Английские идиомы

[take for] {v.} To suppose to be; mistake for. Do you take mefor a fool? At first sight you would take him for a footballplayer, not a poet.

Идиома: quite a (something) Перевод: определенно, несомненно, безусловно Пример: The girl is quite a pianist and everybody loves her. Эта девочка еще какая пианистка, и она всем нравится.

[radio ham] {n. phr.} Someone whose hobby is the operating ofshortwave radio. The code letters C. Q. are used by radio hams toinvite other radio hams to join in the conversation.

[stave off] {v.}, {literary} To keep from touching or hurting you. Syn.: WARD OFF. The white knight struck with his sword. The blackknight staved it off with his own sword. Bill’s warm new coalstaved off the cold. They staved off starvation by eating two ofthe sled dogs.

Идиома: hold one’s horses Перевод: придержать коней; подождать, не торопиться (обычно используется в повелительном наклонении) Пример: «Hold your horses for a minute while I return to get my wallet.» Подожди минутку, пока я вернусь за своим бумажников.

[pain in the ass] or [pain in the neck] {n.}, {slang}, {vulgar withass} An obnoxious or bothersome person or event. Phoebe Hochrichteris a regular pain in the neck.

[fifty-fifty ] {adj.}, {informal} 1. Divided or shared equally. It will be a fifty-fifty arrangement; half the money for me and halffor you. 2. Half for and half against; half good and half bad. There is only a fifty-fifty chance that we will win the game. Compare: HALF AND HALF.

[whistle-stop] {n.} A small town where the trains only stop on aspecial signal. President Truman made excellent use of thewhistle-stop during his 1948 campaign for the presidency.

[put through] {v. phr.} 1. To carry out; arrange. If Jim can putthrough one more financial transaction like this one, we will berich. 2. To connect. The telephoneoperator had to put me through to Zambia as there is no direct dialingthere yet.

[on the fly ] {adv. phr.} 1. While in the air; in flight. Thebird caught a bug on the fly. Joe was called out because thecatcher caught the ball on the fly. 2. {informal} Between otheractivities; while busy with many things. The president was so busythat he had to dictate letters on the fly. John … Читать далее

[fit out] or [fit up] {v.} To give things needed; furnish. Thesoldiers were fitted out with guns and clothing. The governmentfitted out warships and got sailors for them. The house was fittedout very nicely. He fitted his room up as a photographiclaboratory.

[make bricks without straw] {v. phr.} To make something without thewherewithal; do something the hard way; do a job under hardconditions. John could not go to a library, and writing the reportwas a job of making bricks without straw. It was making brickswithout straw to put on plays in that old barn.

[wringing wet] adj. Wet through and through; soaked; dripping. He was wringing wet because he was caught in the rain without anumbrella. He was wringing wet after working in the fields in thehot sun.

[dog in the manger] {n. phr.} A person who is unwilling to let another use what he himself has no use for. Although Valerie lives alone in that big house, she is like a dog in the manger when it comes to letting someone sharing it with her.

[fall flat] {v.}, {informal} To be a failure; fail. The partyfell flat because of the rain. His joke fell flat because no oneunderstood it.

[clay pigeon] {n.}, {slang}, {informal} 1. A popular target at practice shooting made of clay and roughly resembling a pigeon; an easy target that doesn’t move. All he can shoot is a clay pigeon. 2. A person who, like a clay pigeon in target practice, is immobilized or is in a sensitive position and is … Читать далее

Идиома: to someone’s liking Перевод: быть кому-либо по вкусу, по нраву Пример: The cook in my favorite restaurant always cooks the food exactly to my liking. Повар в моем любимом ресторане всегда готовит еду точно так, как я люблю.

[clam up] {v.}, {slang} To refuse to say anything more; stop talking. The suspect clammed up, and the police could get no more information out of him.

[have to] or [have got to] {v.}, {informal} To be obliged or forcedto; need to; must. Do you have to go now? He had to come. Hisparents made him. I have got to go to the doctor. I have to goto Church.

[two strikes against one] {n. phr.}-From baseball. Twoopportunities wasted in some undertaking, so that only one chance isleft. Poor John has two strikes against him when it comes to hislove for Frances: first, he is too fat, and, second, he is bald.

Идиома: in general Перевод: вообще, в общем Пример: In general, most of the people in our apartment are happy with the new manager. В общем, большинство жильцов нашего дома довольно новым менеджером.

[go chase oneself] {v. phr.}, {slang} Go away and stop being anuisance. John’s father was busy and told him to go chase himself. The owner of the store told the boys in front to go chasethemselves. Compare: BEAT IT, GO JUMP IN THE LAKE.

[knee-high to a grasshopper] also [knee-high to a duck] {adj. phr.}, {informal} As tall as a very small child; very young. Charles started reading when he was knee-high to a grasshopper. I’ve known Mary ever since she was knee-high to a duck.

[for better or worse] or [for better or for worse] {adv. phr.} 1.With good or bad effect, depending on how one looks at the matter. The historian did justice, for better or worse, to the careers ofseveral famous men. 2. Under any eventuality; forever; always. Alex and Masha decided to leave Moscow and come to … Читать далее

[tin ear] {n. phr.} 1. A lack of sensitivity to noise. Theconstruction noise doesn’t bother Fred; he’s got a tin ear. 2. A lackof musical ability; state of being tone deaf. People with a tin earmake poor choir members.

