口语中常用的俚语

     1　Be in the air 将要发生的事情The feeling or idea that something new is about to happen or is going to change.

    Example: From the arguments going on at the meeting, it seems that a change in policy is in the air.

    2 Clear the air 消除误会To settle a dispute and restore good relationsExample: We had a meeting with the workers, and I think we’ve cleared the air now.

    3　Cost an arm and a leg 极其昂贵To be very expensiveExample: I love that fur coat. However, I don’t think I’m going to buy it because it costs an arm and a leg.

    4　A bad egg 缺乏道德的人Somebody who has no moral principles and should be avoidedExample: You mustn’t lend Tim money, he’s a bad egg. You’ll never see him or your money again!

    5　In the Bag 稳操胜券Said of an achievement which is secureExample: We have the deal in the bag. The client came in this morning to sign the agreement.

    6　In the balance 未知的,不可预测的Said when the outcome of a situation is unknown or unpredictableExample: His career as a pilot is in the balance, as his eyesight does not seem good enough.

    7　Drive a hard bargain 极力讨价还价To have the negotiating strength and skills to get the most advantageous¹ price and conditionsExample: Amanda is negotiating the best price from the suppliers. She drives a hard bargain.

    8　Ring a bell 看上去或听起来非常熟悉To look, sound or seem familiarExample: That face rings a bell, where have I seen him before?

    9　Tighten² one’s belt 节衣缩食To cut down on spending because there is less income than beforeExample: Now you are out of work, you’ll have to tighten your belt and give up buying new clothes and going out so often.

    10　Kill two birds with one stone 一石二鸟To complete two tasks together, with less effort than doing them separatelyExample: Since I’d gone to the store to buy some bread, I thought of killing³ two birds with one stone and invited Mr. Biggs to the party.

    11　Be in a black mood 情绪极差To be so negative about everything that it is impossible for anyone to reason with him/herExample: My father has been in a black mood for days, we dare not say anything to him.

    12　New blood 新成员New people brought into an organization to introduce different and original ideasExample: It was decided⁴ to bring new blood into the school by employing teachers with the latest training.

    13　Feeling blue 感到无精打采Feeling sad or depressedExample: She’s feeling blue, because the man she loves is far away.

    14　Get to the bottom of something 弄清真相To find out the truth about somethingExample: I’m trying to get to the bottom of why David left without saying goodbye.

    15 A piece of cake 轻松的事Something which is very easy to doExample: Here…let me put the batteries in for you. It’s a piece of cake.

    16　Pay a call 拜访To visit somebodyExample: As we’re in this neighborhood, we might as well pay the Jacksons a call, we haven’t seen them for ages.

    17　By chance 偶然, 意外的Unexpectedly; with no prior planningExample: By chance, I bumped into my wife in the shopping mall18　Round the clock 夜以继日的To do something continuously, without a break or pauseExample: The ambulance services worked round the clock hauling people trapped in the building to safety.

    19　Keep one’s cool 保持冷静To stay calm in a difficult situationExample: If the traffic is jamed, the only thing to do is keep your cool, or get out of the car and walk!

    20　In a tight corner 处于困境In an extremely difficult situationExample: Whenever I get into a tight corner, I try to rely on quick thinking to get out of it.

    21　Keep in the dark 隐瞒To keep something secretExample: We know my brother has a new girlfriend, but he's keeping her name in the dark.

    22　Fall on deaf ears 不加理睬的, 不听取Not to take any notice of what is saidExample: The city council’s order that garbage should be put in the bins⁵ fell on deaf ears; the sidewalks are still littered with trash!

    23　Take things easy 放轻松To relaxExample: It's better for our health to take things easy than to worry about problems all the time.

    24　Eat like a horse 吃得很多To eat a lot; to have a very big appetiteExample: Fred eats like a horse. When I was a growing lad like him, I used to eat a lot, too.

    25　Catch one’s eye 吸引某人注意To attract somebody’s attentionExample: A movement behind the curtain caught my eye – I thought it was a burglar and rushed out of the room!

