地道美语I

地道美语I

1、A：I?m really tired（累死我了）B：“Wanna g et a bite？” 想不想吃点东西？=Do you want

something to eat?

2、We could have got the deal（我们原本可以达成那笔交易的），but you blow the whole thing.

You blow it?，意思就是…你搞砸了吧。

3、That girl is so sweet，那女孩很体贴人

4、“Big time”相当于“Very much”，“非常地”、“极度地”。I failed the exam big time!（考得

太惨了，离及格还早着呢）。

5、“Scoot up!” 表示…稍微挪动一下?

6、当听到别人兴高采烈地这样大喊…Hurray?时，你可不要误认为是说…快点?，人家是在高呼

…万岁?呢。当然，高兴到了极点时，我们还可以拖着长音说…Huuuuurrrrray！！?

7、如果你觉得太紧张、压力太大了，那你就应该…Kick it?（放松）=relax

8、当有人和你开恶意玩笑时，你可以说…Freak out?，意思是…我都快被气变形了?或…气死我

了?，但是可不要真生气呀。

9、It?s on me、It?s my treat都是…我请客?的意思，…It?s shower me?就让人有点费解了，其实呀，

这句话同样也是…请客?的意思。

10、…Hey,Give me five!?（好啊，太棒了！）

11、D a bomb！Bomb(炸弹)这个词在美语口语中具有双重人格的特质，不是指大好，就是指大坏，关键就在有没有那个…da?了。比如…That movie bomb?:翻译成中文是…这部电影彻彻底底失败了?，但…That movie is da bomb?却又指…那部电影很棒?。

12、…Hard to swallow?（令人难以置信）

13、B eats me. …你可问着我了?

14、…Just go for it!?（大胆去吧）！还有一种就是不太负责的表现了，… Just go for it！?（你就去干吧）就完全不管了。

15、Y ou?re really stole the show. 你在表演中非常惹人注目，完全占了风头

16、Y ou?re an early bird，你真是太勤快了

17、L ooks good enough to eat，意思是“太好看了”，在中国叫做“秀色可餐”。

18、I t?s cool 、It?s n eat。“neat”是“cool”的比较级，比“cool”再“cool”一点儿的就是“neat”。I am going to college this year（我考上大学了），你就可以高兴地说That?s cool（很棒）。再比如有人告诉你I?ve been to the moon（我去过月球），听到这种几乎不可能发生在一般人身上的事，你就可以说Oh, that?s neat（喔，太酷了）！

19、“Buzz off！”在美语的意思是“别在这里烦人了，走开”，也可以理解为“去你的吧！”。如果你的身边有嗡嗡嗡、喋喋不休的人，你就可以对他说：“Buzz off！”

20、“好痛呀”在美语中的标准口语是“Ouch”（即哎哟，好痛呀），赶快学会用这个Ouch！吧。当然，为了表示你的极痛程度，你还可以拉长声喊出来“Oooooouuuch！！”（疼死了）。

21、吃到什么恶心的东西时，不妨大声地说：“Yuuuuuuuuck！！” 意思就是“太难吃了！

22、老美说“天啊”只会说“Oh boy”或是“Oh man”。

23、"Why do you look so upset? What's wrong?" "I got the ax！"'I got the ax'的意思就是：我被开除了。

24、I s this the way to Summer palace(这是去颐和园的路吗)？Yes（是的），更标准地道的说法是：You bet。“You bet”是指“You can bet money on that”,意思是“你可以把钱压在上面”，言外之意就是你一定能赢钱，既然能赢钱，那你说的一定是对的了。

25、W hen I told my mom I would be home around 2 AM, she had a cow。我跟我妈说会到半夜二点才回家，她…had a cow?（气炸了）。

26、“Get your butt in gear”（赶快抓紧时间）。但是一定要记住，这句话非常随便，只有和你的好朋友才能这么说呦。

27、…He has a memory like an elephant?,意思是…他的记忆力像大象一样好?

28、…You?ve got ants in your pants?，你太紧张了。

29、“Hold your horse”，“别催了，等一等。”

30、“We?re almost late. Chop chop!” “…Chop chop?地道的美式口语解释是…快快?的意思

31、“Speak of the devil是句美国俚语，就是中文的…说曹操，曹操就到了?的意思

32、I feel terrible（我感到很糟糕）！

33、t o jump the gun要是一个参加赛跑的运动员在枪还没有响就开始跑，那他就是jump the gun，它的意思就是：过早地开始一个行动，或者是过于匆忙地做某件事。We certainly jumped the gun when we packed our winter clothes away the first warm day in March. Two days later it turned cold and six inches of snow fell. We had to get the clothes out again.意思是：“我们在三月份天气一暖就把冬天的衣服给收起来了。这实在是过于早了一点，因为两天后天气突然又变冷，还下了六寸雪。我们不得不再把衣服拿出来。”

