[b]be down and out[/b]:疲憊不堪，一蹶不振 [b]　EX: After about ten years of no business at all, they are practi cally down and out. 　EX: I don't think you realize that I am down and out. [b][b][b]double date[/b]:兩對伴侶的約會 [b]　EX: Sometimes it's more fun to go on a double date. [b]go off the deep end:魯莽行事，感情用事 [b]　EX: He surely went off the deep end when he bought that restaurant. 　EX: Matt warned his roommate not to go off the deep end and get married. [b][b][b]go the whole hog[/b]:全力以赴 [b]　EX: When Bob became interested in model airplanes, he went the whole hog. [b]jump out of the frying pan into fire:每況欲下(from bad to worse) [b]　EX: You're jumping out of the frying pan into the fire. By trying to straighten out with Mr.Bagnell, you're getting your self in trouble with Mrs. Bagnell. [b]jump down one's throat:橫加指責 [b]　EX: I don't mind being corrected when I am wrong, but you don't need to jump down my throat. [b][b][b]lick into shape[/b]:塑造，訓練整頓 [b]　EX: Two years in the army will lick him into shape. 　EX: The inspection was announced at two o'clock, and they had the place licked into shape. [b][b][b]look down one's nose at[/b]:嗤之以鼻，瞧不起 [b]　EX:The man is a snob. He looks down his nose at most people. 　EX:He looks down his nose at theoffer. (meaning he doesn't care about the offer.) [b][b][b]make heavy weather[/b]:發覺某事有困難 [b]　EX:Though the investment is at present making heavy weather, the future is regarded with confidence. [b][b][b]make head or tail of[/b]: 弄清楚，懂得 [b]　EX:Can you understand this letter? I've read it through twice and I juse can't make head of tail of it. [b]Stand to reason[/b] 清楚而且合乎邏輯 [b]　 Ex:It stands to reason that too many shopping choices can be as bad as too few. 　 Ex:If you drink too much coffee a day, it stands to reason that your health will suffer. [b][b][b]kick around[/b] 私下討論一下 [b]　 Ex: We haven't decided where to go on vacation. I think we'd better kick it around for a while. [b][b][b]put two and two together[/b] 找出解決之道 [b]　 Ex: At first, he couldn't understand the directions for assembling the bookcase, but later on he was able to put two ond two together. [b][b][b]fake steps[/b] 採取必要措施 [b]　 Ex: The executive committee has faken steps to guarantee salary raises for each employee. 　 [b][b][b]be on good terms with[/b] 和…交情不錯 [b]　 Ex: Lisa is on good terms with everyone in the office. 　 Ex: Are you on good terms with the people on the team? [b]throw a curve 誤導、欺騙 [b]　 Ex: Sam's girlfriend is easily confused when Some one throws her a curve. 　 Ex: Tim threw me a curve when he first denied and then admitted to lying about the banking error. [b][b][b]let the cat out of the bag[/b] 洩漏祕密 [b]　 Ex: The boy'ss cousin accidentally let the cat out of the bag when she tole him about the surprise party. 　Ex: I didn't mean to let the cat out of the bah and ruin the fun. [b]butter up 討好、諂媚 [b]　 Ex: After Rock yubs Katie the wrong way, he tries to butter her up. 　Ex: Corey buttered up all his feachers in the hope that he would get better grades. [b]out of character 和一貫的性格、行為不一致 [b]　 Ex: It's out of character for Frank to be so concemed about the feelings of other people. 　Ex: Keeping good hours would be out of characfer for John and Susan. [b][b][b]up to one's neck[/b] 非常忙碌 [b]　Ex: Since Terry agreed to be the chief editor, she has been up to her neck in work[b][b][b]cutt off all ties[/b]: 斷卻一切關係 [b]　 EX: After dumping the boy, Shelly cut off all ties with him. 　 EX: Ken changed his job two years ago, and he has cut off all ties with former coworkers ever since. [b]have a chip on one's shoulder 心懷怨恨 [b]　 EX: Calvin has a chip on his shoulder, because he has heard a lot of rumors spread by his best friend. [b][b][b]lead ...... on ......[/b]讓(某人)誤以為...... [b]　 EX: Don't get me wrong; I just don't want to lead you on a promise of a job. [b][b][b]give sb. a piece of one's mind[/b] 直接向某人說出自己的想法 [b]　 EX: I will give my cousin a piece of my mind after what she has done to me. 　 