go to great lengths

goes to great lengths (third-person singular present)
going to great lengths (present participle)
went to great lengths (past)
gone to great lengths (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-go to great lengths.ogg

The most surprising thing was to discover that each job had its little tricks, peculiarities that had been learned in the experience of years, and one of the really pleasing features was the unlimited patience and kindliness of the chargehands and fitters, who would go to great lengths to teach the budding engineer all they themselves knew.

1944 September and October，A Former Pupil，“Some Memories of Crewe Works—I”, in Railway Magazine，頁 283:

[…] They said good-bye on the eleventh, and the Portuguese noblemen saw him off, going to great lengths to show him respect."

2008, José Rodrigues does Santos, Codex 632: The Secret Identity of Christopher Columbus (trans. from the Portuguese by Alison Entrekin), William Morrow (2008), ISBN 9780061173189, page 262:

Most scholars writing on the mafia were going to great lengths to demonstrate that it did not exist—and the mobsters wanted to keep their brotherhood secret.

2009，Diego Gambetta，Codes of the Underworld: How Criminals Communicate，Princeton University Press, 出版於 2009, →ISBN，頁 272:

As a father, I would go to great lengths to protect my children.

2013，Chad R. Torgerson，Waking Up Catholic: A Guide to Catholic Beliefs for Converts, Reverts, and Anyone Becoming Catholic，Assisi Media, 出版於 2013, →ISBN，頁 62:


cold hard cash

冷冰冰的钱 （暗含这些钱可以让人干出违心或者不道德的事的意思）

现金 （常与电子钱包的钱、借款、或支票相比较）


pull one's weight

pulls one's weight (third-person singular present)
pulling one's weight (present participle)
pulled one's weight (past participle)

He isn't really pulling his weight at work.

If one shares a flat one should be prepared to pull one’s weight in cleaning it.

合租一间公寓就要出力打扫。


cut someone some slack

cuts someone some slack (third-person singular present)
cutting someone some slack (present participle)
cut someone some slack (past participle)

放某人一马，不严厉责备或惩罚某人

He's the new kid on the block and doesn't know the way we do things around here yet. Cut him some slack and let him learn from this.

他是这块儿新来的，还不知道这儿的规矩。这次放他一马，让他长个教训。


get back at

gets back at (third-person singular present)
getting back at (present participle)
got back at (past)
got back at
gotten back at

She put toothpaste in his shoes to get back at him for the frog he left in her refrigerator.

她把牙膏挤到他鞋子里，报复他往自己冰箱里放了一只青蛙。


all hell breaks loose

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-all hell breaks loose.ogg

可作为固定句子使用，也可以有时态等的变化。

Came not all hell broke loose?

1667，John Milton，“(please specify the book number)”, in Paradise Lost. A Poem Written in Ten Books，London: […] [Samuel Simmons], […], →OCLC; 再版為 Paradise Lost in Ten Books: […]，London: Basil Montagu Pickering […], 1873, →OCLC:

I think it's kind of fun because, had Hillary Clinton spoken at the Democratic Convention, all hell would have broken loose.

1992年August19日，“Beckel, Barnes and Rollins Discuss the Republican Convention”, in CBS Morning:

It was a shocking attack, and within hours all hell had broken loose.

2023年November26日，Rory Carroll，Lisa O'Carroll，“‘Remember who we are’: riots, race, and the end of the ‘Irish welcome’”, in The Observer, →ISSN:


out of kilter

源自out of + kilter、kelter (“（良好的）条件，秩序，条理；状态”)。最后一个词词源不详，但在英国和美国是方言用词。

还能与throw连用，如“an impact can throw the adjustment out of kilter”（“撞击会让这些调整完全混乱”）。

不正常的，不协调的，混乱的，失去条理的，失灵的，故障的

I stayed up late to watch a movie, and my entire sleeping schedule has been out of kilter ever since.

我熬夜看了一部电影以后，我的作息规律就完全被打乱了。

Aye, ſquire, that thing [a statue of Hercules] has been fixt in this ſpot I warrant you theſe hundred years; it was ſadly out of kilter when I came to the eſtate, but I got my neighbour the conſtable, who is a carpenter, to make him that right arm, and put the ſtaff into it, for I could not bear to ſee ſuch a clumſy log as he had in it before; [...]

1762，[Susan Smythies]，“Presents the Reader with a Prospect of the Sullens”, in The Stage-coach: Containing the Character of Mr. Manly, and the History of His Fellow Travellers，Dublin: Printed by Henry Saunders […], →OCLC，頁 140:

Wall, chilern, whar dar is so much racket dar must be somethin' out o' kilter. I thik dat 'twixt de niggers of de Souf and de womin at de Norf, all talkin' 'bout rights, de white men will be in a fix pretty soon.

1851年May29日，Sojourner Truth, reported by Frances D[ana] Gage，“Ohio [Reminiscences by Frances D. Gage. Sojourner Truth. [Ain’t I a Woman?]]”, in History of Woman Suffrage. [...] In Three Volumes，卷s I (1848–1861), Rochester, N.Y., London: Susan B. Anthony; Charles Mann […], 出版於 1887, →OCLC，頁 116:

[T]hey are either round-shouldered, knock-kneed, bow-legged, or parrot-toed; some are also badly cross-eyed. It seems as if they can see two different ways at the same time. Jack says they are lop-sided and out of kilter altogether.

1890，Charles Erskine，章號 V, in Twenty Years before the Mast: […]，Boston, Mass.: Published by the author, →OCLC，頁 72:

Snowstorms often knock the Government's Salt Lake radio range out of kilter.