34、T o stick to one's guns作为俗语的意思就是：在日常生活中不管压力多大，一个人要能坚持自己的计划。Business is so terrible my partner wants to close up shop, but I told him we should stick to our guns and not give up -- business is bound to pick up this winter if we can keep our doors open.这人说：“由于生意很不好，我的合股人要把店关掉。但是我告诉他要坚持下去，不要放弃，因为要是我们能维持下去，继续营业的话，今年冬天生意一定会好起来的。”35、W histle in the dark。一个人想证明自己不害怕危险的处境。Dick is dating a football player's girl, and claims he's not afraid what the player will do when he finds out. But Dick is just whistling in the dark -- the football player is as big as a grizzly bear and twice as mean.迪克最近开始和一个足球运动员的女朋友一起出去玩。他说即便那个足球运动员发现，他也不怕。但是，迪克只不过是给自己壮胆而已。那个足球运动员个子大得像一只大灰熊，而且比大灰熊要厉害得多。John says he'll drive to Baltimore by himself to be interviewed by the school he applied for. He's just whistling in the dark. As a matter of fact, he's never driven on that big 8-lane highway and he's a very nervous, inexperienced driver.约翰说他可以自己开车到巴尔的摩去他报考的那个学校去面谈。他这是在壮自己的胆。实际上，他还从来没有在有八个车道的高速公路上开过车。他开起车来很紧张，而且也没有经验。

36、T o blow the whistle意思是：为了阻止骗局或不正当的事情继续下去而把它揭发出来。Mister Green did us taxpayers a favor. When he discovered his boss was taking bribes, he blew the whistle and wrote his congressman about it. They investigated, the boss got fired and he may end up in jail.格林先生为我们纳税人做了一件好事。当他发现他的上司受贿以后，他就告发了。他写信把情况告诉了来自他居住地区的国会议员。他们进行了调查，然后他的上司就被解雇了，他最终还可能坐牢呢。Our company manager had tried to sexually harass several female employees, but nobody dared say a word. Last week, Mary finally blew the whistle on him and the company investigated him and decided to fire the man.我们公司的经理曾经想调戏几个女职员，但是没有人敢说一个字。上星期，玛丽终于把这事揭发出来了。公司经过调查已经决定解雇那个经理。

37、F or crying out loud是不耐烦地、或者是厌烦地表示惊讶。For crying out loud, son! When are you going to do what I've told you and clean up your room! I just looked in there again and it's so messy I had to look twice to make sure your bed was still there under all that junk. 啊呀，我的

儿子呀！你到底什么时候才能按照我说的把你的房间打扫干净呐! 我刚才又去看了一下，你那房间呐，真是乱成一团，连你的床在哪里都看不到。我仔细看了以后才弄清楚你的床都给那些乱七八糟的东西给埋在下面了。For crying out loud! Jack took my tennis racket again. How many times have I told him I don't mind letting him use it, but he at least has to ask first in case I need it myself! 我的老天爷！杰克又把我的网球拍拿走了。我跟他说了多少遍，他用我的网球拍我倒不在乎，但是他至少得问我一声，万一我自己要用呢！

38、c ool it的意思就是：冷静一点儿，别发那么大的火。=calm down

39、O ver a barrel是一个人出于某种原因受人牵制，一切都得听从那个人的意志行事，别无选择。"My partner wants to buy out my share but he's only offering half what it's worth. Of course, he has me over a barrel because I'm anxious to retire and go to Florida and I can't find anybody else who wants to buy." 我的合夥人要把我的股份买下来，但是，他只愿意付实在价值的一半。我呢，急着要到佛罗里达州去退休，又找不到别的买主，所以我就给我那合伙人捏在手里，任意摆布了。

40、o ver one's dead body是一个常用语，意思是：竭尽全力来阻止一个计划。"You mean you want to marry this man twice your age who's been divorced two times already? You'll only do it over my dead body!" 你是说你要和那个年纪比你大一倍，已经离过两次婚的男人结婚？你要想和他结婚，除非等我死了。

41、O ver one's head的意思是一个问题对某人来说太困难。"Last semester I signed up to take calculus, but I dropped out of class after two weeks -- that kind of math is just too far over my head."上学期我报名参加微积分那个班。但是，上了两个礼拜课以后我就退出了。那种数学对我来说实在是太难懂了。"I bought a personal computer a month ago and spent a lot time reading the manual. But operating this machine is over my head. I may have to sell it if I can't find anyone to help me."一个月前我买了一台电脑，化了好多时间来研究说明书。但是，看来要弄明白怎么用电脑对我来说实在是太难了。要是我找不到任何人可以帮我忙的话，我可能只好把它给卖了。

