Word for not doing as told

I think you may be talking about (psychological) reactance. From Wikipedia:

Reactance is an unpleasant motivational arousal (reaction) to offers, persons, rules, or regulations that threaten or eliminate specific behavioral freedoms. Reactance occurs when a person feels that someone or something is taking away their choices or limiting the range of alternatives.

In your example, you originally chose to do something, but when your sense of having that choice is threatened by being ordered to do it you stop wanting to do it. This is a pretty common experience, and is part of the reason why so-called «reverse psychology» sometimes works. However, the specifics of whether and how people experience reactance vary based on a bunch of factors, and aren’t yet fully understood. Further reading at Steindl, Christina et al. “Understanding Psychological Reactance: New Developments and Findings” Zeitschrift fur Psychologie vol. 223,4 (2015): 205-214.

If you are wondering about something less universal/more severe and are more focused on behavior rather than the feeling that leads to the behavior, there is also a psychological condition called oppositional defiance disorder whose symptoms include (among others)

Argumentative and defiant behavior:

• Often argues with adults or people in authority
• Often actively defies or refuses to comply with adults’ requests or rules
  . . .

_{—Mayo Clinic, «Oppositional Defiance Disorder (ODD), Patient Care and Health Information, quoting the Diagnostic & Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) of the American Psychiatric Association}

If you aren’t talking about behavior that rises to the clinical level but want to talk about the behavior rather than the subjective experience, you could use one of the component terms. Cambridge Dictionaries offers these definitions:

oppositional

refusing to obey instructions or to do what people want you to do:
These children are not just being oppositional for no reason.

defiant

​
proudly refusing to obey authority:
a defiant attitude/gesture
The protesters blocking the entrance to the offices remained defiant this morning.

Глаголы must и ought выражают долженствование. Глагол must может выражать приказ или очень настоятельный совет. Глагол ought образовался из устаревшей формы прошедшего времени глагола owe в значении «быть должным» и выражает долженствование в сослагательном наклонении (и очень близко по значению к should).

I. MUST: ВЫРАЖЕНИЕ ОБЯЗАННОСТИ

4.107

1. Глагол must выражает

обязанность

,

долженстование

:

We must all keep together (мы должны…).
You must do as you are told.
Soldiers must obey orders without question.
On the other side of the wood there was a field that he must cross.
Plants must get enough light and water if they are to grow properly.
British industry must improve its productivity.
I really must stop smoking.
You must be here before eight o’clock tomorrow.
You really must come and see us soon.

2. Вместо must можно (а в американском английском обычно так и делается) употреблять have (to)/have got (to):

We all have to keep together.
We‘ve all got to keep together.

(have got to более характерно для британского английского)

3. Have to предпочтительнее, чем have got to

a) с наречиями частоты – always , never, normally, rarely, sometimes и т.п:

I often have to work at the weekend to get everything done.

b) в вопросах и отрицаниях в past simple:

When did you have to give it back? (не ‘When had you got to give it back?’)
We didn’t have to wait too long for an answer (не ‘We hadn’t got to wait too long…’)

Если have сокращается (I’ve, he’s, it’d), то got выбрасывать нельзя:

The experiment has failed twice before, so it’s got to work this time, (not ‘…so it’s to work this time’.)

4. Have got не употребляется с will (или любыми другими модальными глаголами):

Employees will have to accept the new conditions or be dismissed. (не ‘Employees will have got to accept… ’)

5. Have to употребляется, когда необходим инфинитив (которого нет у глагола must):

It’s annoying to have to get up early on Sundays (не ‘to must get up… ’).

6. Употребление must предполагает, что выражается мнение говорящего, а употребление have to – что необходимость исходит от более объективных обстоятельств (законов и правил, распоряжения руководства и т.п.):

I must do some more work; I want to pass my exam.
In my job I

have to work

from nine to five. (более естественно, чем … ‘I must work from nine to five’.)

We must go to New York soon and see your mother.
My wife’s an interpreter: she often

has to go

to New York (более естественно, чем ‘… she must often go to New York’)

I must stop smoking (мое желание)
I

‘ve got to stop

smoking (врач требует)

This is a terrible party. We really must go home.
This is a lovely party, but we’ve got to go home because of the baby-sitter.

I’ve got bad toothache. I must make an appointment with the dentist.
I can’t come to work tomorrow morning because I’ve got to see the dentist.

You really must go to church next Sunday — you haven’t been for ages (мое мнение)
Catholics have to go to church on Sundays (этого требует их религия)

Must you wear dirty old jeans all the time? (тебе это нужно?)
Do you have to wear a tie at work? (это правило?)

Это правило почти не соблюдается в США и в американском английском во всех случаях в разговорной речи обычно употребляется have to.

ПРОШЛОЕ

4.108

Так как глагол must выражает приказ или совет (которые нельзя выполнить в прошлом), он не употребляется для выражения долженствования в прошлом (за исключением косвенной речи) и вместо него употребляется had to:

She’s always had to work hard. (не ‘She’s always musted…’)
We had to cut short our holiday because my mother was ill. (не ‘We musted…’)
I had to cycle three miles to school when I was a child.
My parents had to work very hard to build up their business.

Но в косвенной речи можно употреблять как must, так и had to или would have to:

The doctor said that I must stop smoking.
Everybody told me I must stop worrying.
The doctor said that I had to / would have to stop smoking.
Не said they must do as they were told.

БУДУЩЕЕ

4.109

1. Глагол must может относиться как к настоящему, так и будущему, но можно подчеркнуть «будущность», употребляя will have to:

We’ll all have to keep together.

2. Если уже предприняты какие-то приготовление, то лучше употреблять have (got) to:

When you leave school you’ll have to find a job (это будет только в будущем).
I’ve got to go for a job interview tomorrow (уже есть договоренность).

Можно употреблять going to have to:

We’re going to have to repair that window.

Нужно учитывать, что must звучит очень официально, а will have to делает распоряжение более вежливым:

You can borrow my car, but you must bring it back before ten.
You can borrow my car, but you’ll have to bring it back before ten.

ОТРИЦАТЕЛЬНАЯ ФОРМА И ВОПРОСЫ

4.110

1. Must not/mustn’t выражает запрещение что-либо делать (с тем же смыслом можно употреблять am/is/are not to):

You must not get separated from the group.
You are not to get separated from the group (также звучит весьма формально).

Отсутствие необходимости что-то делать выражается так:

We don’t have to keep together.
We haven’t got to keep together.
We don’t need to keep together.
We needn’t keep together.
(можем и не держаться вместе)

На вопрос ‘Must we/Do we have to/Have we (got to)/Need we keep together?’ можно ответить:

Yes, you must/ Yes, you have to / Yes, you’ve got to.

No, you don’t have to/ No, you haven’t got to/ No, you don’t need to/ No, you needn’t.

А на вопрос ‘Can/May we go separately?’ можно ответить:

Yes, you can/ Yes, you may.

No, you may not/ No, you can’t/No, you’re not to/No, you mustn’t (варианты расставлены по возрастанию решительности отказа).

2. В вопросах, на которые ожидается

отрицательный ответ

, предпочтение может отдаваться have to (но употребление must также возможно):

Do we have to answer all the questions?/ Have we got to…?

Так же можно выражать неудовольствие:

Do you have to play your trumpet here? It’s deafening me!

Употреблению must может отдаваться предпочтение (хотя звучит формально), если задающий вопрос ожидает скорее

утвердительного ответа

:

Must I clean all the rooms?
Why must you always leave the door open?

II. MUST: ВЫРАЖЕНИЕ ПРЕДПОЛОЖЕНИЙ

4.111

1. Must употребляется для выражения очень уверенных предположений:

Your father must be nearly eighty now.
You must be hungry after your long walk.
Mary must have a problem – she keeps crying.
You must be Anna’s sister — you look just like her.
If A is bigger than B, and B is bigger than C, then A must be bigger than C.
I’m in love. – You must be very happy.
There’s the doorbell. It must be Roger.

В таком значении must широко употребляется и в американском английском.

2. В качестве отрицательной формы, выражающей, что логически невозможно, обычно употребляется не mustn’t, а can’t:

If A is bigger than B, and B is bigger than C, then C can’t be bigger than A.
It can’t be the postman at the door. It’s only seven o’clock. (не ‘It mustn’t be the postman…’)
She’s not answering the phone. She can’t be at home.

