Неизвестен Автор - Словарь американских идиом (8000 единиц)

[close shave] See: CLOSE CALL.

[closet] See: SKELETON IN THE CLOSET.

[close the books] To stop taking orders; end a bookkeeping period. * /The tickets were all sold, so the manager said to close the books./ * /The department store closes its books on the 25th of each month./

[close the door] or [bar the door] or [shut the door] To prevent any more action or talk about a subject. * /The President's veto closed the door to any new attempt to pass the bill./ * /Joan was much hurt by what Mary said, and she closed the door on Mary's attempt to apologize./ * /After John makes up his mind, he closes the door to any more arguments./ Contrast: OPEN THE DOOR.

[close to home] Too near to someone's personal feelings, wishes, or interests. * /When John made fun of Bob's way of walking, he struck close to home./ * /When the preacher spoke about prejudice, some people felt he had come too close to home./

[close-up] A photograph, motion picture, or video camera shot taken at very close range. * /Directors of movies frequently show close-ups of the main characters./

[close up shop] 1. To shut a store at the end of a day's business, also, to end a business. * /The grocer closes up shop at 5 o'clock./ * /After 15 years in business at the same spot, the garage closed up shop./ 2. To stop some activity; finish what you are doing. * /After camping out for two weeks, the scouts took down their tents and closed up shop./ * /The committee finished its business and closed up shop./ Compare: CALL IT A DAY.

[clothes] See: BEST BIB AND TUCKER or SUNDAY-GO-TO-MEETING CLOTHES.

[clothing] See: WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING.

[cloud] See: EVERY CLOUD HAS A SILVER LINING, IN THE CLOUDS, ON CLOUD NINE, UNDER A CLOUD.

[clover] See: FOUR-LEAF CLOVER, IN CLOVER or IN THE CLOVER.

[club] See: CHRISTMAS CLUB.

[cluck and grunt] , , The familiar restaurant dish of ham and eggs; since ham is made of pork (and pigs grunt) and eggs come from hens (which cluck.) * /"I am sorry I can't fix you an elaborate meal, but I can give you a quick cluck and grunt."/

[clutch] See: RIDE THE BRAKE.

[coal] See: CARRY COALS TO NEWCASTLE, HAUL OVER THE COALS or RAKE OVER THE COALS, HEAP COALS OF FIRE ON ONE'S HEAD.

[coast is clear] No enemy or danger is in sight; there is no one to see you. * /When the teacher had disappeared around the corner, John said, "Come on, the coast is clear."/ * /The men knew when the night watchman would pass. When he had gone, and the coast was clear, they robbed the safe./ * /When Father stopped the car at the stop sign, Mother said, "The coast is clear on this side."/

[coat tail] See: ON ONE'S COAT TAILS.

[cock] See: GO OFF HALF-COCKED also GO OFF AT HALF COCK.

[cock-and-bull story] An exaggerated or unbelievable story. * /"Stop feeding me such cock-and-bull stories," the detective said to the suspect./

[cockeyed] Drunk; intoxicated. * /Frank has been drinking all day and, when we met, he was so cockeyed he forgot his own address./

[cocksure] Overconfident; very sure. * /Paul was cocksure that it wasn 't going to snow, but it snowed so much that we had to dig our way out of the house./

[C.O.D.] Abbreviation of "cash on delivery." * /If you want to receive a piece of merchandise by mail and pay when you receive it, you place a C.O.D. order./

[coffee break] A short recess or time out from work in which to rest and drink coffee. * /The girls in the office take a coffee break in the middle of the morning and the afternoon./

[coffee hour] A time for coffee or other refreshments after a meeting; a time to meet people and have refreshments. * /After the business meeting we had a coffee hour./ * /The Joneses had a coffee hour so their visitor could meet their neighbors./

[coffee table] A low table used in a living room. * /There were several magazines on the coffee table./

[coffin nail] , A cigarette. * /"I stopped smoking," Algernon said. "In fact, I haven't had a coffin nail in well over a year."/

[cog] See: SLIP A COG or SLIP A GEAR.