42、O ver the hump 是指某个人已经完成了一项任务当中最困难的部份。也可以说渡过了一个不幸处境的最紧要的关头。"My friend was so sick that we were afraid he'd never leave the hospital alive. But the doctors say he's over the hump now, getting stronger every day, and he can go home next week."我的朋友前一阵病得很重，我们担心他会死在医院里。但是，医生说，他现在已经渡过了难关，目前他的体力正在一天天地恢复，越来越强壮，下星期就可以回家了。"Arthur practically disappeared from the scene for a couple of years as he was concentrating on his second novel. Yesterday he finally agreed to attend a party next week as he has completed the draft and is now over the hump."阿瑟过去两年一直集中力量在写他的第二本小说，所以你根本见不到他的人。昨天，他终于答应参加下星期举行的一个聚会，因为他已经完成了这部小说的初稿，最忙、最艰苦的时期已经过去了。

43、T o make one's blood boil. “火冒三丈”，“怒发冲冠” It happened three years ago, but it still makes my blood boil every time I think about how my girlfriend ran out on me and married some other guy without even telling me goodbye.我的女朋友抛弃了我去和别人结婚，甚至都没有跟我告别。虽然这已经是三年前的事了，但是每当我想起这件事，我仍然是火冒三丈。

44、T o make one's blood run cold. 就是害怕。As I walked into this old haunted house, I heard this terrible scream and my blood ran cold when I saw this figure in white rushing straight at me!人人都说这栋老房子里闹鬼，当我走进去的时候，我听到非常可怕的尖叫声，还看到一个穿白衣服的人影直冲着我过来，真把我给吓得连魂都没有了。

45、a ll in the same boat意思是几个处境相同、面对同样困难或危险的人，他们的命运也会相

同的。When the steel plant shut down, the town's people were all in the same boat. The workers had no jobs, and this meant the shops had no business. It was really tough all around.当这个镇上的钢铁工厂被关闭的时候，每个人的处境都一样。工人没有工作，这就意味着商店没有生意。那儿都很困难。True, Jack's the guy who kicked the ball and hit the window. But we were all in the game so we're all in the same boat. Let's all go together to apologize.是的，杰克踢的球把那玻璃窗给打破了，但是，我们都在一起踢球，所以我们都一样有责任。我们得一起去道歉。

46、T o miss the boat就是失去了一个好机会。We found exactly the house we wanted, but we waited to buy it in the hope the price would go down. But we missed the boat -- when we called the agent back, he'd just sold it to another family.我们找到一栋正好是我们想要的房子，但是我们等了一下，心想房价可能会下降。但是，当我们给那个房地产经纪人打回电话去的时候，他刚刚把那房子买给了另一家人家。所以，我们失去了这个好机会。It has always been my dream to visit China. Finally, our company decided to send me to Beijing last month to open an office, but one day before the trip I fell sick and was hospitalized for surgery. So once again I missed the boat.访问中国一直是我的梦想。后来，我们公司终于决定派我去北京开设一个办事处。可是，就在我启程的前一天我病倒了，还住院动了手术。所以，我又一次失去了一个好机会。

47、T o be cool as a cucumber就是当一个人碰到困难和麻烦时很冷静、很放松。While Mike and I were waiting for our food, this clumsy waiter spilled a bowl of piping hot soup on Mike's back. I was furious, but Mike was as cool as a cucumber. He even told the waiter not to worry about it.我和麦克正在等我们的饭菜，那个笨手笨脚的服务员不小心把一碗滚烫的汤倒在麦克的背上。我真是生气极了，可是麦克却非常冷静。他甚至还叫那个服务员不要担心。48、T o give someone a piece of one's mind是指对某人大发雷霆。"This stupid idiot passed me on the left, then cut in ahead of me so close I had to jam on the brakes to keep from hitting him. When I caught up with him at the stoplight, I rolled down my window, and boy, did I give him a piece of my mind."这个混蛋，他从我左边超车，然后在靠我很近的地方就往我前面挤，我不得不急煞车，否则我的车就要撞上他的车了。当我在红灯的地方和他平行的时候，嗨，我可把他臭骂了一顿。Today I'll give my business manager a piece of my mind. I'm tired of him coming in an hour late every day. I'll tell him to be here on time or look for a job some place else."今天我得好好地把办公室主任说一顿。他每天迟到一小时，真叫我讨厌。我要叫他准时来上班，否则就到别处去另找工作。

49、T o tell someone off也是表示生气，但是也包含一些拒绝某人要求的意思。My brother-in-law borrowed $200 from me six months ago and never paid me back. So when he tried to borrow another $200 last night, I certainly told him off."我的姐夫半年前问我借了两百块美元，可是一直没有还我。所以当他昨天晚上又要问我借两百块美元的时候，我把他好好说了一顿，没借给他。Can you believe this mechanic charged $800 to fix my car and it runs worse than it did before. Tomorrow I'll go back to tell him off: I'll make his ears burn for a week!"你信不信，这个修车的人给我修一下车就要我八百元，可是我的车开起来比修车以前还不如。明天，我得去骂他，我得让他一个礼拜都感到害臊。

50、L ick. 它有攻击对方,或者是设法克服某种困难的含义。"The young athelete apears to have great potential. Although he was defeated in the end, he got in quite a few good licks during the match. Maybe one day he will emerge as one of the best." quite a few good licks,意思就是很有效地向对方进行几次拳击。要是你要说那个年轻拳击手昨天被打的惨败,你就得说: "The young boxer got a good licking yesterday. "To get a good licking. Licking 也就是在lick 这个字后面加上ing.