1941年March10日，“An Airliner Cracks Up in Pine Woods near Atlanta and Seven People Die”, in Life，卷 10, 期 10, Chicago, Ill., New York, N.Y.: Time Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, photograph caption，頁 27:

This was a champion team out of kilter, stung by what was arguably an act of disrespect to their opponents, a failure to appreciate their threat and the fine planning of Carlos Osorio, and never really able to regain its balance.

2018年June17日，Barney Ronay，“Mexico’s Hirving Lozano stuns world champions Germany for brilliant win”, in The Guardian，London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC，存檔自the original on 2019-08-05:


chalk up to

chalks up to (third-person singular present)
chalking up to (present participle)
chalked up to (past participle)

Chalk it up to fear that he didn't finish.

将他没有完成归因于恐惧。

“You can chalk it up maybe to, as one of my friends says, a nautical superstition,” he said. “Maybe I read too many Greek tragedies. I don't believe something’s going to happen like that until it’s happened.

1990年October5日，“Souter plans to get right down to work”, in Fort Worth Star-Telegram，卷 85, 期 154, section 1，頁 14:

Some of the best pre-mortems for Steve Ballmer, out-going CEO of Microsoft, have chalked up the company's problem to the "innovator's dilemma."

2013年August28日，Derek Thompson，“How Goliaths Beat Themselves: Microsoft's Mobile Failure and the Innovator's Dilemma”, in The Atlantic:


scream bloody murder

screams bloody murder (third-person singular present)
screaming bloody murder (present participle)
screamed bloody murder (past participle)


break in

breaks in (third-person singular present)
breaking in (present participle)
broke in (past)
broken in (past participle)

用久...使其更加好用，使...磨合

These shoes will be more comfortable after I have broken them in.

这些鞋子穿多了以后就会变得更舒服。

开始 （新事物或新阶段）

He broke in with the New York Yankees.

他开始了在纽约洋基队的新生涯。


pitch in

pitches in (third-person singular present)
pitching in (present participle)
pitched in (past participle)

If we all pitch in, we can raise enough money for the renovation of the church.

我们每个人都帮忙的话，我们就能为教堂的翻新筹到够多的钱。

He spent 20 minutes one afternoon describing the club he'd formed with other teenagers in his Brooklyn neighborhood. They'd each pitched in a buck a month to rent the basement of a mallet factory, which they used as a clubhouse.

2008 October，Davy Rothbart，“How I caught up with dad”, in Men's Health，卷 23, 期 8, →ISSN，頁 112:


take a load off

takes a load off (third-person singular present)
taking a load off (present participle)
took a load off (past)
taken a load off (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-take a load off.ogg


read between the lines

reads between the lines (third-person singular present)
reading between the lines (present participle)
read between the lines (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-read between the lines.ogg

If you read between the lines a little, you will realize that he has deeper motives.

如果你稍微多想想，你就会懂他有更深层的动机。

“I’m quite of your opinion,” Miss Van Vluyck came briskly to her support; “on condition, that is, that all grossness of language is avoided.”
“Oh, I’m sure we shall understand without that,” Mrs. Leveret tittered; and Laura Glyde added significantly: “I fancy we can read between the lines,” while Mrs. Ballinger rose to assure herself that the doors were really closed.

“Trust is as trust does. I tend to be extremely literal in what I say … One does not [need]^([sic]) to read between the lines. One can simply read the lines,” Musk said in the meeting, according to a tweet from Nola Weinstein, Twitter’s global head of brand experiences and engagement.

2022年June16日，Kari Paul，引 Elon Musk, “In rare move, Elon Musk meets Twitter employees to give ‘freedom of speech’ address”, in The Guardian:


way out of a paper bag

可能源自类似he couldn't punch his way out of a paper bag (“他连一个纸袋子都打不穿”)之类的短语

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-way out of a paper bag.ogg

（不能...）一点，最基本的...都（不）会

My boss is so clueless, he couldn't schedule his own way out of a paper bag.

我老板是真的没用，连日程都安排不清楚。

Junior varsity couldn't play their way out of a paper bag in comparison.

The old chap did not look as though he could push his way out of a paper bag.

1923，Asia，卷 23, American Asiatic Association，頁 281:

Personally I don’t think this egg could punch his way out of a paper bag. He’s only been workin’ in this trap two days

1924，Harry Charles Witwer，Love and Learn，G. P. Putnam's sons，頁 260:

“You'd hate his cooking[,” he said.]
 “Most guys can't cook their way out of a paper bag[,” Charlotte said.]

2014，Allie Peter，Saved by the Fireman，頁 105:


uphill battle

词语搭配包括fight an uphill battle和be an uphill battle。

“It is an uphill battle,” said Dr. Uzma Syed, an infectious disease specialist in Jericho, N.Y., on Long Island, who for months has been giving vaccine education talks to national and international groups.

2021年October11日，Jan Hoffman，引 Uzma Syed, “Boosters Are Complicating Efforts to Persuade the Unvaccinated to Get Shots”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:


one up

one ups (third-person singular present)
one upping (present participle)
one upped (past participle)

Every year the neighbors try to one-up each other with their holiday lights.

每年街坊邻里都争着比谁的节日装饰灯亮。

"Time flies when you're having fun!" said one of the skiers in our party. "Yeah, but time's more fun when you're flying," Jay one-upped.

“开心的时候真是时光飞逝啊”，我们聚会上一个滑雪的人说道。“是啊，但是你飞的时候不是更开心嘛”，Jay接着他的话说道。


donkey's ears

1916年英国，源自英国押韵俚语，与years押韵，因为驴的耳朵长。

Now for my first bath for what the men call ‘Donkey’s ears’, meaning years and years.


cut corners

cuts corners (third-person singular present)
cutting corners (present participle)
cut corners (past participle)

The guy who built the fence cut corners when sinking the posts, and the fence fell over in the last storm.

