1. ace in the hole:
　　A hidden advantage or resource kept in reserve until needed
　　秘密王牌
　　ex: His new trick in the field turned out to be his ace in the hole.
　　
　　2. act of God: 自然灾害, 超出人所能控制的;
　　
　　3. ad hoc:
　　something created especially for a particular occasion 专用, 专门
　　ex: They had to set up an ad hoc committee for the new problem.
　　
　　4. ad nauseam : to go on endlessly 没完没了
　　ex: My grandpa used to tell me his childhood stories ad nauseam.
　　
　　5. albatross around one's neck: an annoying burden 恼人的负担,
　　ex: The old car had been an albatross around her neck before she donated it.
　　
　　another similar idiom: pain on one's neck
　　
　　ex: you are a pain on my neck :)
　　
　　6. all systems go: A state of readiness for immediate action 一切就绪
　　ex: Your proposal has been approved, so it's all systems go.
　　
　　7. alma mater 母校
　　
　　8. alpha and omega 开始和结束; 起点和终点
　　
　　9. And thereby hangs a tale:
　　there's a real story behind something 那是有典故的; 是有故事的
　　ex: That kite was made by my grandma when she was young, and thereby hangs a tale.
　　
　　10. annus mirabilis : miraculous year 好年头
　　11. annus horribilus: terrible year 坏年头
　　
　　12. apple of one's eye
　　The favorite object of a person's love or affection 某人最钟意的, 最喜欢的, 最疼爱的
　　ex: The youngest child of a family is usually an apple of a mom's eye.
　　
　　13. as the crow flies (两地) 最近的距离
　　ex: From where I live to Stanford University, it's about 18 miles as the crow files.
　　
　　14. at loggerheads 正面冲突
　　ex: He and his boss are at loggerheads on this matter.
　　
　　15. at sixes and sevens 乱七八糟, 糊里糊涂, 不确定的, 有争执的
　　ex1: Trying to cram for this math test has me all at sixes and sevens
　　ex2: His unexpected message left her feeling all at sixes and sevens
　　ex3: Our Future Will Still Be at Sixes and Sevens
　　ex4: The two of them are at sixes and sevens
16. back to the drawing board (失败了), 从头来过, 回到原点, 重新开始
　　ex: Biology goes back to the drawing board.
　　
　　17. baker's dozen: Thirteen; bakers once provided an extra roll with every dozen sold; 13 个
　　
　　18. beat around the bush : to avoid getting to the point of an issue 旁敲侧击, 打边鼓
　　ex: Stop beating around the bush, show us your point!
　　
　　19. bee in one's bonnet: have an obsession about something
　　感到困扰;
　　ex: George has a bee in his bonnet about people not following the company's sick-leave policy.
　　
　　20. beg the question:
　　1) "prompt the question" or "forces one to ask", 让人发问
　　ex: It begs the question why the Church ever sanctioned something it now abominates?
　　
　　2) To assume what has still to be proved
　　ex: To say that we should help the region's democratic movement begs the question of whether it really is democratic."
　　
　　21. behind the eight ball: meaning in an unfavorable or uncomfortable position: 处于不快之境地, 没趣的状态,
　　A term, referring to the game of pool, the eight ball is usually considered unlucky.
　　ex: After his unkind remarks were repeated to the boss, Gary really ended up behind the eight ball.
　　
　　22. bête noire: 最讨厌的人/物
　　 From French, [BET NWAHR] meaning "black beast."
　　ex: The new candidate for governor is the bête noire of all the liberals in the state
　　
　　23. between a rock and a hard place
　　Faced with two equally dangerous or difficult choices or circumstances 两难的处境, 左右为难
　　ex: He was between a rock and a hard place as he had to please his wife as well as his mother.
　　
　　24. beyond the pale 完全无法接受
　　ex: His last proposal was beyound the pale.
　　
　　25. birthday suit: 全裸的
　　ex: The king was in his birthday suit.
　　
　　26. bit between one's teeth 面对难关/挑战
　　ex: Once he takes the bit between his teeth, there's nothing can stop him.
　　
　　27. bite the bullet: 适应/忍受 坏环境
　　to adjust to unpleasant circumstances
　　ex: The people in the city had to bite the bullet for 2 years.
