Study

20 words

1. 1

   keep up withphrasal verb/kiːp ʌp wɪð/

   to remain at the same level or speed as someone or something; to be aware of the latest developments

   “It's hard to keep up with all the new research in biology.”

2. 2

   catch up (on)phrasal verb/kætʃ ʌp (ɒn)/

   to reach the same standard or level as others after having been behind; to do work that you did not do earlier

   “I missed two lectures, so I spent the weekend catching up on notes.”

3. 3

   know something inside outidiom

   to understand or be very familiar with something in great detail

   “She knows the course material inside out, so students ask her for help.”

4. 4

   burn the midnight oilidiom/ˌbɜːn ðə ˌmɪd.naɪt ˈɔɪl/

   to work or study late into the night, often to meet a deadline

   “I had to burn the midnight oil to finish my dissertation.”

5. 5

   hit the booksidiom/hɪt ðə bʊks/

   to study hard, especially for exams

   “With finals in two weeks, I really need to hit the books.”

6. 6

   be snowed under (with)idiom/bi ˈsnəʊd ˈʌndə(ɹ)/

   to have so much work that you cannot deal with it all

   “During the exam period I was completely snowed under with assignments.”

7. 7

   cram forphrasal verb/idiom/kræm fɔː/

   to study a lot in a short time just before an exam

   “I was cramming for the math test all weekend.”

8. 8

   put one's nose to the grindstoneidiom

   to work or study very hard and without stopping for a period of time

   “With finals next week, I had to put my nose to the grindstone and revise every evening.”

9. 9

   read up onphrasal verb/riːd ʌp ɒn/

   to study or research a subject so you are prepared or better informed

   “I need to read up on climate change before my presentation.”

10. 10

    brush up onphrasal verb/idiom/brʌʃ ʌp ɒn/

    to review or practise something so that you remember it better

    “I need to brush up on my French before the interview.”

11. 11

    miss the pointidiom/mɪs ðə pɔɪnt/

    to fail to understand the main idea or the essential meaning

    “He missed the point of the lecture and focused on minor details.”

12. 12

    pick someone's brainsidiom/pɪk ˈsʌmwʌnz breɪnz/

    to ask someone who knows more about a subject for information or advice

    “I picked my advisor's brains about citation styles.”

13. 13

    bone up onidiom/bəʊn ʌp ɒn/

    to study hard or learn a lot about something quickly, usually to prepare

    “He boned up on company law before the meeting.”

14. 14

    get the ball rollingidiom/ɡet ðə bɔːl ˈrəʊlɪŋ/

    to start something, especially a project, discussion, or process

    “Let's get the ball rolling on the group project by assigning tasks.”

15. 15

    pull out all the stopsidiom/pʊl aʊt ɔːl ðə stɒps/

    to do everything possible to make something succeed

    “The school pulled out all the stops to support struggling students.”

16. 16

    ace an examidiom (v)/eɪs ən ɪɡˈzæm/

    to get a very high score in an exam or test

    “She studied hard and aced the exam.”

17. 17

    pass with flying coloursidiom/pɑːs wɪð ˈflaɪ.ɪŋ ˈkʌl.əz/

    to succeed in something very easily or with very good results

    “She passed the exam with flying colours.”

18. 18

    pull an all-nighteridiom/pʊl ən ˈɔːlˌnaɪtə/

    to stay awake all night, usually to study or finish work

    “I had to pull an all-nighter to finish my dissertation.”

19. 19

    by roteidiom/baɪ rəʊt/

    learned or memorised by repetition without understanding

    “Many students memorise dates by rote but can't explain their significance.”

20. 20

    fall behind (in)phrasal verb/fɔːl bɪˈhaɪnd (ɪn)/

    to be slower than others or not to reach the expected standard or schedule

    “If you miss too many classes you'll fall behind in the course.”