建围栏的人在立杆子的时候偷工减料，上次刮暴风之后围栏倒了。

Do you know why Wendy's has square burgers? Because they don't cut corners.

你知道为什么温蒂汉堡有方形汉堡吗？因为他们都是实打实的。


keep someone on their toes

keeps someone on their toes (third-person singular present)
keeping someone on their toes (present participle)
kept someone on their toes (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-keep one on one's toes.ogg

Four-year-old twins will certainly keep you on your toes!

这对四岁双胞胎可不会让你闲下来！


cut loose

cuts loose (third-person singular present)
cutting loose (present participle)
cut loose (past participle)

失控，没有约束 狂欢，纵情

Cut loose, let your hair down honey
Unwind, turn the lights down low
Relax, let's uncork the stopper
Come to papa, come on let's go

失控，没有约束 无拘无束

England cut loose at the end of the half, Ashton, Mark Cueto and Mike Tindall all crossing before the break.

2011年February12日，Mark Orlovac，“England 59-13 Italy”, in BBC:


cut someone loose

cuts someone loose (third-person singular present)
cutting someone loose (present participle)
cut someone loose (past participle)

The pizza chain was forced to close several locations and cut employees loose.

披萨连锁店关闭了几间店铺，解雇了多名员工。


flunk out

flunks out (third-person singular present)
flunking out (present participle)
flunked out (past participle)

（因成绩不佳，不及格而）退学或退课

He flunked out of high school as a youth, but finished school later in life.

他年轻时从高中退学了，但是后面又回去把高中读完了。

给...不及格 （尤指导致其重修这门课的情况）


hell to pay

"When I'm hungry, there's hell to pay if I'm not fed quick."

1912，Mary Roberts Rinehart，“The Miracle”, in Love Stories:

"I told him I had sent for you an' when you got heah these slippery, mysterious thieves, whoever they were, would shore have hell to pay."

1921，Zane Grey，章號 3, in To The Last Man:

Congressman Bart Stupak of Michigan . . . vows that "there will be hell to pay" if his language gets stripped out of, or weakened in, the final legislation.

2009年November16日，Amy Sullivan，“Can Dems Resolve Their Abortion Split?”, in Time, retrieved 2013-08-28:


get a room

即指示情侣去开房私下亲密。

注意影响 （用来指示情侣不要在公共场合唧唧我我。）

One night he kissed me on a park bench. I knew we shouldn’t but he would be gone so soon. The next night a homeless guy on a bench nearby hollered at us to get a room, but we couldn’t as we both had fierce landladies.

2021年December26日，Alys Fowler，“My winter of love: I was homesick in New York. The quiet Danish poet was just what I was longing for”, in The Guardian:


when the chips are down

指在打扑克时，将筹码（即chips）放下的时候。

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-when the chips are down.ogg

He wasn't a very talented musician but, when the chips were down, he played well.

他不是特别有音乐家才能，但是在关键时刻，他演奏得很好。

When the chips are down, you need to make tough decisions.

紧要关头时，你需要作出艰难抉择。

The armed forces of North Korea, which borders on and is allied with Russian Manchuria, marched into the U. S.-sponsored South Korea Republic over the week-end — and the chips are down for American prestige throughout the Far East.

1950年June26日，Alex H. Washburn，“Korea — Sound of War”, in Hope Star，卷 51, 期 214, Hope, Ark.，頁 1，列 1:

“Lucian and Monte basically said to me, ‘Whatever you turn in, we will be proud to put out. We give you 100% creative freedom and trust.’” It was exactly what she needed to hear most when the chips were down.

2023年December6日，Sam Lansky，“Person of Year 2023 : Taylor Swift”, in Time:


down for the count

指的是拳击比赛时，选手倒地后裁判数到10之前不能起身的判定为输的规则。

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-down for the count.ogg

“But what puts me down for the count is the action of the fellow. Never showed up; just made her miss two performances.”

1912，Harold MacGrath，章號 7, in The Place of Honeymoons:

But every time the music world thought it was down for the count, the orchestra has managed to rise again.

1991年November4日，Allan Kozinn，“Despite Odds, Many of Them, A Bedeviled Orchestra Persists”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

So, while Europe is still groggy and the U.S. is just starting to show signs of a pulse (and Japan of course is still down for the count), little Korea will grow anywhere from 3.2% to 6% this year.

2002年March11日，“Veni, Vidi, Gucci”, in Time，存檔自the original on 2013-05-11:


have the hots for

has the hots for (third-person singular present)
having the hots for (present participle)
had the hots for (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-have the hots for.ogg

喜欢 （指爱情或性上的）

I think Donnie has the hots for Lisa.

Whoa. Wait a minute, Doc. Are you trying to tell me that my mother has got the hots for me?

1985，Robert Zemeckis, Bob Gale，Back to the Future，spoken by Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox):

I met this chick and she just moved right up the block from me / And uh, she got the hots for me

2002，“Dilemma”, in Nellyville，演出者 Nelly ft. Kelly Rowland:


feel up

feels up (third-person singular present)
feeling up (present participle)
felt up (past participle)

抚摸，爱抚 （尤指胸部）

Mostly we heard her laughing and the squeaking of the porch swing while the boyfriend felt her up. All the boys went to second base with Diana Estabrook.

2013，Dan Pope，In the Cherry Tree, →ISBN:


feel up to

feels up to (third-person singular present)
feeling up to (present participle)
felt up to (past participle)

后接现在分词。feel up to应作feel + up to分析，而与feel up (“爱抚”)无关。

Since I have the flu, I don't feel up to going out clubbing tonight.