    26　Have an eye for something 对某事(某物体)了解得非常清楚To be very good at doing something, or have a great understanding of something.

    Example: As a botanist⁶, he has to describe and draw plants accurately⁷, so he must have an eye for detail.

    27　Turn a blind eye .熟视无睹To ignore an action, even though one should do something about itExample: Parents will spoil their children if they constantly turn a blind eye to their bad behavior.

    28　Keep an eye on 照看, 密切注视To watch carefully; to look afterExample: Keep an eye on my purse – I'm just going to the bathroom.

    29 Lose face 丢脸To have one's reputation spoiled; to be embarrassedExample: The large drug houses have lost face, because smaller companies are selling similar products at a cheaper price!

    30　Lead the field 处于领头地位To be the most successful person or group in an activityExample: For decades, the House of Dior led the field in elegant fashion design.

    31　Get out of hand 失去控制To be out of controlExample: The problem of suicide bombings is getting out of hand; there seems to be no way to stop them.

    32 Give a hand 提供帮助To help somebody with somethingExample: Please give me a hand and hold this board while I paint it.

    33　Learn by heart 牢记To memorize something; to have learned something word for word or very precisely⁸.

    Example: At school we often learned Shakespeare’s sonnets⁹ by heart and recited them in front of the class.

    34　On hold 尚未办理的事情Something set aside and waiting to be dealt withExample: Our vacation plans are on hold right now; because my Dad’s just been admitted to hospital with a stomach ulcer¹⁰.

    35　A dark horse 出乎意料的嬴家An unexpected winner.

    Example: A dark horse in this year’s basketball cup was Japan!

    36　The bottom line 本质内容The most essential part of somethingExample: We’ve talked a lot about taxation¹¹ and immigration, but the bottom line is that we have to create more jobs.

    37　Live it up 狂欢一场To enjoy a high standard of living and lead a carefree lifeExample: The neighbors having been living it up ever since they won the sweepstakes.

    38　Look forward to 期待着To relish¹² some future prospect¹³; to eagerly await meeting somebody.

    Example: You can tell Jake is looking forward to his vacation – he keeps telling us how many days there are left until he finishes college.

    39　Bear in mind 记住To remember something which can be of help in the future.

    Example: Before you start your perspective drawing, bear in mind you should first establish a vanishing point.

    40　Have a mind to 想做某事, 计划做某事To be decided on ; to intend toExample: The service in our hotel was terrible. I have a mind to write a letter of complaint.

    41　Be in the mood 想要做某事To feel like doing somethingExample: She is not in the mood for playing cards and says she should really be preparing her lecture notes.

    42　Over the moon 欣喜若狂Extremely happyExample: She’s over the moon about her promotion¹⁴ – she really wasn’t expecting it.

    43  Get a move on 赶快To hurry upExample: Get a move on! The train is about to leave.

    44　Over and above 除…这外, 额外的In addition toExample: Over and above our salary, we are getting a large bonus, because business has been very profitable this year.

    45　Get the picture 了解某事To understand something, to grasp some meaningExample: When they started cutting back and laying people off at work, I got the picture and starting looking for another job.

    46　Be out of pocket 花光了钱的To be without moneyExample: He’s complaining because he spent all of his money on slot machines and now he’s out of pocket.

    47　Keep somebody posted 传达消息To regularly give somebody up-to-date information or details of the progress being made.

    Example: I phoned in at the end of each working day to keep my boss posted about developments at the trade conference.

    48　In the long run 最终, 最后Over a long period of time, once a process has maturedExample: The grocery store is making a loss right now. In the long run, however, we hope to achieve a situation of stable profit.

    49　On a shoestring¹⁵ 生活拮据In a thrifty¹⁶ manner; with costs or spending down to a bare minimumExample: She lives on a shoestring – she gets a tiny pension and has to budget very tightly.