Но mustn’t употребляется в такого рода предложениях в tag-questions после must:

It must be nice to be a cat, mustn’t it?

3. В американском английском must not (сокращение mustn’t употребляется в США достаточно редко) употребляется для выражения того, что в принципе возможно, но есть явные доказательства, что в данном случае это не так:

He only left the office five minutes ago. He can’t be home yet (вообще невозможно, что он уже дома)
She’s not answering the doorbell. She must not be at home. (в принципе возможно, что она дома, но скорей всего ее нет)

Для сравнения:

The restaurant

can’t be

open – the door’s locked (точно закрыт).
That restaurant must not be any good – it’s always empty (скорее всего не очень хороший).

В британском английском can’t можно употреблять и в этом случае:

She walked past without saying ‘Hello’. She must not have seen you.
(так скажут американцы и некоторые британцы).
She walked past without saying ‘Hello’. She can’t have seen you.
(так скажет большинство британцев)

4. Можно употреблять have (got) to be:

Their goalkeeper has got to be at least two metres tall! (или ‘Their goalkeeper must be…’)

5. Must have + past participle употребляется, чтобы выразить уверенное предположение о прошлом:

We went to Rome last month. – That must have been nice.
A woman phoned while you were out. – It must have been Kate.
That’s not Kate’s car. She must have borrowed it from her parents.
I can’t find my keys. I must have left them at home.

Can употребляется в вопросах и отрицаниях:

Where can John have put the matches? He can’t have thrown them away.

6. Для уверенного предположения в отношении происходящего в момент речи употребляется must be + …ing:

I can’t hear anyone moving around upstairs. You must be imagining things.

В отношении будущего можно употреблять must be + …ing или must be going to:

What are all those workmen doing? – I think they must be going to dig up the road.
I was wrong about the meeting being today. It must be happening next Friday.

7. Need not / needn’t (или does not have to) употребляется (особенно в британском английском, чтобы сказать, что что-то не обязательно так. Must not в такого рода предложениях не употребляется:

Look at those tracks. That must be a dog. – It needn’t be — it could be a fox. (или ‘…It doesn’t have to be…’) (не ‘…It mustn’t be…’)

