Неизвестен Автор - Словарь американских идиом (8000 единиц)

[hand-to-mouth] Not providing for the future; living from day to day; not saving for later. * /Many native tribes lead a hand-to-mouth existence, content to have food for one day at a time./ * /John is not a saving boy; he spends his money without thought for the future, and lives a hand-to-mouth life./ See: LIVE FROM HAND TO MOUTH.

[handwriting on the wall] A sign that something bad will happen. * /When Bill's team lost four games in a row, he saw the handwriting on the wall./ * /John's employer had less and less work for him; John could read the handwriting on the wall and looked for another job./

[hang] See: GO HANG, GIVE A HANG or CARE A HANG, GIVE ONE ENOUGH ROPE, AND HE WILL HANG HIMSELF, LEAVE HANGING or LEAVE HANGING IN THE AIR.

[hang around] , 1. To pass time or stay near without any real purpose or aim; loaf near or in. * /The principal warned the students not to hang around the corner drugstore after school./ Compare: HANG OUT(1). 2. To spend time or associate, * /Jim hangs around with some boys who live in his neighborhood./

[hang back] or [hang off] or [hang behind] 1. To stay some distance behind or away, be unwilling to move forward. * /Mary offered the little girl candy, but she was shy and hung back./ 2. To hesitate or be unwilling to do something. * /Lou wanted Fred to join the club, but Fred hung off./

[hang behind] See: HANG BACK(1).

[hang by a hair] See: HANG BY A THREAD.

[hang by a thread] or [hang by a hair] To depend on a very small thing; be in doubt. * /For three days Tom was so sick that his life hung by a thread./ * /As Joe got ready to kick a field goal, the result of the game hung by a hair./ Compare: HANG IN THE BALANCE.

[hanger] See: CREPE HANGER.

[hang fire] 1. To fail or be slow in shooting or firing. * /Smith pulled the trigger, but the gun hung fire and the deer escaped./ 2. To be slow in beginning; to be delayed; to wait. * /The boys' plans for organizing a scout troop hung fire because they could not find a man to be scoutmaster./

[hang heavy] or [hang heavy on one's hands] To pass slowly or uninterestingly; be boring with little to do. * /The vacation time hung heavy on Dick's hands because all his friends were away at camp./ Compare: ON ONE'S HANDS.

[hang in effigy] or [burn in effigy] To hang or burn a figure, usually a stuffed dummy, representing a person who is disliked or scorned. * /When the high school team lost the championship game, the coach was hung in effigy by the townspeople./ * /During World War II, Hitler was sometimes burned in effigy in the United States./

[hang in the balance] To have two equally possible results; to be in doubt; be uncertain. * /Until Jim scored the winning touchdown, the outcome of the game hung in the balance./ * /She was very sick and her life hung in the balance for several days./ Compare: HANG BY A THREAD.

[hang in (there)] , , To persevere; not to give up; to stick to a project and not lose faith or courage. * /Hang in there old buddy; the worst is yet to come./

[hang it] , An exclamation used to express annoyance or disappointment. * /Oh, hang it! I forgot to bring the book I wanted to show you./ * /Hang it all, why don't you watch where you're going?/

[hang off] See: HANG BACK.

[hang on] 1. To hold on to something, usually tightly. * /Jack almost fell off the cliff, but managed to hang on until help came./ Syn.: HOLD ON(1). 2a. To continue doing something; persist. * /The grocer was losing money every day, but he hung on, hoping that business would improve./ Compare: HOLD OUT, STICK OUT. 2b. To hold a lead in a race or other contest while one's opponents try to rally. * /The favorite horse opened an early lead and hung on to win as two other horses almost passed him in the final stretch./ * /Bunning, staked to a 6-0 lead in the first inning, hung on to heat the Dodgers 6-4./ 3. To continue to give trouble or cause suffering. * /Lou's cold hung on from January to April./ 4. To continue listening on the telephone. * /Jerry asked John, who had called him on the phone, to hung on while he ran for a pencil and a sheet of paper./ Compare: HOLD ON(3).

[hang one on] , 1. To give a heavy blow to; hit hard. * /The champion hung one on his challenger in the second round and knocked him out of the ring./ 2. To get very drunk. * /After Smith lost his job, he went to a bar and hung one on./

[hang one's head] To bend your head forward in shame. * /Johnny hung his head when the teacher asked him if he broke the window./ Compare: HIDE ONE'S HEAD.

[hang on the words of] also [hang on the lips of] To listen very attentively to. * /Ann hangs on every word of her history teacher and takes very careful notes. / * /As he went on with his speech, his auditors, deeply interested, hung on his lips./

[hang on to] To hold tightly; keep firmly. * /The child hung on to its mother's apron, and would not let go./ * /John did not like his job, but decided to hang on to it until he found a better one./

[hang on to one's mother's apron strings] See: TIED TO ONE'S MOTHER'S APRON STRINGS.

