Idioms
特别感谢翟羽屾,将我的课件全部翻译整理完成,愿大家在这里互相交流学习。
*A bad apple害群之马
The corruption(贪污)in thegovernment started with a bad apple, a high official two years ago.Now the whole system is corrupt(腐败的).
政府部门的贪污腐败之风因两年前的一位高官而起,现在整个机关都弥漫着不良之风。
*Be a piece of cake小菜一碟
A: How was the driving testyesterday? Did you pass? 昨天的驾照考试怎么样?过了么?
B: Of course! It was a piece ofcake.当然了,小菜一碟!
*Be all ears洗耳恭听
Now tell us all about youradventures in Africa last summer. I’m all ears.
现在给我们讲讲你去年夏天的非洲之旅吧,我们洗耳恭听。
*Be the apple of someone’s eye掌上明珠
Sarah’s only son was the appleof her eye.
Sarah的独子是她的掌上明珠。
*Be as American as apple pie=to be typicallyAmerican地道美国
An American couple opened arestaurant in Japan, and their food tastes as American as applepie.一对美国夫妇在日本开了一家餐厅,(尽管是在日本,但是)他们的食物就像在美国本土一样地道。
*Be as blind as a bat看不清楚的 视力不佳
A: Can you read the firstparagraph on page 115 for me? 能给我读一下115页第一段么?
B: Sorry, I forgot to bring myglasses. I’m as blind as a bat without them.
不好意思啊,我忘带眼镜了,不戴眼镜我几乎什么都看不清楚。
*Backfire事与愿违
The new stricter school policymay backfire and do more harm to the students than good.
虽然学校这项新出台的政策比前一套更加严格,但是达到的效果却可能事与愿违,对学生造成的伤害反而会比带来的好处要多。
*Bark up the wrong tree找错了门;错怪了人
Don’t blame me. I have nothingto do with it. You are barking up the wrong tree.
别说我,我什么都没做过,你错怪我了。
*Beat around the bush拐弯抹角
Don’t beat around the bush! Tellme what exactly you want.
别在兜圈子了,告我你想要的到底是什么!
*Beat it避开(Michael Jackson的歌曲《beat it》为反暴利歌曲应翻译为“避开”而众多错误翻译为“击败他”)
I guess we should beat it beforeshe comes back.
我觉得我们应该在她回来之前走。
*Bend over backward/backwards=try one’s best to dosomething尽全力/拼命做某事
The manager bent over backwardsto help new employees.
这个经理尽他的全力来帮助新手下。
*Bite off more than one can chew(咀嚼) 好高骛远人心不足蛇吞象
Do your best. Do whatever youcan, but don’t bite off more than you can chew.
做事情要进你的全力,你可以做任何你想做的事情,但是要脚踏实地不要好高骛远。
*Bookworm书虫 喜爱读书的人
I found the joys of reading whenI read that book. I became a bookworm after that.
读那本书的时候,我得到了许多乐趣,从那以后我变成了一个书虫。
*The bottom line 本质内容 重点
I’ve heard enough of yourexcuses. What’s the bottom line?
对于你的这些理由我已经听了太多了,重点(到底)是什么?
*Bring the house down 博得满堂彩 演出成功
Sarah is a musical genius. Herperformances always bring the house down.
Sarah是音乐天才,她的演出总是会赢得满堂喝彩。
*Be broke 身无分文 破产
“Do you want to go to the moviestonight?””I can’t go. I’m broke. Tomorrow is payday(发薪日).”“今晚你想去看电影么?”“我去不了,我没钱了,明天才发工资。”
*Bug someone(bug 虫子,昆虫)=bothersomeone令人烦恼,就像身边有好多虫子飞一样
That’s enough! Stop bugging me.Don’t ask me anymore.
够了!别再烦我了。不要再问我了。
*Butterflies in someone’s stomach心理紧张 七上八下
He always gets butterflies inhis stomach before taking a test.
他在考试之前总是很紧张。
*Can’t make head nor tails (out) ofsomething/someone 摸不着头脑 理不清头绪
Could you show me how to usethis machine? I can’t make head nor tail out of the instructions inthe manual.
你能教教我怎么用这台机器么?我看不大懂说明书中说的。
*Cast pearls before swine 对牛弹琴,白费好意
Tom wouldn’t listen to Sarah’swise advice. She was just casting pearls before swine.