Идиомы с трактовкой и синонимами Перевод Пример after all — despite, nevertheless все-таки I knew it! After all, I was right! all along — all the time все время, всегда I knew about his little secret all along. all ears — eager to listen весь внимание I am all ears. all of a sudden — suddenly неожиданно All of a sudden, he refused to pay. all the same — no difference все равно, без разницы If it’s all the same to you, let’s start at two. all thumbs — clumsy неуклюжий, неумелый He can’t fix anything, he’s all thumbs. apple of discord — subject of envy or quarrel яблоко раздора This question is an apple of discord in our family. as a rule — usually как правило As a rule, we offer a 5% discount. as far as I am concerned — in my opinion что касается меня, по моему мнению As far as I am concerned, both the book and the movie are good. as for me/as to me — in my opinion по моему мнению As for me, you can rely on his support. as well — also, too тоже, также He knows math, and physics as well. at all — (not) in the smallest degree совсем (не) He doesn’t know French at all. I don’t like it at all. at random — without order наугад, без плана He chose those places at random. at this point — at this time на данном этапе At this point, we can’t turn back. be about to — ready (to do) готов сделать I was about to leave when you called. be after someone — insist, press настаивать, чтобы сделал His mother is always after him to study. be all in — be extremely tired очень устать I’m all in, I’d better go to bed now. be back on one’s feet — healthy again or better financially встать на ноги после трудного времени He’s back on his feet after a long period of debt and unemployment. beat around the bush — avoid giving a clear/definite answer ходить вокруг да около Stop beating around the bush! Get to the point! be beside oneself — be very upset, nervous, worried, etc. быть вне себя от волнения, горя и др. She was beside herself with worry / with grief. be better off — be in a better situation (financially) в лучшей ситуации (материально) He’ll be better off with a new job. be broke — have no money at all быть «на мели» (без денег) I spent all my money, I’m broke. be hard on something /someone — treat roughly не беречь что-то My son is hard on shoes, they don’t last long with him. Life was pretty hard on Tom. be high on one’s list — be one of the most important things быть в начале списка нужных вещей A new car is high on my list of priorities. A new TV is not high on my list. be in charge of — be responsible for быть ответственным за He is in charge of marketing. be in the red — be in debt быть убыточным Our sales were in the red last year. be into smth. — be interested in увлекаться чем-то He is into computers. She is into sports. bend over backwards — try hard очень стараться I bent over backwards to help her. be on one’s way Я уже еду. I’m on my way. be on the safe side — not to take any chances на всякий случай Take an extra key, just to be on the safe side. be out of — be without нет в наличии We are out of bread, cheese, and sugar. be out of shape — be physically unfit быть не в форме He needs to exercise, he is out of shape. be out of sorts — in bad humor не в духе Leave him alone, he’s out of sorts today be pressed for time / money — be short of; not have enough не хватать времени или денег I’m pressed for time now. We are pressed for money at the moment. beside the point — off the point не по существу, не относится к делу What I said to him privately is beside the point. be to blame — be responsible for a mistake / something wrong винить за ошибку, неправильные действия Who is to blame for this awful mistake? Tom is to blame for this mix-up. be touch and go — be uncertain of the result на грани; неясно, куда повернется He was very sick, and for some time it was touch and go, but he is better now. be up against — be opposed by, have problems, be in danger иметь серьезные проблемы в чем-то, с чем-то Our company is up against serious attempts of hostile takeover. be up and around/about — able to be out of bed after an illness встать на ноги, поправиться He was sick for a month, but now he is up and around. be up to one’s ears — very busy по уши I’m up to my ears in work. be up to something — do mischief задумать, затеять I have to check what the kids are up to. be up to someone — be one’s own decision or responsibility на ваше усмотрение, под вашу ответственность It’s up to you to decide. It’s up to you to close the office every day at 8 o’clock. be used to — be accustomed to быть привычным к I’m used to hard work. He’s used to heat. big shot — important person важная персона He is a big shot around here. bite off more than one can chew — try to do more than one can переоценить свои силы I couldn’t handle two jobs and family. I really bit off more than I could chew. bite one’s tongue — stop talking прикусить язык I almost told her, but bit my tongue. bite the dust — die, be defeated умереть, падать ниц Many of them bit the dust in that war. black sheep — a good-for-nothing member of the family паршивая овца Their second son is the black sheep of the family, he is good for nothing. blind date — a meeting of a man and woman arranged by friends свидание вслепую She refuses to go on a blind date again because she had bad experience. blow it — lose the chance потерять шанс He understood that he blew it. blow over — pass, end стихнуть, пройти Wait here till his anger blows over. bottom line — main result/factor итог, основной момент The bottom line is, I don’t have enough money. break into — enter by force ворваться (в дом) силой The police broke into the robber’s house. break one’s heart — hurt deeply разбить сердце The news of her death broke his heart. break the ice — overcome shyness in making the first step сломать неловкость при знакомстве The party was dull until someone broke the ice with a joke and we all laughed. break the news — tell new facts сообщить важную новость CNN is breaking the news right now. bring home the bacon — earn the living for the family обеспечить семью He works very hard at several places to bring home the bacon. brush off — give no attention to отмахнуться от The boss brushed off my project again. brush up on — review освежить в памяти You need to brush up on the tenses. by all means -definitely, certainly обязательно, конечно Do you need my help? — By all means. by heart — by memorizing наизусть Learn this poem by heart for tomorrow. by hook or by crook — by any means possible любым путем, любым способом She will get what she wants by hook or by crook. by the way — incidentally кстати By the way, Ann is coming back today. call a spade a spade — use plain, direct words называть вещи своими именами He always tells the truth and calls a spade a spade. call it a day — consider work finished for the day считать работу законченной We’ve been working for 10 straight hours. Let’s call it a day. call off — cancel отменить, отозвать The police called off the search. carry out — fulfill доводить до конца She never carries out her plans. carry weight — be important иметь вес His advice always carries weight here. cast down — depressed, sad повергнуть в уныние He was cast down by the bad news. castles in the air — daydreaming about success (строить) воздушные замки Instead of working hard, he spends time building castles in the air. catch one’s eye — attract attention привлечь внимание This picture caught my eye. catch one’s breath — stop and rest перевести дух I can’t run, I need to catch my breath. catch someone off guard — catch someone unprepared застать врасплох He caught me off guard with his question. catch someone red-handed — find smb. in the act of doing wrong поймать за руку, когда делал плохое The manager caught the boy red-handed when he was stealing cigarettes. catch up — become not behind догнать He needs to catch up with the others. close call — a narrow escape, a bad thing that almost happened что-то плохое, что едва не случилось The speeding car almost hit the man. That was really a close call. come across — meet by chance наткнуться на I came across that article yesterday. come down with — become ill заболеть чем-то I’m coming down with a cold. come to one’s senses — start acting reasonably, intelligently взяться за ум, придти в себя He finally came to his senses, started to work hard, and passed his exams. come true — become reality осуществиться My dream came true when I met Pat. come up with — suggest предложить Mike came up with a brilliant idea. count on — depend on рассчитывать на You can always count on me for help. cut corners — to take a short-cut; to limit one’s spending срезать углы; ограничить расходы He ran fast, cutting corners where he could. I have to cut corners this week. cut down on — reduce сократить потребление You have to cut down on chocolate. cut out to be /cut out for it — have the ability to do something быть созданным для какой-то работы She isn’t cut out to be a surgeon. He’s cut out to be a leader. do one’s best — try very hard сделать все, что смог I did my best to help him in his work. do one’s bit — do what’s needed сделать положенное I’ll do my bit, you can count on me. do over — do again сделать заново This work is not good, do it over. do someone good — be good for принести пользу Fresh air and exercise will do you good. do something behind one’s back — do (harmful) things secretively делать (вредные) дела за спиной I hate people who do things behind my back. He did it behind my back again. do without — live without обходиться без I’ll have to do without a car for a while. down to earth — practical приземленный He’s quiet, sensible and down to earth. draw the line — fix a limit ограничить (предел) He drew the line for her at $100 a day. dress up — put on the best clothes нарядиться What are you dressed up for? drop off — deliver somewhere подвезти до, подбросить до Can you drop me off at the bank? drop out — quit (school) быть отчисленным He dropped out of school last year. duty calls — must fulfill obligations долг обязывает He said, «Duty calls» and left for work. easier said than done легче сказать, чем сделать It’s easier said than done, but I’ll try to do it. eat one’s words — take back words брать назад слова He had to eat his words after her report. even so — nevertheless, but тем не менее I work hard. Even so, I like my job. every now and then -occasionally время от времени Every now and then I visit my old aunt. every other — every second one через один She washes her hair every other day. fall behind — lag behind отстать от The little boy fell behind the older boys. fall in love — begin to love влюбиться Tom fell in love with Sue at first sight. fall out of love — stop loving разлюбить They fell out of love and divorced soon. false alarm — untrue rumor ложная тревога I heard he quit but it was a false alarm. a far cry from something — very different, almost opposite (neg.) далеко не такой хороший, как His second book wasn’t bad, but it was a far cry from his first book. feel it in one’s bones — expect something bad to happen чувствовать, что случится плохое Something bad is going to happen, I feel it in my bones. feel like doing something — want to do, be inclined to do smth. быть склонным к занятию чем-то I feel like going for a walk. I don’t feel like working now, I’m tired. feel up to — be able to do в состоянии сделать I don’t feel up to cleaning the house. few and far between — rare, scarce слишком редкие Her visits are few and far between. find fault with — criticize критиковать He always finds faults with everybody. find out — learn or discover узнать, обнаружить I found out that Maria left town. firsthand — directly from the source из первых рук, достоверная информация You can trust it, it’s firsthand information. first things first — important things come before others сначала главное First things first: how much money do we have to pay right away? fly off the handle — get angry разозлиться (вдруг) He flew off the handle and yelled at me. follow in someone’s footsteps — do the same thing идти по чьим-то следам, делать то же Igor followed in his father’s footsteps, he became a doctor, too. foot in the door — a special opportunity for a job получить шанс на работу Nina got a foot in the door because her friend works in that company. foot the bill — pay the bill заплатить по счету Her father footed the bill for the party. for good — forever навсегда After her death, he left town for good. for the time being — at this time на данное время For the time being, this house is all right for us. frame of mind — mental state умонастроение I can’t do it in this frame of mind. from A to Z — completely от начала до конца He knows this town from A to Z. from now on — now and in the future впредь From now on, I forbid you to go there. get a grip on oneself — take control of one’s feelings контролировать свои чувства Stop crying! Get a grip on yourself! get along with — have good relations быть в хороших отношениях, ладить Ann gets along with most coworkers, but doesn’t get along with Laura. get away with — not be caught after doing wrong уйти от наказания The police didn’t find the thief. He got away with his crime. get carried away — get too excited and enthusiastic about something слишком увлечься чем-то He got carried away with opening a store and lost most of his money. get cold feet — be afraid to do побояться сделать I wanted to try it but got cold feet. get even with — have one’s revenge расквитаться с кем-то I’ll get even with him for everything! get in touch with — contact связаться с кем-то Get in touch with Mr. Smith for help. get lost — lose one’s way потерять дорогу She got lost in the old part of town. Get lost! — Lay off! Исчезни! I don’t want to see you again. Get lost! get mixed up — get confused перепутать I got mixed up, went the wrong way and got lost. get