INDEX:
1. when you are ready to do something
2. ready to be used or eaten
3. ready to take action if it is needed
4. when you are not ready to do something
5. not ready to eat or use
6. to do something or to happen when someone is not ready
RELATED WORDS
when you think something will happen : ↑ EXPECT
see also
↑ PREPARE
↑ HURRY
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1. when you are ready to do something
▷ ready /ˈredi/ [adjective not before noun]
if you are ready for something, you have done everything that needs to be done in order to prepare for it :
▪ Are you ready? The taxi’s here.
▪ When everyone is ready, I’ll give the signal to start.
ready for
▪ I don’t feel that I’m ready for the test yet.
ready to do something
▪ Everything is packed and we’re ready to leave.
get ready
prepare yourself to do something
▪ That’s settled then. I’ll go and get ready.
▪ My sister always spends hours getting ready to go out.
▪ It was soon time for the actors to get ready for the evening performance.
ready and waiting
▪ The wedding guests were all ready and waiting long before the bride arrived.
ready when you are
I am ready to do something as soon as you are
▪ ‘Shall we go then?’ ‘Yes, ready when you are.’
▷ prepared /prɪˈpeəʳd/ [adjective not before noun]
ready to deal with a situation, because you were expecting it or because you have made careful preparations :
prepared for
▪ The police were prepared for trouble.
▪ I was not prepared for all the questions they asked.
well prepared
▪ The team was well prepared and focussed on the issues.
▷ be ready to go /biː ˌredi tə ˈgəʊ/ [verb phrase]
to be ready and eager to start doing something :
▪ On Christmas Day, the kids are always up and ready to go at 6 o'clock.
▪ If everyone’s ready to go, let’s get started.
▷ be all set /biː ˌɔːl ˈset/ [verb phrase]
to be ready to start doing something that you have planned to do and want to do :
▪ Dad got on his bike. ‘Are you all set?’ he called.
be all set for
▪ The team are all set for another comfortable victory.
be all set to do something
▪ We were all set to start the barbecue when it started to rain.
▷ be geared up /biː ˌgɪəʳd ˈʌp/ [verb phrase]
if an organization or group of people are geared up for something that is going to happen, they have made careful plans so that they can deal with it as soon as it happens :
be geared up for
▪ There are clear signs that the governor is geared up for a second attempt at the White House.
be geared up to do something
▪ Companies that survive are the ones that are geared up to meet the demands of the future.
get geared up
▪ The airport was getting geared up to deal with a heavier schedule of flights.
▷ in readiness /ɪn ˈredinə̇s/ [adverb]
if you do something in readiness for something that you expect will happen, you do it so that you will be ready :
▪ As the conflict grew worse, troops waited in readiness at the borders.
in readiness for
▪ A new stage and seating area has been built in readiness for tonight’s sell-out performance.
▷ do something when you are good and ready /ˌdu something wen juː əʳ ˌgʊd ən ˈredi/ [verb phrase] spoken
used to tell someone who is impatient for you to do something that you will not do it until your are ready :
▪ Dad says he’ll come when he’s good and ready.
▪ Leave me alone! I’ll tell her when I’m good and ready.
▷ be good to go /biː ˌgʊd tə ˈgəʊ/ [verb phrase] American spoken
to have completed all the necessary preparations and be ready to start doing something :
▪ We just need to get you a pair of skis and you’re good to go.
▪ ‘Do you have all the hiking gear?’ ‘Yeah, I’m good to go.’
▷ be ripe for /biː ˈraɪp fɔːʳ/ [verb phrase]
to be in a suitable condition to be ready for something, especially a positive change :
▪ Economists regard the region as being ripe for development.
▪ After the divorce I was thoroughly fed up and ripe for a new start, so I agreed to take the job.
2. ready to be used or eaten
▷ ready /ˈredi/ [adjective not before noun]
if something is ready, you can use it or eat it immediately :
▪ Lunch is ready!
▪ When the pasta’s ready, add the sauce.
▪ I’m sorry, your car isn’t ready yet, sir.
ready to eat/collect/use etc
▪ Your suit will be ready to pick up on Wednesday.
▪ In a year’s time, the wine will be ready to drink.
▪ I tend to buy a lot of meals that are ready to eat they have already been cooked .
ready for
▪ Is everything ready for the party?
get something ready
prepare it
▪ It took several months to get the boat ready for the voyage.
▷ be in place /biː ɪn ˈpleɪs/ [verb phrase]
if equipment, a system, a rule, or a plan is in place, it is ready to start being used :
▪ A new PA system should be in place in the next three to six months.
▪ When everything is in place, the building work begins, even if it means running two massive projects at the same time.
▪ The uncertain economy is forcing us to accelerate cost-cutting plans that are already in place.
▷ ripe /raɪp/ [adjective]
ripe fruit is soft, sweet, and ready to eat :
▪ Don’t pick the apples until they’re really ripe.
▪ Is this melon ripe enough to eat?
