Adam Makkai - Словарь американских идиом: 8000 единиц

[throw out of gear] {v. phr.} 1. To separate the gears of (a car or some other machine) when you want to stop it. •/ When John wanted to stop, he threw the car out of gear and braked sharply. / 2. To stop or bother (what someone is doing or planning); confuse; upset. •/ The whole country was thrown out of gear by the assassination of the President. / •/ My mother’s illness threw my plans for the summer out of gear. /

[throw over] {v.} To give up for another; break your loyalty or attachment to. •/ Bob threw Mary over for a new girlfriend. / •/ Tom threw over those who helped him run for class president after he was elected. /

[throw the baby out with the bath (bathwater)] {v. phr.} To reject all of something because part is faulty. •/ God knows that there are weaknesses in the program, but if they act too hastily they may cause the baby to be thrown out with the bathwater. /

[throw the book at] {v. phr.} , {informal} To give the most severe penalty to (someone) for breaking the law or rules. •/ Because it was the third time he had been caught speeding that month, the judge threw the book at him. /

[throw together] {v.} 1. also [slap together]To make in a hurry and without care. •/ Bill and Bob threw together a cabin out of old lumber. / •/ The party was planned suddenly, and Mary threw together a meal out of leftovers. / 2. To put in with other people by chance. •/ The group of strangers was thrown together when the storm trapped them on the highway. / •/ Bill and Tom became friends when they were thrown together in the same cabin at camp. /

[throw up] {v.} 1. {informal} or {slang} [heave up]. To vomit. •/ The heat made him feel sick and he thought he would throw up. / •/ He took the medicine but threw it up a minute later. / 2. {informal} To quit; leave; let go; give up. •/ When she broke their engagement he threw up his job and left town. / 3. To build in a hurry. •/ The contractor threw up some temporary sheds to hold the new equipment. / 4. To mention often as an insult. •/ His father threw up John’s wastefulness to him. /

[throw up one’s hands] {v. phr.} To give up trying; admit that you cannot succeed. •/ Mrs. Jones threw up her hands when the children messed up the living room for the third time. / •/ When Mary saw the number of dishes to be washed, she threw up her hands in dismay. /

[throw up one’s hands in horror] {v. phr.} To be horrified; feel alarmed; give up hope of straightening things out; be shocked by something terrible. •/ When Mrs. Brown saw the mess the children were making in her living room, she threw up her hands in horror. / •/ Everybody threw up their hands in horror at the destruction caused by the hurricane. /

[throw up the sponge]See: THROW IN THE SPONGE.

[thumb]See: ALL THUMBS, GREEN THUMB, TURN THUMBS DOWN, TWIDDLE ONE’S THUMBS, UNDER ONE’S THUMB or UNDER THE THUMB OF.

[thumb a ride] {v. phr.} , {informal} To get a ride by hitchhiking; hitchhike. •/ Not having much money, Carl decided to thumb a ride to New York. /

[thumb one’s nose] {v. phr.} 1. To hold one’s open hand in front of one’s face with one’s thumb pointed at one’s nose as a sign of scorn or dislike. •/ After Bob ran into the house he thumbed his nose at Tom through the window. / 2. {informal} To look with disfavor or dislike; regard with scorn; refuse to obey. — Used with "at". •/ Betty thumbed her nose at her mother’s command to stay home. / •/ Mary thumbed her nose at convention by wearing odd clothes. / Compare: LOOK DOWN ON.

[thumb through] {v. phr.} To examine superficially; read cursorily. •/ I have read "War and Peace" but Fran has only thumbed through it. /

[thunder]See: BLOOD AND THUNDER, STEAL ONE’S THUNDER.

[thus and so]also [thus and thus] {adv. phr.} In a particular way; according to directions that have been given. •/ The teacher is very fussy about the way you write your report. If you don’t do it thus and so, she gives you a lower mark. /

[thus far]See: SO FAR.

[ticket]See: SPLIT TICKET, STRAIGHT TICKET, THE TICKET, WALKING PAPERS also WALKING TICKET.

[tickle pink] {v. phr.} , {informal} To please very much; thrill; delight. Usually used in the passive participle. •/ Nancy was tickled pink with her new dress. /

[tickle to death]See: TO DEATH.

[tick off] {v.} 1. To mention one after the other; list. •/ The teacher ticked off the assignments that Jane had to do. / 2. To scold; rebuke. •/ The boss ticked off the waitress for dropping her tray. / 3. To anger or upset. — Usually used as ticked off. •/ She was ticked off at him for breaking their dinner date again. /

[tide]See: TURN THE TIDE.