Tom没听取Sarah明智的意见,她白费好意了。
*Catch someone’s eye=draw one’sattention吸引某人的注意
Suddenly something flying in thesky caught his eye. It was a big bird he had never seen before.
突然,飞在天空中的一个东西吸引了他的注意力,他从来都没见过这么大的一只鸟。
*Be chicken 胆小鬼
“Why won’t you dive in(头朝下跳入水中)?Are you chicken? (Don’t be chicken!)”
“你为什么不跳啊?你难道是胆小鬼么?(别害怕!)”
*Cold feet紧张 胆怯 害怕
It’s normal for young people toget cold feet before their wedding.
对于年轻人来讲,在婚礼之前觉得紧张是很正常的事。
*Cold turkey突然,无准备/突然完全停止使用毒品
Tom was a heavy drinker for morethan 15 years; then he quit drinking cold turkey. He’s never drunkagain since then.
Tom酗酒已经多于15年了,然后他突然就戒了,并且从那以后他就再也没喝过了。
*Cook someone’s goose=ruin one’s plan使某人计划泡汤使彻底失败(用于自身:自找麻烦)
When the president made a wrongdecision about the country’s economic policy, his political goosewas cooked.
从总统对于这个国家的经济政策作了一个错误的决定的那一刻开始,他的政治生涯就彻底地失败了。
*Be (as) cool as a cucumber(黄瓜) 泰然自若(遇事从容不迫很冷静)
She was cool as a cucumber evenright after she was fired.她被解雇时依旧很冷静。
*Cool someone’s heels久等,久候(带些不满情绪)
The show was so popular that Ihad to cool my heels in a long line at the box office.
这场秀太受欢迎了,以至于我不得不在售票处排着长龙等待。
*Couch potato 电视控(指边看电视边吃零食的人)
Don’t be a couch potato! You’rejust wasting your time.
千万别成为电视控!你就是在浪费时间而已。
*Be cut from the same cloth如出一辙,一刀切
When you teach children,remember that they are not cut from the same cloth. Each child hashis/her own personality.
你在教小孩的时候,记住不能一刀切,每个孩子都有他自己的特点。
*Dear John letter分手信(John原指美国大兵 此短语起源于二战时期)
His girlfriend wrote him a DearJohn letter and moved to Japan.
他的女朋友给他写了一封分手信,然后搬去了日本。
*Don’t let the grass grow under yourfeet.不要什么都不做,浪费时间。/马上行动。
Now that you know what to do,act right away. Don’t let the grass grow under your feet.
既然你知道要做什么,那么就马上行动吧。别再拖拖拉拉了。
*Be down in the dumps(dump垃圾场dumps抑郁) 闷闷不乐,垂头丧气
Mary has been down in the dumpssince her mother’s death.
自从Mary的母亲去世之后,她就一直闷闷不乐。
*Drive someone up the wall把某人搞得心烦意乱
(Drive someone to thewall把某人逼得走投无路)
The heat in this apartmentdrives me up the wall!
这间公寓的供热快让我疯了!
*Eat out 出去吃,下馆子
I don’t want to cook tonight.Why don’t we eat out?
我今天晚上不想做饭了,咱们出去吃吧!
*Easy as a pie轻而易举,极其容易
The midterm should be easy aspie if you prepare well.
只要你好好准备,期中考试就会很简单。
*Eat one’s words食言/取消诺言/认错道歉
Tom said Nancy would neversucceed in her business, but after seeing her business grow, he hadto eat his words.
Tom原来说Nancy不可能事业成功的,但是看到她的事业蓬勃发展之后,他不得不收回当初的话。
*Fall in love with someone/something陷入爱河
Tom fell in love with Jenniferwhen they first met.
Tom对Jennifer一见钟情。
*Feel like a fish out of water如鱼离水,生疏,不适应,不合群
I don’t like going to the bigparties they have. I always feel like a fish out of waterthere.
我不喜欢参加他们办的那些大型聚会,在那我总觉得不舒服。
*Be fishy奇怪,怀疑,有鬼
I was offered an unbelievablygood business opportunity, but there was something fishy aboutit.我收到一份意想不到的工作机会,但是这其中还有些事情有待商榷。
*Food for thought精神食粮,参考资料
Today’s reading assignment willgive you enough food for thought to prepare for next week’s classdiscussion.
