Phrases & Expressions

To use good judgement about what to do or say, especially to avoid causing problems.

• Teachers must exercise discretion when sharing information about students' personal problems.
• Journalists should exercise discretion when reporting on accidents that involve young children and their families.

To state officially that someone was not responsible for something bad that happened.

• The official report exonerated the pilots from all blame, concluding that a technical fault caused the crash.
• The investigation exonerated the teacher from any blame for the accident during the school trip.

To praise the good qualities or advantages of something with great enthusiasm.

• Many nutritionists extol the virtues of a Mediterranean diet rich in vegetables, olive oil and fish.
• The brochure extols the virtues of studying abroad but says very little about the costs involved.

To consider something morally wrong and completely unacceptable.

• Testing cosmetics on animals is something many consumers find abhorrent, so a growing number of brands have stopped doing it.
• Child labour, which most societies now find abhorrent, was common in European factories in the nineteenth century.

To work so hard that you become exhausted.

• There's no point flogging yourself to death for a company that doesn't value you.
• He flogged himself to death revising for his finals and then fell ill on the day of the first exam.

To give someone complete freedom to act in whatever way they think best.

• The new director was given carte blanche to reorganise the department as she saw fit.
• Parents shouldn't give teenagers carte blanche to use their phones whenever they like.

To be offered for sale at an auction.

• A rare first edition of a famous children's novel went under the hammer last week for over £50,000.
• The artist's early paintings will go under the hammer in London next month.

A storyline that has been used so many times that it feels stale and predictable.

• Despite its impressive special effects, the film suffers from a hackneyed plot about a hero saving the world.
• Reviewers criticised the novel's hackneyed plot but praised the author's vivid descriptions of city life.

To place a small bet, usually just for fun.

• We had a little flutter on the World Cup final, just to make the match more exciting.
• There's nothing wrong with having a flutter occasionally, as long as you only bet what you can afford to lose.

To spend time in a friendly way with rich or powerful people, often to gain some advantage.

• Critics accused the mayor of spending more time hobnobbing with wealthy donors than listening to local residents.
• He loves hobnobbing with celebrities at expensive parties, but his old friends find it a bit embarrassing.