Английские идиомы

[in one’s heart of hearts] {adv. phr.} Deep down where it reallymatters; in one’s innermost feelings. In my heart of hearts, Ithink you’re the nicest person in the whole world.

Идиома: ask for the moon Перевод: просить слишком многого Пример: The woman is asking for the moon. She will never get what she wants. Эта женщина просит слишком много. Она никогда не получит, чего хочет.

[to the best of one’s knowledge] As far as you know; to the extentof your knowledge. He has never won a game, to the best of myknowledge. To the best of my knowledge he is a college man, but Imay be mistaken.

[black-and-white] {adj.} Divided into only two sides that are either right or wrong or good or bad, with nothing in between; thinking or judging everything as either good or bad. Everything is black-and-white to Bill; if you’re not his friend, you are his enemy. The old man’s religion shows his black-and-white thinking; everything is either … Читать далее

[scrape together] {v. phr.} To quickly assemble, usually fromscanty ingredients. We were so hungry we had to scrape togethersome lunch from all kinds of frozen leftovers.

[pay court to] {v. phr.} To woo; to shower with attention. Hehad been paying court to her for three long years before he worked upthe courage to ask her to marry him.

[have the constitution of an ox] {v. phr.} To be able to workextremely hard and to have the stamina to overcome misfortune. Stan, who has lost both of his parents within one year and isconstantly working late, seems to be indestructible, as if he had theconstitution of an ox.

[gird one’s loins] {v. phr.}, {literary} To prepare for action; getready for a struggle or hard work. David girded up his loins andwent out to meet the giant Goliath. Seniors must gird their loinsfor the battles of life.

Идиома: come out of the closet Перевод: выйти из шкафа; рассказать о чем-либо скрываемом, тайном; раскрыться (чаще всего используется для заявления о своей гомосексуальности; часто сокращается до фразового глагола Come out) Пример: Jay decided to come out of the closet — to tell people he’s gay. Джей решил выйти из шкафа, и рассказать о том, … Читать далее

[taper off] {v.} 1. To come to an end little by little; becomesmaller toward the end. The river tapers off here and becomes abrook. 2. To stop a habit gradually; do something less and lessoften. Robert gave up smoking all at once instead of tapering off. Contrast: COLD TURKEY.

Идиома: seventh heaven Перевод: седьмое небо; состояние сильного восхищения, удовольствия, наслаждения, и т. п. Пример: The girl has been in seventh heaven since she got the music award. Эта девушка на седьмом небе от счастья с тех пор, как получила музыкальную премию.

[raise hackles] or [raise one’s hackles] {v. phr.} To make upset or annoyed; arouse hostility. Attempts to add newingredients to the beer raised hackles among all the old brewmasters.

Идиома: beat the clock Перевод: успеть сделать что-либо до того, как кончится время Пример: The basketball team worked hard to beat the clock and win the game. Баскетбольная команда очень старалась выиграть игру до завершения матча.

[clinging vine] {n.} A very dependent woman; a woman who needs much love and encouragement from a man. Mary is a clinging vine; she cannot do anything without her husband.

[send to the minors] {v. phr.} To dismiss someone; tell them off;terminate a relationship. — A baseball term. «What did you do toyour girlfriend?» Ernie asked Bert, when Bert started dating Jane. «Isent her to the minors,» Bert answered with a sneer.

Идиома: as we speak Перевод: прямо сейчас, в этот самый момент Пример: They’re working on your car as we speak and it’ll be ready for you at 2 p. m. Они прямо сейчас работают над твоим автомобилем, и он будет готов к 2 часам дня.

[tit for tat] {n. phr.} Equal treatment in return; a fair exchange. Billy hit me, so I gave him tit for tat. I told him if he didme any harm I would return tit for tat. They had a warm debate andthe two boys gave each other tit for tat. Compare: GET BACK AT, EYEFOR … Читать далее

[be on] {v. phr.} 1. To be in operation; be in the process of being presented. The news is on now on Channel 2; it will be off in five minutes. 2. To be in the process of happening; to take place. We cannot travel now to certain parts of Africa, as there is a … Читать далее

[have one’s fill] {v. phr.} To be satisfied; be surfeited; beoverindulged. Howard says he’s had his fill of expensive golftournaments in Europe.

Идиома: lay it on thick / lay it on with a trowel Идиома: lay it on thick / lay it on with a trowel разг. Перевод: чрезмерно хвалить, грубо льстить; преувеличивать Пример: My friend began to lay it on thick when I told him about my new job. Мой друг начал мне сильно льстить, когда … Читать далее

[to-be] {adj.} That is going to be; about to become. — Used afterthe noun it modifies. Bob kissed his bride-to-be. The principalof the high school greeted the high school students-to-be on theirlast day in junior high.

Идиома: How so? Перевод: Как так? Почему? Пример: I know that you think that the answer is wrong but how so? Я знаю, что ты думаешь, что ответ неверный, но почему?

[so be it] also [be it so] {adv. phr.}, {formal} 1. Let it be thatway; may it be so. So be it. We shall smoke the pipe of peace. 2.Very well; all right. Will the company lose money by doing this? Sobe it, then.

[long face] {n.} A sad look; disappointed look. He told thestory with a long face. — Often used in the phrase «pull a longface». Don’t pull a long face when I tell you to go to bed.

Идиома: of age Перевод: быть достаточно взрослым, чтобы получить на что-либо разрешение (на голосование, на алкоголь, и т. п.), быть совершеннолетним Пример: When my cousin came of age we had a big party for him to celebrate. Когда мой двоюродный брат достиг возраста совершеннолетия, мы устроили большую вечеринку для него.