　　
　　28. bite the dust 原意是指脸朝地摔了一跤, 引申为遭受失败的打击.
　　ex: She bites the dust in the game.
　　
　　29. black sheep: (一家人或者一群人的)羞辱, 害群之马
　　ex: He was caught stolen and put into jail. He is the black sheep of the family.
　　
　　30. blind leading the blind 瞎子带瞎子, 盲人引路
　　ex: Our director knows nothing more than us about the new technology, so now is blind leading the blind.
31. blow hot and cold 三分钟一个主意, 频繁更改看法
　　To change one's mind constantly about the value of something:
　　EX: The administration should stop issuing such contradictory statements on taxes; they are alienating the voters by blowing hot and cold on tax reform
　　
　　32. blow/Toot one's own horn 自吹自擂, 自我吹嘘, To brag about oneself
　　EX: Everybody has to learn to blow his/her own horn a little bit at interview.
　　
　　33. bolt from (out of) the blue 晴天霹雳
　　An unexpected event that strikes like lightning from the sky
　　Ex: It was like a bolt from the blue when he got fired from the company he worked for more than 20 years.
　　
　　34. have a bone to pick with someone: have a grievance that needs to be talked out 有冤屈要诉, 有不满要发泄,
　　ex: I have a bone to pick with you, Jackie. I heard that you talked bad things about me on my back.
　　
　　35. born with a silver spoon in one's mouth 出生富贵
　　ex: Though Bill Gates is very wealthy, but he was not born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
　　
　　36. break the ice 打破僵局to remove the tension at a first meeting, at the opening of a party, etc
　　ex: The joke he told broke the ice of the meeting.
　　
　　37. burn the candle at both ends to do more than one ought to; to overextend oneself 一人干二人的活, 不自量力, 干超出能力范围内的活;
　　ex: Stop burning the candle at both ends! A good health is more important!
　　
　　38. burn the midnight oil 熬夜, 秉烛夜战, to stay awake late at night to work or study
　　ex: We used to burn the midnight oil before final examination.
　　
　　39. burn your bridges behind you 切断后路, 断自己的后路, To eliminate any possibility of a retreat to a former position
　　ex: No matter how evil your coworkers are, never ever burn your bridges behind you!
　　
　　40. bury the hatchet To agree to end a quarrel, 同意停战, 停止争端,
　　This is their first time together after their last fight. Maybe they have buried the hatchet.
　　
　　41. busman's holiday A vacation during which a person engages in activity that is the same as or similar to his or her usual employment 象征性假期
　　ex: Dr. Walton took a busman's holiday last summer in Roman. She worked on her research project most of the time.
　　
　　42. butter someone up 拍马, 溜须, 恭唯
　　ex: Mr. Johnson is very good at butter his manager up.
　　
　　43. buy a pig in a poke to buy something sight unseen
　　ex: Whenever I buy something, I want to take a very close look at it. I do not like mail orders since I do not want to buy a pig in a poke.
　　
　　44. by hook or by crook by whatever means possible, fair or unfair 通过各种渠道/方式, 不择手段
　　ex: He told his man to win the project by hook or by crook.
　　
　　45. by the book according to established rules, 依据现有条例, 根据律法
　　Ex: They tried their best to operate their business by the book.
　　46. call a spade a spade 直接说, 坦率说, 毫不委婉的说, 说白了, to speak directly and bluntly; to avoid euphemism
　　ex: Let's call a spade a spade. When you took something from someone without asking, it's called steal.
　　
　　47. call it square 谁也不欠谁的, 公平的,
　　ex: I bought the dish and you bought the beer, let's call it square.
　　
　　48. call off the dogs (让你的人)停止折磨/羞辱/烦(我)
　　ex: Could you please call off the dogs? I will do what you asked me to do!
　　
　　49. call the shots 作决策, 有实权
　　ex: He may be the King, but Cao called the shots.
　　
　　50. can't hold a candle to 逊色于(某人, 某物)
　　ex: Robinson can't hold a candle to McCann and Mercer (from The Scotsman)
　　
关键字:谚语名言
生词表: