[straight from the horse’s mouth] {slang} Directly from the personor place where it began; from a reliable source or a person thatcannot be doubted. They are going to be married. I got the newsstraight from the horse’s mouth — their minister. John found outabout the painting straight from the horse’s mouth, from the painterhimself.
[mare’s nest] {n. phr.} Something that doesn’t exist; a discoverythat proves to be worthless. He claims that he has discovered agasoline substitute but we suspect it will turn out to be a mare’snest.
[closed book] {n.} A secret; something not known or understood. The man’s early life is a closed book. For Mary, science is a closed book. The history of the town is a closed book.
[pluck up] {v.} 1. To have by your own effort; makeyourself have. In spite of failure, he plucked up heartto continue. He plucked up courage when he saw a glimmer of hope. 2. To become happier; feel better; cheer up. He plucked up when hiswife recovered.
[put a new face on] {v. phr.} To alter the aspect of something;change. Mr. Merry man’s announcement of his candidacy for governorputs an entirely new face on the political scene in our state.
[at the drop of a hat] {adv. phr.}, {informal} 1. Without waiting; immediately; promptly. If you need a babysitter quickly, call Mary, because she can come at the drop of a hat. Compare: ON THE SPUR OF THE MOMENT. 2. Whenever you have a chance; with very little cause or urging. At the drop of … Читать далее
[let well enough alone] or [leave well enough alone] {v. phr.} Tobe satisfied with what is good enough; not try to improve somethingbecause often that might cause more trouble. John wanted to makehis kite go higher, but his father told him to let well enough alonebecause it was too windy. Ed polished up his car … Читать далее
[not to mention] or [not to speak of] or [to say nothing of]Without ever needing to speak of; in addition to; besides. — Used toadd something to what you have said or explained. Dave is handsomeand smart not to mention being a good athlete. They have threefine sons, not to speak of their two lovely … Читать далее
[fine-tooth comb] {n. phr.} Great care; careful attention so as notto miss anything. The police searched the scene of the crime with afine-tooth comb for clues. My room is so clean you couldn’t finddirt if you went over it with a fine-tooth comb. Compare: LEAVE NOSTONE UNTURNED.
Идиома: wet blanket Перевод: зануда; скучный человек, портящий всем настроение Пример: He is a wet blanket so we never invite him to our parties. Он сильный зануда, и мы никогда не приглашаем его на наши вечеринки.
Идиома: shoot oneself in the foot Перевод: сделать ошибку, сделать что-либо глупое, что еще больше усугубляет ситуацию; навредить самому себе Пример: If you want the job, don’t be late for the interview. Don’t shoot yourself in the foot. Если тебе нужна эта работа, не опаздывай на собеседование. Не навреди сам себе.
[acoustic perfume] {n.}, {slang} Sound for covering up unwanted noise, such as music over loudspeakers in a noisy construction area. Let’s get out of here — this acoustic perfume is too much for my ears.
[saw wood] also {Southern} [saw gourds] {v. phr.}, {slang} Tobreathe loudly through the nose while sleeping; snore. John wassawing wood. In Alabama a boy who snores saws gourds.
[have the makings of] {v. phr.} To possess the basic ingredients;have the basic qualities to do something. Tom is still young but heseems to have the makings of an excellent pianist.
Идиома: drop names Перевод: упоминать, называть имена известных людей, как если бы говорящий был знаком с ними лично Пример: Nobody likes the girl because she is always dropping names when she meets her friends. Никому не нравится эта девушка, потому что она постоянно хвастается, будто бы знает кучу знаменитостей.
[show of hands] {n. phr.} An open vote during a meeting when thosewho vote «yes» and those who vote «no» hold up their hands to becounted. The chairman said, «I’d like to see a show of hands ifwe’re ready for the vote.»