EX: It's no good to keep silent. You should talk to him and give him a piece of your mind. [b][b][b]in place[/b] 準備好，齊全 [b]　 EX: Everything must be in place before we begin our presentation tomorrow. [b][b][b]put one's foot in one's mouth[/b] 出糗，說了不該說的話 [b]　 EX: John put his foot in his mouth when he criticized his boss. 　 EX: Timothy really put his foot in his mouth this time when he got caught talking about how hideous a tie his boss was wearing. [b][b][b]rain down.....on[/b] 大量給予 [b]　 EX: Parents should rain down praise on their children for their good behaviors and manners. [b][b][b]rub......the wrong way[/b]惹火 [b]　 EX: The way he acted and talked really rubbed me the wrong way. [b][b][b]self-avowed[/b] 自認的 [b]　 EX: He was a self-avowed lady killer and bragged about how many girls he had been dating. [b][b][b]sell oneself short[/b] 妄自菲薄 [b]　 EX: You are capable of much more than that. Don't sell yourself short.　 [b][b][b]must _____（後面可接see, read等字）[/b]非…不可的東西 [b]　EX:This movie "MIB" is a must-see. It has everything you want in a movie: drama, action and humor. [b][b][b]a whole new ball game[/b]：完全是另一回事 [b]　EX:When the headquarters decided to send a new president over, it became a whole new ball game in the branch office. [b][b][b]put....on layaway[/b]：付清才取貨之分期方式 [b]　EX:If you put the ring on layaway, you will have it paid for in time for your girlfriend's birthday. [b][b][b]pull things together[/b]：把事情處理好 [b]　EX:We need to pull things together tonight, or we'll be in trouble for tomorrow's presentation. [b][b][b]tinker with[/b]：拿…做實驗，玩[b]　EX:I tinker with cars, but I am not qualified yet to design engines. [b][b][b]glassy[/b]：茫茫然[b]　EX:He drank too much his eyes looked glassy. Then I just drove him home right away. [b][b][b]glitch[/b]：毛病[b]　EX:This computer program has a glitch in it; I think I'd better call the computer company to have it fixed. [b][b][b]a laundry list of[/b].....：一長串的 [b]　EX:She was asking for a laundry list of gifts for her twentieth birthday. [b][b][b]heart-rending[/b]：令人痛心疾首的 [b]　EX:She gave a heart-rending story of the child abuses she had suffered. [b][b][b]dilly dally[/b]：拖拖拉拉 [b]　EX:Come on! Don't dilly dally! We haven't got all day! [b][b][b]posh[/b]：豪華的 [b]　EX:I have heart that is a posh restaurant. So, shall we check it out ourselves some day? [b][b][b]pompous[/b]：自命不凡 [b]　EX:Although the model is a knockout, her pompous attitude is a major problem [b] [b]last straw：最後極限 [b]　 [/b]EX:I tried to be nice and patient, but when John started to laugh at my girefriend's height and weight, that was the last straw. [b]kink[/b]：抽筋 [b]　EX:When she turned around to talk to Jenny, she suddenly had a kink in her neck. [b]cream puff[/b]：性能良好的二手車 [b]　EX:Sammy likes to take out his cream puff for a drive on weekends. [b]culture vulture[/b]：對文化藝術成痴的人 [b]　EX:There were a lot of culture vulture gathering in New York last Christmas for the grand opening of the New York Art Festival. [b]cup of tea[/b]：喜歡的東西（或活動） [b]　EX:Basketball is my cup of tea, and I usually play it in the back yard after school with some of my best pals. [b]crocodile tears[/b]：假惺惺，假悲傷 [b]　EX:The little girl cried crocodile tears as she told her teacher how she forgot to bring her textbooks to school. [b]in a pickle[/b]：困境 [b]　EX:Oh, darn! We're in a pickle because our car broke down a couple of minutes ago. How are we able to get to the game on time？ [b]pep-talk[/b]：口頭鼓勵 [b]　EX:Johnny got a pep-talk from his coach after he finished the first game. [b]short fuse[/b]：急性子，脾氣壞 [b]　EX:That basketball coach had such a short fuse that the umpire had to give him an oral warning. [b]wake up and smell the coffee ([/b]或[b]smell the coffee)[/b]：覺悟 ，了解實情 [b]　EX:Finally she decided to smell the coffee, leaving the sad memory behind. [b][b][b]going-on[/b] 事件，行為 [b]　EX:There are a lot of fishy goings-on at the meeting. [b]hangout[/b] 常去的地方 [b]　EX:The gym is a hangout for our classmates. [b]hash ou[/b]t費力地去做 [b]　EX:The professor and his assistants are hashing out a new solution to this project. [b]the butt of jokes[/b] 嘲笑的對象 [b]　EX:He is