Lesson 4

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blow up = explode

I ate so much. I feel like I'm going to blow up!

A: How did the fire start?

B: The old gas heater blew up.

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bring back = return; cause to return

The song brought back some old memories.

He brought back the video that he had borrowed from me.

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burn down = completely destroy by fire

If you play with matches, you could burn down the house.

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catch fire = start to burn

The wood was wet, so it didn't catch fire very easily.

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come to = reach

When you come to the end of this part of the test, stop.

If you come to a word you don't know, use a dictionary.

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for the most part = generally

For the most part, I really enjoyed my trip.

A: How's your new job?

B: It's very interesting for the most part.

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make one's way = go in the direction of (with purpose)

He made his way to the front of the line.

A: I can't get a good look at the band.

B: Let's make our way to the front.

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no matter = make no difference

I can't get an "A" in the class no matter how well I do on the final exam.

You don't have any money? No matter. You can pay me next time.

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sort of = kind of; a little

This restaurant is sort of expensive. Do you want to go somewhere else?

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tear down = destroy something that was built

They want to tear down the old apartments to build new ones.

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Last summer, I visited my hometown. I had not been there for ten years. I kept in touch with my parents while I was away, but no matter how much they tried to tell me about the changes in our town, I was still surprised at what I saw. As I made my way through the streets around my parent's house, many of the places I saw brought back memories of my childhood. First, I saw my elementary school playground. Then I saw my best friend's old house.

Some of my favorite places were gone. For example, the old movie theater had burned down years ago. It caught fire when the heater in the basement blew up. The old store where I used to buy candy was torn down. Now a four-story office building stands in its place.

As I came to the corner by the old bank, I ran into Mr. Collins. My parents were friends with the Collins when I was young. I went up to Mr. Collins and said hello. He looked sort of confused.

I told him, "I'm John and Helen's daughter."

Mr. Collins said, "Oh! You're Helen's daughter. Such a beautiful lady." Then Mr. Collins called his wife over.

"Lucy! Come here! It's Helen's daughter. You remember Helen. Such a beautiful lady."

Mrs. Collins came over. She looked at me and said, "Oh, yes. Helen was so pretty." Then she said, "For the most part, you take after your father."

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