1、 1. Head StartU.S. government tries to give extra help for those underprivileged children before entering first grade. (underprivileged poor ) 磺 Many poor parents send their children to Head Start. head starte advance start or advantage磺In order to give his son a head start, the father decided to se
2、nd him to a private kindergarten. () To know more colloquial expressions is a head start in learning English. () 2. blue blood (rich or wealthy people) 磺He has blue blood.He is blue blooded (person). Mr. Lin comes from a blue blooded family. () Some people do not want to admit that they have blue bl
3、ood. () Many blue blooded children attend this private school. () 3. bed of roses(everything seems to be wonderful) 磺Life is not always a bed of roses. () Young people think that marriage will be a bed of roses. () 4. from soup to nuts()磺This store sells everything from soup to nuts. () My office is
4、 supplied from soup to nuts. () from A to Z磺Mr. Greenspan knows economics from A to Z. () 5. real blastblast (have a good time; usually refers to a party or gathering.) 磺Miss Su had a (real) blast at the party. () I hope our get-together will be a (real) blast. () blast real 6. off-limits
5、(closed or not available)磺The library will be off-limits to the public until re-carpeting project is completed. () The teachers have the use of a john that is off-limits to students.() (john) This bathroom is off-limits to students. 7. next of kin(closest relatives or anyone in the family) r
6、;磺If a person has a serious car accident, his or her next of kin will be notified. () At the funeral all next of kin were in attendance. () The doctor should discuss the prognosis candidly with the next of kin. () All his property will eventually go to his next of kin. () kin治 s磺All my kin attended
7、the family get-together. () 8. fair-weather friend(being friend only during favorable time) 磺A fair-weather friend will not contact you during your time of hardship. () When she ignored him during his financial problem, he knew she was a fair-weather friend. ()9. real bomb real 磺The show was a real
8、bomb, so I cut out early. () (cut out = leave) bomb (very bad) 磺 A U.S. fighter dropped a bomb over Iraq. () ()= A U.S. fighter bombed Iraq. () The play has bombed. ()real bombr磺The police found a real bomb in the building. ()10. neck and neck(remain tie in any competition) 磺The horses came in neck
9、and neck across the finish line. () Last year George Bush and Al Gore almost remained neck and neck in the race for White House. ()(neck-and-neck) 11. through thick and thin (go through all adversity) 磺She feels like a fool for sticking with her husband through thick and thin.() He has walked throug
10、h thick and thin during the past five years. () 12. cry wolf(false alarm; call attention for something which is not true or not serious) 磺Dont cry wolf unless you really need help. ()Crying wolf is not a responsible behavior. ()Parents should teach their children not to cry wolf. ()13. banner year()
11、(a wonderful or fantastic year)磺This has been a banner year for Mrs. Lin.()With a promotion and marriage, he really had a banner year in 1998.(1998 飬) banner month banner day磺Mr. A had a banner month at his car dealership. (A) 14. shell company(fake company; just make it up) 磺They used fake receipts
12、 from shell companies with no staff or premises. () Shell companies are illegal in the U.S. () (company companies) 15. no dice飬(something not going to happen; not going to change; absolutely not)(dice)磺No dice, I will not change my position on this matter. () There was no dice he would be able to ge
13、t this job. () (no dice = no way) He asked her for more money, but she said no dice to him. ()I tried to contact Mr. Wang, but no dice.(跨磬)16. dislocated worker(refers to a person who lost a job or still looking for a job) ()磺There are 200 dislocated workers in our community when the company closed
14、its door. () To avoid being a dislocated worker, one needs a good education with skills. () 17. stick-in-the-mud鱣(old fashioned or unprogressive person)()磺He is a boring stick-in-the-mud. (浸) Being a stick-in-the-mud, people dont value his opinions. () ( old fogy old foggy stick-in-the-mud
15、)18. Take chances take a risk take a chance take no chances (to be cautious; careful) I take no chances =I take no risk () take (ones) chances 磺The soldier must take his chances in the battle. () Some people are more prone to take chances than others. () 19. Dogs life (hard and oppressive time or di
16、fficult time in life) 磺Over the past years she led a dogs life with her alcoholic husband. () Many new immigrants in the U.S. initially endure a dogs life. () 20. En masse (As a whole; a large group of people)忴 in mass磺The audience applauded en masse upon the completion of his speech. () Employees m
17、arched en masse to the company headquarters for pay raise. () 21. Con-man (crook)跨(someone who tries to gain your confidence, but later betray you) 磺Be careful of con-men; they may try to rip you off. () Beware of telephone con-men who may solicit for a fake charity. (绰) ( con-woman con-per
18、son con-people) 22. Walking dead man彡磺Due to severe illness, he now becomes a walking dead man. ()You are a walking dead manShe is a walking dead woman. They are walking dead persons ( people)23. Take heart (cheer up; dont worry; dont let something get you down; be cheerful; dont be discouraged) 磺Take heart, Mr. Chen, things will get better. () We have taken heart from the news of victory. () 24. Happy-go-lucky (not worry about anything; care free) 磺He has been happy-go-lucky all his life. () It is always better being happy-go-lucky versus being depressed. ()
