English idioms

on the rocks 触礁、濒临毁灭
all at sea 茫然 nail one’s colors to the mast 坚持立场
nail under false color 冒充，打着别人 的招牌骗人 go with stream 随波逐流 in/hold out the alive branch 愿意讲和 （在西方橄榄枝被认为是和平的象征）
Carey street 破产 Indian File 鱼贯而行 一路纵队
feather in one’s cap 炫耀荣誉 skeleton at the feast 居安思危
wrong side (get out of bed on the wrong side of bed) 一大早就发脾气，心绪不好
lay an egg 没有成功。 Carry coal to Newcastle, send owls to Athens 画蛇添足,多此一举 sail under false colors 用假冒的旗帜 航行引申为冒充欺世盗名 between devil and blue sea 进退维谷 a horse of another color 完全是另外 一回事= a horse of different color Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched. 不切合实际、过 早地乐观
take the bait 陷入圈套
That’s all Greek to me.我对此一窍不通。 Two may keep counsel when the third’s away.没有不泄露的秘密，没有不透风 的墙。 burn one’s boat下定决心，破釜沉舟。 have the ball at one’s feet 稳操胜券。 hit below the belt 暗箭伤人。 keep the ball rolling 不中断，继续下 去，来自足球比赛，一旦开球后，球 就不停地滚动。

英语习语谚语AA bad workman always blames his tools. 拙匠总怪工具差。

Absence makes the heart grow fonder. 别离情更深A burnt child dreads the fire. 烧伤过的孩子怕见火。

（意同：一朝被蛇咬，三年怕草绳）A constant guest is never welcome. 常客招人嫌。

A contented mind is a perpetual feast. 知足长乐。

A cracked bell can never sound well. 破钟敲不响。

Actions speak louder than words. 百说不如一干。

A drowning man will catch at a straw. 人快淹死时，稻草也要抓。

Adversity makes a man wise, not rich. 逆境增才干，并不增财富A fair death honors the whole life. 死得其所，流芳百世。

A friend in need is a friend in indeed. 患难识知已A friend is easier lost than found. 失友容易，交友难。

After a storm comes a calm. 雨过天晴（意指：否极泰来）After dinner sit a while; after supper walk a mile. 饭后百步，延年益寿A good beginning is half the battle. 好的开端等于成功一半A good book is the best of friends, the same today and forever. 好书如挚友，情谊永不渝A good husband makes a good wife. 夫善则妻贤A good name is sooner lost than won. 美名易失，不易得A good wife is a good prize. 贤妻赛宝石A good winter brings a good summer. 好冬必有好夏A house divided against itself cannot stand. 家庭不睦，万事不兴A lazy youth, a lousy age. 少时懒惰，老来虱咬（意指：少壮不努力，老大徒悲伤）A little is better than none. 聊胜于无A little learning is a dangerous thing. 浅学误人A little pot is soon hot. 壶小易热，量小易怒A living dog is better than a dead lion. 死狮不如活狗All his geese are swans. 敝帚自珍All lay loads on a willing horse. 好马重负All roads lead to Rome. 条条道路通罗马All's well that ends well. 结果好，一切都好All that glitters is not gold. 闪光的东西不一定是金子All things are difficult before they are easy. 凡事起头难All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. 只用功，不玩耍，聪明的孩子也变傻A man can only die once. 人生只有一回死A man is known by his friends. 视其友，知其人A man who has friends must show himself friendly. 要想交朋友，就得有诚意A merry heart goes all the way. 心情愉快，万事顺利A miss is as good as a mile. 失之毫厘，差之千里Among the blinds the one-eyed man is king. 盲人国里，独眼称王。

没有付出就没有收获。
No pains, no gains.
眼见为实。
Seeing is believing.
聪明人一点就通。 A word is enough to the wise. 众口难调。 Everyone has his taste.
肉中刺。
A thorn in one’s flesh.
例： beer and skittles 吃喝玩乐 wax and wane 盛衰 weal and woe祸福
The definition of idiom
5. 三词词组（trinomials）
有些固定的三词词组也被归为成语，因为它们大 都也是一些固定的讲法。
例： sun, moon and stars 日月星
on land, on sea, and in the sky 海陆空
Eat, drink and be merry. 及时行乐
Wine, woman, and song. 吃喝玩乐
入乡随俗
When in Rome, do as the Romans do.
良好的开始就是成功的一半。
Well begun, ha气坏的老太婆 Like a cat on a hot roof 坐立不安 They like cats and dogs. 他们水火不相容。 Wait for the cat to jump
观望形式
That cat won’t jump. 那样行不通。
PIG
Let’s pig out. 让我们大吃一顿吧。
The definition of idiom
3. 口语（colloquial）。 例： snake in the grass 暗箭 hit below the belt \ stab in the back 暗箭伤人 cut the ground from under sb. 在某人背后搞鬼

B：He isn’t. He thinks it’s not necessary to quarrel with women.
甲：婶婶又在骂叔叔了。
乙：别着急，你叔叔不会还口的。
甲：我还不知道我叔叔是个妻管严。
乙：他不是。他觉得和女人吵架没必要。
6、big shot 要人
A：Do you know Mr. Smith?
B：It’s a complicated story but the long and short of it is that he transferred a large sum of money wrongly.
A：Who should be responsible exactly?
B：A crook took advantage of him. Our boss would never forgive such a stupid act.
乙：我还没决定呢。
18、to my way of thinking 依我看来…..
A：To my way of thinking, I think you behaved rudely before your dad.
B：I couldn’t keep my temper then, poor dad, he must be very sad.
甲：丈夫不明白他妻子为什么那么容易生气。
乙：可能他太粗心了。
甲：不是，不是因为这个。实际上她是小题大做，我也觉得是他妻子不对。
乙：不管怎么说男人应该考虑作妻子的情绪。
16、the last straw 忍无可忍
A：That was the last straw!