[tide over] {v.} To carry past a difficulty or danger; help in bad times or in trouble. •/ He was out of work last winter but he had saved enough money to tide him over until spring. / •/ An ice cream cone in the afternoon tided her over until supper. / Compare: SEE THROUGH.

[tide turn]See: TURN THE TIDE.

[tidy sum] {n. phr.} A large amount of money. •/ The Smith’s big new home cost them a tidy sum. / Compare: PRETTY PENNY.

[tie]See: FIT TO BE TIED.

[tie down] {v.} To keep (someone) from going somewhere or doing something; prevent from leaving; keep in. •/ Mrs. Brown can’t come to the party. She’s tied down at home with the children sick. / •/ The navy tied the enemy down with big gunfire while the marines landed on the beach. / •/ I can’t help you with history now! I’m tied down with these algebra problems. /

[tied to one’s mother’s apron strings]Not independent of your mother; not able to do anything without asking your mother. •/ Even after he grew up he was still tied to his mother’s apron strings. /

[tie in] {v.} To connect with something else; make a connection for. — Often used with "with". •/ The teacher tied in what she said with last week’s lesson. / •/ The English teacher sometimes gives compositions that tie in with things we are studying in other classes. / •/ The detectives tied in the fingerprints on the man’s gun with those found on the safe, so they knew that he was the thief. /

[tie-in] {n.} A connection; a point of meeting. •/ John’s essay on World War II provides a perfect tie-in with his earlier work on World War I. /

[tie in knots] {v. phr.} To make (someone) very nervous or worried. •/ The thought of having her tooth pulled tied Joan in knots. / •/ The little boy’s experience with the kidnapper tied him in knots and it was hard for him to sleep well for a long time. /

[tie into]See: LACE INTO.

[tie one’s hands] {v. phr.} To make (a person) unable to do anything. — Usually used in the passive. •/ Since Mary would not tell her mother what was bothering her, her mother’s hands were tied. / •/ Charles wanted to help John get elected president of the class, but his promise to another boy tied his hands. / •/ Father hoped Jim would not quit school, but his hands were tied; Jim was old enough to quit if he wanted to. /

[tie the knot] {v. phr.} , {informal} To get married; also to perform a wedding ceremony. •/ Diane and Bill tied the knot yesterday. / •/ The minister tied the knot for Diane and Bill yesterday. /

[tie up] {v. phr.} 1. To show or stop the movement or action of; hinder; tangle. •/ The crash of the two trucks tied up all traffic in the center of town. / •/ The strike tied up the factory. / 2. To take all the time of. •/ The meeting will tie the President up until noon. / •/ The Senate didn’t vote because a debate on a small point kept it tied up all week. / •/ He can’t see you now. He’s tied up on the telephone. / 3. To limit or prevent the use of. •/ His money is tied up in a trust fund and he can’t take it out. / •/ Susan tied up the bathroom for an hour. / 4. To enter into an association or partnership; join. •/ Our company has tied up with another firm to support the show. / 5. To dock. •/ The ships tied up at New York. / 6. {slang} To finish; complete. •/ We’ve talked long enough; let’s tie up these plans and start doing things. /

[tie-up] {n.} A congestion; a stoppage of the normal flow of traffic, business or correspondence. •/ There was a two-hour traffic tie-up on the highway. / •/ No pay checks were delivered because of the mail service tie-up. /

[tight]See: SIT TIGHT.

[tight end] {n.} An end in football who plays close to the tackle in the line. •/ The tight end is used to catch passes but most often to block. / Contrast: SPLIT END.

[tighten one’s belt] {v. phr.} To live on less money than usual; use less food and other things. •/ When father lost his job we had to tighten our belts. / Often used in the expression "tighten one’s belt another notch". •/ When the husband lost his job, the Smiths had to do without many things, but when their savings were all spent, they had to tighten their belts another notch. /

[tighten the screws] {v. phr.} To try to make someone do something by making it more and more difficult not to do it; apply pressure. •/ When many students still missed class after he began giving daily quizzes, the teacher tightened the screws by failing anyone absent four times. /

[tight-lipped] {adj.} A taciturn person; one who doesn’t say much. •/ The witness was tight-lipped about what she saw for fear of physical retaliation by the mob. /

[tight money] {n. phr.} The opposite of inflation, when money is hard to borrow from the banks. •/ The government decided that tight money is the way to bring down inflation. /

[tight squeeze] {n. phr.} A difficult situation; financial troubles. •/ The Browns aren’t going out to dinner these days; they are in a tight squeeze. /

[tightwad] {n. phr.} A stingy person. •/ My father is such a tightwad that he won’t give me an allowance. /

[Tijuana taxi] {slang} , {citizen’s band radio jargon} A police car. •/ I’ve got a Tijuana taxi in sight. /