[on top of the world] or [sitting on top of the world] also [sitting on high cotton] {adj. phr.}, {informal} Feelingpleased and happy; feeling successful. John was on top of the worldwhen he found out that he got into college. When Ruth won firstprize in the contest, she felt as though she was sitting on … Читать далее

[royal road] {n. phr.} A quick means of accomplishment; an easypath. There is no royal road to learning in order to obtain auniversity degree.

[ring the changes] {v. phr.} To say or do the same thing indifferent ways; repeat the same idea in many ways. David wanted anew bicycle and he kept ringing the changes on it all day until hisparents got angry at him. A smart girl saves money on clothes bylearning to ring the changes on a … Читать далее

Идиома: in one’s own best interest(s) Перевод: в лучших интересах кого-либо Пример: It was in my friend’s own best interests to move into a larger apartment with his family. Переехать в более крупную квартиру со своей семьей было в лучших интересах моего друга.

[go stag] {v. phr.} 1. To go to a dance or party without acompanion of the opposite sex. When Sally turned him down, Tomdecided to go stag to the college prom. 2. To participate in a partyfor men only. Mrs. Smith’s husband frequently goes stag, leavingher at home.

Идиома: in and out Перевод: то внутрь, то наружу; часто входить и выходить Пример: He has been in and out all day but I don’t know where he is at the moment. Он весь день туда-сюда бегает, но я не знаю, где он в настоящий момент.

[under the counter] {adv. phr.}, {informal} Secretly. That book has been banned, but there is one place you canget it under the counter. The liquor dealer was arrested forselling beer under the counter to teenagers. — Also used like anadjective, with hyphens. During World War II, some stores keptscarce things hidden for under-the-counter-sales to good … Читать далее

[hen party] {n. phr.}, {informal} A party to which only women orgirls are invited. The sorority gave a hen party for its members. Contrast: STAG PARTY. See: GO STAG.

[act of God] {n.} An occurrence for which the people affected are not responsible; said of earthquakes, floods, etc. Hurricane Andrew destroyed many houses in Florida, but some types of insurance did not compensate the victims, claiming that the hurricane was an act of God. See: FICKLE FINGER OF FATE.

[old as the hills] {adj. phr.} Very old; ancient. «Why didn’tyou laugh?» she asked. «Because that joke is as old as the hills,» heanswered.

[curry favor] {v.} To flatter or serve someone to get his help or friendship. Joe tried to curry favor with the new teacher by doing little services that she didn’t really want. Jim tried to curry favor with the new girl by telling her she was the prettiest girl in the class. Compare: POLISH THE … Читать далее

[split-up] {n.} A separation or division into two or many smallerparts. The split-up of our company was due to the founder’suntimely death.

[to one’s face] {adv. phr.} Directly to you; in your presence. Itold him to his face that I didn’t like the idea. I called him acoward to his face. Compare: IN ONE’S FACE. Contrast: BEHIND ONE’SBACK.

[airquake] {n.} An explosive noise of undetermined origin usually heard in coastal communities and appearing to come from some higher point in elevation. What was that awful noise just now? — I guess it must have been an airquake.

[take issue with] {v. phr.} To be openly against; speak against;disagree with. He thought his boss was wrong but was afraid to takeissue with him on the matter.

Идиома: at times Перевод: иногда, временами, время от времени Пример: At times, our teacher is very nice but at other times she is not nice. Иногда наш учитель очень мила, но иногда она не так уж мила.

[back of] or [in back of] {prep.} 1. In or at the rear of; to the back of; behind. The garage is back of the house. Our car was in back of theirs at the traffic light. 2. {informal} Being a cause or reason for; causing. Hard work was back of his success. The principal … Читать далее

[from way back] {adv. phr.} From a previous time; from a long timeago. They have known one another from way back when they went tothe same elementary school.

[before one can say Jack Robinson] {adv. cl.}, {informal} Very quickly; suddenly. — An overused phrase. Before I could say Jack Robinson, the boy was gone. Compare: IN A FLASH, RIGHT AWAY.

[drop a line] {v. phr.} To write someone a short letter or note. Please drop me a line when you get to Paris; I’d like to know that you’ve arrived safely.

[grease the wheels] {v. phr.}, {informal} To do something or act tomake something go smoothly or happen in the way that is wanted. Mr. Davis asked a friend to grease the wheels so he could borrow moneyfrom the bank. William’s father tried to grease the wheels for himto get a new job.

Идиома: in the raw Перевод: без прикрас, в неприукрашенном виде, в натуральном виде Пример: Politics in the raw is all about power and deal-making. Политика, без прикрас, вся основана на власти и сделках.

[hide one’s head in the sand] or [bury one’s head in the sand] or[have one’s head in the sand] To keep from seeing, knowing, orunderstanding something dangerous or unpleasant; to refuse to see orface something. If there is a war, you cannot just bury your headin the sand.

[carry a tune] {v. phr.} To sing the right notes without catching any false ones. Al is a wonderful fellow, but he sure can’t carry a tune and his singing is a pain to listen to.

Идиома: road hog Перевод: дорожный хам (человек, занимающий большую часть дороги и мешающий проезду) Пример: «Look at that road hog driving in the middle of the road and stopping other drivers from passing him.» Посмотри на этого чудака, едет посередине дороги и не дает другим водителям обогнать его.