Текст книги "Словарь американских идиом: 8000 единиц"

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[labor movement]{n.} Groups which form, strengthen, and increase membership in labor unions. •/His father was connected with the labor movement in the 1920’s./

[labor of love]{n. phr.} Something done for personal pleasure and not pay or profit. •/Building the model railroad was a labor of love for the retired engineer./

[labor the point] See: BELABOR THE POINT.

[labor under]{v. phr.} To be the victim of; suffer from. •/Ken is obviously laboring under the delusion that Jennifer will marry him out of love./

[lace into] or [tie into]{v.}, {informal} To attack physically or with words; begin to hit or criticize. •/The boxer laced into his opponent./ •/The critics laced into the new movie./ Syn.: LAY INTO, RIP INTO. Compare: GIVE IT TO.

[ladies' room]{n. phr.} A public toilet and restroom for women. •/Can you please tell me where the ladies' room is?/

[lady friend]{n.} 1. A woman friend. •/His aunt stays with a lady friend in Florida during the winter./ 2. A woman who is the lover of a man. – Used by people trying to appear more polite, but not often used by careful speakers. •/The lawyer took his lady friend to dinner./ Syn.: GIRLFRIEND.

[lady-killer]{n.}, {informal} 1. Any man who has strong sex appeal toward women. •/Joe is a regular lady-killer./ 2. A man who relentlessly pursues amorous conquests, is successful at it, and then abandons his heartbroken victims. •/The legendary Don Juan of Spain is the most famous lady-killer of recorded history./ Compare: LADY’S MAN.

[lady of the house]{n. phr.} Female owner, or wife of the owner, of the house; the hostess. •/«Dinner is served,» the lady of the house announced to her guests./

[lady’s man]{n.} A man or boy who likes to be with women or girls very much and is popular with them. •/Charlie is quite a lady’s man now./

[lake] See: GO JUMP IN THE LAKE.

[laid out]{adj.} Arranged. •/Her house is very conveniently laid out./

[laid up]{adj.} Sick; confined to bed. •/I was laid up for a couple of weeks with an ear infection./

[lam] See: ON THE LAM.

[lamb] See: GOD TEMPERS THE WIND TO THE SHORN LAMB, IN TWO SHAKES OF A LAMB’S TAIL.

[lame duck]{n.}, {informal} An elected public official who has been either defeated in a new election or whose term cannot be renewed, but who has a short period of time left in office during which he can still perform certain duties, though with somewhat diminished powers. •/In the last year of their second terms, American presidents are lame ducks./

[land] See: FAT OF THE LAND, LAY OF THE LAND also HOW THE LAND LIES.

[land all over] See: JUMP ON.

[landing ship]{n.} A ship built to land troops and army equipment on a beach for an invasion. •/The landing ship came near the beach, doors in the bow opened, and marines ran out./

[land-office business]{n.}, {informal} A great rush of business. •/It was a hot day, and the drive-ins were doing a land-office business in ice cream and cold drinks./

[land of nod]{n. phr.} Sleep. •/The little girl went off to the land of nod./

[land on] See: JUMP ON.

[land on one’s feet] also [land on both feet]{v. phr.}, {informal} To get yourself out of trouble without damage or injury and sometimes with a gain; be successful no matter what happens. •/No matter what trouble he gets into, he always seems to land on his feet./ •/Mary lost her first job because she was always late to work, but she landed on her feet and soon had a better job./

[landslide]{n.} An overwhelming victory during a political election. •/Ronald Reagan won the election of 1980 in a landslide./

[lane] See: LOVERS' LANE.

[lap] See: IN THE LAP OF LUXURY, IN THE LAP OF THE GODS.

[lap up]{v.} 1. To eat or drink with the tip of the tongue. •/The kitten laps up its milk./ 2. {informal} To take in eagerly. •/She flatters him all the time and he just laps it up./ •/William is interested in rockets and space, and he laps up all he can read about them./ Syn.: EAT UP(3).

[lardhead]{n.}, {slang} A stupid or slow-witted person. •/You’ll never convince Donald; he’s a lardhead./

[large] See: AT LARGE, BY AND LARGE.

[large as life] See: BIG AS LIFE.

[large-eyed] See: ROUND-EYED.

[large order]{n. phr.} Difficult job; a difficult task to fulfill. •/It is a large order to educate three children in college at the same time./ Compare: TALL ORDER.

[lash] See: TONGUE LASHING.

[lash out]{v.} 1. To kick. •/The horse lashed out at the man behind him./ 2. To try suddenly to hit. •/The woman lashed out at the crowd with her umbrella./ 3. To attack with words. •/The senator lashed out at the administration./ •/The school newspaper lashed out at the unfriendly way some students treated the visiting team./

[last] See: AT LAST, EVERY LAST MAN, EVERY SINGLE or EVERY LAST, FIRST AND LAST, HE LAUGHS BEST WHO LAUGHS LAST, HAVE THE LAST LAUGH, ON ONE’S LAST LEGS, TILL THE LAST GUN IS FIRED or UNTIL THE LAST GUN IS FIRED.

