761

see the sights

- to see the important things in a place
We stopped downtown during our holiday so that we could see the sights.

see the world/things through rose-colored glasses

- to see only the good things about something, to be too optimistic
She is unrealistic and tends to see the world through rose-colored glasses.

see things

- to imagine sights that are not real, to think that one sees something that is not there
He is always daydreaming and imagining that he is seeing things.

see through (someone or something)

- to understand someone`s true character or motivation, to understand the real reason
for something
I could easily see through the supervisor's attempt to fire the woman from her job.

see to it (that something is done)

- to take the responsibility to do something, to make sure that something is done
"Will you please see to it that the garbage is taken out in the morning."

see to (someone or something)

- to take care of someone or something
I will see to the rental car and my friend will see to the airplane tickets.








762

see which way the wind is blowing

- to determine what is the most suitable thing to do
I want to see which way the wind is blowing before I decide what to do about my job.


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seeing is believing

- one must believe something that one sees
Seeing is believing and I did not believe the price of the car until I actually saw it.

seize an opportunity

- to take advantage of an opportunity

I seized the opportunity to take the extra class as soon as I heard about it.

seize upon (something)

- to take hold of something and make an issue of it
The opposition politician seized upon the mistake of the other politician.


sell Idioms


sell like hotcakes

- to sell quickly, to sell rapidly
The tickets for the concert were selling like hotcakes when I called this morning.



763

sell out (someone or something)

- to be disloyal, to betray someone or something
The man does not want to sell out his moral values when he begins work for the new
company.

sell (someone) a bill of goods

- to deceive someone, to get someone to believe something that is not true
I believe that the salesman sold me a bill of goods and the product does not have

much value.

sell (someone) on a plan or idea

- to convince someone of something
I could not sell my friend on my suggestion that we buy a new computer together.

sell (someone) short

- to underestimate oneself or someone else
My friend is selling himself short when he thinks that he will not be good at any other
job.

sell (something) out

- to sell all of something
They sold the concert out in every city that it went to.

sell (something) for a song

- to sell something very cheaply
They sold the furniture for a song.






764


sell (something) off

- to sell much or all of something
The computer company decided to sell off some of their real estate business.

sell (something) on credit

- to sell something now and let the purchaser pay for it later
We decided to sell the stereo system on credit.


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send Idioms


send away for (something)

- to write a letter asking for something
I sent away for some information but it has not arrived yet.

send (someone) about his or her business

- to send someone away (in an unfriendly manner)
I sent the man about his business when he interrupted my work last evening.

send (someone) off


- to participate in saying good-bye to someone who is leaving
We went to the airport in order to send off the company president.



765

send (someone) packing

- to tell someone to leave, to dismiss someone
The company sent the man packing because of his bad attitude to his job.

send (someone) to the showers

- to send a player out of the game and off the field/court etc.
The coach decided to send the player to the showers after his poor performance during
the game.

send (someone) up

- to sentence someone to prison
The judge sent the man up for seven years for robbing a bank.

send (something) C.O.D.

- to send merchandise to someone who will pay for it when it is delivered
The company sent the computer printer C.O.D.

send up a trial balloon


- to suggest something and see how people respond to it
The company sent up a trial balloon to see how people would react to their new
product.














766

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separate but equal

- to be segregated but of equal value or quality
The teaching staff and adminstration were separate but equal regarding decisions that
were made at the school.


separate the men from the boys

- to separate competent people from less competent people
Some people say that joining the military is a good way to separate the men from the
boys.

serve as a guinea pig

- to allow some kind of test to be performed on someone
The students served as a guinea pig for the school board's plan to change the school
curriculum.

serve notice on (someone)

- to announce something to someone
We served notice on the apartment manager that we would leave the apartment at the
end of the month.

serve (someone`s) purpose

- to be useful to someone for a certain need
The small screwdriver should serve my purpose until I find the correct size.







767


serve (someone) right

- to get the punishment or results that one deserves
My friend never studies at all so it serves him right to fail his exam.

serve time

- to spend time in jail
The man served time when he was young but now he is a good citizen.

set Idioms
set a precedent

- to establish a pattern, to set a policy that must be followed in future cases
The legal case set a precedent that will be followed for many years in the future.

set a trap

- to prepare a trap to catch an animal or a person who is doing something
wrong/illegal
The conservation officers set a trap to try and catch the bear.

set about to (do something or go somewhere)

- to begin/start something, to prepare to go somewhere
We set about to prepare the office for the move to a bigger building.

set back (someone or something)


- to cause someone or something to get behind schedule, to slow down someone or
something
The flood set back the efforts of the farmers to plant their crops.




768

set eyes on (someone or something)

- to see someone or something for the first time
I do not know if my friend is here or not. I have not set eyes on her since yesterday.

set fire to (something)

- to put something to flames
The workers set fire to the building by accident.

set foot (somewhere)

- to step or go somewhere
I have never set foot in that restaurant and I never will in the future.

set forth (something)

- to explain something exactly or clearly
The manager carefully set forth the terms of the rental contract.

set forth (somewhere)


- to start to go somewhere, to begin a trip
We set forth on our holiday at 7:00 this morning.

set great store on (someone or something)

- to like or value someone or something
Our company sets great store on their ability to attract good people.

set in

- to begin and probably continue (used for a weather or mental condition)
The rain has set in and it looks like it will not stop for awhile.
A mild depression has set in for my neighbor


769

set in one's ways

- to lead a fixed lifestyle
My grandfather is set in his ways and he does not like to change his habits at all.

set one`s heart on (something)

- to want something very much
I set my heart on a nice holiday this winter but I will not be able to go because I have
no money.

set one`s mind at rest


- to free oneself from worry
I told my father the reason that we can`t come in order to set his mind at rest.

set one's sights on (something)

- to select something as one's goal
The local politician has set his sights on being elected to a higher office.

set out (somewhere)

- to leave on a journey
Marco Polo set out for China many years ago.

set out to (do something)

- to decide and begin to try to do something, to attempt to do something
My friend set out to learn Spanish when he went to Mexico.

set sail

- to start sailing, to begin a sea voyage
The three women set sail for Hawaii on a small sailboat.


770

set (someone) back

- to cost someone

"How much did your new suit set you back?"

set (someone) back on his or her heels

- to surprise/shock/overwhelm someone
The announcement by the principal set the teachers back on their heels.

set (someone or something) free

- to release someone or something
The conservation officers went to the mountains and set the bear free.

set (someone or something) loose

- to set someone or something free, to release someone or something that you are
holding
The wildlife department decided to set loose the bear that it had captured.

set (someone or something) straight

- to explain something to someone
The police officer set the woman straight about how the driving laws operate.

set (someone's) teeth on edge

- to irritate someone (often a person or a noise)
The constant noise from the stereo next door set my teeth on edge.

set (someone) up (in business)


- to help establish someone in business
My father helped to set my sister's husband up in business.