Phrases & Expressions

To show that a particular situation or problem, usually a negative one, exists.

• Many observers see the low turnout at the election as symptomatic of declining trust in politicians.
• Long waiting times in hospitals are symptomatic of a health service that is badly underfunded.

To be shown to have started at a particular time or place in the past.

• Most of the town's problems can be traced back to the closure of the coal mine in the 1980s.
• The city's love of street food can be traced back to its long history as a busy trading port.

To face serious difficulties, especially with too little time or too few resources.

• With three staff off sick and a deadline on Friday, we are really up against it this week.
• Small farmers are up against it as fuel and fertiliser prices keep rising.

To have far more of something difficult, such as work or debt, than you can easily deal with.

• I'd love to come to the party, but I'm up to my neck in marking at the moment.
• By the age of thirty, he was up to his neck in debt after a series of bad investments.

To feel troubled or held back by a lot of problems, worries or responsibilities.

• Many small companies are weighed down with paperwork that larger firms can deal with easily.
• Many graduates are weighed down with student debt for years after they leave university.

To smile very widely because you feel proud and happy.

• Her parents beamed with pride as she walked onto the stage to receive her degree.
• The young volunteer was beaming with pride after the mayor thanked her in front of the whole town.

To stop being used because something newer or more suitable has replaced it.

• Some economists predict that cash will become obsolete in many countries within the next twenty years.
• Within ten years of the arrival of cheap personal computers, typewriters had become obsolete in most offices.

To become known by many people, especially after being kept secret.

• If details of the secret deal become public knowledge, the minister will almost certainly have to resign.
• The company kept the safety problem hidden for months to stop it becoming public knowledge before the product launch.

To be completely certain that something is true or will happen.

• You can bet your life on the price of petrol going up again before the holidays.
• 'Will she remember your birthday?' 'You can bet your life on it – she never forgets anything.'

To have silly, repeated arguments about things that do not really matter.

• My flatmates constantly bicker over whose turn it is to take the rubbish out.
• While the politicians bicker over minor details, the housing crisis continues to get worse.