Put what is missing – fill in
Sleep longer than wanted – sleep in
Cancel – call off

Tiempos verbales

Present Simple: She works in an office.
Present Continuous: She is working in an office.
Present Perfect Simple: She has worked in an office.
Present Perfect Continuous: She has been working in an office.
Past Simple: She worked in an office.
Past Continuous: She had been working in an office.

Verbos irregulares

write – wrote – written: escribir
wring – wrung – wrung: estrujar / retorcer
weep – wept – wept: llorar mucho
wear – wore – worn: llevar puesto / vestir
tear – tore – torn: rasgar papel
stick – stuck – stuck: pegar con pegamento
stand – stood – stood: soportar / estar de pie
split – split – split: dividir en dos
wake – woke – woken: despertar
swear – swore – sworn: jurar / decir tacos

Ejercicios

Exercise 1: A different exercise

1. A person who practises athletics → athlete
2. Another word for a trainer → coach
3. The person who watches the match → spectator
4. To participate → take part in

Exercise 2 – Unit 2: New old hobbies

1. Planting and looking after flowers → gardening
2. The opposite of old-fashioned → modern
3. You are deeply ___ in that subject → interested
4. It costs peanuts → cheap

Exercise 3 – Unit 1: Film making

1. To find where the film will be set → location
2. To understand what is happening in the film → follow
3. To use techniques to create visual illusions → special effects
4. The main hero → hero
5. The dialogue of the film → script
6. To write about the film in a magazine → review

Exercise 4 – Unit 1: Real English

1. Have you ever tried parachuting? Why don’t you… → give it a shot
2. Wow! You ___ it → smashed it
3. Problem solved — a solution has been found → Sorted!
4. You’re pulling my leg!! → You are kidding me, right?

Exercise 5 – Unit 1: Blogging

1-1. He ___ new → comes up with
2. Don’t be ___ → offensive
3. Don’t be negative — be ___ → positive