Aprender Inglés: American Idioms

14 junio 2017

Los idioms son frases hechas con significado deducible de la idea que transmiten, no con una traducción o significado literal. Se usan en todos los idiomas a modo de proverbios o citas que pueden variar de un país a otro.

Aquí tienes algunos ejemplos de Inglés Americano (con explicaciones en inglés y ejemplos de uso):

About time:
Nearly time, high time. ex. «It’s about time you bought a new car!»

Absence makes the heart grow fonder:
Proverb that means that our feeling for those we love increases when we are apart from them.

Achilles’ heel:
A weakness that can make someone vulnerable, despite being strong, smart, etc. ex. «His inability to learn other languages was his Achilles’ heel.»

(To) act high and mighty:
To act proudly and arrogantly. ex. «He has been acting all high and mighty ever since he chased away that burglar.»

Actions speak louder than words:
Proverb meaning that’s it’s better to do something about a problem than to talk about it.

Across the board:
Something that applies to all (cases), to everyone, etc. ex. «We were happy to see an across-the-board improvement in our test scores.»

(To) act one’s age:
To behave in a more mature way. Frequently said to a child or teen. ex. «Bill, stop throwing rocks! Act your age!»

(To) add fuel to the fire:
To make a bad problem even worse. ex. «He added fuel to the fire by bringing up old grudges while they were arguing.»

(To) add insult to injury:
To make a bad situation even worse.

Against the clock:
To attempt to do something «against the clock» is to attempt to do something as fast as possible, usually in order to make a deadline. ex. «They were working against the clock to finish the project.»

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Fuentes: http://www.learnenglishfeelgood.com y http://www.mansioningles.com/idioms/idioms01.htm