12 Jul 2010

poster child
- a child with a particular illness or other problem whose picture appears on a poster advertising an organization that helps children with that illness or problem
- (often humorous) a person who is seen as representing a particular quality or activity:

conundrum
- a confusing problem or question that is very difficult to solve

blistering
- (describing actions in sport) done very fast or with great energy:
- extremely hot in a way that is uncomfortable
- very critical:

sizzling
- very hot
- very exciting

fret (about/over sth)
- to be worried or unhappy and not able to relax:

bulging
- that stick out from sth in a round shape: [bulging pockets, buldging eyes]

relinquish
- to stop having sth, especially when this happens unwillingly (give up)

qualm (about)
- a feeling of doubt or worry about whether what you are doing is right

outgun
- [often passive] to have greater military strength than sb:

burgeon
- to begin to grow or develop rapidly

11 Feb (Chinadaily.com.cn)

After one's (own) heart
完全合自己心意
He spent all his saving buying that house after his own heart.

Feel the pinch
财政困难，手头拮据等状况
If someone is short of money or feeling restricted in some other way, they are feeling the pinch.
Shopkeepers are beginning to feel the pinch because no one has a lot of money to spend these days.

like it or lump it
不论你喜不喜欢都要接受
This is my decision, like it or lump it!

have your heart in your mouth
很紧张很害怕的时候
My heart was in my mouth when I reached the top of the roller coaster.

Stick to one's guns
坚持自己的想法或立场，不管别人怎么说
David's family were against him becoming an actor but he stuck to his guns.

I want an ear of corn.

dark horse
形容那些令人刮目相看、制造冷门的异军突起者，也可以指一举成名的后起之秀，或泛指那些实力难测没有名气的竞争者.
People tend to elect candidates who have big names. But after listening to the new candidate's speech, I think he makes a lot of sense. I'm going to vote for him even though he's a dark horse.

black sheep
败家子或害群之马

water under the bridge 过去的，就过去了
--Aren't you still angry about what he said?
No, that was a long time ago. It's all water under the bridge.

Whip-round
大伙儿一起贴钱，以集体的名义为某人买礼物 , 凑钱
Tomorrow is Lucy's birthday. Shall we do a whip-round to buy a joint present for her？

nit-picker
(fault-finder) 喜欢鸡蛋里挑骨头的“刺儿头”
He nit-picked a few details. a nit-picking lawyer

at the end of your rope
山穷水尽，智穷力竭
I've tried everything, but nothing's worked. I'm at the end of my rope.
He was at the end of his rope as the leader of the company

If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys

Good night, sleep tight, wake up bringht, in the morning light.

It never rains but it pours
祸不单行
I really feel sorry for Mike. First his wife left him. Next he lost his job. Then somebody stole his car. Like they say, it never rains but it pours.
Oh boy! You can't believe the trouble I had today. My alarm clock didn't go off, so I missed biology class. Then, I lost my home work assignment for math. I invited my girlfriend to lunch and after we ate, I found I'd left my wallet at home. It never rains but it pours

06 Feb (Chinadaily.com.cn)

Have butterflies in one's stomach
心里七上八下、忐忑不安
I had butterflies in my stomach when I was sitting there waiting for my turn, but once I stepped onto the stage, I was just fine.

Fall between two stools
两头落空或者两边不讨好
Tom fell between two stools by trying to keep on good terms with Henry and James at the same time, for the two were bitter enemies.

Lip service
毫无诚意的口惠
He pays lip service to feminism but his wife still does all the housework.

Paddle one's own canoe
依靠自己, 自食其力
His parents cannot take care of him anymore; he must learn to paddle his own canoe.

Stonewall 故意妨碍、阻挠
I tried to find out who should be held responsible for the accident, but he stonewalled me.

Run the gamut
包罗万象,无所不容
He's run the whole gamut of human experience.
There are lists of national restaurants which run the gamut of price and elegance.

milk the bull
做徒劳而无用的事情
Susan tried everything to train her daughter into a lady, but it seems that she is milking the bull.

cross one's fingers，keep one's fingers crossed
祈求好运
I will keep my fingers crossed until you get through all these.

It beggars all imagination.
即“这简直是无法想像的”。

beggar description
非笔墨所能形容
She has the beauty that beggars description.

In hot water
某人或某些人遇到非常麻烦的问题了，也就是陷入困境或处于困难境地(to be in trouble or embarrassing situation)。
He is likely to land in hot water unless he stops it right now.

One man's meat is another man's poison
人人好恶不同，“萝卜青菜，各有所爱”，不可一概而论的。
I don't see why he enjoys swimming so much. Truly, one man's meat is another man's poison.

have a beef with someone
与某人发生矛盾，关系紧张
Buddy, I've been through hell. I'm having a beef with my boss。
Luke will not go to the party with us because he has some kind of a beef with the host .

