Adam Makkai - Словарь американских идиом: 8000 единиц

[melting pot] {n. phr.} A country where different nationalities mingle and mix with the result that, in the second generation, most people speak the main language of the country and behave like the majority. •/ It is no longer considered entirely true that the United States is a melting pot; many immigrants speak a second language. /

[melt in one’s mouth] {v. phr.} 1. To be so tender as to seem to need no chewing. •/ The chicken was so tender that it melted in your mouth. / 2. To taste very good; be delicious. •/ Mother’s apple pie really melts in your mouth. /

[memory]See: IN MEMORY OF.

[mend]See: ON THE MEND.

[mend one’s fences] {v. phr.} , {informal} To do something to make people like or follow you again; strengthen your friendships or influence. •/ The senator went home from Washington to mend his fences. / •/ John saw that his friends did not like him, so he decided to mend his fences. /

[mend one’s ways] {v. phr.} To reform; change one’s behavior from negative to positive. •/ He had better mend his ways or he’ll wind up in jail. /

[mental telepathy] {n. phr.} The passing of one person’s thoughts to another without any discoverable talking or carrying of signals between them. •/ Mrs. Smith knew the moment her husband’s ship sank on the other side of the world. It seems like a case of mental telepathy. / •/ Most or all men who practice mental telepathy on stage have really trained themselves to detect tiny clues from the audience. /

[mention]See: NOT TO MENTION.

[meow]See: CAT’S MEOW.

[mercy]See: AT THE MERCY OF.

[mercy killing] {n. phr.} The act of killing a terminally ill patient or animal in order to avoid further suffering. •/ Mercy killing of humans is illegal in most countries, yet many doctors practice it secretly. /

[merrier]See: MORE THE MERRIER.

[merry]See: LEAD A MERRY CHASE, MAKE MERRY.

[message]See: GET THE MESSAGE.

[mess around] {v. phr.} 1. To engage in idle or purposeless activity. •/ Come on, you guys, — start doing some work, don’t just mess around all day! / 2. {vulgar} To be promiscuous; to indulge in sex with little discrimination as to who the partner is. •/ Allen needs straightening out; he’s been messing around with the whole female population of his class. / Compare: FOOL AROUND.

[mess up] {v. phr.} , {slang} , {informal} 1. To cause trouble; to spoil something. •/ What did you have to mess up my accounts for? / 2. To cause someone emotional trauma. •/ Sue will never get married; she got messed up when she was a teenager. / 3. To beat up someone physically. •/ When Joe came in after the fight with the boys, he was all messed up. /

[method in (to) one’s madness] {n. phr.} A plan or organization of ideas hard to perceive at first, but that becomes noticeable after longer and closer examination. •/ We thought he was crazy to threaten to resign from the university but, when he was offered a tenured full professorship, we realized that there had been method in his madness. /

[mickey mouse(1)] {adj.} , {slang} Inferior; second rate; chicken; easy; gimmicky. •/ Watch out for Perkins; he’s full of mickey mouse ideas. /

[mickey mouse(2)] {n.} ( {derogatory} ) A stupid person; a policeman; a white man (as used by blacks).

[midair]See: UP IN THE AIR(2) also IN MIDAIR.

[middle]See: CHANGE HORSES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREAM, IN THE MIDDLE.

[middle ground] {n.} A place halfway between the two sides of an argument; a compromise. •/ John wanted to go running. Bill said it was too hot. Tom took the middle ground and suggested a hike. / •/ The committee found a middle ground between the two proposals. /

[middleman] {n.} A person or small business standing in an intermediary position between two parties. •/ A retail merchant is the middleman between the factory and the consumer. /

[middle of the road] {n. phr.} A way of thinking which does not favor one idea or thing too much; being halfway between two different ideas. •/ The teacher did not support the boys or the girls in the debate, but stayed in the middle of the road. /

[middle-of-the-road] {adj.} Favoring action halfway between two opposite movements or ideas; with ideas halfway between two opposite sides; seeing good on both sides. •/ The men who wrote the Constitution followed a middle-of-the-road plan on whether greater power belonged to the United States government or to the separate states. / •/ Senator Jones favors a middle-of-the-road policy in the labor-management dispute. /

[midfield stripe] {n.} The line across the center of a football field; the 50-yard line. •/ The visitors were able to cross the midfield stripe once during the whole game. /

[midnight oil]See: BURN THE MIDNIGHT OIL.

[midstream]See: CHANGE HORSES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREAM or CHANGE HORSES IN MIDSTREAM.

[might]See: WITH MIGHT AND MAIN.

[mighty]See: HIGH-AND-MIGHTY.

[mile]See: GIVE ONE AN INCH AND HE WILL TAKE A MILE, JAW DROP or JAW DROP A MILE, MISS BY A MILE, MISS IS AS GOOD AS A MILE.