the butt of the jokes because of the way he talks. cover all the bases面面俱到 [b]　EX:When you are a career woman and a single mother, it is hard to cover all the bases. [b]live out one's fantasy[/b] 夢想實現 [b]　EX:I hope in the nearest future I will have sufficient money and time to live out my fantasy. [b]long and hard[/b] 謹慎，仔細地 [b]　EX:The attorney suggested that we should look long and hard at the lease before we sign it. [b]pander to[/b] 和…掛鉤 [b]　EX:A politician of integrity ought to avoid pandering to big business. [b]pick up the tab[/b] 付帳 [b]　EX:Most people think that it should be the man that picks up the tab on a date. [b]snub[/b] 冷落，不理睬 [b]　EX:Sandra treated me very well and made me feel like home until her pals arrived, and then she snubbed me. [b]sneaky[/b] 鬼鬼祟祟 [b]　EX:Larry is always sneaky in the office and he tends to be fond of snooping around. [b]be taken aback[/b] 嚇一大跳（僅用於被動語態） [b]　EX:We were all taken aback by her announcement that she would get married before graduation. [b][b][b]quickie[/b]: anything done or made quickly很快可做完的事 [b]　Ex: A:Do you have to go to the bar for a quickie? [b]　 B:That's exactly what I need. [b][b][b]nose-bleed section[/b]:距離中央最遠的位置 [b]　EX:A:I couldn't get the orchestra section for the concert. [b]B:Of course you couldn't. You know, when you are late buying tickets, you will usually have seats in the nose-bleed section.t. [b][b][b]low-down[/b]：內幕；詳情 [b]　EX:A:Everybody has been in a weird mood lately.What's happened? [b]　 B:Haven't you heard about the rumor? Come here; let me fill you in on the low-down. [b][b][b]Madison Avenue[/b]：氣派（原為紐約街道名，為美國廣告業中心） [b]　EX:A:You just got back from the head office in New York. What's it like? [b]　 B:What can I say? It's totally Madison Avenue.[b][b][b]gravy train[/b]：尸位素餐 [b]　EX:Many government officials in the United States are on the gravy train. [b][b][b]fly-by-night[/b]：信譽不佳 [b]　EX:That institution is a fly-by-night operation,so don't waste your money. [b][b][b]flip out[/b]：因興奮或生氣而失控 [b]　EX:Those young groupies flipped out when they saw Tom Cruise in person. [b][b][b]fender-bender[/b]：小車禍，小擦撞 [b]　EX:We had a fender-bender on the way to work this morning, and nobody got hurt. [b][b][b]catch 22[/b]：進退兩難 [b]　EX:I have to go to grad school to earn more money after I graduate, but I need more money before I can go to grad school. It's a catch 22.[b][b][b]osmosis[/b]：不費力而自然吸收（技術，知識） [b]　EX:The little gril learned to play the piano by osmosis. She's a real music genius [b]bring to mind[/b] 想起 [b]　Ex:This film has brought to mind a story I once heard from my professor. [b][b][b]the last thing to crsoss sb's mind[/b] 做夢都想不到 [b]　Ex:It was the last thing to cross my mind that he would cheat in the test. [b][b][b]basket case[/b]失魂落魄的人 [b]　Ex:After he lost his job, Bob became a real basket case, drinking and messing around every day.[b][b][b]loony (or looney)[/b] 瘋狂的；無厘頭的 [b]　Ex:Sometimes he is really loony enough to crack everybody up. [b][b][b]pull sb's leg; jerk sb. around[/b] 開玩笑 [b]　Ex:My buddy always enjoys pulling my leg in front of my girlfriend. [b][b][b]primp[/b]:（花時間）打扮，梳妝 [b]　Ex:She has been primping for hours for her frist date. [b][b][b]savvy[/b] 機伶，對···瞭若指掌 [b]　Ex:I'm the one in charge, savvy? [b]　Ex:You have to be street savvy to keep yourself from being held up. [b][b][b]scope out[/b] 瞧瞧 [b]　Ex:"Why do we go to the beach?" "Dummy,to scope out some girls, of course."[b][b][b]spin-off[/b] 翻版 [b]　Ex:Your marriage is exactly a spin-off of the soap opera.[b][b][b]spit it out[/b] 說出來 [b]　Ex:Don't be afraid of telling the truth. No one is gonna hurt you. Just spit it out. [b][b][b]spread the word about[/b] 替…作宣傳 [b]　Ex:We would like to spread the word about our club to catch people's attention. [b][b][b]in stitches[/b]呵呵大笑 [b]　Ex:His talk show kept me in stitches for 30 minutes. [b][b][b]hold water[/b] 站得住腳 [b]　Ex: Did you check my hypothesis? [b]　Yeah, but I don't think it holds water. Your data are not sufficient. [b][b][b]hold on to[/b] 留著；保有 [b]　Ex: Can I hold on to the paper fill next Friday? [b][b][b]bring down the house[/b] 贏得滿堂采，叫好叫座 [b]　Ex: The actress brought down the house with her act in this movie.