▷ at the ready /ət ðə ˈredi/ [adverb]
if something is at the ready, it is nearby or in your hands, so that you can use it immediately if something happens and you need it :
▪ Several reporters were outside, microphones at the ready.
have/keep something at the ready
▪ I kept my camera at the ready in case the bird reappeared.
with something at the ready
▪ Two police officers advanced, with guns at the ready.
▷ in readiness /ɪn ˈredinə̇s/ [adverb] written
ready to be used when something that you are expecting happens :
▪ The table was carefully laid in readiness.
in readiness for
▪ Everything was laid out on the bed, in readiness for the new baby.
3. ready to take action if it is needed
▷ be standing by /biː ˌstændɪŋ ˈbaɪ/ [verb phrase]
to be ready to take action or provide something when it is needed :
▪ Officers in full riot gear were standing by outside the police station.
▪ A plane was standing by to take the hostages from the airport.
▷ be on standby /biː ɒn ˈstændbaɪ/ [verb phrase]
if a group of people, especially soldiers or police are on standby, they are waiting, ready to go somewhere if they are needed when something happens that is expected to happen soon :
▪ Extra troops have been brought in, and riot police are on standby.
▪ Bomb squads are on 24-hour standby because of the threats.
be on standby to do something
▪ RAF medical crews are on standby to fly out to the war zone.
▷ be on call /biː ɒn ˈkɔːl/ [verb phrase]
if someone such as a doctor or engineer is on call, they are ready to give advice on the phone or go and help where they are needed, as part of their job :
▪ As a doctor, you will be on call regularly at weekends.
▪ There are four physiotherapists on call at the sports injury clinic.
▷ be on full alert /biː ɒn ˌfʊl əˈlɜːʳt/ [verb phrase]
if soldiers, police officers etc are on full alert, they are completely ready to deal with a dangerous situation :
▪ All ships were on full alert.
put/place something on full alert
▪ By 7 pm the President had placed American military forces on full alert.
be on full alert for
▪ The police were on full alert for further riots.
4. when you are not ready to do something
▷ not ready /nɒt ˈredi/ [adjective not before noun]
if you are not ready for something, you have not done everything that needs to be done in order to prepare for it :
▪ Wait a minute! I’m not ready yet.
not ready for
▪ The coaches felt Stark wasn’t ready for major league baseball yet.
not ready to do something
▪ I felt that I wasn’t ready to make a final decision.
▷ unprepared /ˌʌnprɪˈpeəʳd/ [adjective not before noun] written
not ready to deal with something because you were not expecting it, and have not thought about it or made plans :
unprepared for
▪ Mexico was unprepared for war.
▪ When I told her the news, I was totally unprepared for her reaction.
unprepared to do something
▪ The study showed that 50% of the students were unprepared for work or college.
5. not ready to eat or use
▷ not ready /nɒt ˈredi/ [adjective not before noun]
if something is not ready, you cannot use it or eat it immediately :
▪ I’m afraid dinner’s not ready yet.
▪ The blackberries won’t be ready for another week or two.
not ready for
▪ The zero-emission care is not ready for mass production.
not ready to eat/drink/use etc
▪ The paint’s not ready to use when you buy it. You have to mix it with water.
▷ unripe /ˌʌnˈraɪp◂/ [adjective]
fruit that is unripe is not soft, sweet, or ready to eat :
▪ Don’t use unripe apples for making cider.
▪ The cherries on the tree were still unripe.
6. to do something or to happen when someone is not ready
▷ be caught napping /biː ˌkɔːt ˈnæpɪŋ/ [verb phrase] informal
if you are caught napping by something that happens, you are not expecting it and are not ready to deal with it, although you should expect it and be ready for it :
▪ Stock traders who ignore these signs are in danger of being caught napping when a recession hits.
be caught napping by
▪ Nowadays, no company can afford to be caught napping by a technological development.
▷ catch somebody off guard /ˌkætʃ somebody ɒf ˈgɑːʳd/ [verb phrase]
to say or do something when someone is not expecting it so that they cannot deal with it as well as they would like to :
▪ ‘Are you married?’ Vick asked, catching her off guard.
▪ The Prime Minister admitted to being caught off guard by news of the attack.
▷ catch somebody with their pants down /ˌkætʃ somebody wɪð ðeəʳ ˈpænts daʊn/ [verb phrase usually in passive] informal
to arrive or to do something when someone is not ready, and make them feel stupid or embarrassed :
▪ The city got caught with its financial pants down, and the scandal has led to 12 high-level officials losing their jobs.
▷ catch somebody on the hop /ˌkætʃ somebody ɒn ðə ˈhɒpǁ-ˈhɑːp/ [verb phrase] British informal
to do something, or to happen, when someone is not expecting it and is not ready to deal with it :
▪ The dramatic fall in share prices caught even the experts on the hop.
▪ Many politicians have been caught on the hop by a good interviewer.
▷ wing it /ˈwɪŋ ɪt/ [verb phrase] informal
to try to do something even though you are not ready, especially when you have to pretend you know more about something that you do :
▪ If you are asked a question that you’re not ready for, it’s better to say ‘I hadn’t considered that’ than to wing it and get it wrong.
▪ We have to wing it in the first game, but we’ll be more prepared for the next one.