今天的阅读作业会让你们积累足够多的资料来准备下周的课上讨论.
*A frog in someone’s throat(暂时的)失声或嗓音嘶哑
In a speech contest last year,she suddenly got a frog in her throat and had a hard timespeaking.去年,在一场演讲比赛时,她突然嗓音嘶哑,说话艰难。
*Get over something克服,从…中恢复过来,熬过去
She was just getting over theflu when she had a stomachache.
她刚刚从流感中恢复,又突然开始胃疼了。
*Get up (Wake up) on the wrong side of thebed(无缘由的)一起床就整天心情不好
Don’t talk to the boss today. Itlooks like she woke up on the wrong side of the bed.
今天别跟老板说话,她貌似心情很不好。
*Give someone a hand帮忙
Let me give you a hand with yourbaggage.我帮你弄行李吧。
*Be glued to something全神贯注于某事
We were glued to the televisionwatching the news about the accident.
我们全神贯注地看电视上那个事故的新闻。
*Go nuts 情绪失控
My dad would go nuts if he sawthis mess.
我爸要是看见这一团糟就该疯了。
*Grab a bite 简单吃点东西
We have five minutes before theshow. Let’s grab a bite.
离表演开始还有五分钟,我们去简单吃点东西吧。
*Great minds think alike.英雄所见略同
A: I’m going to the concerttonight.我晚上去看演唱会。
B: Oh, really? Me too. I heardthe performances are excellent.
是么?我也是。我听说这个表演不错。
A: Great minds thinkalike.英雄所见略同
*A hand-me-down别人用过的旧东西
When I was a child, I always hadto wear my sister’s hand-me-downs.
我还是孩子的时候,我总是得穿我姐姐穿过的衣服。
*Hat trick帽子戏法(一般指运动赛事中连进三球或者三连胜)
Jordan has already won 2 gamesin this series. We are wondering if he can make it a hat tricktoday. 这一轮Jordan已经赢了2场了,我们都很好奇他今天能否三连胜。
*Here you go/are给你
“Here you go—two cheese burgers,a double burger, and three pops(含气饮料).”
“给你—两个吉士汉堡,一个巨无霸,三杯饮料。”
*(Somebody’s) heart sinks消沉,失去信心
My heart sank when I heard Istill had to take 5 more exams.
当我听说我还得再多考5场考试时,我心都凉了。
*Hit the books 努力读书
I’m going to hit the books thisweekend to prepare for the final exam.
这个周末我要好好努力读书,为了期末考试做准备。
*Hit the ceiling/roof 暴跳如雷
Dad will hit the ceiling when Itell him I broke his camera.
我告诉我爸我把他的相机弄坏了的时候他暴跳如雷。
*Hit the nail on the head正中要害 恰到好处
She hit the nail on the headwhen she proposed her plan at the last meeting. It’s exactly thething we need to do now!
她在会上说的计划恰到好处,那正是我们现在需要做的!
*Hold one’s horses沉住气 别冲动
Hold your horses. We are notready to go yet.
别冲动,我们还没要走呢。
*Hit thesack/hay(sack粗布袋hay干草)(一天工作和学习后)去睡觉(不能指午睡)
I hit the hay before 11:00 p.m.every day.
我每天11点之前就睡觉。
*Holy cow 天啊!
Holy cow! How did she get thefull score on such a difficult exam!
天啊!这么难得考试她怎么得的满分啊?
*Be in a pickle 身处困境
Now Janet is in a pickle. Shehad made two very important appointments at the same time.
现在Janet身处困境,她必须同时做出两个非常重要的任命。
*Be in the same boat 同舟共济,命运相同
Nobody has any money to go outtonight. We’re in the same boat.
今晚没有人能有钱出去,我们身处同样的窘境。
*It’s easier said than done.你说得轻巧!
I should just say “No” to him,but it’s easier said than done.
我只是应该和他说“不”,但是这话说得轻巧(真说的时候说不出)。
*Be in hot water 处境水深火热
He has been in hot water withhis boss. He might be fired.