[last but not least]{adv. phr.} In the last place but not the least important. •/Billy will bring sandwiches, Alice will bring cake, Susan will bring cookies, John will bring potato chips, and last but not least, Sally will bring the lemonade./

[last ditch]{n.} The last place that can be defended; the last resort. •/They will fight reform to the last ditch./

[last-ditch]{adj.} Made or done as a last chance to keep from losing or tailing. •/He threw away his cigarettes in a last-ditch effort to stop smoking./ Compare: BACK TO THE WALL.

[last-ditch effort] See: LAST DITCH.

[last lap]{n. phr.} The final stage. •/Although the trip had been very interesting, we were glad that we were on the last lap of our tiring journey./ See: LAST LEG.

[last laugh] See: HAVE THE LAST LAUGH.

[last leg]{n. phr.} 1. Final stages of physical weakness before dying. •/The poor old man was on his last leg in the nursing home./ 2. The final stage of a journey. •/The last leg of our round-the-world trip was Paris to Chicago./ See: LAST LAP.

[last out]{v.} 1. To be enough until the end of. •/There is enough food in the house to last out the snowstorm./ •/Our candies won’t last out the night./ 2. To continue to the end of; continue to live after; live or go through. •/The old man is dying; he won’t last out the night./ •/This car will never last out the winter./ Compare: HOLD OUT.

[last stand]{n. phr.} See: LAST DITCH.

[last straw] or [straw that breaks the camel’s back]{n. phr.} A small trouble which follows other troubles and makes one lose patience and be unable to bear them. •/Bill had a bad day in school yesterday. He lost his knife on the way home, then he fell down, and when he broke a shoe lace, that was the last straw and he began to cry./ •/Mary didn’t like it when the other girls said she was proud and lazy, but when they said she told fibs it was the straw that broke the camel’s back and she told the teacher./

[last word]{n.} 1. The last remark in an argument. •/I never win an argument with her. She always has the last word./ 2. The final say in deciding something. •/The superintendent has the last word in ordering new desks./ 3. {informal} The most modern thing. •/Mrs. Green’s stove is the last word in stoves./

[latch on] or [hitch onto]{v.}, {informal} 1. To get hold of; grasp or grab; catch. •/He looked for something to latch onto and keep from falling./ •/The football player latched onto a pass./ 2. {slang} To get into your possession. •/The banker latched onto a thousand shares of stock./ 3. {slang} To understand. •/The teacher explained the idea of jet engines until the students latched onto it./ Syn.: CATCH ON. 4. {informal} To keep; to hold. •/The poor woman latched onto the little money she had left./ 5. {slang} To stay with; not leave. •/Marie and Dick wanted to go to the movies by themselves, but Mane’s little brother latched onto them./

[latch string]{n.} 1. A string that opens an old-fashioned door by lifting a small bar. •/The early settlers kept the latch string outside the door when they were working around the house, but at night they pulled it to the inside./ 2. {informal} A warm welcome; a friendly greeting. – Used in such phrases as «the latch string is out.» •/Mary has her latch siring out for everyone who comes./ Syn.: WELCOME MAT(2).

[late] See: BETTER LATE THAN NEVER, OF LATE.

[lately] See: JOHNNY-COME-LATELY.

[later] See: SOONER OR LATER.

[later on]{adv.} Later; not now. •/Finish your lessons. Later on, we may have a surprise./ •/Bill couldn’t stand on his head when school started, but later on he learned how./

[lather] See: IN A LATHER.

[laugh] See: HE LAUGHS BEST WHO LAUGHS LAST, HAVE THE LAST LAUGH.

[laugh all the way to the bank]{v. phr.} To have made a substantial amount of money either by lucky investment or by some fraudulent deal and rejoice over one’s gains. •/If you had done what I suggested, you, too, could be laughing all the way to the bank./

[laughing matter]{n.} A funny happening; a silly situation. – Usually used with «no». •/John’s failing the test is no laughing matter!/ •/We were amused when our neighbor’s cat had five kittens, but when our own cat had six kittens it was no laughing matter./

[laugh in one’s beard] See: LAUGH UP ONE’S SLEEVE.

[laugh in one’s sleeve] See: LAUGH UP ONE’S SLEEVE.

[laugh off]{v.} To dismiss with a laugh as not important or not serious; not take seriously. •/He had a bad fall while ice skating but he laughed it off./ •/You can’t laugh off a ticket for speeding./ Compare: MAKE LIGHT OF.