Идиома: take something with a pinch of salt / take something with a grain of salt Перевод: отнестись к чему-либо с недоверием, с сомнением Пример: You can take everything that our teacher says with a grain of salt. Ко всему, что говорит наш учитель, можно относиться с сомнением.
[poles apart] {adj.} Completely different. The two brothers werepoles apart in personality. It was hard for the members to makeany decisions because their ideas were poles apart.
Идиома: on the same page Перевод: думать одно и то же о чем-либо, понимать друг друга Пример: I was on the same page as my friend about our plans for a holiday. У нас с другом были одни и те же планы на отпуск.
[fall due] or [come] or [become due] {v. phr.} To reach the timewhen a bill or invoice is to be paid. Our car payment falls due onthe first of every month.
[under construction] {adv. phr.} In the process of being built orrepaired. It is a good idea to take the train to work while theexpressway is under construction.
[hard put] or [hard put to it] {adj.} In a difficult position;faced with difficulty; barely able. John was hard put to find agood excuse for his lateness in coming to school. The scouts foundthemselves hard put to it to find the way home.
[day of reckoning] {n. phr.} 1. A time when one will be made to account for misdeeds. When the criminal was caught and brought to trial his victims said, «finally, the day of reckoning has come.» 2. A time when one’s will and Judgment are severely tested. «You always wanted to run the department,» the … Читать далее
[do away with] {v.} 1. To put an end to; stop. The teachers want to do away with cheating in their school. The city has decided to do away with overhead wires. Compare: RID OF. 2. To kill; murder. The robbers did away with their victims.
[lend a hand] or [give a hand] also [bear a hand] {v. phr.} To givehelp; make yourself useful; help. The stage manager asked some ofthe boys to lend a hand with the scenery. Dick saw a woman with aflat tire and offered to give her a hand with it. Compare: LIFT AFINGER.
Идиома: for the life of one Перевод: хоть убей, как бы ни старался Пример: For the life of me I could not remember where I put my house keys. Хоть убей, я не помню, куда я положил ключи от дома.
Идиома: a mummy’s boy / a mama’s boy / a mother’s boy Идиома: a mummy’s boy / a mama’s boy / a mother’s boy Перевод: маменькин сынок Пример: Andrew’s a bit of a mummy’s boy. He finished with his girlfriend because his mother disapproved. В Эндрю есть повадки маменькина сынка. Он расстался со своей девушкой … Читать далее
[run that by me again!] {v. phr.}, {informal command} Repeat whatyou just said, as I couldn’t understand you. «Run that by meagain,» he cried. «This telephone connection is very bad.»
[come across] {v.} 1. or [run across] To find or meet by chance. He came across a dollar bill in the suit he was sending to the cleaner. The other day I ran across a book that you might like. I came across George at a party last week; it was the first time I … Читать далее
[in passing] {adv. phr.} While talking about that subject; as extrainformation; also. Our teacher showed us different kinds of flowersand told us in passing that those flowers came from her garden. The writer of the story says he grew up in New York and mentions inpassing that his parents came from Italy. Compare: BY THE … Читать далее
[shut out] {v.} 1. To prevent from coming in; block. DuringWorld War II, Malta managed to shut out most of the Italian and Germanbombers by throwing up an effective anti-aircraft screen. The boyswere annoyed by Tom’s telling club secrets and shut him out of theirmeeting. 2. To prevent from scoring throughout anentire game. The Dodgers … Читать далее
[just in case] {adv. phr.} For an emergency; in order to beprotected. «Here are my house keys. Sue,» Tom said. «I’ll be backin two weeks, but you should have them, just in case…» See: INCASE.
Идиома: be in the driver’s seat Идиома: be in the driver’s seat Перевод: находиться у руля, держать рычаги власти, иметь контроль над ситуацией Пример: Money and talent will put you in the driver’s seat — in control. Деньги и талант поставят тебя у руля — все будет под контролем.