我得了流感，我觉得今晚应该没法去泡夜总会了。


up someone's street

符合某人的，适合某人的，某人感兴趣的

This new album should be just up your street.


hold the phone

Hold the phone! We've had this problem before, with the other machine.

待会！我们之前在另一台机器上遇到过这个问题。


stick in the mud

sticks in the mud (plural)
stick in the muds (plural)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-us-stick in the mud.ogg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-stick in the mud.ogg

不愿意参加集体活动的人，扫兴的人

Have a little fun sometimes and don't be such a stick-in-the-mud.

久不久放松一下嘛，别老是不参加活动。

"I don't hold back like you do. Even Tedd's dad can tell you're a stick-in-the-mud. That's why he made you the supervisor of this party."

2005年November9日，Dan Shive，El Goonish Shive (webcomic), Comic for Wednesday, Nov 9, 2005:

There’s a parallel here: the idea of Barbie dolls being in any way noxious seems, in the current climate, to be as hopelessly stick-in-the-mud a stance as the concept of selling out.

2023年July19日，Caspar Salmon，“Has Barbie killed the indie director? Why credible film-makers are selling out”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:


high and dry

与高教会有联系的 （福音派教会用low and slow，广派教会用broad and shallow）

"There are two recognized parties in the church of England, the old High-and-dry church party, and the so-called Evangelical. To one or other of these two the Anglo-Catholic must conform."

1844，A. H. Maltby，The New Englander，卷 2，頁 321:


stick in someone's craw

sticks in someone's craw (third-person singular present)
sticking in someone's craw (present participle)
stuck in someone's craw (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-stick in someone's craw.ogg

使某人郁郁寡欢，使某人不爽

It really sticks in my craw that he never even asked me.

I will just cite you two of the matters referred to by Mr. Glavis in his letter to the President, and, from what I learn, seems to stick in the craw of Mr. Bowman.

1910，United States. Congress. Joint committee to investigate Interior dept. and Forestry service.，Compilation of Letters, Telegrams, Reports and Other Documents Offered in Evidence:

There was a pennant chase that year that would stick in his craw and the craw of every Phillies fan forever.

2005，Robert Gordon, Tom Burgoyne，Movin on Up:


strike it rich

strikes it rich (third-person singular present)
striking it rich (present participle)
struck it rich (past participle)


for a song

常搭配动词buy或sell使用。

[T]he contents of aircraft that once commanded prices up to $148m are now being sold off for a song after being torn apart in Gloucestershire's aviation charnel house.

2009年December11日，“Jet Cemetery: Where Airplanes Go to Die”, in Businessweek:

In his senior year, he had run across an old '66 Chevy Super Sport headed for the junkyard, bought it for a song, and overhauled it with his dad's help, turning it into the big red muscle car it was back in its day.

2011，Kat Martin，A Song for My Mother，Vanguard Press,, →ISBN，頁 200:

He bought it for a song in 1984 compared with what his fellow financiers were spending on tonier Park and Fifth Avenues.

2013年August16日，Robin Finn，“A Former Madoff Penthouse Goes Back on the Market”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:


set straight

sets straight (third-person singular present)
setting straight (present participle)
set straight (past participle)

I'd like to set straight some misconceptions about recent events.

我想纠正一下最近的误解。

He misspoke, but I quietly set him straight.

他说错话了，然后我纠正了他。

Your bedroom is a mess. Set things straight before you go out tonight.

你的卧室乱成一团。你今晚出门之前整理一下。


let sleeping dogs lie

lets sleeping dogs lie (third-person singular present)
letting sleeping dogs lie (present participle)
let sleeping dogs lie (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-let sleeping dogs lie.ogg

本动词在作祈使句使用时类似谚语。

Eventually, they decided it would be best to let sleeping dogs lie and not discuss the matter any further.

最后，他们决定多一事不如少一事，不再谈论这个话题。

But, leaving novelists alone, on the whole we find in real life that if speech is silvern, silence is essentially golden, and that more harm is done by saying too much than by saying too little; above all, that infinite mischief arises by not letting sleeping dogs lie.

1868年August29日，“Sleeping Dogs”, in The Saturday Review of Politics, Literature, Science, and Art，卷 26, 號 670，頁 287:

Sometimes you just had to let stuff go. Endlessly rehashing old hurts just made things worse. It was far better, I'd learned, to let sleeping dogs lie.

2016，Helene Becker，Let Sleeping Dogs Lie，Orca Book Publishers, →ISBN，頁 217:

Crystal might have said that those perfect lips were zipped, but the kidnappers had no way of knowing that. Should he let sleeping dogs lie?

2019，Kate Atkinson，Big Sky, →ISBN，頁 261:


sound asleep

When Frere had come down, an hour before, the prisoners were all snugly between their blankets. They were not so now; though, at the first clink of the bolts, they would be back again in their old positions, to all appearances sound asleep.

1874，Marcus Clarke，章號 V, in For the Term of His Natural Life:


rock the boat

rocks the boat (third-person singular present)
rocking the boat (present participle)
rocked the boat (past participle)

Just when I'm asking myself if it's worth it to rock the boat and wondering if I should compromise, something will happen to keep me going. Like one year I got an award from a women's group for, "exposing the jockocratic values of society.

1984，Jim Bouton，Ball Four Plus Ball，頁 410:

I'd just jump in and fix it, but that's not my job, and I don't want to rock the boat.

我可以插手把它修好，但是这不是我的活，我可不想乱了规矩。


far cry

指的是在苏格兰宗族之间互送的使者和传话人。

Life in the big city was a far cry from his upbringing on a quiet, small farm.

