· have one's heart set on...一心想要……
Once he had his heart set on something, he'll accept no turning-back.
· one's heart in one's mouth吓得要命
My heart was in my mouth when I heart someone tapping on my window one raining night.
have one's heart in one's mouth; with one's heart in one's mouth
· not have the heart to do something不忍心去做
How can you have the heart to kill my pet?
· take something to heart往心里去/认真接受意见等
Tom decided to take his father's words to heart and wash his hands off smoking.
· be in the seventh heaven高心极了
Mary was in seventh heaven when she finally came to Paris, the center of fashion.
· move heaven and earth想尽一切办法
Believe me. I promise to move heaven and earth to help you.
· cool one's heels等的双脚发凉，久等
Let's meet at the gallery at 7 o'clock. Come at 7 sharp. Don't make me cool my heels.
· take to one's heels逃走
The naughty boy took to his heels after he should 'trick-or-treat'.
· shoot from the hip信口开河
Don't take Jay's words to heart. He shouldn't have shot from the hip.
· by hook or by crook千方百计得，不择手段得
He rose to that position by hook or by crook.
· blow hot and cold出尔反尔，喜怒无常
Do you think he'll support you? He is the type who blows hot and cold.
· make it hot for...刁难某人
Out section manager is a woman. Our general manager always looks down upon her and makes everything hot for her.
· have the lots for someone迷恋某人
You have to stop her. She has the lots for a married man.
· bring down the house博得满堂喝彩
The first-prize winner of the speech contest has brought down the house for several times.
· be over the hump已度过难关
The Asian financial crises has almost paralyzed Asian economy. But we are over the hump now.
· have a hunch that...预感到……
I have a hunch that the bear market will be over soon.
· be hunky-dory挺不错的
A: How do you like the food here? B: Hunky-dory.
· skate on thin ice如履薄冰，冒风险
We are skating on thin ice if we continue killing wild animals.
· toy with the idea of...心里盘算要……
She's toying within the idea of marring a foreigner.
· no ifs, ands and buts不要找任何的理由和借口
A: You know I could have done it well, but... B: No ifs, ands and buts. Tell me if you want to save your job.
· give someone an inch and he'll take a mile得寸进尺
Give my roommate an inch and he'll take a mile. Last time, I offered him some candies. Today, he asked for an ice-cream.
· have many irons in the fire同时有很多要紧的事要做
Although he was out of job, he still wrote to his parents saying he had many irons in the fire.
· be in a jam陷入困境
get in a jam
You've got to help me. I'm in a jam. May car refused to work on my way to office.
· jaywalk横穿马路
It is dangerous to jaywalk.
· in a jiffy不大一会儿
=in a moment, right away. at once
I'll be with you in a jiffy.
· have ( a case of ) the jitters忐忑不安
The new teacher had a case of jitters when he first stood in front of the class.
· keep up with the Joneses与别人比阔，与别人攀比
He likes keeping up with the Joneses.
· get a kick out of doing something从……得到很大的乐趣
He gets a kick put of racing.
· take kindly to something/someone愿意接受
Don't you feel that people in the lab don't take kindly to a nosy reporter?
· kill someone with kindness好得让人受不了
The old lady almost killed me with kindness when I lived at her home.
· parade one's knowledge买弄学问
He is a well-learned man, bit he never parades his knowledge.
· be at large逍遥法外（也可以形容动物不受约束）
The murderer was still at large. The victim's parents was determined to find enough evidence to sue him to court.
· rest on one's laurels故步自封，吃老本
You are sure to be lagged behind if you rest on your laurels.
· turn over a new leaf洗心革面
The juvenile delinquent promised that he would turn over a new leaf if he could be given lenient punishment.
· have a hollow leg（喝酒）海量
The best man has a hollow leg. He drinks a lot instead of the bridegroom.
· pull someone's leg开某人的玩笑
Never ever pull his leg. He is a man without a sense of humor. He takes everything seriously.
· keep someone at arm's length与某人保持距离
My boss is my uncle. In order to avoid unnecessary misunderstanding, I'd better keep him at arm's length in company.
· let someone down使某人失望
Joe really let me down by having broken his promises for several times.
· can't for the life of one怎么……也不行
I thought I could recite my speech backwards, but when I stood in front of the audience, I couldn't for the life of me remember what to say.
· air one's linen in public家丑外扬
The wife was often beaten by her husband, but she never told others. She didn't want to air her linen in public.
· keep a stiff upper lip意志坚定，坚强不屈
One failure means nothing. You've got to keep a stiff upper lip.