    50　Lose track of 失去消息, 失去线索To lose contact with somebody to not know where something isExample: I lost track of Fran when she moved to Boston. I’ve even tried to locate her on the Internet.

1 advantageous   

adj.有利的；有帮助的

参考例句：

• Injections of vitamin C are obviously advantageous.注射维生素C显然是有利的。
• You're in a very advantageous position.你处于非常有利的地位。

2 tighten   

v.(使)变紧；(使)绷紧

参考例句：

• Turn the screw to the right to tighten it.向右转动螺钉把它拧紧。
• Some countries tighten monetary policy to avoid inflation.一些国家实行紧缩银根的货币政策，以避免通货膨胀。

3 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

4 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

5 bins   

n.大储藏箱( bin的名词复数 )；宽口箱（如面包箱，垃圾箱等）v.扔掉，丢弃( bin的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• Garbage from all sources was deposited in bins on trolleys. 来自各方的垃圾是装在手推车上的垃圾箱里的。 来自辞典例句
• Would you be pleased at the prospect of its being on sale in dump bins? 对于它将被陈列在倾销箱中抛售这件事，你能欣然接受吗？ 来自辞典例句

6 botanist   

n.植物学家

参考例句：

• The botanist introduced a new species of plant to the region.那位植物学家向该地区引入了一种新植物。
• I had never talked with a botanist before,and I found him fascinating.我从没有接触过植物学那一类的学者，我觉得他说话极有吸引力。

7 accurately   

adv.准确地，精确地

参考例句：

• It is hard to hit the ball accurately.准确地击中球很难。
• Now scientists can forecast the weather accurately.现在科学家们能准确地预报天气。

8 precisely   

adv.恰好，正好，精确地，细致地

参考例句：

• It's precisely that sort of slick sales-talk that I mistrust.我不相信的正是那种油腔滑调的推销宣传。
• The man adjusted very precisely.那个人调得很准。

9 sonnets   

n.十四行诗( sonnet的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Keats' reputation as a great poet rests largely upon the odes and the later sonnets. 作为一个伟大的诗人，济慈的声誉大部分建立在他写的长诗和后期的十四行诗上。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He referred to the manuscript circulation of the sonnets. 他谈到了十四行诗手稿的流行情况。 来自辞典例句

10 ulcer   

n.溃疡，腐坏物

参考例句：

• She had an ulcer in her mouth.她口腔出现溃疡。
• A bacterium is identified as the cause for his duodenal ulcer.一种细菌被断定为造成他十二指肠溃疡的根源。

11 taxation   

n.征税，税收，税金

参考例句：

• He made a number of simplifications in the taxation system.他在税制上作了一些简化。
• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。

12 relish   

n.滋味，享受，爱好，调味品；vt.加调味料，享受，品味；vi.有滋味

参考例句：

• I have no relish for pop music.我对流行音乐不感兴趣。
• I relish the challenge of doing jobs that others turn down.我喜欢挑战别人拒绝做的工作。

13 prospect   

n.前景，前途；景色，视野

参考例句：

• This state of things holds out a cheerful prospect.事态呈现出可喜的前景。
• The prospect became more evident.前景变得更加明朗了。

14 promotion   

n.提升，晋级；促销，宣传

参考例句：

• The teacher conferred with the principal about Dick's promotion.教师与校长商谈了迪克的升级问题。
• The clerk was given a promotion and an increase in salary.那个职员升了级，加了薪。

15 shoestring   

n.小额资本；adj.小本经营的

参考例句：

• In the early years,the business was run on a shoestring.早年，这家店铺曾是小本经营。
• How can I take the best possible digital pictures on a shoestring budget?怎样用很小投资拍摄最好的数码照片？

16 thrifty   

adj.节俭的；兴旺的；健壮的

参考例句：

• Except for smoking and drinking,he is a thrifty man.除了抽烟、喝酒，他是个生活节俭的人。
• She was a thrifty woman and managed to put aside some money every month.她是个很会持家的妇女，每月都设法存些钱。