大城市里的生活与他在安静的小农场有天壤之别。

The perineometer of Kagele was unheard of and the hormonology of today is a far cry from the rather crude and relatively weak hormones available in the early and mid-thirties.

1951 July，Richard D. Reekie，“Critical Analysis of Recent Advances in Gynecology”, in Northwest Medicine，卷 50, 期 7, Portland, Ore.: Northwest Medical Publishing Association，頁 508:

Brienne intervenes in the story of Jaime Lannister, adding to his legend with the exploits she believes paint the picture of him that deserves to live on. Her words are a far cry from those Jaime used to describe himself at their last encounter, instead recounting his deeds and ending with the simple, “He died protecting his queen,” a sentence that belies the complicated mix of nobility and tragedy entwined in his actions.

2019年May19日，Alex McLevy，“The final Game Of Thrones brings a pensive but simple meditation about stories (newbies)”, in The A.V. Club:

It's a far cry from a previous trip on a Class 150, where the set wheezed and vibrated so much as it staggered up Dainton Bank that I thought it was going to shake itself to bits!

2020年December2日，Paul Bigland，“My weirdest and wackiest Rover yet”, in Rail，頁 65:


draw a blank

draws a blank (third-person singular present)
drawing a blank (present participle)
drew a blank (past)
drawn a blank (past participle)

I should know that person's name, but I'm drawing a blank.

我应该知道那个人的名字，但是我想不起来了。

"Oh," she replied, "when I came to think of it, I saw, that you were right. I thought, 'twas quite likely it [the lottery ticket] would draw a blank.[…]"

1856，Lucius Manlius Sargent，Dealings with the Dead，卷 2，頁 472:

When she brainstormed about what else she would do, where else she would go, her mind drew a blank.

2022，Ling Ma，“Office Hours”, in Bliss Montage，New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux, →ISBN:


have it in one

has it in one (third-person singular present)
having it in one (present participle)
had it in one (past participle)

Do you have it in you to show any respect, politeness, patience, or, God forbid, an ounce of forbearance?

MAC: Who’s the father, Juno? JUNO: Um… it’s Paulie Bleeker. MAC: Paulie Bleeker? I didn’t think he had it in him.


all bark and no bite

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-all bark and no bite.ogg

光说不做的，雷声大雨点小的，光说不练的


when push comes to shove

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-when push comes to shove.ogg

危急情况下，万不得已的时候

He is not a particularly talented builder, but when push comes to shove, he can usually get the job done.

他不是特别有天赋的建筑工，但是紧急情况下他还是能完成工作。

"We've demonstrated that when push comes to shove, we can be really fast, we can be agile, we can do things more slickly.

2020年May20日，Andrew Haines talks to Stefanie Foster，“Repurpose rail for the 2020s”, in Rail，頁 35:


people person

people persons (plural)
people people (plural)


face the music

起源不明。首次出现于19世纪。可能源自戏剧行业或军队：“music”可能指真实的音乐，即演员在面对可能有敌意的观众时聆听到的乐池中的音乐，或指退伍仪式中军乐团所演奏的音乐；“音乐”也可能是一种黑色幽默，是对战场上噪音的委婉的表达。

faces the music (third-person singular present)
facing the music (present participle)
faced the music (past participle)

接受或面对不愉快的结果；自食其果


come of age

comes of age (third-person singular present)
coming of age (present participle)
came of age (past)
come of age (past participle)

Eager to find a better life, you joined the Alliance military when you came of age. You volunteered for an expedition to Akuze: a lush world on the outskirts of Alliance space that had suddenly dropped out of contact.

2008，BioWare，Mass Effect，Redwood City: Electronic Arts, →ISBN, →OCLC, PC，幕：Profile Codex entry:


join the club

welcome to the club

大家都一样 （表达同感）

大家都一样 （表达同感）

You're getting poor response times? Join the club!

你也是迟迟没有得到回音？谁不是啊！


break wind

breaks wind (third-person singular present)
breaking wind (present participle)
broke wind (past)
broken wind (past participle)

One of the kids on the school bus broke wind.


get to grips with

gets to grips with (third-person singular present)
getting to grips with (present participle)
got to grips with (past)
got to grips with
gotten to grips with

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-get to grips with.ogg

与...打斗，与...战斗

Estonia were struggling to get to grips with the game while Ireland were showing a composure and guile that demonstrated their experience in play-off ties.

2011年November11日，Rory Houston，“Estonia 0-4 Republic of Ireland”, in RTE Sport:


how so

缩约自“how is that so?”，且亦继承中古英語 how-so、hou-so、hu se (“无论如何”)，等价于how + so。对比西弗里斯蘭語 hoesa (“为什么”)、荷蘭語 hoezo (“为什么”)、德國低地德語 woso (“为什么”)、德語 wieso (“为什么”)、瑞典語 hurså (“为什么”)。

I'm feeling really depressed. ― How so?

我感觉好难过。―怎么了？


how so

Yet how so ere I love, I must be wife.

1598，Robert Greene，The Scottish Historie of James the Fourth:

That picture wasn't much to look at, being so old and all, but Mrs. Oaks made like it looked so nice; or, that's what she said as she stared at it, looking back and forth at the picture and me like it wasn't so. Only, she just didn't know how so it wasn't. It wasn't me at all.

2013，Earlene Jernigan-Carter，When Life Just Happens: A Book of Short Stories, →ISBN，頁 70:

My reflection in you warbled, because you see only hints, of what I see to beacon of me. Who am I who is reflecting from you? How so do I identify my soul in you?