[mile markers] {n.} , {slang} , {citizen’s band radio jargon} Small signs along interstate highways usually bearing a number. •/ The Smokey is located at 131 mile marker. /

[miles away] {adj. phr.} Inattentive; not concentrating. •/ When Betty said, "We have theater tickets for tonight," Ken didn’t react as his mind was miles away. /

[milk]See: CRY OVER SPILLED MILK.

[mill]See: RUN-OF-THE-MILL, THROUGH THE MILL.

[mill around] {v. phr.} To move impatiently in no particular direction. •/ The crowd milled around, waiting for the arrival of the president. /

[million]See: FEEL LIKE A MILLION, LOOK LIKE A MILLION DOLLARS.

[millstone around one’s neck] {n. phr.} An intolerable burden. •/ Max said that his old car was a millstone around his neck. / Compare: MONKEY ON ONE’S BACK.

[mince words] {v. phr.} To choose words carefully for the sake of politeness or deception. •/ I like people who speak frankly and truthfully without mincing words. /

[mind]See: CROSS ONE’S MIND or PASS THROUGH ONE’S MIND, GIVE A PIECE OF ONE’S MIND, HALF A MIND, IN MIND, IN ONE’S MIND’S EYE, MAKE UP ONE’S MIND, NEVER MIND, ON ONE’S MIND, OUT OF ONE’S HEAD or OUT OF ONE’S MIND, PUT IN MIND OF, READ ONE’S MIND.

[mind like a steel trap] {n. phr.} A very quick and understanding mind, which is quick to catch an idea. •/ Henry is not fond of sports, but he has a mind like a steel trap. / •/ A successful lawyer must have a mind like a steel trap. /

[mind one’s own business] {v. phr.} To not interfere in the affairs of others. •/ He finally got tired of her criticism and told her to mind her own business. /

[mind one’s p’s and q’s] {v. phr.} To be very careful what you do or say; not make mistakes. •/ When the principal of the school visited the class the students all minded their p’s and q’s. / •/ If you wish to succeed you must mind your p’s and q’s. / (From the old U.S. Navy when sailors marked on a board in the bar how many Pints and Quarts of liquor they had taken. It was bad manners to cheat.) Syn.: WATCH ONE’S STEP.

[mind-reader]See: READ ONE’S MIND.

[mind you] {v. phr.} , {informal} I want you to notice and understand. •/ Mind you, I am not blaming him. /

[mine]See: BACK TO THE SALT MINES, RUN OF THE MILL or RUN OF THE MINE.

[mine of information] {n. phr.} A person, a book, etc., that is a valuable source of information. •/ A dictionary can be a mine of information. / •/ He is a mine of information on the stock market. /

[minority leader] {n. phr.} The leader of the political party that has fewer votes in a legislative house. •/ The minority leader of the Senate supported the bill. / •/ The minority leader in the House of Representatives held a caucus. / Compare: MAJORITY LEADER.

[mint money]See: COIN MONEY.

[minutes of the meeting] {n. phr.} The notes taken by the recording secretary; of an official body or an association recording of what was said and transacted during the given session. •/ "Shall we accept the minutes of our last meeting as read by the secretary?" the chairman asked. /

[misfire] {v.} To fail to appeal; fall flat. •/ The standup comic’s jokes misfired with the audience. / Compare: GO OVER LIKE A LEAD BALLOON.

[miss]See: HEART SKIP A BEAT or HEART MISS A BEAT.

[miss a trick] {v. phr.} To fail to see, hear, or notice something of even the slightest importance. •/ He never misses a trick when it comes to the stock market. /

[miss by a mile] {v. phr.} , {informal} 1. To shoot at something and be far from hitting it; not hit near. •/ Jack’s first shot missed the target by a mile. / 2. To be very wrong; be far from right. •/ Lee tried to guess on the examination, but his answers missed by a mile. / 3. To fail badly; not succeed at all. •/ John Brown wanted to be governor but in the election he missed by a mile. /

[missing link]n. 1. Something needed to complete a group; a missing part of a chain of things. •/ A 1936 penny was the missing link in John’s collection of pennies. / •/ The detective hunted for the fact that was the missing link in the case. / 2. An unknown extinct animal that was supposed to be a connection between man and lower animals. •/ The missing link would be half man and half ape. /

[miss is as good as a mile]It is the same if one fails or misses something by much or by little. — A proverb. •/ We thought Tom had a home run but the ball went foul by inches. A miss is as good as a mile. /

[Missouri]See: FROM MISSOURI.

[miss out] {v.} , {informal} To fail; lose or not take a good chance; miss something good. •/ Jim’s mother told him he missed out on a chance to go fishing with his father because he came home late. / •/ You missed out by not coming with us; we had a great time. / Compare: LOSE OUT.

[miss the boat]also [miss the bus] {v. phr.} , {informal} To fail through slowness; to put something off until too late; do the wrong thing and lose the chance. •/ Mr. Brown missed the boat when he decided not to buy the house. / •/ In college he didn’t study enough so he missed the boat and failed to pass. / •/ Ted could have married Lena but he put off asking her and missed the boat. /