Next, listen to this lesson, and then take the second quiz below it, to check that you can use these idioms properly!
Weather Idioms (part 1) By Jane Lawson at DailyStep.com
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Idiom: 1. Take a rain check
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Meaning:
We use this when we want to refuse an offer in a polite way, implying that we may accept it in the future.
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Example: I’ll have to take a rain check on that dinner tomorrow. I’m afraid I have to work late so let’s make it another time.
(note: This idiom has its origin in American baseball, where in the 1880s paying spectators were offered a piece of paper called a “rain check”, entitling them to future admission for a game that was postponed or finished early because it was raining.)
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2. The calm before the storm
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a peaceful, quiet time that comes before a busy or difficult time.
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Example: The whole family is coming to stay for a week so I am trying to relax a little in the calm before the storm!
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3.Break the ice
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To do or say something to remove tension when you first meet someone, or after an argument
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Examples: 1. After the argument, there was a bad atmosphere between them, until John broke the ice by offering her a cup of tea.
2. The new class of students felt a little uncomfortable at first, but then one of them broke the ice by starting a conversation and making a joke.
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4. A storm in a teacup ( British English)
A tempest in a teapot (American English)
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A situation where people get very worried or angry about something that is not really important
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Examples: This argument is just a storm in a teacup! It’s not important at all! (British or Australian English)
This argument is just a tempest in a teapot! It will be forgotten by tomorrow. (American English)
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5. A bolt from the blue
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Something that is totally unexpected
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Example: When he told me the news that he was emigrating, it was a bolt from the blue, because I thought he loved living here.
(note: “A bolt from the blue” is a bolt of thunder that comes out of a blue sky. Usually, thunder occurs only during a storm, but sometimes it can also happen when the sky is blue - and in this case it is totally unexpected.)
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Now, take this quiz below and this time write your answers into the gaps to make sure you can use these idioms properly.