2014，Eve Chilicas，Supernatural: Sci-Fi Poetry, →ISBN，頁 24:


hit the nail on the head

hits the nail on the head (third-person singular present)
hitting the nail on the head (present participle)
hit the nail on the head (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-hit the nail on the head.ogg

指出问题的关键；得出正确的答案；一语中的

He hit the nail on the head when he said the problem was the thermostat.

他指出问题在恒温器，简直一语中的。


old hand

My tax advisor is an old hand at dealing with auditors.

我的税务顾问很擅长对付审计。

The media, needless to say, are very pro-Bloomberg. He’s an old hand at stroking reporters and television executives, and few of them have raised the fact that it was Rudy who inherited a lawless city with crime out of control and over eight years, via his ‘broken windows’ theory, turned Gotham into the safest big city on the planet.

2020年March2日，Taki Theodoracopulos，“What makes Bloomie run?”, in The Spectator (US edition):


square away

squares away (third-person singular present)
squaring away (present participle)
squared away (past participle)

I have almost squared away the last of the paperwork from that job.

我快完成那个工作的文书任务了。


live off

lives off (third-person singular present)
living off (present participle)
lived off (past participle)

When I was a student, I lived off baked potatoes.

我上学的时候靠烤土豆度日。

I live off nothing in this world / Except the thick grey air that chains itself / Swirls all around and engrains itself

1985，“World Without Warning”, in Pressure Points，演出者 Anne Clark:


follow suit

follows suit (third-person singular present)
following suit (present participle)
followed suit (past participle)

If you are not sure of the proper etiquette, watch what others do and follow suit.

如果你不知道礼仪的条条框框，你就看别人怎么做，然后照做就行。

After World War II it took time to clear up the arrears of track maintenance on both lines and it was not until 1953 that the L.M.R. restored any two-hour schedules, the W.R. following suit a year later.

1960 February，R. C. Riley，“The London-Birmingham services - Past, Present and Future”, in Trains Illustrated，頁 98:

The wise man built his words upon the rocks / But I'm not bound to follow suit

1984，“So. Central Rain”, in Reckoning，演出者 R.E.M.:

I had a natural African American impulse to let this worldlywise middle-aged black woman's maternalism wash over me. And as a post-civil rights African American, I assumed that it was a white audience's job to follow suit.

2014年May28日，John McWhorter，“Saint Maya”, in The New Republic, →ISSN:

But unless there is a Damascene conversion in the Treasury, the chances of the UK Government following suit currently look slim.

2022年May4日，Anthony Lambert，“A revolution in ticketing”, in RAIL，期 956，頁 33:


level to the ground

levels to the ground (third-person singular present)
levelling to the ground (present participle)
leveling to the ground (present participle)
levelled to the ground (past participle)
leveled to the ground (past participle)

They leveled the building to the ground.


green with envy

嫉妒得不得了的，嫉妒得表现出来的，眼红的


grunt work

She has not only participated in the left as a star, even though she came into the role quite young. When Holly was between entertainment jobs, she volunteered for grunt work in anti-war organizations.

1990年December9日，Maida Tilchen，“Closer To Near”, in Gay Community News，卷 18, 號 21，頁 14:

He plans to hire somebody to do the grunt work of digging the trenches for the pipes.

他打算雇人来干挖管道沟这种体力活。


get one's claws into

gets one's claws into (third-person singular present)
getting one's claws into (present participle)
got one's claws into (past)
got one's claws into
gotten one's claws into

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-get one's claws into.ogg

Once that bank gets its claws into you, it doesn't let go easily.

一旦你上了那家银行的勾，你就没那么容易跑掉了。


brown bag

源自常用于装自制便当的棕色纸袋。

美国英语中，paperbag和brown bag经常出现于很多表示butterface (“背影杀手”)的短语内。

Did you attend the brown bag Tuesday on healthy exercise habits?

So what student would choose to work in Washington for zero compensation, with benefits listed as "brown-bags," "farewell reception" and "athletic and service opportunities"?

1994年November6日，William Goss，“Interning For Pleasure And Profit”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:


butter face

“She's a butter face,”
Harold looked at her for a minute and then back to Mr. Fink. “A butter face?” Repeated Harold not knowing what Mr. Fink meant.


scare the living daylights out of

scares the living daylights out of (third-person singular present)
scaring the living daylights out of (present participle)
scared the living daylights out of (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-scare the living daylights out of.ogg


put through the wringer

puts through the wringer (third-person singular present)
putting through the wringer (present participle)
put through the wringer (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-put through the wringer.ogg

让...吃苦头；让...不好受

They really put each candidate through the wringer before choosing one to hire.

在决定聘用候选人之前，他们确实对每个候选人进行了严格的考验。

Psychiatrists say that for many people who have been put through the wringer over the past decade, the climate extremes are one crisis too many.

精神病学家表示，对于过去十年遭受过折磨的许多人来说，极端气候已经是难以承受的危机。

2023年September16日，Jason Horowitz，“How Do We Feel About Global Warming? It’s Called Eco-Anxiety.”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:


talk the talk

talks the talk (third-person singular present)
talking the talk (present participle)
talked the talk (past participle)

说好听话，说大话，说漂亮话；说该说的话，说表达决心的话

When it comes to reducing greenhouse gas emissions, he talks the talk, but it remains to be seen if he walks the walk.

关于减排温室气体，他说的是头头是道，但是他会不会付诸实际行动还是个未知数。

Some leaders only talk the talk but aren't prepared to take any risks.

一些领导人只会说漂亮话，但是从来不愿意冒风险。

Byford talks the talk, and he does it well.

