Common English Phrases

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512	meet with
1. v. (chiefly US, Canada) To have a meeting with (someone).
2. v. To encounter; to experience.
The proposal met with stiff opposition.
3. v. To answer (something) with; to respond to (something) with.
They met the proposal with stiff opposition.
513	let down
1. v. To allow to descend.
They let down the rope and I fastened it to the basket.
2. v. (transitive, idiomatic) To disappoint; to betray or fail somebody
I promised him I would meet him there, and I will not let him down.
3. v. (transitive, of clothing) To lengthen by undoing and resewing a hem.
514	atomic bomb
1. n. A nuclear weapon that obtains its destructive energy from nuclear fission.
515	give out
1. v. To utter, publish; to announce, proclaim, report.
2. v. (transtive) To announce (a hymn) to be sung; to read out (the words) for the congregation to sing.
3. v. To send forth, emit; to cause to be sent forth.
4. v. To put forth, utter (prayers).
5. v. To issue; to distribute.
516	lay down
1. v. To give up, surrender, or yield (e.g. a weapon), usually by placing it on the ground.
The police urged the gunman to lay down his weapon.
Lay down your arms.
2. v. To intentionally take a fall while riding a motorcycle, in order to prevent a more serious collision.
He laid down his brand-new Harley-Davidson to avoid the oncoming bus.
517	sets out
1. v. third-person singular present indicative of set out
518	puts out
1. v. third-person singular present indicative of put out
519	among other things
1. adv. in addition to things not mentioned
520	big toe
1. n. (anatomy) The largest of the toes of a human and some other animals.
521	know better
1. v. (set phrase) To recognize that a statement or belief is false or doubtful; to understand that certain behavior is wrongful, futile, or inappropriate.
522	runs through
1. v. third-person singular present indicative of run through
523	hands off
1. interj. (informal) don't touch!
2. interj. (nautical, historical) cut off a hand(: decreed by old admiralty law as punishment for pulling a knife during a fight with a shipmate.)
3. adj. Tending not to interfere with people's (employees', subjects', etc.) decisions and actions.
a hands-off policy
4. v. third-person singular present indicative of hand off
524	elementary school
1. n. (North America, schools) A school for children, typically older than toddlers and younger than adolescents. In the U.S., elementary schools cover grades 1 through 5, and the ages of the children are u
525	general election
1. n. An election, usually held at regular intervals, in which candidates are elected in all or most constituencies or electoral districts of a nation.
526	extenuating circumstances
1. n. plural of extenuating circumstance
527	for the sake of
1. prep. Because of; out of consideration for; in the interest of.
Release this man, for the sake of justice!
528	out of the blue
1. prep. unexpectedly; without warning or preparation
After I hadn’t heard from her in six months, she called me out of the blue to meet for lunch.
I really can't understand how something like this could simply pop up out of the blue.
529	holed up
1. v. simple past tense and past participle of hole up
530	beaten up
1. v. past participle of beat up
531	cut up
1. v. To cut into smaller pieces, parts, or sections.
With a little practice, you can cut up a whole chicken yourself for frying.
2. v. (transitive, informal) To lacerate; to wound by multiple lacerations; to injure or damage by cutting, or as if by cutting.
The attackers cut him up pretty bad.
3. v. (transitive, idiomatic) To distress mentally or emotionally.
532	coming down
1. v. present participle of come down
533	aspire to
1.
534	get around
1. v. To move to the other side of an obstruction.
It might be a while before we can get around from this traffic jam.
There's no trail going through. We can't get around to the lake.
2. v. To come around something.
Cross at the rocks when you get around the bend.
535	revolving door
1. n. A door that rotates around a central pivot.
2. n. (figuratively) A system or institution in which people exit and immediately reenter.
536	bow tie
1. n. alternative spelling of bowtie
537	brain cells
1. n. plural of brain cell
538	bring about
1. v. To cause to take place.
The collapse of the gold standard brought about much of the economic turmoil of that era.
2. v. To accomplish, achieve.
I hope to bring about a successful conclusion.
539	gave birth
1. v. simple past tense of give birth
540	refer to
1.
541	apply for
1.

Dictionary entries from Wiktionary