· be at loggerheads with...互不相让
The two parties were at loggerheads with each other over the new tax policy.
· a born loser一事无成者
Nobody is a born loser. All you need is perseverance.
· louse up something把某事搞得一团糟
He let the cat out of the bag, which loused up the whole deal.
· not do...for love or money死也不会……
Stop trying. I won't betray my friend for love or money.
· feel a lump in one's throat心里感到很难受
I felt a lump in my throat on hearing her story of fighting with the deadly disease.
· make do with...用……凑合
We are too tired to cook. We can make do with two bags of instant noodles.
· the man in the street普通的人，老百姓
The interview with the man in the street shows that 90% of them are satisfied with the TV fro grams.
· be one's own man不受他人支配，自己管自己
Our monitor is not easy to cope with. He is much his own man.
· steal a march on someone抢在他人前面，暗渡陈仓
We stole a march on our rivals by reducing 5% of our price and got back our market.
meat and drink精神寄托
To some old people, raising pets is their meat and drink.
· be at the mercy of受……支配
When you get this kind of disease, your life is at the mercy of God.
· blow someone's mind把某人搞得晕晕乎乎
Readers had rather high opinion of his new book, which blew his mind.
· have a good mind to do something很想去干某事
When I see young and robust men elbow their way onto the bus, I have a good mind to smack them.
· have a one-track mind死脑筋，一根筋
Mark has a one-track mind. All he cares is earning money.
· mind one's own affairs少管闲事
You are nothing but an old gossip! Can't you only mind your own affair?
· weigh on someone's mind心事重重
The failure of signing the contract has been weighing on his mind. He couldn't sleep at night.
· be of two minds拿不定主意
Jill was of two minds as whether to spend the money on books or on clothes.
· have money to burn有花不完的钱
The new rich has money to burn.
· once in a blue moon千载难逢
Our boss is a miser. He gives us a treat only once in a blue moon.
182——241
· be down in the mouth垂头丧气
Sandra was down in the mouth because she didn't make the appointment.
· keep mum about something对某事保持沉默
The high official kept mum about his scandal.
· face the music承担责任，甘受责备
You are caught stealing. You have to face the music.
· hit the nail on the head说到点子上
I like to discuss with Helen. She always hits the nail on the head.
· call someone names辱骂某人
The neighbors keep dropping litter in front of her door. She couldn't bear it any more and call them names.
· be neck and neck不分上下
The two workshops are neck and neck in monthly output.
· get up the nerve to...鼓起勇气去……
The patient got up the nerve to ask the doctor how long he could live in the world.
· get on someone's nerves使某人心烦
There is an airport in the vicinity. The noise gets on my nerves.
· a nobody无名小辈
He is somebody in the small town, but he is a nobody in the capital city.
· lead someone around by the nose牵着别人的鼻子走
All nations should exercise their own judgment. They shouldn't be led around by some big countries.
· poke one's nose into something乱打听别人的私事
I hate those journalists who poke their nose into people's private life.
· be a notch above someone略胜一筹
In study, we are neck and neck; but in sports, he is a notch above me.
· sit up and take notice of something/someone对……刮目相看
He used to know nothing about chemistry. Now he talks like a chemist, I have to sit up and take notice of him...
· have someone's number知道某人的底细
Don't waste your tongues with him. I've got his number. What he is trying to do now is to set a trap and let us jump into it.
· be quick to take offense特别爱生气
I don't think he is a quality leader. He is too quick to take offense.
· have one too many喝多了
The bridegroom had one too many at the wedding ceremony and was shooting cats.
· be on the outs with someone与……失和
For some reason, the two countries have been on outs for a long time.
· a pain in the neck使人讨厌的事
Working for VIPs was an honor for me, but now it has become a pain in the neck. I don't know how to balance the relationships.
· grease someone's palm贿赂，给某人好处
It is reported that Sydney has greased the palms of someone members of IOC for the right to hold 2000 Olympic Games.
· get peanuts微不足道的钱
He gets paid peanuts although he often works extra hours.
· cast pearls before swine对牛弹琴，明珠暗投
My boss is an idiot. Working for him is just like casting pearls before swine.
· feel like a square peg in a round hole感到格格不入，不适合
After graduation, I remained as a teacher in college. Whenever our former classmates have a get-together, I always feel like a square peg in a round hole. All they talk about are ways to make money, expensive hotels, luxurious entertainment, things I have no experiences to share with them.
· pinch pennies节俭
Though he is a tycoon, he pinches pennies in daily life.
