Tiếp nối chuyên mục Idioms IELTS Speaking, trong bài viết này, azVocab sẽ giới thiệu cho các bạn hai chủ đề Time và History thường xuyên xuất hiện trong thời gian gần đây nhé.
TIME
Topic Time cũng là một chủ đề phổ biến trong phần thi IELTS Speaking. Trong bài viết dưới đây, cùng azVocab luyện nói trôi chảy topic này nhờ các mẫu Idiom này nhé.
| IDIOMS | MEANING | EXAMPLE |
| Against the clock | if you do something against the clock, you do it as fast as possible and try to finish it before a certain time (chạy đua với thời gian) | They have to finish this report by 9 o’clock tonight, so they’re really working against the clock. |
| Ahead of the curve | ahead of current thinking or trends (đi trước các xu hướng) | Our library was brand new and way ahead of the curve with the latest books and facilities. |
| Better late than never | it is better for someone or something to be late than never to arrive or to happen (thà muộn còn hơn không) | A: “Sorry I was late for the meeting today, I got stuck in traffic.” B: “That’s okay, better late than never.” |
| In broad daylight | if a crime is committed in broad daylight, it happens during the day, when it could have been seen and prevented (giữa ban ngày ban mặt) | Thieves had broken into the house in broad daylight. |
| In no time | very quickly (trong một khoảng thời gian ngắn) | If we all work together on the project, I believe we will be able to complete it in no time. |
| In the nick of time | at the last possible moment (vừa đúng lúc, vào phút cuối, ngay trước khi quá muộn) | You have to catch the ball in the nick of time, otherwise, you cannot win the game. |
| By/in leaps and bounds | with startlingly rapid progress (nhảy vọt, phát triển rất nhanh) | After the summer, I planted some seedlings, and they have grown by leaps and bounds. |
| Let bygones be bygones | to forgive and forget past causes of ill-feeling (chuyện cũ bỏ qua) | Whenever I think about how he treated me at that time, I’m not happy at all; but I’m willing to let bygones be bygones. |
| Pressed for time | to be in a hurry(không có nhiều thời gian) | But since we are mostly pressed for time in the morning, a lavish breakfast becomes an impossible idea most of the time |
| The right time for something | in the best position or place to take advantage of an opportunity(đúng lúc để làm gì) | Why this is the right time for 5G in India |
| The time is ripe | if you say that the time is ripe, you mean that it is a suitable point for a particular activity(thời cơ đã chín muồi) | The time is ripe for take part in IELTS exams |
| Third time’s a charm | the belief or hope that the third attempt at something will be successful (sự nỗ lực sẽ luôn được đền đáp khi đã cố gắng đến lần thứ 3) | I’ve failed this test twice already, so hopefully the third time’s a charm. |
| Time and tide wait for no man | said to emphasize that people cannot stop the passing of time, and therefore should not delay doing things (thời gian không chờ đợi ai cả) | You’ve had so many chances to a master’s degree, but you never get around to applying for any of them. Time and tide wait for no man, boy. |
| Time is money | said to emphasize that you should not waste time, because you could be using it to earn money (thời gian là vàng là bạc) | My dad believes that time is money, so he never really liked to sit back, relax, and do nothing – he always needed some project to be working on. |
| Time is a great healer | a painful or difficult situation will seem less bad as time passes (thời gian chữa lành mọi vết thương) | I know it’s hard to consider now, as you’re grieving, but time is a great healer. |
| Watch the clock | to often notice the time and wish that it was later, especially when you are doing work that you do not like (canh chừng cho hết giờ) | On Friday afternoons at work, all I do is watch the clock. |
| Without further ado | without any fuss or delay; immediately (không còn trì hoãn/chờ đợi, thực hiện ngay lập tức) | Without further ado, we would like to introduce our new Students Council President – Jenny! |
| To be light years away | from a very long time in the past, or it takes a long time to reach the goal in the future (từ một khoảng thời gian rất xa xưa trong quá khứ, hoặc cần rất nhiều thời gian mới đạt được mục đích ở tương lai) | It all happened when I was at college, which seems light years away. |
| (Right) off the bat | immediately (ngay lập tức) | Right off the bat, I could tell that the plan had no chance of success. |
| A flash in the pan | something that happened only once or for a short time and was not repeated (chỉ xảy ra một lần và trong một thời gian ngắn) | Sadly, their success was just a flash in the pan. |
| Ahead of time | in advance (trước) | We had a date for lunch, and I said I’d call her ahead of time to decide where. |
| At this moment in time | now; at the present moment (hiện tại, hiện nay) | I can give no information at this moment in time. |
| Come/follow hard/hot on the heels of something | to happen very soon after something (xảy ra ngay sau cái gì) | The new revelation comes hard on the heels of the previous scandal. |
| Cut it/things fine | to allow very little time for something (có rất ít thời gian cho cái gì) | She got to the gate ten minutes before her flight, so she was cutting it very fine. |
| Down the line | in the future (trong tương lai) | If you don’t do your homework now, it’ll be a problem down the line when you don’t know the material for the exam. |
