"First published 2010."--Title page verso.

Includes index.

"Explanations and practice of English idioms, written for advanced-level (C1-C2) learners of English. Perfect for both self-study and classroom activities.
Increase your knowledge of idioms and how to use them, with easy to understand explanations and practice exercises.
Learn idioms in context, with lots of different topics, including 'Learning', 'Formal writing' and 'Telling stories'.
Be confident about what you are learning, thanks to Cambridge research into how English is really spoken and written.
Get better at studying by yourself, with study tips, follow-up tasks and an easy to use answer key." (Book Cover)

CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Using this book

Learning about idioms (In this section the units deal with key aspects of what idioms are and how you can use them.)
1. What are idioms? -- 2. When and how are idioms used? -- 3. Using reference resources -- 4. Common metaphors in idioms -- 5. Using idioms accurately -- 6. Playing with idioms -- 7. Idioms from other varieties of English -- 8. Modern idioms

Types of idiom (In this section the units deal with specific types of idiom.)
9. Similes -- 10. Binomials -- 11. Proverbs -- 12. Clichés and fixed statements -- 13. Other languages

Idioms from the topic area of... (In this section the units are organised around the aspect of life from which the idioms have originated)
14. Sailing -- 15. War and conflict -- 16. Transport -- 17. Animals -- 18. Parts of the body -- 19. Games and sport -- 20. Ancient myths and history -- 21. Shakespeare -- 22. Literature -- 23. Learning -- 24. Science and technology

Idioms to talk about... (In this section the units are organised around the topic or functional area where they are most likely to be used)
25. Films, plays and books -- 26. Relationships- friends and family -- 27. People- character and behaviour -- 28. Crime and punishment -- 29. Work -- 30. Business news -- 31. Business meetings -- 32. Money -- 33. Society -- 34. Daily life -- 35. Positive feelings -- 36. Negative feelings -- 37. Problems -- 38. Arguing

Idioms used in... (This section focuses on some of the written contexts here idioms are frequently found)
39. Journalism -- 40. Advertising -- 41. Formal writing

Idioms used in conversation (This section focuses on ways in which idioms are typically used in spoken language)
42. Advising and warning -- 43. Telling stories -- 44. Responding to what people say -- 45. Agreeing and disagreeing -- 46. Expressing success and failure -- 47. Emphasising

Idioms using these keywords (In this section each unit focuses on one keyword which has given rise to a particularly large number of English idioms)
48. Play and game -- 49. Half -- 50. Two -- 51. All -- 52. No -- 53. Hand -- 54. Heart -- 55. Life and live -- 56. Dead and death -- 57. Mind -- 58. Hard -- 59. Fall -- 60. Own

Key

Phonemic symbols

Index