Help plz

Posted by ESC on May 16, 2003

In Reply to: Help plz posted by Lotg on May 16, 2003

: : : : hi,
: : : : would like to know the meaning for the following...

: : : : 1)flop into an armchair
: : : : 2)to coin the dictum
: : : : 3)to fight off temptations
: : : : 4)drift over yellow water lagoon
: : : : 5)flick out their tongues
: : : : 6)lift their heads to eye me
: : : : 7)my active two-year old wandered away
: : : : 8)he had been snappish with her
: : : : 9)she sets about preparing a celebration
: : : : 10)marched out of the door
: : : : 11)go off to tahiti
: : : : 12)my mind in a turmoil
: : : : 13)i pulled myself together
: : : : 14)they scampered off
: : : : 15)ticked off the names of every player
: : : : 16)sets out to revive the pleasures of the table
: : : : 17)several root crops are begining to take hold outside the andes
: : : : 18)set out on a journy
: : : : 19)waded into the channel
: : : : 20)make beleive letter
: : : : 21)tripped over
: : : : 22)to head off
: : : : 23)en route to ...
: : : : 24)flood tieds off the french coast
: : : : 25)sized him up
: : : : 26)the catch of the twon
: : : : 27)stormed out
: : : : 28)loose your temper in a crunch
: : : : 29)dishing out discipline
: : : : 30)mete out their own punishment
: : : : 31)assert their authority
: : : : 32)let it go at that
: : : : 33)stalked out

: : : : thank you all for your help.

: : : : Wow, you must be reading soooo much. Only I'm confused about some of your queries, eg. 7, 17 & 24. These simply appear to be parts of sentences in a story. Anyone else, am I wrong? They don't look like colloquialisms to me.

: :
: : to tell you the truth, I am, but I feel frustrated if I come across a phrase I don't know the meaning of. english language is just full of phrases.

:
: :: Fair comment, it often astounds me that anyone can speak and understand the English language with all it's anomalies.

What might help is taking the phrases apart and looking the words up in a dictionary. Merriam-Webster Online is good -- www.merriam-webster.com/

1) flop into an armchair - sit down heavily and carelessly into a chair
2) to coin the dictum
3) to fight off temptations - to actively try to not do something that is harmful or immoral but that is also pleasurable.
4) drift over yellow water lagoon
5) flick out their tongues - tongues darting in and out quickly like a snake
6) lift their heads to eye me - lift their heads to stare, look intensely
7) my active two-year old wandered away - the little child left where he was supposed to stay
8) he had been snappish with her - spoke rudely, abruptly.
9) she sets about preparing a celebration - starts getting ready for a party or festive occasion
10) marched out of the door - Left in haste? Didn't linger.
11) go off to Tahiti - Tahiti is a tropical vacation spot
12) my mind in a turmoil - thinking troubled disjointed thoughts
13) I pulled myself together - Made myself calm. Returned to a normal state.
14) they scampered off - quickly left like little forest creatures
15) ticked off the names of every player - read or checked off the names
16) sets out to revive the pleasures of the table - tries to prepare a delicious meal. Good food and pleasant company.
17) several root crops are beginning to take hold outside the Andes. Root crops are like potatoes and carrots where the main edible part of the plant is the root.
18) set out on a journey - started on a trip
19) waded into the channel - waded usually means walking in water up to the knees.
20) make beleive letter
21) tripped over - literally stumbled over an object or found something by surprise.
22) to head off - To stop something at the beginning. Or "to head off" somewhere, to go.
23) en route to - on the way to somewhere. Traveling to.
24) flood tieds off the french coast - flood tides?
25) sized him up - Looked him over to see what sort of person he was.
26) the catch of the twon
27) stormed out - left angry.
28) loose your temper in a crunch - Lose (one "o") your composure during a stressful situation.
29) dishing out discipline - Giving punishment.
30)mete out their own punishment - Giving punishment
31) assert their authority - Show who is boss, who is in charge.
32) let it go at that - Let it stand. Don't take further action.
33) stalked out - Left angry.

• Help plz Lotg 05/17/03