2020年December2日，Andy Byford talks to Paul Clifton，“I enjoy really big challenges...”, in Rail，頁 55:


quick on the uptake

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-quick on the uptake.ogg

quick-witted

理解快的，脑子灵的，聪明的

slow on the uptake

理解快的，脑子灵的，聪明的

slow-witted

理解快的，脑子灵的，聪明的

理解快的，脑子灵的，聪明的


carrot and stick

源自两种驱赶运货动物的方式：用胡萝卜在前方吸引，和用棒子在后面抽打。

胡萝卜和大棒，恩威并济，软硬兼施

It was this carrot and stick discipline to which Mr. John Mill was subjected, and which he accepted dutifully as flowing from that perfect wisdom of which up to this time his father had been the representative.

1876，Lord Blachford，“The Reality of Duty, as Illustrated by the Autobiography of Mr. John Stuart Mill”, in The Contemporary Review，頁 523:

There was no similar carrot and stick for use against the French land armaments.

1928，Joseph Montague with George Young, Freedom of the Seas，頁 159:

The proposal to use the world trade order as a source of carrots and sticks for the pursuit of environmental objectives is based on three illusions.

2000，Anne O. Krueger with Chonira Aturupane, The WTO as an International Organization，頁 225:

the artful tactic of carrot and stick bore relatively plentiful fruit.

2008，Paul Lendvai with Ann Major, One Day that Shook the Communist World: The 1956 Hungarian Uprising and Its Legacy，頁 227:


tide over

tides over (third-person singular present)
tiding over (present participle)
tided over (past participle)

（在金钱上）帮...撑过困难

Could you lend me ten pounds to tide me over till payday?

你能借我10英镑帮我撑到发工钱吗？

Would a small snack tide you over until dinner?

吃点零食能让你撑到晚饭吗？

Each evening, it was true, when the flare of Fleet Street would have begun really to smoke, she had, in resistance to old habit, a little to hold herself; but for three successive days she tided over that crisis.


rhyme or reason

仿譯自中古法語 n'y avoir ryme ne raison (Eustache Deschamps），在一个与伊丽莎白一世的谈话中被认为是埃德蒙·斯宾塞所作。 (這個詞源⁽⁺⁾能找到來源嗎？)

基本上仅用于否定句，尤其与no连用，或带without作副词。还能在neither等词后作rhyme nor reason。

Prices vary considerably from one town to another with no apparent rhyme or reason.

每个城里的价格差得都好多，没什么道理。

He would often fly into an unexpected rage without rhyme or reason.

他经常无缘无故突然大发雷霆。


tee off

tees off (third-person singular present)
teeing off (present participle)
teed off (past participle)

Boy, do his jibes ever tee me off!

天，他的嘲讽真是气死我了。


walk the beat

walks the beat (third-person singular present)
walking the beat (present participle)
walked the beat (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-walk the beat.wav

巡逻 （多指警察或保安在工作时巡逻）


throw one's toys out of the pram

throws one's toys out of the pram (third-person singular present)
throwing one's toys out of the pram (present participle)
threw one's toys out of the pram (past)
thrown one's toys out of the pram (past participle)

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-throw one's toys out of the pram.ogg

（得不到自己想要的东西而）大吵大闹，胡闹，闹脾气


hoist by one's own petard

源自莎士比亚所著戏剧《哈姆雷特》。

/hˈɔ͡ɪst bˈa͡ɪ wˈʌnz ˈo͡ʊn pɛˈɾɑː͡ɹd/

/hˈɔ͡ɪst bˈa͡ɪ wˈɒnz ˈə͡ʊn pɛˈtɑːd/

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-hoist by one's own petard.ogg

在美式英语中，这个形容词的第一个词作hoisted和hoist的频率基本相同，但是hoist作为动词单独使用时，其过去分词和过去式作hoisted的频率比hoist高约15倍。在英式英语中也类似，作过去式和过去分词时hoisted要远比hoist更常用，但是在这个俗语中，两种形式一样常见。写作时，在作者认为这个是发生到某人身上的一件事时常用hoisted，而表示一个状态时倾向于用hoist（对比“She's been hoisted by...” / “Now she's hoist by...”）。

He has no one to blame but himself; he was hoisted by his own petard.

他怪不了别人，根本就是自作自受。

Unhappily, the country as well as Mr. Marples has been hoist by the Minister's petard. (Mr. Marples was the Minister concerned)

1963 June，“Second thoughts on Beeching”, in Modern Railways，頁 362:

The danger with Trump would seem to be that, like Berlusconi, he would be hoist by his own petard, self-destructing precisely through the agent of his rise, and dragging the rest of us with him.

2015年August27日，Michael Signer，“What Happens When Donald Trump Stirs Up 'Passionate' Supporters”, in The Atlantic:

At last, the opposition spoke with one voice, and Boris Johnson was hoist by his own petard. It’s hard to see how he gets out of it.

2019年September4日，Jon Henley，“'Fighting for survival': European papers maul Johnson after defeat”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:


the die is cast

字面意思是「骰子已经掷出」，仿譯自拉丁語 iacta ālea est。这句话是罗马史学家苏埃托尼乌斯（约69-122年）给出的语法与语义上有讹误的拉丁语翻译，载于其著作《罗马十二帝王传》（121年成书）内。原句为古希臘語 ἀνερρίφθω κύβος (anerrhíphthō kúbos)，据称是尤利乌斯·凯撒（即凯撒大帝）在其渡过卢比孔河挑起罗马内战时说的一句话（还见cross the Rubicon）。
凯撒当时引用了米南德（约前342或341年—前290年）所著喜剧Ἀρρηφόρῳ（《圣物的持有者》）内的一个台词。该希腊语短语应翻译作“let the die be cast”（“让骰子掷出吧”，暗指让游戏开始而断了回头路），指的是某种结果由骰子决定的运气游戏。

/ðə ˌdaɪ ɪz ˈkɑːst/

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/En-au-the die is cast.ogg

you can't put the toothpaste back in the tube


see red

可能指的是历史上一些军队在战前升起的红旗，或指的是斗牛时使用的红布，又可能仅仅指的是一般指代愤怒或警告的红色。对比欧洲语言中类似的俗语：丹麥語 se rødt、德語 rotsehen、法語 voir rouge等。

sees red (third-person singular present)
seeing red (present participle)
saw red (past)
seen red (past participle)

"So help me, God," he cried, "when I think it all over I go crazy, I see red."