Идиома: hit the wall / hit a wall Перевод: наталкиваться на стену, биться о стену; сталкиваться с препятствиями Пример: We’ve just about hit the wall in terms of what we can do to balance the budget. Мы почти натолкнулись на стену в том, что мы могли бы сделать, чтобы сбалансировать бюджет.

[take to one’s heels] also [show a clean pair of heels] {v. phr.}To begin to run or run away. When he heard the police coming, thethief took to his heels.

Идиома: nothing of the kind Перевод: ничего подобного Пример: My boss thought that my comments were complaints but I told him that they were nothing of the kind. Мой начальник подумал, что мои замечания были жалобами, но я сказал, что они совсем таковыми не являлись.

[in one’s right mind] {adj. phr.} Accountable; sane and sober. If you were in your right mind, you wouldn’t be saying such stupidthings to our boss.

[make a killing] {v. phr.} To earn or suddenly win a very large sumof money. Herb bought a lot of soybean stock when the price was lowand sold it when the price went up. Small wonder he made a hugekilling.

[on the market] {adj. phr.} For sale. In the summer many freshvegetables are on the market. The Goodwins put their house on themarket in January, but they did not sell it till August.

[diamond in the rough] {n. phr.} A very smart person without a formal education who may have untutored manners. Jack never went to school but he is extremely talented; he is a veritable diamond in the rough.

[hold it] or [hold everything] {v. phr.}, {informal} To stopsomething one is doing or getting ready to do. — Usually used as acommand. The pilot was starting to take off, when the control towerordered «Hold it!»

[get a kick out of] {v. phr.} To be greatly thrilled; derivepleasure from. Tom and Many get a kick out of playing four hands onthe piano.

[set the stage for] {v. phr.} To prepare the way or situation for ; to make a situation ready for something to happen. Thecountry’s economic problems set the stage for a depression.

[in good] {adj. phr.}, {informal} Well liked; accepted. — Used with»with». The boy washed the blackboards so that he would get in goodwith Iris teacher. Although Tom was younger, he was in good withthe older boys. Compare: ON ONE’S GOOD SIDE. Contrast: IN BAD.

Идиома: back in circulation Перевод: 1. снова быть доступным посетителям (о книгах в библиотеке); 2. снова стать социально активным, снова начать общаться, дружить, и т. д. Пример: The books were back in circulation after we returned them to the library. Книги снова стали доступны посетителям после того, как мы вернули их в библиотеку. My friend … Читать далее

[strike out] {v.} 1. To destroy something that has been written ordrawn by drawing a line or cross through it or by erasing it. Johnmisspelled «corollary. » He struck it out and wrote it correctly. 2.To begin to follow a new path or a course of action that you havenever tried. The boy scouts struck … Читать далее

[pay down] {v. phr.} 1. To give as a deposit on some purchase, therest of which is to be paid in periodic installments. «How much canyou pay down on the house, sir?» the realtor asked. 2. To decrease adebt with periodical payments. I’d like to pay down the charges onmy credit cards. Compare: DOWN PAYMENT.

Идиома: downtime / down-time Перевод: 1. время простоя (компьютера, машины, фабрики, и т. п.; противоположное слово — Uptime) 2. свободное время, время отдыха Пример: The downtime of the factory was just a few days. Время простоя фабрики составило всего несколько дней. We decided to have a nap during our downtime. Мы решили поспать в наше … Читать далее

[forty winks] {n. phr.}, {informal} A short period of sleep; a nap. When the truck driver felt sleepy, he stopped by the side of theroad to catch forty winks. Compare: SHUT-EYE.

[in light of] also [in the light of] {adj. phr.} 1. As a result ofnew information; by means of new ideas. The teacher changed John’sgrade in the light of the extra work in the workbook. 2. Because of. In light of the muddy field, the football team wore their olduniforms. Syn.: IN VIEW OF.

Идиома: six feet under Перевод: мертвый Пример: My friend does not plan to move from his house until he is six feet under. Мой друг до самой смерти не собирается переезжать из своего дома.

[border on] {v. phr.} To be adjacent to; come close to; adjoin. Our village borders on the Mississippi River. John’s actions border on irresponsibility.

[take a back seat] {v. phr.}, {informal} To accept a poorer orlower position; be second to something or someone else. During thewar all manufacturing had to take a back seat to military needs. She does not have to take a back seat to any singer alive. Compare:PLAY SECOND FIDDLE.

Идиома: above and beyond Перевод: хватать с избытком; быть более, чем достаточным Пример: The work that the man did on our house was above and beyond what was required. Работы, которую этот человек проделал над нашим домом, было более, чем достаточно, и чем требовалось.

[neck] See: BREATHE DOWN ONE’S NECK, BREAK ONE’S NECK, CATCH IT INTHE NECK or GET IT IN THE NECK, PAIN IN THE NECK, SAVE ONE’S NECK, STICK ONE’S NECK OUT.

[paint the town red] or [paint the town] {v. phr.}, {slang} To goout to drink and have a good time; celebrate wildly; carouse. Itwas the sailors’ first night ashore; they painted the town red. Compare: ON THE TOWN.

[take lying down] {v. phr.} To accept something without defense orprotest. If you take such insults lying down, you will onlyencourage more of the same.

[company man] {n.}, {informal} A worker who always agrees with management rather than labor. — Usually used to express dislike or disapproval. Joe was a company man and refused to take a part in the strike. Compare: YES-MAN.