[hang on to your hat] or [hold on to your hat] or [hold your hat] , 1. Watch out; be prepared. - Used as a command, usually to warn of an unexpected action. * /"Hold on to your hat," said Jim as he stepped on the gas and the car shot forward./ 2. Get ready for a surprise. - Used as a command, usually to warn of unexpected news. * /"Hold on to your hat," said Mary. "Jim asked me to marry him."/

[hang out] 1. To spend your time idly or lounging about. * /The teacher complained that Joe was hanging out in poolrooms instead of doing his homework./ Compare: HANG AROUND(1). 2. To live; reside. * /Two policemen stopped the stranger and asked him where he hung out./ 3. To reach out farther than the part below. * /The branches of the trees hung out over the road./ * /The upper floor of that house hangs out above the first./

[hang out one's shingle] , To give public notice of the opening of an office, especially a doctor's or lawyer's office, by putting up a small signboard. * /The young doctor hung out his shingle and soon had a large practice./

[hangover] A bad feeling of nausea and/or headache the day after one has had too much to drink. * /Boy, did I have a hangover after that party yesterday!/

[hang over] 1. To be going to happen to; threaten. * /Great trouble hangs over the little town because its only factory has closed down./ 2. To remain to be finished or settled. * /The committee took up the business that hung over from its last meeting./

[hang over one's head] To be a danger or threat to you. An overused phrase. * /Over Jimmy's head hung the teacher's suspicion that Jimmy had cheated in the final examination./ * /Death hangs over a bullfighter's head every time he performs./

[hang round] See: HANG AROUND.

[hang ten] , 1. To be an outstanding performer on a surfboard or on a skateboard (referring to the user's ten toes). * /I bet I am going to be able to hang ten if you let me practice on your skateboard./ 2. To be a survivor despite great odds. * /Don't worry about Jack, he can hang ten anywhere!/

[hang together] 1. To stay united; help and defend one another. * /The club members always hung together when one of them was in trouble./ Syn.: STICK TOGETHER. Compare: STAND BY, STAND UP FOR. 2. To form a satisfactory whole; fit together. * /Jack's story of why he was absent from school seems to hang together./

[hang up] 1. To place on a hook, peg, or hanger. * /When the children come to school, they hang up their coats in the cloakroom./ 2a. To place a telephone receiver back on its hook and break the connection. * /Carol's mother told her she had talked long enough on the phone and made her hang up./ 2b. To put a phone receiver back on its hook while the other person is still talking. - Used with "on". * /I said something that made Joe angry, and he hung up on me./ 3a. To cause to be stuck or held so as to be immovable. Usually used in the passive. * /Ann's car was hung up in a snowdrift and she had to call a garageman to get it out./ 3b. To stick or get held so as to be immovable. * /A big passenger ship hung up on a sandbar for several hours./ 4. To cause a wait; delay. * /Rehearsals for the school play were hung up by the illness of some of the actors./ 5. To set (a record.) * /Bob hung up a school record for long distance swimming./

[hang-up] , (stress on "hang") 1. A delay in some process. * /The mail has been late for several days; there must be some hang-up with the trucks somewhere./ 2. A neurotic reaction to some life situation probably stemming from a traumatic shock which has gone unconscious. * /Doctor Simpson believes that Suzie's frigidity is due to some hang-up about men./

[happen on] or [happen upon] , To meet or find accidentally or by chance. * /The Girl Scouts happened on a charming little brook not far from the camp./ * /At the convention I happened upon an old friend I had not seen for years./ Syn.: CHANCE ON, COME ACROSS(1),(3). Compare: HIT ON.

[happy] See: STRIKE A HAPPY MEDIUM, TRIGGER HAPPY at QUICK ON THE TRIGGER.

[happy as the day is long] Cheerful and happy. * /Carl is happy as the day is long because school is over for the summer./

[happy-go-lucky] See: FOOTLOOSE AND FANCY-FREE.

[happy hour] , A time in bars or restaurants when cocktails are served at a reduced rate, usually one hour before they start serving dinner. * /Happy hour is between 6 and 7 P.M. at Celestial Gardens./

[happy hunting ground] 1. The place where, in American Indian belief, a person goes after death; heaven. * /The Indians believed that at death they went to the happy hunting ground./ 2. A place or area where you can find a rich variety of what you want, and plenty of it. * /The forest is a happy hunting ground for scouts who are interested in plants and flowers./ * /Shell collectors find the ocean beaches happy hunting grounds./

[hard] See: GIVE A HARD TIME, GO HARD WITH, SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS.

[hard-and-fast] Not to be broken or changed; fixed; strict. * /The teacher said that there was a hard-and-fast rule against smoking in the school./

[hard as nails] , 1. Not flabby or soft; physically very fit; tough and strong. * /After a summer of work in the country, Jack was as hard as nails, without a pound of extra weight./ 2. Not gentle or mild; rough; stern. * /Johnny works for a boss who is as hard as nails and scolds Johnny roughly whenever he does something wrong./

[hard-boiled] Unrefined; tough; merciless. * /"Because you were two minutes late," my hard-boiled boss cried, "I will deduct fifteen minutes worth from your salary!"/

[hard cash] See: COLD CASH.

[hard feeling] Angry or bitter feeling; enmity. - Usually used in the plural. * /Jim asked Andy to shake hands with him, just to show that there were no hard feelings./ * /Bob and George once quarreled over a girl, and there are still hard feelings between them./

[hard-fisted] 1. Able to do hard physical labor; strong. * /Jack's uncle was a hard-fisted truck driver with muscles of steel./ 2. Not gentle or easy-going; tough; stern. * /The new teacher was a hard-fisted woman who would allow no nonsense./ 3. Stingy or mean; not generous with money. * /The hard-fisted banker refused to lend Mr. Jones more money for his business./

[hard going] Fraught with difficulty. * /Dave finds his studies of math hard going./

[hardheaded] Stubborn; shrewd; practical. * /Don is a hardheaded businessman who made lots of money, even during the recession./

[hardhearted] Unsympathetic; merciless. * /Jack is so hardhearted that even his own children expect nothing from him./

[hard-hitting] Working hard to get things done; strong and active; stubbornly eager. * /The boys put on a hard-hitting drive to raise money for uniforms for the football team./ * /He is a hard-hitting and successful football coach./