Summer: beach, picnic, summer, sun, swim

Sun

Idiom Explanation Example
under the sun in the world/in existence We have every ice-cream flavour under the sun.
a place in the sun beneficial position, usually at work When Mary got a promotion she had found her place in the sun.
think the sun shines out of somebody’s backside have a good opinion of somebody and believe that everything they do is wonderful My sister can do anything and our parents think it’s great. They think the sun shines out of her backside.

Summer

Idiom Explanation Example
Indian summer warm dry weather in autumn We are experiencing a lovely Indian summer at the moment.
one swallow doesn’t make a summer don’t take something small as a sign for something big

—It’s 5 degrees outside and the snow has melted. Spring is here!
—Relax, it’s only the beginning of February and one swallow doesn’t make a summer.
dog days of summer the hottest days of the year When I was a kid the dog days of summer always happened exactly when school started again for the year.

Swim

Idiom Explanation Example
swim with/against the tide obey, go with the mainstream idea or expectations/disobey, go against them I know I’ll be swimming against the tide but I think I’m going to study maths instead of literature.
sink or swim either fail or succeed On my first day on the job I had to serve customers, without any training the company left me to sink or swim.

Picnic

Idiom Explanation Example
be no picnic be hard and unpleasant Driving through the mountains in the middle of winter was no picnic. It snowed, the road was icy and it was freezing cold.
two sandwiches short of a picnic a person who isn’t very intelligent or a person who is eccentric I think my friend Mark is two sandwiches short of a picnic.
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Exercises C1

Choose the correct word to complete the sentences.

  1. It was so hot in October last year. We could hardly believe the Indian we experienced.
  2. When Alex admitted that he couldn’t spell his own name, we decided she was two sandwiches short of a .
  3. Erica has studied and worked very hard to find her place in the .
  4. During the performance our music stopped. We didn’t know what to do, but we just kept dancing. It was a major sink or moment and I am proud to say we swam.

Choose the correct idiom.

  1. When I catch up with my family we talk for hours about everything you could ever imagine. From food to politics to celebrities.
  2. —I’m so happy Will asked me to the school dance. This is just the beginning, I’m going to marry this boy!
    —Calm down Janice! Don’t get overexcited …
  3. Poor Michael, his wife has left him! Now he has to take care of three children all by himself. It’s going to be very hard work for him.
  4. Even the best tennis players struggle with the extremely hot weather at the Australian Open Tennis Grand Slam in January. It’s the hottest part of the Summer. After all, the tournament is played …
  5. My little sister copies everything I do. She copies all of her friends too. She likes to be fashionable and she doesn’t want to be different to anybody else.
  6. Jessie can’t do anything wrong and she never gets into trouble. Everybody thinks she’s great.

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