51、L ickety split 是一种非常口语的说法,意思是:一个人尽力地跑得飞快。"Last week I went on a hunting trip in the north woods with two friends. Joe left our camp to get some more wood for the fire. Ten minutes later we heard all this yelling, and here came Joe, running lickety split with a big, angry bear about three feet behind him!"上星期,我和两个朋友一起到北部森林去打猎。乔伊为了营火到我们露营地外面去拿点木柴。十分钟后,我们听到大声嚷嚷的声音。然后,乔伊就飞快地往回跑,一只怒气冲冲的大熊正在他后面大约三英尺的地方追他。

52、p enny-pincher就是那些连一分钱都要捏在手里不放的人。在中文里就是：吝啬鬼，或守财奴。Cheapskate是指一个人，每当他不得不花一点钱的时候，他总是尽量省钱,越便宜越好。penny-pincher也可能是很简朴的人，有时具有一定的积极意义。Cheapskate似乎比penny-pincher更含有贬义。

53、N o skin off my nose，意思是：这件事不是你的问题，也不是你的麻烦，而你也不在乎。"Hey, it's no skin off my nose if Susie's going out now with that guy! I don't care what she does -- I broke up with her a month ago, when I met Karen. Karen's a lot more my style."嗨，要是苏琪现在跟那个家伙好，一起出去玩，我可一点都不在乎。她干什么我都无所谓。我在遇到卡伦以后就和她断了关系。卡伦和我更相配一些。

54、T o save one's skin的意思是：安全地逃出了危险的境地，没有受到伤害。"My son was in

a bad auto accident last week. The other car went through a red light and smashed into him. It wrecked his car, but he was wearing his seat belt and that saved his skin -- he walked away without a scratch."我的儿子上星期在开车时发生了严重的车祸。那一辆车穿红灯，然后撞上了我儿子的车，把他的车给撞坏了，但是因为他带着安全带，所以他一点都没有受伤。55、美国人在说“我不太舒服”的时候，经常会用：I?m feeling a litter under the weather。=I am not feeling good.

56、D own with a bug是指受到流行性病毒的感染而身体不舒服。"Doctor, this is John Smith. I think I'd better come in to see you for a check-up. I don't know what's wrong with me. I'm afraid I am down with a bug."医生，我是约翰·史密斯。我想还是请你给我检查一下。我不知道是什么问题，恐怕我是传染上了流行性病毒。

57、a t the wheel有两个意思：可以为开车，也可以指负责或领导一个大型的组织。"You not only came back home after midnight last night, but you also wrecked my car. Let me ask you something: How many people were in the car and who was at the wheel on your way home?"你昨晚不仅过了半夜十二点才回家，你还撞坏了我的车。让我来问你，你回家的路上车里一共有几个人，到底是谁在开车？"You want to know what my career plan is? I'll tell you honestly -- My ambition is to be at the wheel of a big corporation by the time I reach forty!"你要知道我在事业方面的计划？我可以坦白地告诉你：我的愿望是在我四十岁的时候能够成为一家大公司的总裁。

58、h ell on wheels有两个截然不同的意思，一个是工作努力，有效率；另一个是指某人脾气暴燥，对人苛刻和粗暴。"Mary is sure hell on wheels when it comes to good hard work -- She gets twice as much done in eight hours as anybody else in the office."要论工作，玛丽是既努力肯干，而且还又快又好。要和办公室其他任何人来比，她在八小时里干的事要比别人多一倍。"Jane's dad is certainly hell on wheels with her and her brother. Nothing they do pleases him. He scolds them for this and that every day. He won't let them go out on weekends and takes away their allowances on the slightest excuse. I really feel sorry for them."简的爸爸对她和她的弟弟实在是非常挑剔和苛求。他们做什么事都不能讨他的欢心。他每天为这为那地骂他们，周末也不让他们出去玩，还往往为了一点点小事就没收他们的零花钱。我真是替他们感到难受。

59、S pinning one's wheel是指花了精力而没有成果。"I've got to get out of this place and find

another job somewhere. I'm just spinning my wheels here -- there's no chance to get a pay raise, much less a promotion."我得离开这个地方到别处去另找工作。我在这儿干死干活的，可是根本就没有机会加工资,更别说被提升了。

