Idioms and Expressions - Draw

Idioms and Expressions - Draw Here are  idioms with the verb  draw  in English. For each idiom, study the definition and read the example sentences.  Next, take the quiz to check your knowledge of what youve learned.  To learn more idioms, you can also use  short stories providing idioms in context. Draw a Blank Use draw a blank  to express that you do  not know the answer to a question: Im afraid Im drawing a blank. I just dont know what to do.Who is that person over there? Im drawing a blank. Draw a Line Between   Use draw a line between  with two objects to show that you  separate one activity from another:   You should draw a line between your private life and work.Some people have a hard time drawing a line between friends and family. Draw Blood   Use draw blood  to express that something or someone has  caused someone to bleed. This idiom is also used figuratively to express that someone hurt another emotionally: He drew blood during his last five boxing matches.She drew blood when she began to put down his friend.   Draw Interest Use draw interest  to indicate that something has  created interest or become popular: Any time a new movie comes out, youll see articles in magazines trying to draw interest to the movie.His crazy comments drew interest during the presidential campaign. Draw Someone Out   Use draw someone out  when you are  asking questions in order to get someone to speak in detail about something: Make sure to ask her lots of questions. Its hard to draw her out and shell try to keep everything secret.If you keep asking questions, you can draw anyone out on almost any subject. Draw Something Out Use  draw something out  to refer to a process that takes place over a long period  of time: The chairman drew the meeting out for over two hours.Its a good idea to not draw out your presentation for too long. Draw Fire Away From Something Use draw fire away from something  when someone  creates a distraction so that people dont pay attention to something else: Id like you to go out and draw fire away from the institution.Politicians dont answer direct questions in order to draw fire away from something that has gone wrong. Draw Something to a Close Use draw something to a close  to express that you would like to  finish  something in progress: Lets draw this meeting to a close by reviewing the decisions weve made.If you dont mind, Id like to draw dinner to a close. Ive got an early flight tomorrow. Draw Something Up Use draw something up after having reached a verbal agreement when you intend a write a contract, proposal, or report based on the agreement: Now that weve agreed. Lets draw a contract up and get to work.Could you draw up a proposal for next weeks meeting? Draw the Line at Something Use draw the line at something  to show that you will tolerate something up to a certain point: Im afraid I draw the line at speaking poorly of my friends.If you were in a difficult position, would you draw the line at breaking the law to resolve your situation? Draw to a Close Use draw to a close  to indicate that something has come to an end: Thank you, Mary. And with that, our presentation draws to a close. Thank you for coming this evening.Id like to draw the class to a close. Remember to do your homework for Monday. Beat Someone to the Draw Use  beat someone to the draw  when you are quicker than someone else in obtaining something: He beat me to the draw and won the auction.Jennifer beat us to the draw and arrived an hour earlier. Quick on the Draw Use  quick on the draw  to show that someone is quick to do or understand  something: She was quick to the draw on buying that handbag.ï » ¿Im afraid youll have to be quicker on the draw on such a good deal. Quiz Use one of the  idioms with draw to complete the blanks. Be careful to use the correct form of the verb draw: The new actor from South Africa is _________. I think shell be a huge success.Id like you to _________ a contract by the end of next week.She told me she ______________ her work and her family, so she wouldnt work more than 20 hours overtime.The politician _________ at the death penalty.  If you can _________ from my scandal, Ill make sure you get all of my business for the next two years.I dont know answer. Im _________.You _________ me  __________, so go ahead and take the last one on sale.Id like to _________ the meeting _________. Thank you all for coming.  Ask her as many questions as you can, so you can _________. Shes a fox!I promise I didnt _________ when I hit him!I tried to ________ her ________ on the details for the deal, but she wouldnt tell me anything.Shes very ____________ and understands almost everything immediately. Answers drawing interestdraw up  drew the line betweendrew the line at / draws the line atdraw fire away  drawing a blankbeat me to the drawdraw the meeting to a closedraw her outdraw blooddraw her outquick on the draw

Femme Fatales and Film Noirs

Femme Fatales and Film Noirs Femme Fatales and Film Noirs Femme Fatales and Film Noirs By Maeve Maddox A freelancer who writes about film wants to know how to deal with two French terms used by filmmakers: If Im dealing with  more than one film, is it femmes fatale or femme fatales? And when it comes to multiple films of film noir, is it films noir or film noirs? Plus, given that the terms are French, should they be italicized? Note: Readers who are not film buffs may be unfamiliar with these terms as they are used in English. A femme fatale is an attractive and seductive woman. Film noir is a movie genre explained below. The terms are so common in English that they do not need to be italicized The expression femme fatale was in the language before it became a part of movie jargon. The earliest OED citation is from a US source dated 1879. On the Ngram Viewer, both terms, film noir and femme fatale, begin their rise in printed books in the 1940s. Film noir describes a category of gloomy movies that begins with The Maltese Falcon (1941) and ends with Touch of Evil (1958). The film noir genre breaks a previous Hollywood pattern that glorified home life, presented idealistic views of American government, and provided happy endings for the main characters. Film noir often depicts the criminal justice system as unfair, the police as corrupt, and the federal government as oppressive and threatening. According to a description at the Film Noir Studies site, women in film noir are of three kinds: the â€Å"marrying kind† who wants the hero to settle down and conform to societal norms, the nurturing woman, who is depicted as â€Å"dull, featureless, and unattainable,† and â€Å"the femme fatale.† The femme fatale is an independent, ambitious woman who rejects marriage, but who, in breaking free of the traditional male-female relationship, causes violent disruption in the lives of those around her. French in origin, the terms have been sufficiently Anglicized to form their plurals by adding -s: femme fatales (not â€Å"femmes fatales†) and film noirs (not â€Å"films noirs†). Some writers do form the plurals of these terms partially la franà §aise (by adding an -s to the noun), but the Ngram Viewer indicates that such writers are in the minority. Likewise, the terms are italicized on some Web sites, but the recommendation given in The Chicago Manual of Style is to use roman type for foreign words that have entries in English dictionaries. The official site of the Film Noir Foundation does not italicize â€Å"film noir.† Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Expressions category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:What Does [sic] Mean?Used To vs. Use ToWhen to use "an"