· rob Peter to pay Paul拆东墙，补西墙
You borrow money from me to pay the bank loan. It is like robbing Peter to pay Paul.
· be no picnic不是件轻松的事
To learn one foreign language is possible. But to be a bilingual is no picnic.
· sugar the pill给人一点甜头安慰一下
Sonia didn't want to work extra hours quite often, but the manager sugared the pill by promising her a trip abroad at the end of the year.
· be on pins and needles坐立不安
He is a very modest man. When others praise him, he feel on pins and needles.
· put that in your pipe and smoke it你好好考虑考虑吧
此句常用于祈使句
Don't take it out on me. It is he who makes you lose so much money. Put it in your pipe and smoke it!
· play up to someone拍某人的马屁
The young actress played up to the director, hoping to get a role in the TV series.
· take the plunge踌躇一段时间后断然决定去干……
The commander finally took the plunge and launched the final attack.
· play possum装糊涂，装傻
He often quarrels with his wife. When he comes to me for advice, I can do nothing but play possum.
· drop something like a hot potato赶紧抛弃，放弃
He has been dreaming of owning his own car. But when he knew a car would cost ten years' of his salary, he drop the idea like a hot potato.
· sing someone's praises颂扬某人
The lawyer is quite successful. His clients sing his praises to others.
· be past praying for不可救药
When I sent my cat to the vet, he said that it was past praying for.
· be sitting pretty享受安乐生活
Our company survived the economic crisis and now we are sitting pretty.
· pocket one's pride放下架子
The laid-off workers from the state-owned enterprises should pocket their pride and seek for re-employment.
· put someone up to...唆使某人去……
How dare you to have lodged a complaint against me with the director? Who put you up to it?
· pop the question求婚
Can you tell me how you popped the question to your wife? Maybe I can learn something from you.
· call it quits作罢
Mary and Tom had been in love for several years. But these days, they began to realize that they had very little in common. They decided to call it quits.
· chew the rag闲聊
chew the rag也有争吵的意思
If they have time, these wives are always sitting together and chewing the rag.
· fly into a rage大发雷霆
The old father flew into a rage when his daughter didn't obey his will.
· break ranks with someone与……分道扬镳
反义词为：close ranks with someone
People within one party gradually had conflicts on some political issues. Some of them decided to break ranks with others and set up a new party.
· smell a rat察觉可疑
He is a well-known miser. I smell a rat when he invites me to his home for dinner. I was wondering if he is asking favors of me.
· beat a hasty retreat急忙撤退
The hoodlum was about to dully the lady when he saw a patrolman coming towards them. He beat a hasty retreat.
· take someone for a ride欺骗某人，玩弄某人的感情
They were taking us for a ride. I turned out that the tickets they sold us with low price were invalid.
· rip someone off敲某人竹杠
The local villain rips us off by collecting 100 yuan for protection charge every month.
· be on the rocks陷入困境，完蛋
The foam economy was struck by the Asian financial crisis. Japan's economy was on the rocks.
· rub it in哪壶不开提哪壶
Would you please talk in Chinese? You know I'm a pretty bad English speaker. You don't have to rub it in.
· give someone the runaround敷衍搪塞
My washing machine broke down, When I went to the repair shop, they gave me the runaround.
· be in a rut千篇一律，一筹莫展
His life is in a rut. Office, library, and home are the three places he goes everyday. It is time he had a holiday for a change.
· play it safe小心谨慎
Our car works very well. But to play it safe, we will bring a spare tire.
· safe and sound安全无事
He came back from the battlefield safe and sound.
· the salt of the earth好心肠的人，没有坏心眼的人
The taxi driver who saved the drowning boy from the river is the salt of the earth.
· take something with a grain of salt听话打折扣，不能轻信
He is a braggart. Take his words with a grain of salt.
· tip the scales扭转局势
In the boxing ring, the two sides were evenly matched. But the short break seemed to tip the scales in favor of the boxer in red.
· throw someone off the scent转移某人的视线
The murder wrote a last letter for the victim and left it in the site, hoping to throw the police off the scent.
· start from scratch从零开始，白手起家
There are so many spelling mistakes. I have to write it again from scratch.
· talk sense into someone开导某人
I've tired to talk sense into him, but he still chose to work in the countryside.
· an open sesame法宝，秘诀，关键
Having connections with VIPs is not an open sesame to success.
· the lion's share最大的一份，绝大多数
He designed the most important part of the machine. So he deserves the lion's share of the award.
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