off one’s back — leave alone отстать от кого-то Stop bothering me! Get off my back! get on one’s high horse — behave haughtily towards someone вести себя высокомерно Every time I ask her to help me with typing, she gets on her high horse. get on (the bus, train, plane) сесть на (транспорт) I got on the bus on Oak Street. get off (the bus, train, plane) сойти с (транспорта) I got off the bus at the bank. get out of hand — get out of control выйти из-под контроля If he gets out of hand again, call me right away. get over — recover after an illness or bad experience поправиться, преодолеть что-то I can’t get over how rude he was to me. She got over her illness quite quickly. get rid of — dispose of, discard избавиться He got rid of his old useless car. get together — meet with собираться вместе My friends and I get together often. get to the bottom — know deeply добраться до сути He usually gets to the bottom of things. get to the point — get to the matter дойти до сути дела Get to the point! Give me a break! — spare me с меня хватит Come on, stop it! Give me a break! give someone a hand — help помочь кому-то Can you give me a hand with cooking? give someone a lift /a ride — take to some place by car подвезти кого-то Can you give me a lift to the bank? He gave her a ride in his new Porsche. give someone a piece of one’s mind — criticize frankly высказать, что на уме, критиковать She lost my umbrella again, so I gave her a piece of my mind about her carelessness. give up — stop doing something, stop trying to do something отказаться от чего-то, прекратить попытки I gave up smoking. I gave up trying to fix my old car. go back on one’s word — break a promise нарушить свое слово, обещание First he said he would help me, but then he went back on his word. go for it — try to do a new thing пробовать новое дело If I were you, I would go for it. go from bad to worse — be worse становиться все хуже His business went from bad to worse. go out — go to parties, movies пойти развлекаться Do he and his wife go out often? go out of one’s way -try very hard очень стараться He goes out of his way to please her. go to one’s head — make too proud успех вскружил голову His acting success went to his head. go to pieces — get very upset, fall apart сильно расстроиться She went to pieces when she heard it. go with the flow — lead quiet life плыть по течению She always goes with the flow. grow on someone — become liked постепенно понравиться When she knew him more, he grew on her. had better — should лучше бы, а то… You look ill, you’d better see a doctor. have a ball — have a good time отлично провести время Yesterday we had a ball at the party. have a bone to pick — complain or discuss something unpleasant иметь счеты с кем-то, претензии к кому-то Mr. Brown, I have a bone to pick with you. My mail was lost because of you. have a word with someone — talk to поговорить о чем-то Can I have a word with you? have words with someone — argue with someone about something крупно поговорить I had words with my coworker today because he used my computer again. have it in him — have the ability иметь нужные качества Laura has it in her to be a good doctor. have no business doing something — have no right to do нечего вам здесь делать, быть и др. You have no business staying here without my permission. have one’s back to the wall — be hard-pressed, on the defensive быть прижатым к стене I had no choice, I had my back to the wall. have one’s hands full — very busy быть очень занятым He has his hands full with hard work. have one’s heart set on something — want something very much очень хотеть получить что-то, кого-то She has her heart set on going to New York. He has his heart set on Betty. have pull — have influence on иметь влияние на Does he have pull with the director? (not) have the heart — (not) have the courage to do smth. unpleasant (не) хватает духа сделать неприятное I don’t have the heart to tell him that he wasn’t accepted, he’ll be so unhappy. high and low — everywhere везде (искать и т.д.) I searched high and low for my lost cat. hit the nail on the head — say exactly the right thing попасть в точку You hit the nail on the head when you said our company needs a new director. hit upon something — to discover обнаружить ценное They hit upon gold. I hit upon a plan. hold it against someone — blame somebody for doing something (не) держать зла на кого-то I lost his book, but he doesn’t hold it against me. Hold it! — Stop! Wait! Остановитесь/Стойте! Hold it! I forgot my key. Hold on! — Wait! Подождите! Hold on! I’ll be back in a minute. hold one’s own — maintain oneself in a situation, behave as needed постоять за себя, утвердиться в чем-то He can hold his own in any situation. We need men who can hold their own. hold up — rob using a weapon грабить с применением оружия This bank was held up twice last year. ill at ease — uncomfortable не по себе She felt ill at ease because of her cheap dress. in advance — well before заранее He told her about his plan in advance. in a nutshell — in a few words кратко, вкратце In a nutshell, my plan is to buy land. in care of someone — write to one person at the address of another адресату по адресу другого человека (у кого остановился) I’m staying at Tom’s house. Write to me in care of Tom Gray, Chicago, Illinois. in cold blood — mercilessly хладнокровно He killed her in cold blood. in fact — actually, in reality фактически In fact, he works as a manager here. in general — generally, generally speaking в общем, вообще In general, he likes to be alone. He described the place only in general. in one’s element — what one likes в своей стихии He’s in his element when he’s arguing. in other words — using other words другими словами In other words, you refused to do it for her. in plain English — in simple, frank terms проще говоря I didn’t really like the concert. In plain English, the concert was terrible. the ins and outs — all info about входы и выходы He knows the ins and outs of this business. in someone’s shoes — in another person’s position на месте другого, в положении другого I’d hate to be in his shoes now. He lost his job, and his wife is in the hospital. in the long run — in the end в конечном счете In the long run, it’ll be better to buy it. in the same boat — in the same situation в таком же положении Stop arguing with me, we’re in the same boat and should help each other. in the clear — free from blame вне претензий Pay the bill and you’ll be in the clear. in time (to do something) — before something begins придти вовремя, чтобы успеть что-то сделать (до начала чего-то) I came in time to have a cup of coffee before class. it goes without saying — should be clear without words не стоит и говорить, само собой It goes without saying that he must pay what he owes right away. It’s on the tip of my tongue. вертится на языке His name is on the tip of my tongue. it’s time — should do it right away пора Hurry up, it’s time to go. It’s worth it. / It’s not worth it. It’s (not) worth buying, visiting, watching, etc. оно того стоит /оно того не стоит; (не) стоит покупать, посетить, смотреть и т.д. Watch this film, it’s worth it. Don’t buy this coat, it is not worth it. This museum is worth visiting. This film is not worth watching. it will do — it’s enough достаточно Stop reading, it will do for now. jump at the opportunity/chance — accept the opportunity eagerly ухватиться за возможность His boss mentioned a job in Europe, and Peter jumped at the opportunity. just as soon — prefer this one предпочел бы (это) I’d just as soon stay home, I’m tired. just in case — to be on the safe side на всякий случай Take an extra shirt, just in case. Just my luck! — Bad / Hard luck! Мне всегда не везет! They lost my job application. Just my luck! keep an eye on — take care of, watch, look after последить за, присмотреть за Betty keeps an eye on my sons for me. I’ll keep an eye on you! keep a straight face — not to laugh стараться не смеяться I tried to keep a straight face, but failed. keep company — accompany составить компанию She keeps me company quite often. keep one’s word — fulfill a promise держать слово You promised, now keep your word. keep someone posted — inform держать в курсе событий Keep me posted about your plans. keep your fingers crossed — hope that nothing will go wrong надеяться, что все пройдет гладко I have a job interview today. Keep your fingers crossed for me, will you? kill time — fill/spend empty time убить время I went to the show to kill time. (not) know the first thing about — not to have any knowledge about ничего не знать по какой-то теме I don’t know the first thing about nuclear physics. know the ropes — be very familiar with some business знать все ходы и выходы He knows all the ropes in this company. last-minute notice — little or no time to prepare for something сообщение в последний момент His arrival was a last-minute notice, we didn’t have time to prepare for it. lay one’s cards on the table — be frank and open сказать честно, открыть карты Finally, we asked him to lay his cards on the table and tell us about his plans. lay one’s life on the line — put oneself in a dangerous situation ставить жизнь на карту He laid his life on the line to fulfill this task, but nobody appreciated his efforts. lead a dog’s life — live in misery вести собачью жизнь He leads a dog’s life. lead someone on — make someone believe something that isn’t true заставить кого-то поверить неправде They suspect that you are leading them on. You led me on! leave it at that — accept reluctantly оставить как есть Leave it at that, what else can you do? leave word — leave a message оставить сообщение He left word for you to meet him at the airport at 6. let bygones be bygones — forget and forgive bad things in the past не ворошить прошлое Why don’t you let bygones be bygones and forget about what he said? let go of — release the hold отпустить, не держать Let go of my hand or I’ll call the guard. let (it) go — forget bad experience, return to normal life освободиться от тяжелого переживания He’s still in despair and can’t let (it) go. You can’t change anything, so let it go. let one’s hair down — be relaxed and informal with other people держаться неофициально She is always so formal. She never lets her hair down. let someone down — disappoint, fail someone подвести кого-то Don’t let me down this time! let someone know — inform известить Let me know when you find a job. like father, like son — be like one’s parent in something какой отец, такой и сын Paul won a prize in a chess tournament. Great! Like father, like son! little by little — step by step понемногу Little by little, he got used to Tokyo. look for — search for искать What are you looking for? look forward to — expect with pleasure ожидать с нетерпением I’m looking forward to your letter. Mary is looking forward to the party. look out — be careful, watch out остерегаться Look out! The bus is coming! look up — check with /in a dictionary or a reference book посмотреть в словаре или справочнике If you don’t know this word, look it up in the dictionary. lose one’s temper — become angry разозлиться He loses his temper very often. lose one’s way — get lost потерять дорогу I lost my way. Can you help me? lose track of — not to know where someone or something is потерять из виду I lost track of him years ago. lucky break — a lucky chance счастливый случай He got his lucky break when he got this job. make a living — earn money to provide for life зарабатывать на жизнь He works hard. His family is big, and he has to make a living somehow. make allowance for — take into consideration when judging учитывать, делать скидку на Don’t criticize him so hard, make (an) allowance for his inexperience. make a point of — be sure to do something intentionally считать обязательным для себя сделать что-то Make a point of asking about his wife. Make it a point to be here by 10. make ends meet — to have and spend only what one earns сводить концы с концами His doesn’t get much money. I wonder how he manages to make ends meet. make friends — become friends подружиться Anton makes new friends easily. make fun of — laugh at, joke about высмеивать He made fun of her German accent. make no bones about it — say/do openly, without hesitation сказать прямо, не скрывая отношения I’ll make no bones about it: I don’t like your attitude to work. make room for — allow space for освободить место для We can make room for one more dog. make sense — be logical имеет смысл What you say makes sense. make the most of smth — do the best in the given situation извлечь лучшее из Let’s make the most of our vacation. make up — become friends again помириться I’m tired of fighting. Let’s make up. make up for smth — compensate компенсировать I’ll make up for the time you spent on it. make up one’s mind — decide принять решение When will you go? Make up your mind. make yourself at home — be comfortable, feel at home будьте как дома Come in please. Make yourself at home. man of his word — one who keeps promises, is dependable хозяин своего слова, держит слово You can depend on his promise to help. He’s a man of his word. mean well — have good intentions хотеть сделать, как лучше He meant well, but it turned out that he spoiled a couple of things for me. might as well — a good idea может быть неплохо I might as well telephone him now. missing person — someone who is lost and can’t be located пропавший человек (в розыске) The little boy disappeared. The police registered him as a missing person. meet someone halfway — compromise with others идти на компромисс с кем-то He’s reasonable and tries to meet his coworkers halfway, when possible. never mind — it doesn’t matter неважно, ничего Thank you. — Never mind. not to mention — in addition to не говоря уж We have three dogs, not to mention two cats. no wonder — not surprising