| From time to time | sometimes (thỉnh thoảng) | From time to time, I like to go fishing instead of going to work. |
| From/since the year dot | for an extremely long time (trong khoảng thời gian dài) | My grandmother says that she’s loved cooking from the year dot, and she makes many delicious meals for us. |
| How time flies! | time seems to move very or more quickly (thời gian trôi qua rất nhanh) | Wow, it’s midnight already? I feel like we just got here. How time flies! |
| In the dead of night | in the middle of night/winter (giữa đêm khuya) | Why are you calling me in the dead of night? Can’t this wait till morning? |
| In the long run | at a time that is far away in the future (trong một khoảng thời gian rất xa ở tương lai) | Cutting jobs could be more expensive in the long run if we have to hire freelancers. |
| In the twinkling of an eye | immediately; very quickly; at once (ngay lập tức; rất nhanh) | Don’t worry, boss, I’ll have this report typed up in the twinkling of an eye! |
| Nine times out of ten | almost every time (gần như mọi lần) | A: “Do people always pay extra to get the combo meal?”B: “Nine times out of ten.” |
| Light years away from (something) | very far away in time from some point or milestone, usually said of something that is unlikely to happen in the near future (có vẻ xảy ra trong tương lai rất xa) | We’re still light years away from a technological advancement like that. |
| Once in a blue moon | not very often (không quá thường xuyên, thỉnh thoảng) | My sister lives in Alaska, so I only see her once in a blue moon. |
| Once in a lifetime | extremely rare (rất hiếm khi) | Chances like this only ever come around once in a lifetime, Jack, so don’t waste it. |
| Round the clock | all day and all night without stopping (ngày đêm liên tục, không ngừng nghỉ) | He studied round the clock, losing forty pounds during that time. |
| The eleventh hour | the last moment or almost too late (vào phút cuối, gần như là muộn) | I was shocked that they reached an agreement at the eleventh hour after weeks of squabbling. |
| Then and there = there and then | immediately (ngay lập tức) | Mark made a derogatory comment toward one of our coworkers, and the boss fired him right then and there. |
| Until/till the cows come home | for a very long time (trong một khoảng thời gian dài) | I could sit here and argue with you till the cows come home, but it wouldn’t solve anything. |
| Up-to-the-minute | the very latest or most recent (ngay gần đây) | I want to hear some up-to-the-minute news on the hostage situation. |
| Time will tell | you will discover in the future what the result of a present situation is (tương lai sẽ biết được kết quả thế nào) | Time will tell whether we made the right decision. |
HISTORY
Chủ đề History mới chỉ xuất hiện gần đây trong những bài thi IELTS Speaking. Đây được đánh giá là một chủ đề khó và được liệt kê như một chủ đề phải chuẩn bị để có một bài thi nói trôi chảy. Sau đây, azVocab gợi ý cho bạn một vài Idiom tham khảo cho chủ đề này nhé.
| IDIOMS | MEANING | EXAMPLE |
| A thing of the past | something that no longer exists (lỗi thời, cũ rích, không còn tồn tại) | Those stores are a thing of the past – their parent company filed bankruptcy a few years ago. |
| Behind the times | not aware of or using the latest ideas or techniques; out of date (cổ lỗ, cũ rích hoặc lạc hậu) | Sarah is a bit behind the times. Her clothes are quite old-fashioned. |
| Go down in history | to do something historically significant; to do something important that will be remembered and recorded for a long time (đi vào lịch sử) | He’ll go down in history as one of our finest leaders. |
| Hark back to something | to have originated as something; to have started out as something (bắt nguồn từ cái gì đó của quá khứ) | Our modern breakfast cereals hark back to the porridge and gruel of our ancestors.g |
| History in the making | a current event that will prove to be of historical importance (sự kiện có ý nghĩa lịch sử quan trọng) | The Black Lives Matter movement is history in the making. |
| The rest is history | everyone knows how the rest of the story goes (phần còn lại thì ai cũng biết) | The Beatles had their first hit record in 1962 and the rest is history. |
| Turn back the hands of time | go back into the past (trở về quá khứ) | He wishes he could turn back the hands of time and fix his mistakes. |
| Follow in one’s footsteps | to do the same thing as someone else did previously (noi gương, làm theo ai đó) | She followed in her mother’s footsteps, starting her own business. |
| The good old days | a past period of better times (thời quá khứ tươi đẹp) | Ah, those were the good old days. Did you know I was captain of the football team back then? |
| Through thick and thin | through good and bad times (đi qua cả lúc thuận lợi và lúc khó khăn) | She’s always been there for me through thick and thin, so I can’t turn my back on her now. |
| When someone was a (mere) twinkle in their father’s eye | at a time before someone was born (vào khoảng thời gian trước khi ai đó sinh ra) | I never knew my grandparents; they died when I was just a twinkle in my father’s eye. |
Hy vọng qua bài viết này, azVocab có thể giúp bạn có đủ vốn thành ngữ chuẩn bị cho kì thi IELTS Speaking chủ đề Time và History. Hãy ôn tập thật chăm chỉ và gặt hái kết quả tốt ở kỳ thi sắp tới nhé!