他和他老板的关系很危险,他有可能被解雇。
*It’s about time.时间差不多了。
A: Do you think Jane has gottenhome now? 你觉得Jane现在到家了么?
B: It’s about time.时间差不多了。
*Keep an eye on someone/something照料 监视 密切注意
He can be very dangerous. Alwayskeep an eye on him.
他可能会非常危险,随时注意他。
*Keep one’s bed 卧床休息
A: Is Nancy sick? Nancy是病了么?
B: Yes, very. She keeps her bedall day. 恩,病得很严重,她每天都卧床休息。
*Kick the bucket 某人过往了
That old guy finally kicked thebucket last week. 那位老人上周过往了。
*Kill time 消磨时光
We killed time talking andplaying games until the bus arrived.
车来之前,我们聊天玩游戏来打发时间。
*Know by heart 背下来,记住
Sam is really a walkingdictionary. He looks as if he knows the whole dictionary byheart.
Sam真是本活字典,他看起来好像会背一整本字典。
*The last/final straw(稻草) (压死骆驼的)最后一根稻草
The low salary and thedemanding(要求多的) boss were bad enough, but the rude co-worker wasthe last straw. (Then I decided to quit the job.)
低工资、严老板已经让我受够了,但粗鲁的同事是促使我离开的最后一个原因。
*Let someone know 告诉某人
When you move, let me know yournew address. 你如果搬家,一定要告诉我你的新地址。
*Be like taking candy from a baby易如反掌
A: It was a veryimpressive(给人印象深刻的) video presentation(演示文稿,陈述). I imagine it wasvery difficult to make such a complex work.
这是一项很重要的视频演示文稿,我想完成这样一项复杂的工作会很困难。
B: No, it was very easy withthis software—like taking candy from a baby. It took me only anhour to make it.
不,用这个软件的话这项工作易如反掌,我只用了一个小时就完成了。
*Be like the cat that got the cream 形容自己很高兴
She got 100% on her final examyesterday. She looked like the cat that got the cream.
昨天她期末考试得了100分,她特别高兴。
*Low-key 低调
Sam and Jane want to keep theirwedding as low-key as possible. They will invite only a handful of(一小撮)people to their wedding.
Sam和Jane想把他们的婚礼办得越低调越好,他们只想请少数人来。
*Make ends meet 收支相抵,量入为出
When she was a poor student, shehad to work 5 hours a day late at night to make ends meet.
当她还是个穷学生时,她每天不得不工作五个小时到深夜来维持她的生活。
*Feel/look like a million dollars 身心舒畅,容光焕发
Look! She looks like a milliondollars in that gorgeous dress today.
看!她今天穿着那件华丽的晚礼服,感觉心情很舒畅。
*Hold water (容器)滴水不漏 (论点)站得住脚 经得起考验
Their arguments against thegovernment’s foreign policy simply don’t hold water.
对于政府的外交政策,他们的反对意见根本就站不住脚。
*Be on the tip of someone’s tongue 想不起来,话到嘴边
The teacher asked them aquestion. The answer was on the tip of his tongue, but anotherstudent raised her hand and said it first.
老师问了一个问题,答案就在他嘴边,但是另外一个学生举手抢先一步回答了这个问题。
*Once in a blue moon 千载难逢的机会/稀少,罕见
He has a very nice car, but hedrives once in a blue moon.
他有一辆好车,但他几乎没开过。
*Out of the blue 出乎意料,突然
Late last summer, out of theblue, Sue announced she was getting married and leaving her homecountry soon. We were all shocked to hear that.
去年仲夏,Sue突然说她要结婚了,马上就要离开家,我们听了之后都觉得非常震惊。
*Out of the frying pan and into thefire刚出虎穴,又入狼窝/每况愈下
If the government accepts hisnew proposal(提议), the nation will be jumping out of the frying paninto the fire. (=It will make the situation worse.)
如果政府采纳了他的提议,那么这个国家将会每况愈下。(情况会越来越糟糕)
*Be over the hill青春已逝,走下坡路
At the age of 85, she says she’snever felt she’s over the hill. She always finds something good shecan do for other people.
尽快她已经85了,但是她说她从来没觉得自己青春已逝,她总是能找到一些事情可以为他人做贡献。
*Pop the question 求婚
“You’ve decided to pop thequestion? That’s wonderful! I think you should buy her roses andtake her out for a nice dinner,” replies Eric.