неудивительно, что He ate three big fish. No wonder he’s sick. now and again — occasionally время от времени I meet them now and again at the bank. odds and ends — a variety of small unimportant things or leftovers мелочи, остатки, обрезки I needed to buy some odds and ends for the kitchen. off the cuff — without preparation без подготовки Off the cuff, I can give you only a rough estimate. off the point — beside the point не относится к делу What I think about him is off the point. off the record — not for the public, unofficially не для публики, неофициально Strictly off the record, I think the director is going to get married soon. once and for all — decidedly однажды и навсегда You must quit smoking once and for all. on credit — not pay cash right away в кредит He bought a car on credit. on edge — nervous, irritable нервный, раздраженный He’s been on edge ever since she left. on guard — on the alert настороже, бдительный He’s cautious and always on guard. on hand — available под рукой Do you have a calculator on hand? on one’s own — alone, by oneself самостоятельно, один, сам по себе She likes to live and work on her own. on one’s toes — alert, attentive, prepared for difficulties бдительный, собранный He was on his toes and produced a very good impression on them. on purpose — intentionally нарочно, с целью I didn’t do it on purpose, it just happened so. on second thought — after thinking again по зрелом размышлении I’d like to sit on the aisle. On second thought, I’d like a window seat. on the alert — on guard начеку, настороже He’s cautious and always on the alert. on the carpet — called in by the boss for criticism вызвать на ковер Yesterday the boss called her on the carpet for being rude to the coworkers. on the go — busy, on the move в движении, на ходу He is always on the go. on the off chance — unlikely to happen, but still маловероятно, но на всякий случай On the off chance that you don’t find him at work, here’s his home address. on the other hand — considering the other side of the question с другой стороны I’d like to have a dog. On the other hand, my wife likes cats better. on the spot — right there на месте, сразу I decided to do it on the spot. on the spur of the moment — without previous thought / plan под влиянием момента He bought this car on the spur of the moment, now he regrets it. on time — punctual в назначенное время Jim is always on time. out of one’s mind — crazy сумасшедший If you think so, you’re out of your mind. out of one’s way — away from someone’s usual route не по пути I can’t give you a lift to the bank, it’s out of my way today. out of the question — impossible не может быть и речи Paying him is out of the question! pack rat — a person who saves lots of unnecessary things тот, кто не выбрасывает старые ненужные вещи Why does she keep all those things she never uses? — She is a pack rat. pay attention — be attentive обратить внимание Pay attention to his words. pick a fight — start a quarrel начать ссору He often tries to pick a fight with me. pick up — take, get подобрать, взять I’ll pick you up at 7. play one’s cards right — choose the right steps in doing something сыграть правильно If you play your cards right, he’ll agree to your plan. potluck supper — a surprise meal, where nobody knows what dishes other guests will bring ужин вскладчину, никто не знает, что принесут другие You know what happened at our last potluck supper? Everybody brought macaroni and cheese, apples, and beer! pull oneself together — brace oneself, summon your strength cобраться с силами Stop crying and complaining! You have to pull yourself together now. pull the wool over someone’s eyes — deceive, mislead someone обмануть, ввести в заблуждение Are you trying to pull the wool over my eyes? It won’t do you any good. put a damper on — discourage охладить пыл She always puts a damper on my plans. put in a word for someone — say positive things about someone замолвить словечко I’d be very grateful if you could put in a word for me when you speak to him. put off — postpone откладывать Don’t put it off till tomorrow. put one’s foot down — object strongly решительно воспротивиться Her father put his foot down when she said she wanted to marry Alan. put one’s foot in it — do the wrong thing, make a fool of oneself сделать/сказать глупость He put his foot in it when he told the boss his daughter wasn’t pretty. put up with — accept, tolerate мириться с, терпеть I can’t put up with your bad work! quite a bit of — much, a lot of много I had quite a bit of trouble with that car. quite a few — many, a lot of много He wrote quite a few good stories. rack one’s brain — try hard to think напрячь мозги He racked his brain to solve the puzzle. read between the lines — find or understand the implied meaning читать между строк His books are not easy to understand; you have to read between the lines. remember me to — say hello to передать привет от Please remember me to your family. right away — immediately сразу же, немедленно It’ very important to do it right away. ring a bell — remind someone of something familiar /half-forgotten напоминает что-то знакомое Annabel Lee? Yeah, it rings a bell, but I can’t place it right now. rock the boat — make the situation unstable раскачивать лодку, вести к нестабильности Peter always rocks the boat when we discuss company’s spending policy. rub shoulders with — meet with близко общаться с He doesn’t rub shoulders with the rich. rub someone the wrong way — irritate, annoy, make angry раздражать, злить кого-то His remarks rub many coworkers the wrong way. run into — meet by chance случайно встретить I ran into an old friend yesterday. save face — try to change the negative impression produced спасать репутацию He said a stupid thing and tried to save face by saying he misunderstood me. save one’s breath — stop useless talk не трать слова попусту There’s no use talking to him about his spending habits, so save your breath. scratch the surface — study something superficially изучать поверхностно He examines all the facts closely, he doesn’t just scratch the surface. see about — make arrangements for позаботиться о чем-то I have to see about our plane tickets. see eye to eye — agree сходиться в мнении We don’t see eye to eye any longer. serve someone right — get what someone deserves поделом It serves him right that he didn’t get this job, he despised all other candidates. serve one’s purpose — be useful to someone for his purpose отвечать цели I doubt that hiring this man will serve your purpose. show promise — be promising подавать надежды This young actor shows promise. show up — appear появиться I waited for hours but he didn’t show up. size up — evaluate someone оценить, составить мнение It took me 5 minutes to size up that man. sleep on it — postpone a decision till next morning отложить решение до следующего утра Don’t decide now, sleep on it. a slip of the tongue — a mistake обмолвка (ошибка) It was just a slip of the tongue! slip (from) one’s mind — forget забыть It slipped my mind what she asked me. smell a rat — suspect something подозревать недоброе I’m not sure what it is, but I smell a rat. so far — up to now до сих пор, пока So far, I have read 3 books by King. so much the better — it’s even better еще лучше If he can pay cash, so much the better. spill the beans — tell a secret проболтаться Who spilled the beans about our plan? stand a chance — have a chance нет шансов He doesn’t stand a chance of getting it. stand out — be noticeable выделяться He stands out in any group of people. stand to reason — be logical логично, что It stands to reason that he apologized. straight from the shoulder — speak frankly честно, откровенно Don’t try to spare my feelings, give it to me straight from the shoulder. take a dim view of something — disapprove of something не одобрять My sister takes a dim view of the way I raise my children. take a break — stop for rest сделать перерыв Let’s take a break, I’m tired. take advantage of — use for one’s own benefit, to profit from воспользоваться возможностью We took advantage of the low prices and bought a computer and a monitor. take after — be like one of the parents быть похожим на родителей (родителя) Tom takes after his father in character, and after his mother in appearance. take a stand on something — make a firm opinion/decision on smth. занять четкую позицию, мнение People need to take a stand on the issue of nuclear weapons. take care of — look after, protect, see that smth. is done properly позаботиться о ком-то, чем-то, присмотреть за Can you take care of my dog while I’m away? Tom takes good care of his car. take hold of something — take, hold взять, держать Take hold of this rope and pull. take into account — consider smth. принять во внимание You must take into account her old age. take it easy — relax, be calm не волнуйся Take it easy, everything will be OK. take (it) for granted — accept as given принимать как должное Mother’s love is always taken for granted by children. take one’s breath away захватить дух That great view took my breath away. take one’s time — do slowly делать не торопясь Don’t hurry. Take your time. take one’s word for it — believe поверить на слово Take my word for it, he won’t go there. take pains — try hard to do it well прилагать усилия He took pains to make his report perfect. take part in smth. — participate in принять участие Mary is going to take part in the show. take place — happen иметь место, случиться The accident took place on Oak Street. take someone’s mind off things — distract from fixed ideas/thoughts отвлечь от навязчивых мыслей Go to a concert or a movie to take your mind off things. take steps — take action /measures принимать меры We need to take steps against it. take the words right out of one’s mouth — say the same before somebody else says it сказать то же самое чуть раньше, чем другой говорящий I was about to say the same! You took the words right out of my mouth. take time — take a long time занять много времени It takes time to get used to a new place. take time off — be absent from work взять отгул He took time off to attend the wedding. take turns — alternate doing something one after another делать по очереди, меняться местами We went to Minsk by car. We didn’t get tired because we took turns driving talk back — answer rudely дерзить Don’t talk back to the teacher! talk it over — discuss обсудить с кем-то I’ll talk it over with my family. tell apart — see the difference различить, отличить от Can you tell the twins apart? That’s just the point. — That’s it. В этом-то и дело. That’s just the point! I hate this job! the writing on the wall — a sign of future events (usually, trouble) предзнаменование (обычно, беды) The plane crashed. Tim said he saw the writing on the wall about this flight. not think much of — think low невысокого мнения I don’t think much of her cooking. think over — consider carefully обдумать Think over your answer. Think it over carefully. till one is blue in the face — try hard стараться до посинения I repeated it till I was blue in the face! to make a long story short — in short короче говоря To make a long story short, we won. to say the least — to make the minimum comment about smth. самое малое, что можно сказать The film was boring and long, to say the least. try on — put on new clothes to test them for size or look примерить одежду (перед покупкой) Try on this leather coat, it’s very good. She tried it on, but it didn’t fit her at all. try one’s hand at something — try попробовать себя в I want to try my hand at painting. turn on / off — switch on / off включить/выключить Turn on the radio. Turn off the water. turn out to be — result/end this way оказаться He turned out to be a very good actor. turn over a new leaf — make a fresh start in life, work, etc. начать (жизнь, новое дело) заново He promises to turn over a new leaf and quit alcohol for good. turn the tide — reverse the course of events повернуть вспять ход событий The new evidence turned the tide, and the defendant was acquitted of charges. twist one’s arm — make to agree выкручивать руки They twisted his arm to sell the house. under the weather — feel ill нездоровится I’m a little under the weather today. up-and-coming — showing promise of future success многообещающий, подающий надежды He is an up-and-coming young lawyer who might help you with your case. up in arms — hostile to, in strong protest against something протестовать против, сопротивляться The employees are up in arms about the new retirement rules. up in the air — undecided еще не определено My vacation plans are still up in the air. (not) up to par — equal in standard (не) в норме His behavior isn’t up to par. used to — did often in the past, but not now в прошлом делал, сейчас нет I used to play the piano when I was in school (but I don’t play it now). walk on air — be very happy летать от счастья He got the job and is walking on air now. waste one’s breath — speak uselessly, to no purpose не трать усилия зря Don’t waste your breath trying to make him do it, he won’t change his mind. watch one’s step — be careful быть осмотрительным Watch your step! watch out — look out, be careful остерегаться Watch out for that car! Watch out! wet blanket — a kill-joy, who spoils everybody’s fun тот, кто портит всем удовольствие Remember what a wet blanket he was last time? Please don’t invite him again. What’s the matter? — What is it? В чем дело? What’s the matter? What happened? which way the wind blows — what the real situation is какова реальная ситуация He knows which way the wind blows and always acts accordingly. white lie — unimportant lie невинная ложь A white lie is told to spare your feelings. word for word — in the same words дословно, дословный Tell me word for word what he said. would rather — prefer предпочитать I’d rather stay at home today.

