LESSON 39
to goof off: to waste time, to be idle
o Some of the workers in our office always goof off when the boss is out.
o On Saturday afternoons, I like to go to a movie or just goof off at home.
to talk back to: to answer in a rude manner, to speak to disrespectfully
o Billy, if you talk back to me like that once more, you're going to spend
the rest of the day in your room.
o The school principal had to reprimand the child for talking back to her
teacher.
to be in: to be popular or fashionable; to be available at one's work or home
o Most young people tend to want anything that is in at the time, but a
few don't care about current trends.
o Could you please tell me when Mrs. Zachary will be in? I'd like to talk to
her soon.
to be out: to be unpopular or no longer in fashion; to be away from one's
work or home
o These days, designer jeans are in and long skirts are out.
o I'm sorry, Mr. Jensen is out at the moment. Could I take a message?
to draw the line at: to determine to be unacceptable, to refuse to consider
o I don't mind helping him with his homework, but I draw the line at
writing a term paper for him.
o The conference organizers tried to accommodate the needs of the
various interest groups, but they drew the line at extending the
conference by two day.
to get out of line: to disobey or ignore normal procedures or rules (also: to
step out of line)
o When a child gets out of line in that teacher's class, she uses the old-
fashioned method of making the child sit in the corner of the room.
o Any employee who steps out of line by coming to work in an
unacceptable condition will be fired.
dry run: rehearsal, practice session
o The college president requested a dry run of the graduation ceremony
in order to ensure that all aspects went smoothly.
o Before the manager present the reorganizational plans to the board of
directors, he did several dry runs of his presentation.
to play by ear: to play music that one has heard but never read (S); to
proceed without plan, to do spontaneously (S)
The pronoun it is often used with the second definition.
o That pianist can play most popular music by ear. She never needs to
read sheet music.
o My husband wanted to plan our trip carefully, but I argued that it was
more fun if we played it by ear.