[b][b][b]hard to face[/b] 難以忍受 [b]　Ex: I think the manager's sarcastic tone is really hard to take.　Yeah, you can say that again. [b][b][b]hash out[/b] 費力地做出來 [b]　Ex: The administration office is hashing out a new policy to increase the budget. [b][b][b]crop up[/b] 突然出現；發生 (pop up) [b]　Ex: There are usually problems cropping up with the intallation of the new software. [b][b][b]crack-pot[/b] 神經病，腦筋〝秀逗〞 [b]　Ex: Valerie is sure a crack-pot. She thinks she is haunted by a ghost from the Computer. [b][b][b]iffy [/b]不確定 [b]　Ex: How much budget we can get is still iffy because the board hasn't made the final decision. [b][b][b]huff and puff [/b]氣喘吁吁 [b]　Ex: He was huffing and puffing while walking all the way up to the 10th floow. [b][b][b]low-key[/b] 隨和的 [b]　Ex: He owns many famous organizationgs, but he always gives people a low-key impression. [b][b][b]loophole [/b]漏洞 [b]　Ex: There are some loopholes in his testmony.[b][b][b]much-touted[/b] 議論紛紛的 [b]　Ex: The much-touted murder was still suspended, and there were a lot of speculations going around. [b][b][b]shrug off[/b] 一笑置之 (shrug 聳肩) [b]　Ex:The neurologist's opinion should not have been shrugged off. [b][b][b]a laundry list of…[/b] 一長串的 [b]　Ex:My nephew always asks for a laundry list of gifts when he has a chance. [b][b][b]a hole in the wall[/b]不起眼的地方 [b]　Ex:This cafe is a hole in the wall, but it has a very nice selection of salads. [b][b][b]high on…[/b] 沉迷，熱衷於… [b]　Ex:I don't need drugs because I'm high on my life. [b][b][b]all hell will break loose[/b] 鬧得不可收拾 [b]　Ex:If you don't apologize for what you have done to her, all hell will break loose. [b][b][b]hefty [/b]發福，變胖 [b]　Ex:John has gotten a little hefty since he began working in the restaurant. [b][b][b]sell oneself short [/b]妄自菲薄 [b]　Ex:You're capable of much more, Tommy. Don't sell yourself short. [b][b][b]hoax[/b] 騙局 [b]　Ex:He said that the health food could do wonders, but we just found that it was a hoax. [b][b][b]set in[/b] 開始 [b]　Ex:The freezing weather won't set in until next week. [b][b][b]rig[/b] 動手腳(V.) [b]　Ex:They rigged the raffle so nobody would win. [b][b][b]rain on one's parade[/b] 掃…的興致 [b]Ex:I'm really sorry to rain on your parade, but the funding for your research project has been canceled. [b][b][b]mudsling(V.)[/b]抹黑 [b]　Ex:That politician's specialty is mudslinging his campaign opponents. [b][b][b]fall flat[/b]:不能引起興趣；完全失敗 [b]　Ex:His jokes fell flat because no one could catch on to them. [b]　Ex:Far from being received with the enthusiasm that he had expected, his speech fell flat. [b][b][b]for the birds[/b]:沒趣的，乏味(常用作補語) [b]　Ex:I saw the movie you've been raving about. It's just for the birds. [b][b][b]get one's own back on a person[/b]報復某人(報仇) [b]　Ex:He has cheated me this time, but I'll get my own back on him one day. [b][b][b]get one's money's worth[/b]:得到所花錢的價值 [b]　Ex:We enjoyed the film so much that we felt we'd got our money's worth. [b][b][b]hang by the wall[/b]:指擱置不用；被遺忘 [b]　Ex:He has hundreds of books but most of them hang by the wall. [b]　Ex:Most of the problems were solved at the meeting, but two were left hanging by the wall. [b][b][b]have a bone to pick with sb[/b].:與某人有爭論；對某人有意見 [b]　Ex:I've got a bone to pick with you. How about the two hundred dollars you promised to pay me back today? [b][b][b]have a thin skin[/b]:指臉皮薄，對批評十分敏感 [b]　Ex:He has a thin skin and doesn't take kidding very well. [b][b][b]have an ear to the ground[/b]:注意，留心可能發生的事 [b]　Ex:The city manager kept an ear to the ground for a while before deciding to raise the city employees' pay. [b][b][b]have sb. in one's pocket[/b]:可任意支配別人 [b]　Ex:If you want to get something out of the chief, just get his secretary on your side, and it'll be done. She has got him right in her pocket. [b][b][b]hit below the belt[/b]:用不正當的手段打人，暗中傷人 [b]　Ex:Most of the criticism of his new book hit below the belt. [b]