Speakout Advanced p 56. Getting on. Vocabulary

Prickly relationship:


difficult. Sp. Espinoso. Prickles: Sp. espinas



Rocky relationship:


difficult and not certain to continue or to be successful: a rocky marriage



Uneasy relationship:


not certain to last; not safe or settled: e.g. An uneasy peace. The two sides eventually reached an uneasy compromise.



Fierce argument:


angry and aggressive in a way that is frightening. Showing strong feelings or a lot of activity, often in a way that is violent: E.g. A fierce dog. Two fierce eyes glared at them. He suddenly looked fierce. The scene of fierce fighting. He launched a fierce attack on the Democrats. Competition from abroad became fiercer in the 1990s. Sp. Feroz



Courting couple:



a couple that has a relationship before getting married.



Unrequited love:



/ˌʌnriˈkwaɪtɪd/ not returned by the person that you love.



requite something:



/rɪˈkwaɪt/ to give something such as love, kindness, a favour, etc. in return for what somebody has given you. E.g. requited love



Heightened tension:



intensified. Heighten: if a feeling or an effect heightens, or sth heightens it, it becomes stronger or increases. E.g. Tension has heightened after the recent bomb attack.



Call sb names:



to use insulting words about sb



Fall for sb:



to be strongly attracted to sb; to fall in love with sb: E.g. They fell for each other instantly.



besotted:



/bɪˈsɒtɪd/ besotted (by/with somebody/something) loving somebody/ something so much that you do not behave in a sensible way. E.g. He is completely besotted with his new girlfriend. He became besotted with a local barmaid.



infatuated (with somebody/something) 



/ɪnˈfætʃueɪtɪd/ having a very strong feeling of love or attraction for somebody/ something so that you cannot think clearly and in a sensible way. E.g. She was completely infatuated with him.



head over heels in love 



loving somebody very much. E.g. He's fallen head over heels in love with his boss. I immediately fell head over heels for Don.
 


smitten (with/by somebody/something) 



(especially humorous) suddenly feeling that you are in love with somebody. E.g. From the moment they met, he was completely smitten by her. She was smitten with the boy.



Fall out (with sb):



to have an argument with sb so that you are no longer friendly with them



Get on/along like a house on fire:



to become friends quickly and have a very friendly relationship.



Have it in for sb:



(informal) to not like sb and be unpleasant to them.



Keep (yourself) to yourself:



to avoid meeting people socially or becoming involved in their affairs: E.g. Nobody knows much about him; he keeps himself very much to himself.



Look up to sb:



to admire or respect sb.



Look down on sb/sth:



to think that you are better than sb/sth: E.g. She looks down on people who haven’t been to college.



Strain:



pressure on sb/sth because they have too much to do or manage, or sth very difficult to deal with; the problems, worry or anxiety that this produces: Their marriage is under great strain at the moment. These repayments are putting a strain on our finances. Put a great strain on a relationship.



Put sb down



(informal): to make sb look or feel stupid, especially in front of other people. Humiliate.



Take after sb:



to look or behave like an older member of your family, especially your mother or father: E.g.Your daughter doesn’t take after you at all.



Take to sb/sth:



to start liking sb/sth: E.g. I took to my new boss immediately. He hasn’t taken to his new school.



hit it off (with somebody) 



(informal) to have a good friendly relationship with somebody. E.g. We hit it off straight away.
 


click



to become friends with somebody at once; to become popular with somebody. E.g. We met at a party and clicked immediately. Click with somebody He's never really clicked with his students. When I met Melanie I just clicked with her straight away, and I have always got on with her. We clicked together in a special way and I am sorry to say that in later years we lost touch with one another.



Turn your back on sb/sth:



to reject sb/sth that you have previously been connected with: E.g. She turned her back on them when they needed her.



Turn to sb/sth:



to go to sb/sth for help, advice, etc.: E.g. She has nobody she can turn to.



Go / turn sour:



to stop being pleasant: E.g. Their relationship soon went sour.



bend/lean/fall over backwards (to do something)



informal to do everything you can to help. To make a great effort, especially in order to be helpful or fair. E.g. I bent over backwards to make it easier for her and she didn't even notice. I've bent over backwards to help him.



go to any, some, great, etc. lengths (to do something) 



to put a lot of effort into doing something, especially when this seems extreme. E.g. They have gone to great lengths to make us feel welcome. She goes to extraordinary lengths to keep her private life private.

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