Idioms | Lesson 10

in a tight spot | With kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

Example Dialogue

Lio : Hi, Sam. Did you complete the project report?

Sam : Yeah, finally. I was in a tight spot while making the report, though.

Lio : Oh, why?

Sam : First, it was an unearthly hour when I started making it at home. My wife

went out to watch a movie with her friends last night, leaving me with my

2-year-old daughter. My daughter was sick, so I had to treat her with kid

gloves, so I couldn’t make it last night. I woke up at 4:00 am to write my

report.

Lio : Wow, that sounds tough!

Sam : That's because it was. But, Miss Crimson set the deadline at 9 am, so I needed

to submit it first thing in the morning. When she asks us to do something, we

really need to do it. You know, her words are etched in stone.

Lio : I see. But why didn’t you ask me for help? I would have gladly helped you.

Sam : I wanted to do it by myself. Miss Crimson told me so.

Lio : I admire you. You’re fair and square, truth be told.

Try to figure out the meaning of these idioms.

in a tight spot | with kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

SKYPEENGLISH-VN | www.skypeenglish-vn.com 1
 Idioms | Lesson 10
in a tight spot | With kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

Example Passage

Sam works in an IT company. He was put in a tight spot last night because he had to

take care of his daughter. His daughter is 2 years old and she was sick the night before,

so he had to treat her with kid gloves. On top of that, he had to wake up at an

unearthly hour to complete the report. He had no choice but to finish the report this

morning because his boss, Miss Crimson, set the deadline for the report at 9:00 am,

and he knew that it was etched in stone. Although Miss Crimson is a strict boss, she

is also fair and square as regards work, so she appreciated it when Sam submitted

the report on time.

Again, try to figure out the meaning of these idioms.

in a tight spot | with kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

SKYPEENGLISH-VN | www.skypeenglish-vn.com 2
 Idioms | Lesson 10
in a tight spot | With kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

Definitions

in a tight spot | in a difficult situation

Anna is in a tight spot in her life. Her boyfriend wants to break up with her.

The company is in a tight spot right now. Its stock price is dropping.

with kid gloves | with extra care; cautiously

Cancer patients should be treated with kid gloves.

My mother loves my sister so much that she treats her with kid gloves.

unearthly hour | inconvenient time, especially very early in the morning

My girlfriend always calls me at an unearthly hour.

She has to wake up at an unearthly hour every morning because of the

commute.

etched in stone | Something, especially rules and customs, that cannot be

changed

The boss’s decision is etched in stone, so everyone must abide by it.

She is planning to leave the country, but it’s not etched in stone yet.

fair and square | completely fair(ly) and within the rules

Chiyo no Fuji won this season fair and square.

I think he is entitled to be the leader. He is fair and square.

Make sure that you can understand the meaning of these idioms.

in a tight spot | with kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

SKYPEENGLISH-VN | www.skypeenglish-vn.com 3
 Idioms | Lesson 10
in a tight spot | With kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

Practice

Fill in the blanks with the correct idioms (in the correct form) to complete the dialogue.

1 | Lino was when he bumped into a tree with his new car.

2 | My mother takes care of me when I am sick.

3 | What are you doing here at this ?

4 | The management’s decision is in this company.

5 | The government must be to the public.

6 | He said he would resign from this job, but the decision isn’t .

7 | We must get up at an tomorrow. We can’t miss the flight.

8 | Our branch will be next month because the we'll get a new,

inexperienced branch manager.

9 | You should treat your grandfather . He is over 80.

10 | I want to treat all employees , but it’s very difficult.

APPLICATION: Create your own sentences using these idioms.

in a tight spot | with kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

SKYPEENGLISH-VN | www.skypeenglish-vn.com 4
 Idioms | Lesson 10
in a tight spot | With kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

Exercise

Fill in the blanks with the correct idioms (in the correct form) to complete the dialogue.

(Louie was late for the meeting and now she got to the office.)

Louie : How come they set up a meeting at such an ? Holding a meeting

at 6:00 am is crazy!

Kara : You can say that again! Ever since Bernard became our boss, we have

been .

Louie : Yes, someone told me he is , but I don’t think so. He treats

young and cute subordinates and teases our older employees in

morning meetings! I will submit my resignation letter soon!

Kara : Oh, really?

Louie : Hmm... I’m not sure yet. It’s not .

APPLICATION: Create your own dialogue using these idioms.

in a tight spot | with kid gloves | unearthly hour | etched in stone | fair and square

SKYPEENGLISH-VN | www.skypeenglish-vn.com 5