Dave Sperling Presents....

Dennis Oliver's Idioms: H

had ('d) better: be obliged to; should (strong).

"You'd better leave soon. If you don't, you'll miss your bus."

hassle (noun): a troublesome situation; something troublesome that interrupts one's normal routine.

"I know it's a hassle to complete this form now, but Mr. Rogers
needs it in his office by the end of the day."

hard feelings: anger; animosity; bitter feelings.

A: "I'm sorry that Jim got the job instead of you."
B: "I have no hard feelings toward him; I know that he had stronger qualifications."

hard-headed: stubborn; inflexible; unwilling to change.

"I don't think Julie will change her mind. She's pretty hard-headed."

hassle (verb): annoy; bother; interrupt one's normal routine.

"If you'd stop hassling me, I might get this finished on time!"

have one's hands full: be extremely busy.

A: "Will you be able to help us this afternoon?"
B: "I'm afraid not. I'll have my hands full trying to finish my research paper."

have/has ('ve/'s) got: have/has.

"Dave's got a son whose name is Benjamin and a daughter whose name is Shannon."

have something down pat: know/understand something completely and thoroughly.

"I know I did well on the test. I had all the material down pat."

head honcho: person in charge; top boss.

"Dave's the head honcho of the ESL Cafe on the Web."

hit the books: study.

"I wish I could go to the movies, but I've got to hit the books."

hit the hay: go to bed; go to sleep.

"It's late, so I guess I'll hit the hay."

hit the sack: go to bed.

"I'm really tired. I think I'll hit the sack."

How come?: Why? (statement word order).

"How come you weren't at the party?"