Nothing but his temper, the lack of self-control that made him see red . . ., had kept Jerry out of a world championship.

1920，William MacLeod Raine，章號 22, in The Big-Town Round-Up:

Diop, sometimes criticized for passive play, saw red once this season when he lashed out at a foe who kicked away his legs.

2005年January26日，Rob Hughes，“Soccer: Trio from Senegal is having a ball”, in New York Times, retrieved 2013-11-14:

Kalinic later saw red for a rash tackle on Paul Scharner before Gabriel Tamas was dismissed for bringing down Diouf.

2010年December28日，Kevin Darlin，“West Brom 1 - 3 Blackburn”, in BBC:


eat shit

去你妈的，肏你妈的 （表达强烈不满和敌意）

"I fucked your sister!" "Eat shit!"

“我幹了你妹妹！”“你他妈去死吧！”


everything but the kitchen sink

字面意思是「除了厨房水槽以外的所有东西」。1944年，原为军队俚语。

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-everything but the kitchen sink.ogg

She must have brought everything but the kitchen sink along on the trip, and how she lifted her suitcase, I do not know.

她去旅行时肯定把能带的东西都带上了，我都不知道她怎么拿得动行李箱的。


everything and the kitchen sink

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/en-au-everything and the kitchen sink.ogg


hit on

hits on (third-person singular present)
hitting on (present participle)
hit on (past participle)

proposition

调情；为恋爱或性爱目的接近某人

come on

调情；为恋爱或性爱目的接近某人

pass

调情；为恋爱或性爱目的接近某人

make a pass

调情；为恋爱或性爱目的接近某人

He hit on a great idea for improving the design.

他想到一个改进设计的好主意。

I think you've just hit right on the solution.

我想你刚好想到了解决的办法。


at stake

What is at stake in these next 20 minutes is the championship.

接下来二十分钟是能不能赢得冠军的关键。

Doesn't he realize that all of our lives are at stake here too?

他不明白我们在这里是在豁出性命吗？


pass the hat

源自用帽子在一群人之间收钱的做法。

passes the hat (third-person singular present)
passing the hat (present participle)
passed the hat (past participle)

（尤指在一群人间）讨钱，要钱，请求捐赠

Then somebody sings out, "Take up a collection for him, take up a collection!" Well, a half a dozen made a jump to do it, but somebody sings out, "Let HIM pass the hat around!"

1885，Mark Twain，章號 20, in Huckleberry Finn:

The institutions are opening development offices, hiring professional fund raisers, investing in slick billion-dollar campaigns, and trotting out their presidents to pass the hat.

2008年December5日，Martha Ann Overland，“In Asia, American-Style Fund Raising Takes Off”, in Chronicle of Higher Education, retrieved 2008-12-11:


blame game

buck-passing

相互推诿，相互推卸责任，互相责怪

相互推诿，相互推卸责任，互相责怪

She was, in addition, always extremely careful to share with the friends in her Support System her belief that it would be whiny and pathetic to play what she derisively called the "Blame Game" and blame her constant and indescribable adult pain on their parents' traumatic divorce or their cynical use of her.

[1998 January，David Foster Wallace，“The Depressed Person”, in Harpers Magazine，頁 58:

The UK and France are “engaging in a blame game” over people making perilous Channel crossings in small boats, Labour has said, rather than sitting down together to try to work out a way to prevent more deaths.

工党表示，英国和法国正在就乘坐小船穿越英吉利海峡的人员安全问题互相推諉，而不是坐下来共同寻找防止更多人员死亡的方法。

2021年November28日，Peter Walker，“UK and France playing ‘blame game’ after Channel deaths, say Labour”, in The Guardian:

A blame game is taking place between Network Rail and the Football Association regarding the closure of the West Coast Main Line over the Easter Bank Holiday, which coincides with an FA Cup semi-final taking place at Wembley Stadium on April 16.

英国铁路网公司和英格兰足球协会之间就复活节公众假期期间西海岸主线关闭一事互相指责，而复活节假期恰逢4月16日在温布利球场举行的足总杯半决赛。

2022年April6日，Industry Insider，“Fixture clashes”, in RAIL，期 954，頁 68:

The estimates of the cost of “Trussonomics” will intensify a bitter blame game now being played out at the top of the Tory party.

对“特拉斯经济学”成本的估算将加剧保守党高层之间激烈的互相指责。

2022年November12日，Toby Helm, Phillip Inman，“Revealed: the £30bn cost of Liz Truss’s disastrous mini-budget”, in The Guardian:

Political parties are ensnared in a blame game, with the ruling and opposition parties blaming each other. An audit will no doubt follow.

政党陷入互相推诿的泥潭，执政党和反对党相互指责。毫无疑问，审计即将到来。

2023年August9日，Raphael Rashid，“‘Worst nightmare’: South Korea mulls disastrous Scout jamboree”, in The Guardian, →ISSN: