Think on your feet
To think and respond effectively without much preparation time.
When the projector failed, the presenter had to think on her feet.
THE IDIOM COLLECTION
Go beyond the literal words. Learn what everyday expressions mean—and how to use them.
THE EXPRESSION COLLECTION
To think and respond effectively without much preparation time.
When the projector failed, the presenter had to think on her feet.
There seems to be no limit to what is possible or achievable.
With an empty wall and plenty of paint, the sky’s the limit for your design.
To pause your immediate involvement so you can consider a situation more clearly or from a different perspective.
Let us take a step back and ask what the project is meant to achieve.
To support what you say you believe with real action.
I keep saying the garden matters, so I will put my money where my mouth is and join the clean-up.
To deceive someone so that they do not discover the truth.
The fictional seller tried to pull the wool over the buyer’s eyes by hiding the broken part.
From a bad or difficult situation into an even worse one.
I changed queues to avoid the delay, only to go out of the frying pan into the fire when the new counter closed.
Using an approach that is leading towards a correct answer or successful result.
Your calculation is not complete, but you are on the right track.
Exactly at the stated or expected time.
The class begins at six on the dot.
In a tense or difficult situation whose outcome is very uncertain.
The future of the club was on a knife edge while it waited for funding.
Ordinary and not particularly impressive or exciting.
The room was clean, but the view was nothing to write home about.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE
Use what you have learned in a short daily activity or a language game.