05 Feb (Chinadaily.com.cn)

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/language_tips/trans/trans_collect.html

fat chance
希望渺茫, 甚至是没有机会、没有希望

cupboard love
人也会因为特别的企图而对别人表现出cupboard love

a feather in one's cap/hat
比喻得到的荣誉和成就

down and out
一个人不仅没有工作、没有钱，而且也没有朋友帮忙，穷困潦倒的状态。

fair-haired boy
父母特别宠爱的孩子，或者是单位上司、学校老师特别喜欢的人，也可以说是上司、老师面前的红人。

half-hearted
三心二意

chance one's arm
冒险一试

worth one's salt
胜任，称职，值得所付给的报酬，如果是指某件事情就可以说物有所值了。

put one's nose out of joint
挫某人的锐气或者使某人的计划落空

have the upper hand
占上风

full fledged
发展成熟的或经过充分锻炼的

roses all the way
一帆风顺或一切顺利。

sad sack
不中用的人或冒失鬼

pull a boner
犯了愚蠢的错误或者闹了大笑话、出丑

cut one's coat according to one's cloth
因地制宜，量力而行

1.Jane is pretty and popular. You will have a fat chance of getting a date with her.

2.I don't think the woman really loves the millionaire, it's just cupboard love.

3.Jane was elected the best teacher of the year and she said it was really a feather in her cap.

4.John is a big spender and never thinks of saving a penny. So since he lost his job last month, he has been completely down and out.

5.Jim is really good for nothing, and he's always behind schedule for his work. I can't figure out what he did to become the boss's fair-haired boy.

6.Now I can understand why your wife wants to divorce you. You must admit you've never loved her wholeheartedly and half-hearted love is worse than none.

7.You have no choice but to chance your arm.

8.Any doctor worth his salt should be able to correctly diagnose the illness.

9.Peter, her assistant for many years, is to be promoted over her head. That will certainly put her nose out of joint.

10.I try to be cool and sensible, but sometimes my feelings get the upper hand of me.

11.He is a full-fledged lawyer.

12.After quitting his job, he got to know that life was not roses all the way.

13.There is no room for such sad sack of man.

14.He pulled an awful boner by mentioning his dead father.

15.Now that you have a child to feed, you must cut your coat according to your cloth and practise economy.

26 Jan - baffle , waffle

1. baffle (baf.fle)
- to confuse sb completely; to be too difficult or strange for sb to understand or explain
> I’m baffled as to why she hasn’t called
> Delay baffles employer

2. waffle (wof.fle)
- language that uses a lot of words but does not say anything important or interesting
> The report is just full of waffle.

waffle (on) (about sth)
- to talk or write using a lot of words but without saying anything interesting or important
> The principal waffled on about exam results but no one was listening.

waffle (on / over sth)
- to be unable to decide what to do about sth or what you think about sth
> The senator was accused of waffling on major issues.

25 Jan 2009

1. aesthetic (igs.there.stic)
- concerned with beauty and art and the understanding of beautiful things
> The benefits of conservation are both financial and aesthetic.
- made in an artistic way and beautiful to look at
> Their furniture was more aesthetic than functional.

2. dull, full, mull, pull

3. pull up
- (vehicle) to stop
> He pulled up at the traffic lights.
> Where do you want me to pull up?
> Pull up to the front door, please.

4. exude (igxude)
- if you exude a particular feeling or quality, or it exudes from you, people can easily see that you have it
> She exuded confidence.

5. usher
- [vn + adv. / prep.] to take or show sb where they should go
> The secretary ushered me into his office.
usher sth <-> in
- to be the beginning of sth new or to make sth new begin
> Usher in the Ox!
> Are you ushering the year ahead with a sense of dread, expecting to be battered and bruised by the cantankerous Ox?

6. dread
- to be very afraid of sth; to fear that sth bad is going to happen
> This was the moment he had been dreading.
- a feeling of great fear about sth that might or will happen in the future; a thing that causes this feeling
> The prospect of growing old fills me with dread

7. battered (ba-ted)
- [usually before noun] attacked violently and injured; attacked and badly damaged by weapons or by bad weather
> The child had suffered what has become known as ‘battered baby syndrome.’

8. bruise (bruz)
- to develop a bruise, or make a bruise or bruises appear on the skin of sb/sth
syn: injure
> She had slipped and badly bruised her face.
- to affect sb badly and make them feel unhappy and less confident
> They had been badly bruised by the defeat.
- bruised (adjective)
> He suffered badly bruised ribs in the crash

9. impending
syn: imminent
- (usually of an unpleasant event) that is going to happen very soon
> his impending retirement

29 Dec

1. astute
- very clever and quick at seeing what to do in a particular situation, especially how to get an advantage
> an astute businessman / politician / observer
> It was an astute move to sell the shares then.

2. The elephant in the room
- An important and obvious topic, which everyone present is aware of, but which isn't discussed, as such discussion is considered to be uncomfortable.

3. Walk in the park
(syn: piece of cake, as easy as pie)
- an easy job, or a job that poses no difficulty

http://www.urbandictionary.com
http://www.phrases.org.uk/meanings/