[coin money] or [mint money] , To make a lot of money quickly; profit heavily; gain big profit. * /Fred coined money with many cigarette vending machines and juke boxes./

[cold] See: BLOOD RUNS COLD, BLOW HOT AND COLD, CATCH COLD or TAKE COLD, IN COLD BLOOD, OUT COLD, OUT IN THE COLD, PASS OUT(2), STONE-COLD, STOP COLD, THROW COLD WATER ON.

[cold cash] or [hard cash] Money that is paid at the time of purchase; real money; silver and bills. * /Mr. Jones bought a new car and paid cold cash for it./ * * /Some stores sell things only for cold cash./ Compare: CASH ON THE BARRELHEAD.

[cold comfort] Something that makes a person in trouble feel very little better or even worse. * /When Tim lost the race, it was cold comfort to him to hear that he could try again in two weeks./ * /Mary spent her vacation sick in bed and Jane's letter about her trip was cold comfort./

[cold feet] , A loss of courage or nerve; a failure or loss of confidence in yourself. * /Ralph was going to ask Mary to dance with him but he got cold feet and didn't./

[cold fish] , A queer person; a person who is unfriendly or does not mix with others. * /No one knows the new doctor, he is a cold fish./ * /Nobody invites Eric to parties because he is a cold fish./

[cold-shoulder] , To act towards a person; with dislike or scorn; be unfriendly to. * /Fred cold-shouldered his old friend when they passed on the street./ * /It is impolite and unkind to cold-shoulder people./ Compare: BRUSH OFF(2), HIGH-HAT, LOOK DOWN ONE'S NOSE AT.

[cold shoulder] , Unfriendly treatment of a person, a showing of dislike for a person or of looking down on a person. Used in the cliches "give the cold shoulder" or "turn a cold shoulder to" or "get the cold shoulder". * /When Bob asked Mary for a date she gave him the cold shoulder./ * /The membership committee turned a cold shoulder to Jim's request to join the club./

[cold snap] A short time of quick change from warm weather to cold. * /The cold snap killed everything in the garden./

[cold turkey] , , 1. Abruptly and without medical aid to withdraw from the use of an addictive drug or from a serious drinking problem. * /Joe is a very brave guy; he kicked the habit cold turkey./ 2. An instance of withdrawal from drugs, alcohol, or cigarette smoking. * /Joe did a cold turkey./

[cold war] A struggle that is carried on by other means and not by actual fighting; a war without shooting or bombing. * /After World War II, a cold war began between Russia and the United States./

[collar] See: HOT UNDER THE COLLAR, ROMAN COLLAR, SAILOR COLLAR.

[collective farm] A large government-run farm made by combining many small farms. * /The Russian farmers used to live on collective farms./

[collector's item] Something rare or valuable enough to collect or save. * /Jimmy's mother found an old wooden doll in the attic that turned out to be a collector's item./

[College Boards] A set of examinations given to test a student's readiness and ability for college. * /John got a high score on his College Boards./ * /College Boards test both what a student has learned and his ability to learn./

[color] See: CHANGE COLOR, GIVE COLOR TO or LEND COLOR TO, HAUL DOWN ONE'S COLORS, HORSE OF A DIFFERENT COLOR, NAIL ONE'S COLORS TO THE MAST, OFF-COLOR or OFF-COLORED, SAIL UNDER FALSE COLORS, SEE THE COLOR OF ONE'S MONEY, SHOW ONE'S COLORS, WITH FLYING COLORS.

[color guard] A military guard of honor for the flag of a country; also: a guard of honor to carry and protect a flag or banner (as of a club). * /There were four Marines in the color guard in the parade./ * /Bob was picked to be a color guard and to carry the banner of the drum corps at the football game./

[color scheme] A plan for colors used together as decoration. * /The color scheme for the dance was blue and silver./ * /Mary decided on a pink and white color scheme for her room./

[comb] See: FINE-TOOTH COMB.

