Level 2 idioms – Unit 01

Conversation:

Andrei: Sven, I’ve always looked up to you. Would you give me some advice?

Sven: Sure. How can I help?

Andrei: I’m trying to get up the nerve to ask Victoria out.

Sven: Really? The girl in your math class who looks like a movie star?

Andrei: That’s right. I want to ask her to the dance this Friday, but my shyness gets in the way.

Sven: I know what you mean. It takes a lot of nerve to ask a beautiful girl out. My advice is to start talking to her and play it by ear.

Andrei: But what if she doesn’t warm up to me?

Sven: Don’t worry. On the whole, girls like it when a guy shows courage.

Andrei: Maybe, but I have butterflies in my stomach. I guess I’ll just have to put aside my fear and ask her.

Sven: Good luck. I hope everything works out.

Vocabulary:

• advice: what you tell someone they should do
• shyness: feeling like other people won’t like you
• guy: man, boy
• courage: going through your fear to do something
• fear: feeling of being afraid

Idioms:

• look up to (someone) admire, respect
• get up the nerve find the courage
• ask (someone) out invite (someone) on a date
• look like resemble
• get in the way make it difficult to do something
• take a lot of nerve require a lot of courage
• play it by ear do something without a plan
• warm up to (someone) become friendly with (someone)
• on the whole generally
• have butterflies in one’s stomach be nervous
• put aside save for later
• work out bring to a successful conclusion / solve / exercise

Notes:

Work out has three meanings. The other two are:
(solve) Example: First, we had to work out the problem of transportation.
(exercise) Example: I don’t have time to work out at the gym anymore.