Class ______ Name: _______

English Idioms and Idiomatic Expressions

MEMORY
Idioms
from:   'bear in mind'   to:  'slipped my mind'

Read and study the following idiomatic expressions and compose and write sentences using
idioms. Give examples from your own experience.
 bear in mind
o If a person asks you to bear something in mind, they are asking you to remember it
because it is important.
"You must  bear in mind  that the cost of living is higher in New York."
o Type here!
 (have a) brain/memory like a sieve
o Someone who has a  brain like a sieve has a very bad memory and forgets things
easily.
"Oh, I forgot to buy the bread - I've got a  brain like a sieve  these days!"
o Type here!
 have (something) down pat
o If you memorize or practice something until you know it perfectly or have it exactly
right, you have it down pat.)
"I rehearsed my presentation until I  had it down pat."
o Type here!
 have (something) on the brain
o If you have something on the brain, you think or talk about it all constantly.
"Stop talking about golf. You've  got golf on the brain!"
o Type here!
 go in one ear and come out the other
o To say that information goes in one ear and comes out the other means that it is
immediately forgotten or ignored.
"I keep telling him about the risks but it  goes in one ear and out the other. He never
listens!"
o Type here!
 jog someone's memory
o When you help someone to remember something they have forgotten, you  jog their
memory.
"You don't remember who was with us that day? Here's a photograph to  jog your
memory."
o Type here!
 lose your train of thought
o If you forget what you were saying, for example after a disturbance or interruption,
you lose your train of thought.
"Now where was I? I'm afraid I've  lost my train of thought."
 o Type here!
 if my memory serves me well
o If your memory serves you well, you remember correctly or you have not forgotten
any details.
"You're Stella's daughter,  if my memory serves me well."
o Type here!
 (take a) trip down memory lane
o If you take a  trip (stroll  or walk) down memory lane, you remember pleasant things
that happened in the past.
"Every Christmas is a  trip down memory lane  for the family when our parents take
out the photograph albums."
o Type here!
 in your mind's eye
o If you can visualize something, or see an image of it in your mind, you see it  in your
mind's eye.
"I can  see  the village  in my mind's eye  but I can't remember the name."
o Type here!
 refresh someone's memory
o If you refresh someone's memory,  you remind them of facts they seem to have
forgotten.
"Let me  refresh your memory  - you've already missed three classes this term."
o
 ring a bell
o If something  rings a bell, it sounds familiar, but you don't remember the exact details.
"John Bentley? The name  rings a bell  but I don't remember him."
o Type here!
 (have a) senior moment
o A momentary lapse of memory, especially in older people, or an absent-minded
action such as putting the cereals in the refrigerator, is humorously referred to
as having a senior moment.
"I found the phone in the cupboard. I must have had  a senior moment!"
o Type here!
 it slipped my mind
o If something has  slipped your mind, you have forgotten about it.
"Oh dear!  It slipped my mind  that the shops were closed today!"
o Type here!