Словарь американских идиом (8000 единиц)
Шрифт:
[flower power] <n.>, <slang> The supposed power of love and nonviolence as intended to be used by members of the anti-culture to change American society. * /The young people were marching for flower power./
[fluff one's lines] See: BLOW ONE'S LINES.
[fluff stuff] <n.>, <slang>, <citizen's band radio jargon> Snow. * /We can expect some fluff stuff this afternoon./
[flunk out] <v. phr.> To have to withdraw from school or college because of too many failing grades. * /Fred flunked out of college during his junior year./
[flush it] <v. phr.>, <slang> 1. To fail (something). * /I really flushed it in my math course./ 2. <interj.>, <used imperatively> Expression registering refusal to believe something considered stupid or false. * /"You expect me to buy that story? Flush it!"/
[fly] See: BIRD HAS FLOWN, GO FLY A KITE, MAKE THE FEATHERS FLY, MAKE THE FUR FLY, ON THE FLY, POP FLY, SACRIFICE FLY.
[fly at one's throat] <v. phr.> To attack you suddenly with great anger. * /When Tom called Dick a bad name, Dick flew at his throat./
[fly ball] <n.> A baseball hit high into the air. * /He hit an easy fly ball to center field./
[fly blind] <v. phr.> 1. To fly an airplane by instruments alone. * /In the heavy fog he had to fly blind./ 2. <informal> To do something without understanding what you are doing. * /I'm glad the car runs now; I was flying blind when I fixed it./ * /He's flying blind when he talks about philosophy./
[fly-by-night(1)] <adj.> Set up to make a lot of money in a hurry, then disappear so people can't find you to complain about poor work, etc.; not trustworthy; not reliable. * /Mrs. Blank bought her vacuum cleaner from a new company; when she tried to have it fixed, she found it was a fly-by-night business./
[fly-by-night(2)] <n.>, <informal> 1. A company that sells many cheap things for a big profit and then disappears. * /A dependable company honors its guarantees, but a fly-by-night only wants your money./ 2. A person who does not pay his bills, but sneaks away (as at night.) * /Hotels are bothered by fly-by-nights./
[fly by the seat of one's pants] <v. phr.>, <slang> To fly an airplane by feel and instinct rather than with the help of the instruments. * /Many pilots in World War I had to fly by the seat of their pants./
[flying] See: WITH FLYING COLORS.
[flying high] <adj.>, <slang> Very happy; joyful. * /Jack was flying high after his team won the game./ Compare: IN THE CLOUDS, ON TOP OP THE WORLD.
[flying start] See: GET OFF TO A FLYING START.
[flying tackle] <n.>, <informal> A tackle made by jumping through the air at the person to be tackled. * /Most football coaches don't want their players to make flying tackles./ * /The policeman stopped the burglar with a flying tackle./
[flying wedge] <n.>, <informal> 1. An offensive formation in football in which players link arms and line up to form a "V" with the ball carrier in the middle. * /The flying wedge was so dangerous and hurt so many players that rules have forbidden it for over 50 years./ 2. A group (as of guards or policemen) who use a "V" formation to help someone get through a crowd. * /Police had to form a flying wedge to get the movie star through the crowd of autograph hunters./
[fly in the face of] or [fly in the teeth of] <v. phr.> To ignore; go against; show disrespect or disregard for. * /You can't fly in the face of good business rules and expect to he successful./ * /Floyd's friends tried to help him, but he flew in the teeth of their advice and soon became a drunkard./
[fly in the ointment] <n. phr.>, <informal> An unpleasant part of a pleasant thing; something small that spoils your fun. * /We had a lot of fun at the beach; the only fly in the ointment was George's cutting his foot on a piece of glass./ * /Your new job sounds too good to be true - interesting work, high pay, short hours. Isn't there any fly in the ointment?/
[fly off the handle] <v. phr.>, <informal> To become very angry. * /John flew off the handle whenever Mary made a mistake./ * /The children's noise made the man next door fly off the handle./ Syn.: LOSE ONE'S TEMPER.
[fly the coop] <v. phr.>, <slang> To leave suddenly and secretly; run away. * /The robbers flew the coop before the police arrived./ * /His partner flew the coop with all the money./
[flying visit] <n. phr.> A visit of very short duration. * /Tom came to New York for only a flying visit. We had hardly eaten lunch when he had to leave./
[flying saucer] See: U.F.O.
[fly into a rage] or [temper] <v. phr.> To become very angry. * /By the time we mention the name of her ex-husband, she flies into a rage./
[foam at the mouth] <v. phr.>, <slang> To be very angry, like a mad dog. * /By the time Uncle Henry had the third flat tire he was really foaming at the mouth./
[fob off] <v.>, <informal> 1. To get something false accepted as good or real. * /The peddler fobbed off pieces of glass as diamonds./ Syn.: PALM OFF, PASS OFF. 2. To put aside; not really answer but get rid of. * /Her little brother asked where she was going, but she fobbed him off with ah excuse./
[fog] See: IN A FOG.
[foggy bottom] <n.>, <slang> An area in downtown Washington, D.C. where many offices of the Department of State are located; hence figuratively, the U.S. Department of State. * /The press secretary gave us a lot of foggy bottom double-talk about the hostage crisis in the Near East./
[fold up] <v.>, <informal> To collapse; fail. * /The team folded up in the last part of the season./ * /The new restaurant folded up in less than a year./ Compare: FALL APART.