“你决定要向她求婚了?太好了!我觉得你应该给她买玫瑰,然后带她出去吃一顿好的,”Eric回答说。
*Play it by ear 随机应变,看着办
We can’t plan for today’sinterview. Let’s just go and play it by ear.
对于明天的采访,我们作不了计划。我们就到时候随机应变吧!
*Pop quiz 随堂突击性考试
Mrs. Jones, an ELC teacher, isfamous for giving her students a lot of pop quizzes.
一位ELC的老师叫Jones夫人,因为她总给学生随堂考试而出名。
(ELC是一所面向在上海的外国人的学习机构,全称是Shanghai Expat LearningCenter,99%的学生都是来自国外的友人,学校的老师除了中文老师以外,授课的也都是在沪的外籍老师,并在自己从事的领域有一番作为的“专家”,目前正在和交大谈合作项目)
*Pull someone’s leg 开某人玩笑(决不是拖后腿的意思)
Don’t worry. I won’t tell it toanyone. I was just pulling your leg. (It was a joke.)
别担心,我不会告诉别人的,我就是跟你开玩笑。
*Put all your eggs into one basket 孤注一掷
I’ll invest(投资) my money inseveral companies, not this one only. I don’t want to put all myeggs into one basket.
我将把我的钱投到不同的公司里,不仅仅投在这一家,我可不想孤注一掷。
*Put yourself in someone’s shoes 将心比心,设身处地为他人着想
You need to take some time toput yourself in their shoes and understand them.
你需要花些时间站在他们的立场上想一想,然后理解他们。
*Race against the clock/time 争分夺秒
They started a race against theclock to finish the interior(内政) of the new store that wasscheduled to open in a month.
为了完成预计一个月内上市的新商店的内政,他们开始争分夺秒的努力。
*Rain cats and dogs 倾盆大雨,瓢泼大雨
It will rain cats and dogstomorrow, but he will go to work as usual.
每天将要下瓢泼大雨,但是他还是会像往常一样去上班。
*Read between the lines 领悟言外之意
Linda tried to be cheerful andsaid she was okay, but reading between the lines, I could see shewas really upset.
Linda强颜欢笑,说她没事了,但是我看得出来她其实很失落。
*Rings a bell 听着耳熟,使某人回忆起
The name “Nora” sounds familiar.It rings a bell.
Nora这个名字很常见,听着很耳熟。
*See the light看到希望,领悟
If we could get the committee tosee the light, we would be able to pass the bill.
如果我们能让委员会看到希望,看到发展前景,我们也许能够拿到支票。
*Shake a leg 赶快行动
We’d better shake a leg, or wewill miss the bus!
我们最好快点,要不然就赶不上车了!
*Be shaking like a leaf (因害怕恐惧等原因)瑟瑟发抖
The child was shaking like aleaf while he was meeting with the principal.
这个孩子见校长时吓得直哆嗦。
*So far so good 目前为止还不错
I got up early, dressed warmly,and arrived at the stadium 15 minutes before the game.
So far so good—then I realized Ileft the tickets at home.
我早早地起床,穿得暖暖的,赛前15分钟到了体育场,到目前为止一切都很顺利,但是随后我发现我把票落在家了。
*Be sold out 售罄
The tickets for the ceremonywere sold out in 60 minutes.
一个小时之内这个庆典的门票就卖光了。
*Speak of the devil 说曹操,曹操到
(They were talking about someoneand he just came in the room.)
(他们正在谈论某人,他恰巧就进来了。)
Speak of the devil! We were justtalking about you! How did you know that?
说曹操,曹操到!我们刚还说你呢!你怎么知道的?
*Stay up 熬夜
We stayed up all night tellingour stories. 我们讲述着自己的故事,彻夜未眠。
*Stuffed shirt 自命不凡的讨厌鬼,妄自尊大的人,道貌岸然的人
My boss is a true stuffed shirt.She’s very formal and rigid all the time and not an interestingperson to talk with.
我的老板是一个不折不扣的自大狂,她总是很古板,不圆滑,不是一个很好相处的人。
*Surf the Internet/Net/Web 上网
Don’t waste time surfing the Weball day. 不要成天上网耽误时间。
*Take a leaf out of someone’s book 模仿某人,学某人的样子
I will take a leaf out of hisbook. It’s clear to see how he learned to become a fluent Englishspeaker.
我要以他为榜样,很清楚的就可以知道他如何说好一口流利的英语。
*Take it easy 放轻松
Don’t worry too much about theexam. Take it easy—everything will be okay.
别太担心考试,放轻松点—一切都会好的。
*Take to something like a duck to water轻而易举,毫无畏惧
Sam is really a naturalprogrammer. He took to programming like a duck to water even beforehe graduated from elementary school.
Sam是一个天生的编程专家,他几乎小学毕业之前就能轻而易举的编写程序。
*Tearjerker 催泪的电影、故事、小说、歌曲
That movie was really atearjerker. 那部电影就是颗催泪弹。
*That makes two of us.彼此彼此/我也这么想
A: I wish I didn’t have to takeso many final exams this week.
我真希望我这周没有那么多的期末考试。
B: Yeah, that makes two ofus.是啊,我也这么想。
*That’s that.就这样吧。
I won’t do that. I’m justleaving now, and that’s that.
我不会做那个的,我马上就要走了,就这样吧。
*Throw in the towel 认输,放弃
There are still a few things youcan do before throwing in the towel. Don’t give up hope.
在放弃之前,你还有一些事情能做,不要放弃一丝希望。
*The tip of the iceberg 冰山一角
The reporter said today’s deathtoll might be just the tip of the iceberg.
记者说,今天的死亡人数统计也许只是冰山一角。
*Time will tell. 只有时间能证明。
Only will time tell whether weelected the right person.
只有时间能证明我们选出来的那个人对不对。
*Be tongue-tied 舌头打结
He met a very beautiful woman atthe party and was tongue-tied.
他在聚会上偶遇了一位非常美丽的女人,(然后开始变得有点)结结巴巴。
*Top dog 领头羊
Karen has never lost herambition to be the top dog since her first year in the company.
Karen从今公司的那年起,就一直没有放弃过成为领军人物的雄心壮志。
*Turn over a new leaf 洗心革面,改过自新
She decided to turn over a newleaf after her mother’s death.
她母亲去世一个月后,她决定开始一段新生活。
*Turn your back on (someone) 不愿帮助某人
How can you turn your back on mewhen I need you so much? I’m going to fail this test if you don’thelp me.
当我那么需要你的时候你怎么能不帮我呢?你如果不帮我的话,我就要挂掉考试了。
*Twenty-four seven 不中断(每天24小时,一周7天都不关门)
Their supermarket is opentwenty-four seven.这家超市昼夜营业。
*Be under pressure 处于压力之下
Some people perform well underpressure and some others don’t.
一些人在压力之下能够表现得很好,另外一些人却不行。
*Be up and running 电脑运作正常无障碍
Our computer crashed, but theengineer got it up and running soon again.
我们的电脑死机了,但很快工程师就让它重新开始运作了
*Be up in the air 悬而未决的
They are eager to see the king,but his visit to their village is very much up in the air.
他们都很想见到国王,但是国王去他们村落的希望还很渺茫。
*Wear one’s heart on one’s sleeve以诚相待,开诚布公
Be careful when you talk to her.Never wear your heart on your sleeve.
跟她说话时一定要小心,千万不要什么都说真话。
*When it rains, it pours. 祸不单行
I can’t believe what happened tome last week! My dog ate my homework, and my computer crashed. Evenworse, I got sick that night! When it rains, it pours!
我真是不敢相信我上周发生的事!我的狗吃了我的作业,我的电脑死机,更糟糕的是,我那天晚上还病了!真是祸不单行啊!
*When pigs fly 无稽之谈,决不可能发生,没门
A: Do you think she’ll ever comeback and work with us again?
你觉得她还会回来跟我们一起工作么?
B: When pigs fly she will. (Shewill never come back again.)
她永远都不可能再回来了。
*You can say that again. 你说得没错!
A: Don’t talk to Mr. Hughes.He’s been really grouchy(爱抱怨的,不高兴的) these days.
千万别和Hughes说话,他最近很容易埋怨人。
B: You can say that again. Heargues with anyone who talks to him.
你说得没错,他和每一个和他说话的人都会发生争执。