to leave (someone or something) alone: not to disturb, to stay away from (also: to let alone) Examples of TO LEAVE ALONE Leave the baby alone for a while and she may go to sleep. After the cat had scratched Peter twice, he let it alone.

to take off: to remove (usually said of clothes) Examples of TAKE OFF The chef forgot to take off his apron when he sat down to eat. With his diet, he was hoping to take off some weight before his vacation at the beach.

to take advantage of: to use well, to profit from; to use another person’sweaknesses to gain what one wants Examples of TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF It’s not right to take advantage of people who aren’t as clever as you. The cab driver knew I was new to the city and so he tried to take…

to clear up: to make understandable (also: to straighten out); to become sunny Examples of TO CLEAR UP – The teacher tried to clear up our confusion about the meaning of the difficult paragraph in the reading.– It’s rather cloudy this morning. Do you think that it will clear up later?

to break in: gradually to prepare something for use that is new and stiff;to interrupt (for the second definition, also: to cut in) Examples of TO BREAK IN It is best to break a new car in by driving it slowly for the first few hundred miles. While Carrie and I were talking, Bill broke in…

to make a difference (to): to be of importance (to), to affect Examples of MAKE A DIFFERENCE The sociology student just wanted to make a difference in the lives of the poor. “I can’t figure out how to make a difference in this community,” the frustrated politician thought to himself.