60、R e-inventing the wheel是指某人自以为想出了好方法，但是实际上这个方法别人早已在用了。"Look, don't try to design your own computer system for handling our accounts. There are plenty of good systems already on the market, so let's not reinvent the wheel!"我说呀，不要为管理我们的帐目设计你自己的电脑程序。市场上已经有不少好的程序，所以我们不必多此一举。

61、t o jump right out of one's skin是指一个人由于突然发生的事，或者是由于没有预料到的危险，使他吓一跳。"When the door opened, I almost jumped right out of my skin. There was my brother, arms loaded with Christmas presents. He lives all the way out in California, but he'd decided to surprise me by flying to Washington for Christmas."门一打开，我真是惊喜万分。那是我哥哥，拿了好多圣诞节礼物。他住在加州，离这儿好远。但是，他决定乘飞机来华盛顿过圣诞节，可是不让我知道，给我来个突然的惊喜。"When it started to rain, I ran toward a big tree for shelter. But there was a flash of lightning and I jumped right out of my skin -- the lightning hit the tree just before I reached it."在雨刚刚开始下的时候，我就往一棵大树那儿跑，想在树下躲一会儿。但是，天上突然闪起电来，我还没有跑到树下面，闪电就击中了那棵树。真是把我吓了一大跳。

62、a ll skin and bones和中文里的“皮包骨”的说法完全一样。"Have you seen Henry lately? For two months he's been on this special diet to lose weight. Well, he's taken off forty pounds and now he's all skin and bones."你最近看见亨利没有？他为了减肥，按照特殊的食谱吃了两个月。你看，他已经减掉了四十磅，现在真是非常瘦了。

63、当一个人非常生气的时候，可能会说：“我要活活剥了他的皮。” 那就是：to skin someone alive。"Mary promised two weeks ago that she would stop seeing Bill. Today, my sister saw her with Bill in a restaurant kissing and hugging. I am going to skin her alive this time."两个星期前玛丽向我保证，她以后不再和比尔来往了。可是，今天，我姐姐见到她和比尔在一家饭馆里，又接吻又拥抱的。这回我可得活活地剥了她的皮。

64、S kin game指的是：通过任何不诚实的方式来进行赌博。"Since I joined the majong team last summer, I've won only once for just $20. It suddenly dawned on me last week that I've been cheated by the other three in a skin game."自从去年夏天我参加了这个麻将小组后，我只赢了一次，一共才二十美元。直到上星期，我才忽然省悟到，我一直在受那三个人的欺骗。

65、任何人要是成为one of a kind那就等于是：只此一家，独一无二；那当然就很特殊，任何人都没法跟他比了。"Normally I don't care much for classical music -- U-2 is more my style. But I can listen to Mozart all day long. Just imagine: he died at thirty-five and he wrote six hundred pieces of music. He was certainly one of a kind."一般来说，我不太喜欢听古典音乐，我喜欢听硬摇滚乐。但是，我也能够整天听莫扎特的音乐。你想，他死的时候才三十五岁，可是他已经写了六百首曲子。他真是一位与众不同的音乐家。

66、T op-notch是指最出众的人或其他东西。"Our firm is paying our new executive vice president two hundred thousand a year. But it takes a lot of money to hire a top-notch man these days."我们公司付给新来的执行副总裁的工资每年是二十万美元。现在要雇用水平这么高的人要花好多钱呐。" When I'm in New York I always stay in this hotel. Everything here is top-notch: the rooms, the restaurants, the service. And it's close to most of the places I want to go."我到纽约来的时候总是住在这个旅馆里。这儿的一切都是最高级的，这儿的房间，餐馆，他们的服务都非常好；而且这个旅馆离我要去的大多数地方都很近。

67、s et of wheels指汽车。"Hey Pete, come on over and take a look at my new set of wheels. Fire-engine red, real leather upholstery -- I tell you, the girls will go crazy over it!"喂,彼得，到这儿来看看我的新汽车。大红的颜色，座位和四周都是皮的。我告诉你，那些女孩子看见了这车可真是会喜欢的了不得的。

68、f ree- wheeler指那些不愿意遵守自己所属公司或机构的规章制度，自己喜欢怎么做就怎么做的人。"Joe got fired from that big company because they thought he was too much of a free-wheeler: he wouldn't fit into the system. Now he's working as a used-car salesman."乔伊被那家大公司解雇了，因为他们认为他不能按照公司的制度办事，过于自作主张。现在，他在一个卖旧汽车的地方做推销员。"Other Congressmen call Mr. Blank a free-wheeler because he doesn't always vote the way the party wants. But in our district we like a man who votes his honest convictions."其他国会议员说布兰克先生是一个不受约束的人，因为他不见得每次都按照党的意愿去投票。但在我们选区里，我们喜欢一个能够老老实实根据自己的原则来投票的人。