Идиома: bring down the house Перевод: вызвать гром оваций, бурю аплодисментов Пример: The comedian brought down the house with his jokes about the lost dog. Комик вызвал бурю оваций своими шутками про потерявшуюся собаку.
Идиома: out in left field Перевод: ошибочный, далекий от истины Пример: Don’t listen to his advice. He’s out in left field. Не слушай его советов. Он далек от истины.
[litterbug] {n.}, {slang}, {informal} A person who leaves garbagein a public place, such as a park or beach or a street; one wholitters. Don’t be a litterbug; keep the city clean!
[lay oneself out] {v. phr.}, {informal} To make an extra hardeffort; try very hard. Larry wanted to win a medal for his school, so he really laid himself out in the race.
[Bronx cheer] {n. phr.}, {slang} A loud sound made with tongue and lips to show opposition or scorn. When he began to show anti-union feelings, he was greeted with Bronx cheers all around.
[get one’s back up] {v. phr.}, {informal} To become or make angryor stubborn. Fred got his back up when I said he was wrong. Ourcriticisms of his actions just got his hack up.
Идиома: sure thing Идиома: sure thing Разг. Перевод: конечно, несомненно, обязательно Пример: Sure thing, I would be happy to help you move next Saturday. Конечно, я буду рад помочь тебе переехать в следующее воскресенье.
[champ at the bit] {v. phr.} To be eager to begin; be tired of being held back; want to start. The horses were champing at the bit, anxious to start racing. As punishment John was kept after school for two hours. He was champing at the bit to go out.
[pick off] {v.} 1. To pull off; remove with the fingers. Hepicked off the burs that had stuck to his overcoat. 2. To shoot, oneat a time; knock down one by one. The sniper picked off the slowersoldiers as they came out into the road. 3. To catch a base runneroff base by throwing the … Читать далее
[keep one’s chin up] {v. phr.} To be brave; be determined; facetrouble with courage. He didn’t think that he would ever get out ofthe jungle alive, but he kept his chin up. Compare: KEEP A STIFFUPPER LIP.
[on one’s feet] {adv. phr.} 1. Standing or walking; not sitting orlying down; up. Before the teacher finished asking the question, George was on his feet ready to answer it. In a busy gasolinestation, the attendant is on his feet all day. Compare: TO ONE’SFEET. Contrast: OFF ONE’S FEET. 2. Recovering; getting better fromsickness or … Читать далее
[alongside of] {prep.} 1. At or along the side of. We walked alongside of the river. 2. Together with. I played alongside of Tom on the same team. Compare: SHOULDER TO SHOULDER, SIDE BY SIDE. 3. {informal} Compared with or to; measured next to. His money doesn’t look like much alongside of a millionaire’s.
[break one’s heart] {v. phr.} To discourage greatly; make very sad or hopeless. His son’s disgrace broke his heart. When Mr. White lost everything he had worked so hard for, it broke his heart.
[take liberties] {v. phr.} To act toward in too close or friendly amanner; use as you would use a close friend or something of your own. Mary would not let any boy take liberties with her. Bill tookliberties with Tom’s bicycle. Compare: MAKE FREE WITH.
[son of a gun] {n. phr.}, {slang} 1. A bad person; a person notliked. I don’t like Charley; keep that son of a gun out of here. Syn.: BAD ACTOR. 2. A mischievous rascal; a lively guy. — Often usedin a joking way. The farmer said he would catch the son of a gunwho let … Читать далее
[express oneself] {v. phr.} To say what you think or feel; put yourthoughts or feelings into words by speaking or writing. The boyexpressed himself well in debate. The mayor expressed himself asopposed to any borrowing.
[one man’s meat is another man’s poison] What is good for oneperson is not necessarily good for another. — A proverb, Eventhough Jeff likes to swim in ice cold water, his brother Tun hates it. This is understandable, however, because one’s man’s meat is anotherman’s poison. Contrast: WHAT’S SAUCE FOR THE GOOSE IS SAUCE FOR … Читать далее