Как же все не любят грамматику

Like vs as

Like = ‘similar to’, ‘the same as’ (подобно, похоже, как, как будто, также как)

Note that you cannot use as in this way:
Обратите внимание, что предлог as не может употребляться в следующих случаях:

• What a beautiful house! It’s like a palace, (not ‘as a palace’)
• ‘What does Sandra do?’ ‘She’s a teacher, like me.’ (not ‘as me’)
• Be careful! The floor has been polished. It’s like walking on ice. (not ‘as walking’)
• It’s raining again. I hate weather like this, (not ‘as this’)

In these sentences like is a preposition. So it is followed by a noun (like a palace), a pronoun (like me / like this) or -ing (like walking).
В этих предложениях like используется в качестве предлога. Поэтому за ним следуют существительное, местоимение или герундий.

You can also say ‘like [somebody/something] doing [something]’:
• ‘What’s that noise?’ ‘It sounds like a baby crying.’

Sometimes like = ‘for example’:
Иногда like означает «например»
• Some sports, like motor racing, can be dangerous.
Некоторые виды спорта, например автомобильные гонки, могут быть опасными.
You can also use such as (= for example):
В этих случаях также можно употребить such as
• Some sports, such as motor racing, can be dangerous.

As (in preposition) = ‘in the position of, ‘in the form of’ (в качестве кого-л., чего-л.)
Значения as в роли предлога

• A few years ago I worked as a bus driver, (not ‘like a bus driver’)
• We’ve got a garage but we haven’t got a car, so we use the garage as a workshop.
• Many English words (for example, ‘work’ and ‘rain’) can be used as verbs or nouns.
• London is all right as a place to visit, but I wouldn’t like to live there.
• The news of her death came as a great shock.

Compare meanings of as and like:
Сравните значения as и like:

• Brenda Casey is the manager of a company. As the manager, she has to make many important decisions. (‘As the manager’ = in her position as the manager)
Brenda Casey менеждер компании. Как менеджер, она должна принимать много важных решений.
• Mary Stone is the assistant manager (assistant of Brenda Casey). Like the manager she also has to make important decisions. (‘Like the manager’ = similar to the manager)
Mary Stone ассистент менеджера. Также, как и менеджер, она должна принимать важные решения.

• During the war this hotel was used as a hospital. (So it really was a hospital)
Во время войны этот отель использовался в качестве больницы. (Он действительно являлся больницей)
• Everyone is ill at home. Our house is like a hospital. (It isn’t really a hospital)
Дома все болеют. Наш дом похож на больницу. (Но он не является ею на самом деле)

Also we use as before a subject + verb:
Также as используется перед конструкцией подлежащее + сказуемое
• I didn’t move anything. I left everything as I found it.
• They did as they promised. (= They did what they promised.)

Compare like and as in these sentences:
Сравните like and as в этих предложениях.

• You should have done it like this. (like + pronoun)
• You should have done it as I showed you. (as + subject + verb)

We also say as you know / as I said / as she expected / as I thought etc.:
• As you know, it’s Tom’s birthday next week. (= you know this already)
Как ты знаешь, на следующей неделе у Тома день рождения. (= ты уже это знаешь)
• Jane failed her driving test, as she expected. (= she expected this before)
Джейн провалила свой экзамен по вождению, как она и ожидала. (= она ожидала это прежде)

Note that we say as usual / as always (как обычно / как всегда)
• You’re late as usual.
Ты как всегда опоздал.

We say regard…as (расценивать, рассматривать в качестве; считать)
• I regard her as my best friend.
Я ее считаю моей лучшей подругой.

Practice

1. Put in like or as.

1. It’s raining again. I hate weather like this.
2. Jane failed her driving test as she expected.
3. Do you think Carol looks … her mother?
4. He really gets on my nerves. I can’t stand people … him.
5. Why didn’t you do it … I told you to do it?
6. ‘What does Bill do?’ ‘He’s a student, … most of his friends.’
7. Why do you never listen? Talking to you is … talking to the wall.
8. … I said yesterday, I’m thinking of changing my job.
9. Tom’s idea seemed a good one, so we did … he suggested.
10. It’s a difficult problem. I never know what to do in situations … this.
11. I’ll phone you tomorrow … usual, OK?
12. This tea is awful. It tastes … water.
13. Suddenly there was a terrible noise. It was … a bomb exploding.
14. She’s a very good swimmer. She swims … a fish.
15. I’m afraid I can’t meet you on Sunday … we arranged.
16. We met Keith last night. He was very cheerful … always.

2. Complete the sentences using like or as + one of the following:

a beginner
blocks of ice
a palace
a birthday present
a problem
a child
a church
winter
a tourist guide

1. This house is beautiful. It’s like a palace.
2. Margaret once had a part-time job … .
3. My feet are really cold. They’re … .
4. I’ve been learning Spanish for a few years but I still speak … .
5. I wonder what that building with the tower is. It looks … .
6. My brother gave me this watch … a long time ago.
7. It’s true that we disagree about some things but I don’t regard this … .
8. It’s very cold for the middle of summer. It’s … .
9. He’s 22 years old but he sometimes behaves … .