[come] See: CHICKENS COME HOME TO ROOST, CROSS A BRIDGE BEFORE ONE COMES TO IT, EASY COME - EASY GO, FIRST COME - FIRST SERVED, GET WHAT'S COMING TO ONE, HAVE IT COMING, HOW COME also HOW'S COME, IF WORST COMES TO WORST, JOHNNY-COME-LATELY, KNOW ENOUGH TO COME IN OUT OF THE RAIN, KNOW IF ONE IS COMING OR GOING, LOOK AS IF ONE HAS COME OUT OF A BANDBOX, SHIP COME IN.

[come about] To take place; happen, occur. * /Sometimes it is hard to tell how a quarrel comes about./ * /When John woke up he was in the hospital, but he didn't know how that had come about./

[come a cropper] 1. To fall off your horse. * /John's horse stumbled, and John came a cropper./ 2. To fail. * /Mr. Brown did not have enough money to put into his business and it soon came a cropper./ Compare: RIDING FOR A FALL.

[come across] 1. or [run across] To find or meet by chance. * /He came across a dollar bill in the suit he was sending to the cleaner./ * /The other day I ran across a book that you might like./ * /I came across George at a party last week; it was the first time I had seen him in months./ Compare: COME ON(3), RUN INTO(3b). 2. To give or do what is asked. * /The robber told the woman to come across with her purse./ * /For hours the police questioned the man suspected of kidnapping the child, and finally he came across with the story./

[come again] , Please repeat; please say that again. - Usually used as a command. * /"Harry has just come into a fortune," my wife said. "Come again? " I asked her, not believing it./ * /"Come again," said the hard-of-hearing man./

[come alive] or [come to life] 1. To become alert or attentive; wake up and look alive; become active. * /When Mr. Simmons mentioned money, the boys came alive./ * /Bob pushed the starter button, and the engine came alive with a roar./ 2. To look real; take on a bright, natural look. * /Under skillful lighting, the scene came alive./ * /The President came alive in the picture as the artist worked./

[come along] To make progress; improve; succeed. * /He was coming along well after the operation./ * /Rose is coming right along on the piano./

[come a long way] To show much improvement; make great progress. * /The school has come a long way since its beginnings./ * /Little Jane has come a long way since she broke her leg./

[come apart at the seams] , , To become upset to the point where one loses self-control and composure as if having suffered a sudden nervous breakdown. * /After his divorce Joe seemed to be coming apart at the seams./

[come around] See: COME ROUND.

[come at] 1. To approach; come to or against; advance toward. * /The young boxer came at the champion cautiously./ 2. To understand (a word or idea) or master (a skill); succeed with. * /The sense of an unfamiliar word is hard to come at./

[come back] , 1. To reply; answer. * /The lawyer came back sharply in defense of his client./ * /No matter how the audience heckled him, the comedian always had an answer to come back with./ 2. To get a former place or position back, reach again a place which you have lost. * /After a year off to have her baby, the singer came back to even greater fame./ * /It is hard for a retired prize fighter to come hack and beat a younger man./

[comeback] , , , A return call. * /Thanks for your comeback./

[come back to earth] or [come down to earth] To return to the real world; stop imagining or dreaming; think and behave as usual. * /After Jane met the movie star it was hard for her to come back to earth./ * /Bill was sitting and daydreaming so his mother told him to come down to earth and to do his homework./ Compare: COME TO ONE'S SENSES, DOWN-TO-EARTH. Contrast: IN THE CLOUDS.

[come between] To part; divide; separate. * /John's mother-in-law came to live in his home, and as time passed she came between him and his wife./ * /Bill's hot rod came between him and his studies, and his grades went down./