[laugh one out of]{v. phr.} To cause another to forget his/her worries and sorrows by joking. •/Jack was worried about getting airsick, but his son and daughter laughed him out of it./

[laugh one’s head off]{v. phr.}, {informal} To laugh very hard; be unable to stop laughing. •/Paul’s stories are so wildly funny that I laugh my head off whenever he starts telling one of them./

[laugh on the wrong side of one’s mouth] or [laugh on the other side of one’s mouth] or [laugh out of the other side of one’s mouth]{v. phr.}, {informal} To be made sorry; to feel annoyance or disappointment; cry. •/Paul boasted that he was a good skater, but after he fell, he laughed out of the other side of his mouth./

[laugh up one’s sleeve] or [laugh in one’s sleeve] or [laugh in one’s beard] To be amused but not show it; hide your laughter. •/He was laughing up his sleeve when Joe answered the phone because he knew the call would he a joke./

[launch window]{n.}, {Space English}, {informal} 1. A period of time when the line-up of planets, Sun, and Moon are such as to make favorable conditions for a specific space launch. •/The mission was canceled until the next launch window which will be exactly six weeks from today./ 2. A favorable time for starting some kind of ambitious adventure. •/My next launch window for a European trip isn’t until school is over in June./

[laurel] See: LOOK TO ONE’S LAURELS, REST ON ONE’S LAURELS.

[lavender] See: LAY OUT(7).

[law] See: LAY DOWN THE LAW, PARLIAMENTARY LAW, TAKE THE LAW INTO ONE’S OWN HANDS.

[law-abiding]{adj.} Obeying or following the law. •/Michael had been a law-abiding citizen all his life./

[lawful age] See: LEGAL AGE.

[law of averages]{n. phr.} The idea that you can’t win all the time or lose all the time. •/The Celtics have won 10 games in a row but the law of averages will catch up with them soon./

[law unto oneself]{n. phr.}, {literary} A person who does only what he wishes; a person who ignores or breaks the law when he doesn’t like it. •/Everybody in Germany feared Hitler because he was a law unto himself./ •/Mr. Brown told Johnny that he must stop trying to be a law unto himself./ Compare: TAKE THE LAW INTO ONE’S OWN HANDS.

[lay] See: KILL THE GOOSE THAT LAID THE GOLDEN EGG.

[lay about one]{v. phr.} To hit out in all directions. – Used with a reflexive object: «her», «him», or «them». •/The bandits surrounded the sheriff, but he laid about him so hard, with his gun used as a club, that they stepped back and let him escape./ •/Mrs. Franklin didn’t kill the mouse, but she laid about her so hard with the broom that she scared it away./

[lay a finger on]{v. phr.} To touch or bother, even a little. – Used in negative, interrogative, and conditional sentences. •/Don’t you dare lay a finger on the vase!/ •/Suppose Billy fakes his brother with him; wilt the mean, tough boy down the street dare lay a finger on him?/ •/If you so much as lay a finger on my boy, I’ll call the police./ Compare: LAY HANDS ON, PUT ONE’S FINGER ON.

[lay an egg]{v. phr.}, {slang} To fail to win the interest or favor of an audience. •/His joke laid an egg./ •/Sometimes he is a successful speaker, but sometimes he lays an egg./

[lay aside]{v. phr.} 1. To put off until another time; interrupt an activity. •/The president laid aside politics to turn to foreign affairs./ 2. To save. •/They tried to lay aside a little money each week for their vacation./

[lay at one’s door]{v. phr.}, {literary} To blame (something) on a person. •/The failure of the plan was laid at his door./ Compare: LAY TO(1).

[lay away]{v.} 1. To save. •/She laid a little of her pay away each week./ 2. To bury (a person). – Used to avoid the word «bury», which some people think is unpleasant. •/He was laid away in his favorite spot on the hill./

[lay-away plan]{n.} A plan for buying something that you can’t pay cash for; a plan in which you pay some money down and pay a little more when you can, and the store holds the article until you have paid the full price. •/She could not afford to pay for the coat all at once, so she used the lay-away plan./

[lay bare]{v. phr.} To expose; reveal; divulge. •/During his testimony the witness laid bare the whole story of his involvement with the accused./

[lay by]{v.} To save, especially a little at a time. •/The students laid a little money by every week till they had enough for a trip to Florida./ •/The farmer laid by some of his best corn to use the next year for seed./

[lay down]{v.} 1. To let (something) be taken; give up or surrender (something). •/The general told the troops to lay down their arms./ •/He was willing to lay down his life for his country./ Compare: GIVE UP. 2. To ask people to follow; tell someone to obey; make (a rule or principle). •/The committee laid down rules about the size of tennis courts./ 3. To declare; say positively; say surely; state. •/She laid it down as always true that «a fool and his money are soon parted.»/ 4. To store or save for future use, especially in a cellar. •/They laid down several barrels of cider./

[lay down one’s arms]{v. phr.} To cease fighting; surrender. •/The Civil War ended when the Confederate army finally laid down its arms./

[lay down one’s cards] See: LAY ONE’S CARDS ON THE TABLE.

[lay down one’s life]{v. phr.} To sacrifice one’s life for a cause or person; suffer martyrdom. •/The early Christians often laid down their lives for their faith./

[lay down the law]{v. phr.} 1. To give strict orders. •/The teacher lays down the law about homework every afternoon./ 2. To speak severely or seriously about a wrongdoing; scold. •/The principal called in the students and laid down the law to them about skipping classes./ Compare: TELL ONE WHERE TO GET OFF.

[lay eyes on] or [set eyes on]{v. phr.} To see. •/She knew he was different as soon as she laid eyes on him./ •/I didn’t know the man; in fact, I had never set eyes on him./