69、W heeler-dealer是指那些精明能干，善于利用他们跟重要人物的关系来做成大笔生意的人。"Some people call my brother a wheeler-dealer because he's made so much money buying and selling real estate. But the truth is he's just smarter than the people he does business with, and I can't see anything wrong with that."有些人说我哥哥人很利害、很会耍手段，因为他做房地产生意赚了好多钱。但事实上他只不过是比那些和他做生意的人更聪明，我并不认为那有什么不对。

70、f ifth wheel作为俗语就是指某个人是多余的，不须要的，或者甚至是不受欢迎的。"My son asked me to come help at his school track meet but I felt like a fifth wheel when I got there: they already had enough people to help so I just stood there feeling useless."我的儿子要我在他学校开运动会的时候去帮忙。可是，我到了那里觉得自己似乎是多余的，因为他们已经有好多人在帮忙，我只好站在那里没事干。

71、G reen thumb就是指那些很会种花种菜的人。"I sure wish I had a green thumb like Mister Jones next door. Every year he grows the best tomatoes and sweet corn in our whole neighborhood. And his roses are absolutely beautiful!"我真希望我也能像我邻居琼斯先生那样能把花和菜种得那末好。他种的西红柿和老玉米在我们这个居民区里每年都是最好的。另外，他种的玫瑰简直是漂亮极了!

72、a ll thumbs这个俗语是指那些手脚很笨的人。"It's funny how Doctor Brown can do delicate brain surgery in the operating room, yet his wife Mabel says he's all thumbs at home when he tries to change a light bulb or hammer a nail in the wall to hang up a picture."布朗医生的太太梅贝尔说，布朗医生在家里笨手笨脚，换个灯泡，在墙上敲一个钉子挂张画都不行；而他却能够在手术室里做那种很精细的脑外科手术。这真是不可思议。

73、U nder the thumb是控制的意思。不管是主动地控制别人或是被人控制都可以用这一习惯用语。"My friend Pete Green is certainly under his wife's thumb. She handles all the money, buys his clothes, won't let him go out at night -- he's almost afraid to breathe without her permission."我的朋友比德.格林完全受他太太的控制。他们家里所有的钱都由太太管，他的衣服也由太太买。他太太还不让他晚上出去。没有太太的同意，他几乎都不敢呼吸。"It's really sad that my brother Jack's son was arrested for selling drugs. I told Jack he had to place his son under his thumb before it's too late. But he didn't believe me."我弟弟杰克的儿子因为出售毒品而被逮捕，这实在很令人伤心。我告诉过杰克他必须把他儿子控制住，不要等到太晚了来不及。可是，他没有听我的话。

74、T o stick out like a sore thumb是指由于某种情况使一个人很不合群，显得很突出。"Sarah went to the ball alone thinking she'd find someone to dance with. But everyone had a partner so she was all alone most of the time. She stuck out like a sore thumb and was very embarrassed."萨拉一个人去参加舞会，以为总可以找到个舞伴。可是，每个人都有自己的舞伴，所以大多

数的时候都没有人和她跳舞。这样她就显得突出，这使她感到很难堪。

75、E verything from soup to nuts是指各式各样的东西很多，什么都有。"You ought to go and look around in that big new department store that just opened at the shopping mall. I've never seen so many different things to buy in all my life -- they sell everything from soup to nuts."你得去那个购物中心新开的百货公司去看看。我一辈子也没见过有那末多不同的东西可买，他们出售的东西真是包罗万象，无奇不有。

76、E verything but the kitchen sink也是指很多，几乎包括所有的东西。"Gee, honey, do you really need all that stuff for a three-day holiday -- it looks like you've brought along everything but the kitchen sink."哟，亲爱的，就渡三天假，你真需要那么多东西呀？看来你几乎把所有东西都搬来啦!

77、t o kiss someone or something goodbye，意思是“拒绝或放弃某人或某样东西”。"Jones, when are you going to have that bid ready for the big airport construction contract? I 'm telling you right now, if you don't have our bid ready in time, you can kiss your job goodbye!"琼斯，你什么时候能完成那个大机场建筑合同的投标方案？我可现在就告诉你，要是你到时候没准备好，那你就别想在这儿干了。

78、k iss of death，指的是让某件事失败的因素。"Go talk to Dad for me please. You know Mom always goes along with Dad's decisions. If she approaches Dad on my behalf that would be the kiss of death to my trip."求求你，帮我去跟爸爸说说吧。你知道妈总是同意爸爸的决定的。要是妈为了我去跟爸爸说，那我的这次旅行就算完了。

