1.to make sure: to be sure, to ascertain (also: to make certain)

• Please make sure that you turn off the radio before you go out.
• Could you make certain of the time? I don’t want to miss that TV show.

2.now and then: occasionally, sometimes (also: now and again, at times, from time to time, off and on, once in a while)

Both now and then and once in a while can be preceded by the adjective every.

Another idiom with the same meaning and form is every so often.

• I don’t see him very often, but (every) now and then we arrange to have lunch together.
• Gary gets a cold (every) once in a while even though he takes good care of himself.
• Every so often my brother and I get together for a camping trip.
• I like to sleep late in the morning from time to time.

3.to get rid of: to eliminate, to remove; to discard, to throw away

• Jerry tried hard to get rid of the stain on his shirt, but he never succeeded.
• The stain was so bad that Jerry finally had to get rid of his shirt.

4.every other (one): every second (one), alternate (ones)

• I play tennis with my father every other Saturday, so I usually play twice a month.
• There were twenty problems in the exercise, but the teacher told us only to doevery other one. Actually, doing ten problems was

difficult enough.

5.to go with: to match, to compare well in color to design; to date, to accompany (also:to go out with)For the first definition, adverbs such as well and poorly are often used.

• That striped shirt goes well with the gray pants, but the pants go poorly with those leather shoes.
• Eda went with Richard for about six months, but now she is going out with a new boyfriend.

 6.first-rate: excellent, superb

• The food served in that four-star restaurant is truly first-rate.
• The Beverly Hills Hotel provides first-rate service to its guests.

7.to come from: to originate from This idiom is commonly used in discussion of one’s home town, state, or country.

• What country in South American does she come from? She comes from Peru.
• I just learned that he really comes from Florida, not Texas.
• Where did this package come from? The mail carrier brought it.

8.to make good time: to travel a sufficient distance at a reasonable speed

The adjective excellent can also be used.

• On our last trip, it rained the entire time, so we didn’tmake good time.
• We made excellent time on our trip to Florida; it only took eighteen hours.

9.to mix up: to stir or shake well; to confuse, to bewilder

For the second definition, the passive forms to be mixed up or to get mixed up are often used.

• You should mix up the ingredients well before you put them in the pan.
• The teacher’s poor explanation really mixed the students up.
• The students think it’s their fault that they are mixed up so often.

10.to see about: to give attention or time to (also:to attend to, to see to)

• Who is going to see about getting us a larger room for the meeting?
• I’ll see to arranging music for the wedding of you attend to the entertainment.

11.to make out: to do, to succeed, to progress

• Charlie didn’t make out very well on his final examinations. He may have to repeat one or more classes.
• How did Rachelle make out on her acting audition in Hollywood yesterday?

12.by heart: by memorizing

• He knows many passages form Shakespeare by heart.
• Do you know all the idioms you have studied in this bookby heart?

#FancyJ