3. Put in like or as.

1. Your English is very fluent. I wish I could speak … you.
2. Don’t take my advice if you don’t want to. You can do … you like.
3. You waste too much time doing things … sitting in cafes all day.
4. I wish I had a car … yours.
5. There’s no need to change your clothes. You can go out, … you are.
6. My neighbour’s house is full of interesting things. It’s … a museum.
7. I think I preferred this room … was, before we decorated it.
8. When we asked Sue to help us, she agreed immediately, … I knew she would.
9. Sharon has been working … a waitress for the last two months.
10. While we were on holiday, we spent most of our time doing energetic things … sailing, water skiing and swimming.
11. You’re different from the other people I know. I don’t know anyone … you.
12. We don’t need all the bedrooms in the house, so we use one of them … a study.
13. … her father, Catherine has a very good voice.
14. The news that Sue and Jim were getting married came … a complete surprise to me.
15. At the moment I’ve got a temporary job in a bookshop. It’s OK … a temporary job, but I wouldn’t like to do it permanently.

1   ‘We’ll be travelling round Europe next month,’ said Jerry.   following

      Jerry said that ……………………………………………… be travelling round Europe.

2   ‘I had Evan and Christie over for dinner last night,’ said Liz.   before

      Liz said that ……………………………………………… had Evan and Christie over for dinner.

3   ‘Daz came here two days ago and then suddenly left,’ said Barry.   gone

      Barry said that Daz had ……………………………………………… and then suddenly left.

4   ‘We’re going on our yearly diet tomorrow,’ said Jessie and Sandy together.   starting

      Jessie and Sandy said together that ……………………………………………… yearly diet the next day.

5   ‘I can pick you two boys up from school this afternoon,’ said their father to George and Kevin.   that

      George and Kevin’s father told his sons ……………………………………………… up from school that afternoon.

6   ‘I’ll buy these as they’re so cheap!’ said Toby.   going

      Toby said he ……………………………………………… as they were so cheap.

7   ‘You must study harder, Dave,’ said Dave’s mum.   him

      Dave’s mum ……………………………………………… study harder.

8   ‘I think you may be coming down with flu,’ Greg said to me.   thought

      Greg said that ……………………………………………… be coming down with flu.

9   ‘I don’t know why they haven’t contacted me recently,’ said Tine.   been

      Tine said she didn’t know why ……………………………………………… recently.

10   ‘Everything was different yesterday,’ said Ben.   been

        Ben said everything ……………………………………………… before.

• #1

Hi!

I was reading an old English book and I’ve found that the sentence «a terrible secret was told to me» is a common mistake. I don’t know what’s the mistake, maybe the verb «tell» can’t be expressed in passive voice, but I’m not sure. Can a native English speaker tell me if the previous sentence is right or, by contrast, why it is wrong?

Thanks!

• #2

I was told a terrible secret (normal passive)

• #3

So it was a grammar book and it said that sentence was wrong? Well, nowadays it’s used and it doesn’t sound wrong to me. It’s the type of sentence where there are two possible passive sentences because there are two objects- one direct and one indirect:

Active — Someone told me a secret.

Passive 1 (IO as subject) — I was told a secret

Passive 2 (DO as subject — A secret was told to me (Notice how in this type of passive we need to introduce the preposition «to»)
Which passive we choose depends on whether we want to emphasis the DO or IO.

This is what I’ve always seen in grammar books, so I’m afraid I have no idea what the common mistake might be.

• #4

I don’t see a mistake either.

Someone told me a terrible secret. -> A terrible secret was told me. or I was told a terrible secret.
Someone told a terrible secret to me. -> A terrible secret was told to me.

• #5

I don’t see a mistake either.

Someone told me a terrible secret. -> A terrible secret was told me. or I was told a terrible secret.
Someone told a terrible secret to me. -> A terrible secret was told to me.

Is that common AE usage without «to» before the indirect object? («A terrible secret was told me «), because to me that sounds wrong (in BE).

• #6

Well, my grammar book says the following: «With the verbs «ask» and «tell» you can’t use the structure in which Direct Object is the subject»

In other words, my book says that sentences like «A secret was told to me» or «That question was asked to me» are wrong, due to with «tell» and «ask» we can’t put the direct object as subject.

Is this right?

• #7

Is that common AE usage without «to» before the indirect object? («A terrible secret was told me «), because to me that sounds wrong (in BE).

An object after to is the object of the preposition to, not an indirect object of the verb, but yes, an indirect object

can

be retained in passive constructions. I suppose it does sound a little awkward in such a short sentence. How about:

A terrible secret was told me by one of the elite guard, one that I dare not divulge.

?

Or the words of a song [«I’m a Lonely Little Petunia»] popular in my childhood:

Of all the saddest words that I have ever heard,
The saddest is the story told me by a bird.
He had spent about an hour a-chattin’ with a flower,
And here’s the tale the flower told: Oh,….

Curiously, I would have expected this usage to be more common in BrE.

Last edited: Sep 24, 2013

• #8

Well, my grammar book says the following: «With the verbs «ask» and «tell» you can’t use the structure in which Direct Object is the subject»

In other words, my book says that sentences like «A secret was told to me» or «That question was asked to me» are wrong, due to with «tell» and «ask» we can’t put the direct object as subject.

Is this right?

No, the book may say it, but it is wrong. Either the direct or the indirect object can be made the subject of a passive construction:

Somebody asked me a question. -> A question was asked me (by somebody). or I was asked a question (by somebody).

However «That question was asked

to

me» is wrong, and so is «Someone asked that question

to

me». We don’t ask a question

to

someone; we ask someone a question, or we ask something

of

someone:

Somebody asked a question of me. [not to] -> A question was asked of me.

Notice that not every meaning of tell or ask makes sense in the passive:

I can tell that you love him. -> That you love him can be told. [In the active voice, tell can mean something like «perceive».]
They ask me my name. -> My name is asked. [In the active voice, ask can mean something like «ask for».]

• #9

No, the book may say it, but it is wrong. Either the direct or the indirect object can be made the subject of a passive construction:

Somebody asked me a question. -> A question was asked me (by somebody). or I was asked a question (by somebody).

However «That question was asked

to

me» is wrong, and so is «Someone asked that question

to

me». We don’t ask a question

to

someone; we ask someone a question, or we ask something

of

someone:

Somebody asked a question of me. [not to] -> A question was asked of me.

Notice that not every meaning of tell or ask makes sense in the passive:

I can tell that you love him. -> That you love him can be told. [In the active voice, tell can mean something like «perceive».]
They ask me my name. -> My name is asked. [In the active voice, ask can mean something like «ask for».]

Mmm… But you don’t tell

to

somebody something either, so wouldn’t «a terrible secret was told me» (without «to») be more correct that «a terrible secret was told to me?

• #10

Mmm… But you don’t tell

to

somebody something either,

Yes, you certainly do. You can usually rephrase a sentence so that the indirect object becomes the object of a preposition.

Grandmother told a story to the children = Grandmother told the children a story.In both of those sentences, «Grandmother» is the subject, and «story» is the direct object. «The children» are the object of the preposition «to» in the first sentence, and the indirect object in the second sentence.

• #11

Yes, you certainly do. You can usually rephrase a sentence so that the indirect object becomes the object of a preposition.

Grandmother told a story to the children = Grandmother told the children a story.In both of those sentences, «Grandmother» is the subject, and «story» is the direct object. «The children» are the object of the preposition «to» in the first sentence, and the indirect object in the second sentence.

Ok… so, in summary:

My grandmother told a story to the children = A story was told to the children by my grandmother = A story was told the children by my grandmother??

Thanks!

• #12

Ok… so, in summary:

My grandmother told a story to the children = A story was told to the children by my grandmother = A story was told the children by my grandmother??

The third sentence is not natural. However, you could certainly say The children were told a story by my grandmother.

• #13

The third sentence is not natural. However, you could certainly say The children were told a story by my grandmother.

In that case, the original sentence of this thread («a terrible secret was told to me») is more proper than «a terrible secret was told me»?

Is the second one less natural?

• #14

I would say (and I said before) that in BE, at least, it’s wrong.

• #15

I would say (and I said before) that in BE, at least, it’s wrong.

For a spaniard it’s very curious that some verbs as «ask» and «tell» are never with «to» before in active voice (I ask you a question, I tell you a story…) and when we change these sentences to passive voice, «ask» keep always going without «to» (A question was asked me) but however «tell» goes always with «to» (A secret was told TO me).

Is this conclusion right?

• #16

For a spaniard it’s very curious that some verbs as «ask» and «tell» are never with «to» before in active voice (I ask you a question, I tell you a story…) and when we change these sentences to passive voice, «ask» keep always going without «to» (A question was asked me) but however «tell» goes always with «to» (A secret was told TO me).