79、e asy street形容一个人有足够的钱,生活得很舒适。John has no siblings. So when his parents passed away, he inherited everything from the family -- properties, bank savings, stocks and a big house. He?s really living on easy street.约翰没有兄弟姐妹。所以,当他的父母去世的时候,他继承了所有的遗产-- 房产,银行存款,股票,还有一栋大房子。他不需要工作,但是生活得非常舒适。

80、O ut on the street的意思是一个人没有工作,难以维持生活。I really wish I could find a way to help my brother Bill. He lost his job over a year ago when the company he worked for went bankrupt and he?s been out on the street ev er since.我真希望我能想个办法来帮帮我弟弟比尔的忙。一年多以前,他工作的那个公司破产了,他也就失了业。自那时起,他一直生活很艰苦。

81、S treet smarts 是在一些不安全的街道上懂得如何应付的能力和本领。I learned a lot of street smarts during the years when I had to walk through Times Square to my office everyday. I walked with confidence, was aware of people around me and held on to my purse real tight. 有几年,我每天去办公室都得走过纽约时报广场。在这段时间里,我学到好多关于如何防备坏人的本领。我走起路来总是显得很有信心,注意周围的人,同时紧紧地抓住我的皮包。

82、T wo-way street 就是人和人相互帮助和关心的关系,而不是单方面做出努力。“People always asked us what makes our marriage so successful. In fact, we sometimes get mad at each other too. But both of us know when to make concessions. It?s a two-way street. One-way street won?t work.”人们老是问我们为什么我们的婚姻那末成功。事实上,我们有的时候也吵架。但是,我们两人都知道什么时候应该做出让步。这是相互的, 单方面是行不通的。

83、T o run a tight ship 是一个单位的纪律严明"I like to run a tight ship around here. That means that you?d better be here at 8:30 and you don?t get off work until 5:30. No coming late or going home early! And you don?t take more than 30 minutes for lunch. Do you understand?"我喜欢在这里实行严格的纪律,这就是说,你们最好8:30 就到这里,5:30 以前不能下班。迟到早退是不行的。午饭时间不能超过半个小时。懂不懂?

84、t o sit tight 是观望,不采取行动。"No, just be smart and sit tight. You offered a good price

and I?ll bet if you sit tight, he?ll call up tomorrow and agree to take it."不,你可要聪敏点,不要采取什么行动。你还的价钱很好,我保证,要是你耐心等着,他明天会打电话来同意按你的价钱卖给你的。“When the st ock price dropped drastically in 1987, some investors lost millions of dollars. But the majority of investors were sitting tight waiting for the stock market to bounce back.“当1987年股票价格大幅度下降的时候,有些投资者损失了几百万美元。可是,大多数投资者没有采取什么行动,只是观望,等待股票市场回升。

85、O UT OF ONE'S SKULL 是指一个人不是很认真地说某人不太正常,甚至是疯了。"HONEY, YOU'D HA VE TO BE OUT OF YOUR SKULL TO LEND THAT NO-GOOD BROTHER OF YOURS ANY MORE MONEY. HE ALREADY OWES YOU OVER TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS AND HE HAS NEVER PAID BACK A PENNY!"亲爱的,你要再借钱给你那没有用的弟弟,那你就是疯了。他已经欠你两千多美元,他还从来没有还过你一分钱呐。

86、S KULL SESSION 是一些人坐在一起动脑筋,解决问题,或是增加自己在某一方面的知识。"OKAY, MEN, I WANT YOU BACK IN THE LOCKER ROOM A T EIGHT O?CLOCK FOR A SPECIAL SKULL SESSION. WE?LL LOOK AT FILMS OF THE TEAM WE PLAY FOR THE CHAMPIONSHIP AND TALK OVER THE NEW PLAYS WE?VE BEEN PRACTICING AL L WEEK."行啦,夥计们,我要你们八点到更衣室来开会,为我们的战术出谋划策。我们要看一下关于和我们争夺冠军的那个球队的电影,再讨论一下我们整个星期练习的新战术。

87、T o have a feeling in one's bones 是指某人有一种强烈的感觉,似乎什么事情将要发生,但是他又无法解释为什么。"I just came back from Sally and Joe?s wedding. It was beautiful, and they both looked so happy. But yo u know something? I hope I?m wrong but I have this feeling in my bones that this marriage won't last a year!"我刚参加萨莉和乔伊的婚礼回来。婚礼安排得很漂亮,他们两看起来也很高兴。但是,你知道吗,不知道为什么我总感到他们的婚姻维系不了一年。我希望我的感觉是错的。

88、T o have a bone to pick 是指有理由提出抱怨或争论。"Honey, I have a bone to pick with you. I don?t mind you getting into the bathroom first in the morning, but do you have to be in there so long? You know, I have to get to work on time, too."亲爱的,我有一件事得向你抱怨了。我不在乎你每天早上先用洗澡间,但是,你有必要在里面呆那末长时间吗。你知道,我也得按时上班的呀。

