pull someones 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 arms length与某人维持距离
My boss is my uncle. In order to avoid unnecessary misunderstanding, Id better keep him at arms length in company.
let someone down使某人失望
Joe really let me down by having broken his promises for several times.
cant for the life of one如何也不可以
I thought I could recite my speech backwards1, but when I stood in front of the audience, I couldnt for the life of me remember what to say.
air ones linen2 in public家丑外扬
The wife was often beaten by her husband, but she never told others. She didnt want to air her linen in public.
keep a stiff upper lip意志坚定,坚强不屈
One failure means nothing. Youve 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 perseverance3.
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 wont betray my friend for love or money.
feel a lump in ones throat心里感到非常难受
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 ones own man不受别人支配,自己管自己
Our monitor is not easy to cope with. He is much his own man.
steal a march on someone抢在别人前面,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 someones 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非常想去干某事
When I see young and robust4 men elbow their way onto the bus, I have a good mind to smack5 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 ones own affairs少管闲事
You are nothing but an old gossip! Cant you only mind your own affair?
weigh on someones mind心事重重
The failure of signing the contract has been weighing on his mind. He couldnt 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 miser6. He gives us a treat only once in a blue moon.