Is this conclusion right?

Not for me.

My point of view is that «tell» works with or without «to», and «ask» works with or without «of», in active or in passive: «A story was told me by someone» (passive of «Someone told me a story») and «A story was told to me by someone» (passive of «Someone told a story to me») are both correct; «A question was asked me by someone» (passive of «Someone asked me a question») and «A question was asked of me by someone» (passive of «Someone asked a question of me») are likewise both correct.

An indirect object can also become a subject in passive voice: «I was told a story by someone», «I was asked a question by someone». And, at least sometimes, the object of a preposition can become a subject in passive voice. For example we can say «I was spoken to by someone» and «I was asked a question of by someone.» We should theoretically be able to say «I was told a story to by someone», but most of us find this last example awkward at best (like «Where are you going to?»). The meaning is so similar with and without the preposition «to» that we lose nothing by just omitting the «to».

• #17

Hi!

I was reading an old English book and I’ve found that the sentence «a terrible secret was told to me» is a common mistake. I don’t know what’s the mistake, maybe the verb «tell» can’t be expressed in passive voice, but I’m not sure. Can a native English speaker tell me if the previous sentence is right or, by contrast, why it is wrong?

Thanks!

The passive voice is not so clear-cut, so it’s impossible to set a universal rule about what can or can’t be expressed passively. Nonetheless; what your book is getting at is this: if an «object» in an active sentence is not «affected» (influenced, acted upon, changed, etc.) by the meaning of the verb, then a passive construction is difficult to form (or said another way: the passive construction isn’t accepted by everyone, especially grammarians). For example, in the dog chased the cat the direct object «the cat» is affected by the meaning of the verb: the action expressed by the verb influenced a change in the cat: it caused him to run away. We can turn this into the passive the cat was chased by the dog. But in I have a car, the direct object «a car» isn’t affected by the meaning of «have» (there is no change in the car), and so we can’t say a car is had by me (???). That’s also the case with «ask» and «tell:» the direct objects aren’t affected by those verbs. With «ask» and «tell,» only the indirect objects become passivized, because the IOs are affected:
Someone told me (IO) a terrible secret ~ I was told a terrible secret
The verb «told» affects the indirect object «me» (it produces a change in «me», perhaps it instilled fear in me), but «told» doesn’t produce any changes in the direct object «a terrible secret,» which is why «a terrible secret was told to me» isn’t universally acceptable. Now, some people who object to this phrasing might accept it if an agent is added, in the form of a prepositional «by» phrase: a terrible secret was told to me by someone, but others would still consider it «wrong.»
That’s the idea. But not everyone agrees with this approach to the passive voice, as you’ve seen in this thread.
Cheers

• #18

The original sentence is not grammatically incorrect; it is simply uncommon. As Duvija said, if a passive sentence is wanted, the usual construction would be I was told a terrible secret.

• #19

Just a clarification. The ‘by’ sentence is not always ‘by someone’. I believe ‘ by unspecified’ is better. As an example, it was hammered into my head:
«Chomsky’s Syntactic Structures was written by … » (I don’t think he’d be happy to see someone else’s name here). OK, so my prof. hated Chomsky.

1. Fill in each space with a suitable form of a verb.
You can use some verbs more than once.

say tell speak talk

1) Tom _____ “This is great!”
2) She _____ that she might be late.
3) He _____ us the answer.
4) I’m going to _____ something to the neighbours about the noise.
5) She _____ us about her travels around North America.
6) _____ us about Africa.
7) I’m going to _____ something about my trip to Africa.
The clock _____ it’s five past ten.
9) The newspaper _____ there’s been a hijacking.
10) People _____ he’s a bit mad.
11) _____ me what you need.
12) It’s impossible to _____ the twins apart.
13) _____ we do this, what would happen?
14) Have you anything to _____ in your defence?
15) She _____ them that she might be late.
16) The policeman _____ me to go with him.
17) I _____ you the reason why I was out late.
18) I’ve never _____ a lie in my whole life.
19) Let’s _____ about the problem.
20) She often _____ about her days as a student.
21) The lecturer is going to _____ about the modern novel.
22) Let’s just _____ he doesn’t always _____ the truth.
23) The label _____ it was produced in America.
24) He _____ me to close the door.
25) “Close the door,” he _____.
26) If you have something to _____, say it now.
27) _____ her how to do it.
28) The letter _____ we’ve won first prize.
29) I didn’t do it – somebody’s been _____ tales.
30) She _____ goodbye to her parents.

2. Fill in each space with a suitable form of a verb.
You can use some verbs more than once.

say tell speak talk discuss persuade give convince deny turn down

1)
A: People _____ that he’s been all round the world.
B: Yes, he’s always _____ about his travels.

2)
A: He was _____ us another one of his stories.
B: Does he ever _____ the truth?

3)
A: Rose is brilliant at _____ jokes.
B: I hope we can _____ her to tell us some tonight.

4)
A: Why don’t you ask the doctor to _____ you a second opinion?
B: Yes, I ought to _____ to someone else about it.

5)
A: Doctor, they _____ it’s urgent.
B: Very well, _____ them I’m on my way.

6)
A: They _____ the Prime Minister will be _____ about a new law in Parliament today.
B: I wonder what he’s going to _____ this time.

7)
A: You _____ me you were at the pub last night.
B: What are you _____ about?

A: I believe what he _____.
B: I don’t. I am _____ he’s been _____ lies.

9)
A: You _____ him some good advice about his interview.
B: But he didn’t get the job. I wonder why he was _______?

10)
A: You can’t _____ that you _____ Kate my secret.
B: No, I didn’t. But it seems I can’t _____ you. Maybe we can _____ this later.

11) Her evidence _____ the court.
12) We finally _____ them of our innocence.
13) I finally _____ her to go out for a drink.
14) He refused to come in spite of our efforts to _____ him.
15) She _____ to help us.
16) They _____ her brother’s offer of help.
17) She _____ a second piece of cake.
18) He _____ all the rumours.
19) She _____ that she had stolen the money.
20) She _____ the children permission to play in the garden.

3. Read the text below and add the word which best fits each space.

talk, give, say, turn down, persuade, tell, discuss, deny, refuse,
convince

A Friend in Need

I can’t say when I first realised that Billy was in
trouble with the police. He had often _____(1) to me about his problems and, as his
friend, I had _____(2) him the best advice I could. I also _____(3) I’d let him come and
stay with me but he _____(4) my offer. I tried to _____(5) him to stop spending so much
money at his club and to sit down and _____(6) his problems with me but he _____(7) me to
mind my own business.
It was difficult to _____(8) to him after this, but I was _____(9) he was getting into
deeper trouble all the time. He had often _____(10) having anything to do with the local
gangs. But then the police came round and asked me to _____(11) them information about
Billy and I couldn’t _____(12), though I avoided _____(13) them anything that might do
him harm. They asked me to _____(14) them more details, but I managed to convince them
that I had _____(15) the truth.

KEYS:

1. 1. said/says; 2. said; 3. told; 4. say; 5. told; 6. Tell; 7.
say; 8. says; 9. says; 10. say; 11. Tell; 12. tell; 13. Say; 14. say; 15. told; 16. told;
17. told; 18. told; 19. talk; 20. talked;
21. speak; 22. say, tell; 23. says; 24. told; 25. said; 26. say;
27. Tell; 28. says; 29. telling; 30. said.

2. 1. A. say, B. talking; 2. A. telling, B. tell; 3. A. telling,
B. persuade; 4. A. give, B. talk; 5. A. said/say, B. tell; 6. A. say, speaking/talking, B.
say; 7. A. told, B. talking; 8. A. said/says, B. convinced, telling; 9. A. gave, B. turned
down;
10. A. deny, told, B. convince, discuss; 11. convinced; 12. convinced; 13. persuaded; 14.
persuade; 15. refused; 16. rejected/turned down; 17. refused/turned down; 18. denied; 19.
denied; 20. refused/denied.

3. 1. talked; 2. given; 3. said; 4. turned down/refused; 5.
persuade/tell; 6. discuss; 7. told; 8. talk; 9. convinced; 10. denied; 11. give; 12.
refuse; 13. telling; 14. give; 15. told.

Compiled by Elena Kisunko, Moscow, School No. 651,
Elena Muslanova, Moscow, Lyceum No. 1537