89、T o get it in the neck 就是一个人受到惩罚,或者受到损失。"Oh, oh! I was supposed to be at home for dinner at six and it's already seven-thirty. I've got to go right now or I'll get it in the neck from my wife -- and she's cooking my favorite dish, a nice, big pot roast."哟,不得了。我应该六点到家吃晚饭的,可现在已经是七点半了。我得马上就回家,否则我太太要把我杀了。她今天还煮了一大锅我喜欢吃的焖肉。

90、T o stick out one's neck 就是枪打出头鸟的意思"Nobody in our project likes Jack because he's too selfish. Most of us would like to kick him out of the project, but nobody wants to offend him. They urged me to take the action. Well, I'm not about to stick out my neck." 我们这个项目里没有人喜欢杰克,因为他太自私。大多数人都想把他赶出这个项目,但是没有人愿意得罪他。他们都怂恿我来采取行动。得了,我才不会出头干这种事,我没那末傻。

91、n ot all there和to have a loose screw。形容人不正常的习惯用语。"This new kid looks like he is not all there. All he does is sit and stare out the window as if the only thing he sees is blank space."这个新来的孩子看起来好像不太正常。他除了向窗外盯着看之外什么也不干，好像他眼睛里看到的只是一片空白。" I knew a guy at college who had a screw loose somewhere -- he was scared to death of catching a disease so he'd run off to wash his hands after he shook hands with anybody."我在念大学的时候认识一个人，他有点不太正常。他非常害怕染上什么病，所以他每次和别人握过手以后总是要马上去洗手。

92、L augh-and-the-world-laughs-with-you。Cry-and-you-cry-alone. 欢乐的时候，朋友都来了，遇到危险和灾难的时候，你就只能独自承担。

93、w here's the beef?意思是实质性的东西在哪里。Our history teacher is a good talker but there isn't much real meat about history in what he says. I'd like to ask him, 'Where's the beef?' because we sure don't learn much from him.我们的历史老师很能夸夸其谈，但是他说的东西里没有什么实质性的内容。我真想问问他，实质性的内容在那里，因为我们真是没有从他那里学到多少东西。

94、t urkey farm，指政府或私营机构专门安排那些工作无能，又不能开除的人聚集的地方。"The man is so incompetent we'd like to fire him. But he has good political connections so we sent him to our turkey farm out in Denver where he can't cause much damage."那个人实在无能，我们很想解雇他。但是他和一些政界人物关系很好,所以我们就把他送到丹佛那个机构里去，那样他就不能再起多大破坏作用了。"There is a secretary in my office who tries to do as little as possible. I have warned her several times. If she continues to behave that way, one day I am going to send her to the turkey farm."我办公室里的一个秘书总是设法干得越少越好。我已经警告她好几回了。要是她继续这样下去的话，总有一天我要把她送到那个全是废物的部门去。95、T o chicken out也可以说是临阵退却。" Today I was sure I could work up my courage and dive off the ten-meter board at the pool. I walked right out to the edge, but then I chickened out -- it looked like a long way down to the water!"我原来以为今天我肯定会鼓足了勇气从游泳池那个十米高的跳台上跳下去。可是，当我走到跳台边缘的时候我害怕了。从跳台到水面的距离看起来好远呐。

96、C hicken feed作为俗语，它的意思就是：很小数量的钱，少得像喂鸡的饲料一样。"I turned down the job at the hamburger restaurant. They only pay chicken feed -- not even enough money to pay my rent."我没有接受那个汉堡包店的工作。他们付的工资实在太少，还不够我付房租呢。

97、笑有各种各样的笑法，belly laugh就是捧腹大笑。"Fifty years ago, there were three clowns who made a lot of short movies. They are all dead now, but their comedies live on television because they are so full of belly laughs."五十年前，美国有三个小丑，他们拍了好多短小的电影。现在，这三个小丑都已经去世了，但是他们的喜剧电影仍然在电视上播放，因为这些喜剧里有好多地方让人感到非常好笑。

98、K nee-slapper的意思就是一个能让人笑的拍大腿的笑话。"My son likes to tell jokes, although he has no intention to become a comedian. Last week, at a party he told a couple of knee-slappers about Bush and Gorbachev. I was quite surprised at his talent."我儿子喜欢讲笑话，虽然他没有意图想当一个相声演员。上星期，他在一次聚会上讲了两个有关布什和戈尔巴乔夫的笑话，笑的人们直拍大腿。真没想到他还有点天才。

99、s andwich generation就是既要赡养老人，又要抚养下一代的人。" Some people argue that a better national health care plan would help ease the financial burden of the sandwich generation because keeping older people healthy costs a lot more money."有的人认为，一个比较好的全国保健计划就能减轻那些上有老，下有小的那代人的经济负担，因为要保持老人身体健康得花好多钱。