English in the News–Lightning Rod 眾矢之的
Lightning rod—避雷針，眾矢之的 one that is a frequent target of criticism or focus of controversy Example: The senator has become a lightning rod for criticism. (Wall Street Journal, 2016/9/28) Hillary Clinton’s Key Aide Huma Abedin Is a Lightning Rod for Attacks 希拉蕊柯林頓的重要幕僚阿貝丁成了各方抨擊的目標 Huma Abedin, Clinton’s longest-serving...Continue reading
English in the News–Washed up 過氣的,淘汰的
washed-up: no longer successful, skillful, popular, or needed; obsolete 過氣的，被淘汰的 (Dozens of whales have mysteriously washed up on the western coast of Nova Scotia.) Examples: 1) Will self-cleaning glass leave window washers washed up? 2) Jack is washed-up. It’s time for him to retire. 15 Washed-up Celebrities and What They Are Doing Now (the Richest, 2016/10/11) These celebrities were...Continue reading
English in the News—Make No Bones About 坦率直言
Make no bones about – to say clearly what you think or feel although you may embarrass or offend someone 直接了當(毫不猶豫)的表達 (即使冒犯他人也講出來)，以一種不容置疑的態度表達 Examples: 1) He made no bones about how bad he thought the food was. 2) They make no bones about their dislike for each other. (The Independent, 2017/03/30) Brexit Secretary David Davis has...Continue reading
English in the News—Kangaroo court 袋鼠法庭，不公正的審判
Kangaroo court 袋鼠法庭 an unofficial court that punishes people unfairly (BBC, 2016/07/31) BHS: Philip Green attacks ‘kangaroo court‘ inquiry Former BHS owner Sir Philip Green has accused the co-chair of a parliamentary inquiry into the collapse of the firm of overseeing a “kangaroo court“. In the war of words between Sir Philip and Frank Field,...Continue reading
English in the News–More Holes than Swiss Cheese 漏洞百出
Swiss cheese–瑞士起士，一種有許多洞的起士 If something has more holes than a Swiss cheese, it has a lot of problems; there are many things wrong with it. (It is incomplete, and lacks many parts.) Example: Her argument has more holes than Swiss cheese. 她的論點漏洞百出。 (Elite Sports, 2017/3/22) The New York Knicks have a plan. It...Continue reading
English in the News–In the Doghouse 打入冷宮
In the doghouse 打入冷宮,遭遇麻煩,受到貶謫— in trouble; in (someone’s) disfavor; in a situation in which someone is annoyed with you because of something you did Examples: 1) He’s having troubles with his wife; that’s why he’s in the doghouse. 2) The President’s aide is in the doghouse over remarks she made to the press. (Los Angeles Times, 7/16/2016) A South...Continue reading
English in the News–Wait for the other shoe to drop 等第二隻鞋子掉下來
Wait for the other shoe to drop—to wait for the inevitable next step or the final conclusion, to wait for something bad to happen 等第二隻鞋子掉下，等待無可避免的壞消息或是結論 Example: My company has already laid off half of the employees. Now the rest of us are just waiting for the other shoe to drop. (The Huffington Post, 2017/3/2) What...Continue reading
English in the News—Red meat 煽動且政治化的議題
Red meat 紅肉 — something substantial that can satisfy a basic need or appetite —> highly politicized issues or political speech that can give people instant satisfaction 煽動而政治化的話題或是說話方式(來討好群眾) (Washington Post, 7/27/2016) “He has no clue about what makes America great,” Biden said referring to Donald Trump’s slogan. “Actually, he has no clue.” And then: “No...Continue reading
English in the News–Man Up! 勇敢一點，做個男子漢
Man up—Be brave or tough, be responsible, do the things that good men are traditionally expected to do, such as providing for their families 要像個男子漢 (man is a verb here) Examples: 1) You need to man up and admit that you were wrong. 2) A: “I don’t want to go in there. They’d be staring...Continue reading
English in the News–Have Other Fish to Fry 有別的事要忙
To have other (bigger) fish to fry—to have other more important things to do 有別的要緊事要做 Example: I hope the boss will keep the meeting short. We all have other fish to fry. To have too many fish to fry—有太多事要忙 (Australia Financial Review, 2016/09/01) Hangzhou G20 meeting has too many fish to fry 杭州二十國高峰會心有旁騖 Next week’s...Continue reading
English in the News–On the Rocks 觸礁
On the rocks—觸礁 in a state of ruin or bankruptcy Examples: 1) Their marriage is on the rocks. 他們的婚姻觸礁了。 2) Don’t put your money in that bank. It’s on the rocks. 那家銀行情況不佳。 (Los Angeles Daily News, 2017/01/19) With Obamacare on the rocks, LA “mega-clinics” could be in higher demand 隨著歐巴馬的健保計畫觸礁，更多人會需要洛杉磯的大規模免費診療計畫 (Celebrity Laundry, 2012/5/30) Brace...Continue reading
English in the News—Flip the bird
Flip the bird—比中指 (to give someone the finger) To make a very impolite sign by raising your middle finger towards someone in order to show that you are very angry with them Example: If he had shouted at me like that I would have flipped him the bird. 要是他對我那樣叫囂，我會對他比中指的。 Another way of saying it is...Continue reading
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