现代英语口语表示法500例(9)
· pull someone"s leg开某人的玩笑
Never ever pull his leg. He is a man without a sense of humor. He takes everything seriously.
· keep someone at arm"s length与某人保持距离
My boss is my uncle. In order to avoid unnecessary misunderstanding, I"d better keep him at arm"s length in company.
· let someone down使某人失望
Joe really let me down by having broken his promises for several times.
· can"t for the life of one怎么……也不行
I thought I could recite my speech backwards, but when I stood in front of the audience, I couldn"t for the life of me remember what to say.
· air one"s linen in public家丑外扬
The wife was often beaten by her husband, but she never told others. She didn"t want to air her linen in public.
· keep a stiff upper lip意志坚定,坚强不屈
One failure means nothing. You"ve got to keep a stiff upper lip.
· be at loggerheads with...互不相让
The two parties were at loggerheads with each other over the new tax policy.
· a born loser一事无成者
Nobody is a born loser. All you need is perseverance.
· louse up something把某事搞得一团糟
He let the cat out of the bag, which loused up the whole deal.
· not do...for love or money死也不会……
Stop trying. I won"t betray my friend for love or money.
· feel a lump in one"s throat心里感到很难受
I felt a lump in my throat on hearing her story of fighting with the deadly disease.
· make do with...用……凑合
We are too tired to cook. We can make do with two bags of instant noodles.
· the man in the street普通的人,老百姓
The interview with the man in the street shows that 90% of them are satisfied with the TV fro grams.
· be one"s own man不受他人支配,自己管自己
Our monitor is not easy to cope with. He is much his own man.
· steal a march on someone抢在他人前面,暗渡陈仓
We stole a march on our rivals by reducing 5% of our price and got back our market.
meat and drink精神寄托
To some old people, raising pets is their meat and drink.
· be at the mercy of受……支配
When you get this kind of disease, your life is at the mercy of God.
· blow someone"s mind把某人搞得晕晕乎乎
Readers had rather high opinion of his new book, which blew his mind.
· have a good mind to do something很想去干某事
When I see young and robust men elbow their way onto the bus, I have a good mind to smack them.
· have a one-track mind死脑筋,一根筋
Mark has a one-track mind. All he cares is earning money.
· mind one"s own affairs少管闲事
You are nothing but an old gossip! Can"t you only mind your own affair?
· weigh on someone"s mind心事重重
The failure of signing the contract has been weighing on his mind. He couldn"t sleep at night.
· be of two minds拿不定主意
Jill was of two minds as whether to spend the money on books or on clothes.
· have money to burn有花不完的钱
The new rich has money to burn.
· once in a blue moon千载难逢
Our boss is a miser. He gives us a treat only once in a blue moon.