keyed up

If you are keyed up, you are very excited or nervous before an important or dangerous event.
I wasn't able to sleep that night, I was so keyed up.
= tense

keyed up with/about/at
worried or excited
　Travis was keyed up at the thought of seeing Rosie again.

複習brush

After he jumped off, he stood up and brushed himself off.

a trooper was shot by friendly fire

to remove something with a brush or with your hand
brush sth off/from etc sth
　Ella brushed the crumbs off her jacket.
　He brushed the tears from his eyes.
to touch someone or something lightly when passing them
　Something brushed her shoulders.

brush yourself down
to use your hands to remove dirt from your clothes, especially after you have fallen
a time when you only just avoid an unpleasant situation or argument

brush with
　His first brush with the law came when he was arrested for disorderly behaviour.
　A brush with death can make you appreciate life more.

brush up (on) [brush up (on) sth]
to practise and improve your skills or your knowledge of something that you learned in the past
　I must brush up on my French before I go to Paris.

If you have a brush with someone, you have an argument or disagreement with them.

一則笑話

　Simon was an inveterate fisherman, well known for exaggerating the size of "the one that got away". But there came a day when he actually caught two enormous flounders. He immediately invited a few friends over to dine, then tried to figure out how best to serve the fish." If I use both," he told his wife, "it will seem ostentatious."

　　"Why not serve a piece of each?" she suggested.

　　"No, if I cut them up, nobody will believe I caught two giant flounders." Simon racked his brain. Then he had an idea.

　　The guests were seated at the table when their host strode in with a platter, holding the biggest flounder they'd ever seen. Suddenly Simon stumbled and fell. Everyone cried out in dismay as the fish crashed to the floor, but Simon quickly brushed himself off.

　　"Dear, " he called out to his wife, "bring in the other flounder!"

ostentatious
something that is ostentatious looks very expensive and is designed to make people think that its owner must be very rich
platter
especially AmE a large plate from which food is served

brushed himself off
脫離窘境

rough up

rough it informal
to live for a short time in conditions that are not very comfortable
To live without the usual comforts and conveniences:
roughed it in a small hunting shack.
I don't mind roughing it for a while.
rough out　
to draw or write something without including all the details
　a diagram the engineer had roughed out on his notepad
rough up
informal to attack someone and hurt them by hitting them
The police officers roughed them up.

get under one's skin

with flying colors
With complete or outstanding success: passed the Latin examination with flying colors.

get under one's skin
irritate; "Her childish behavior really get to me"; "His lying really gets me"
He uses anything he can to get under our skin.
這句話是從星際trek Q2 來的。

To affect deeply: “At first I couldn't get Wanda to notice me, but now I think I've gotten under her skin.”

under the skin, in essence; fundamentally; despite appearances or differences: sisters under the skin.

skin alive, Informal.
a. to reprimand; scold.
b. to subdue completely, esp. in a cruel or ruthless manner: The home team was skinned alive this afternoon.

on the clock

go overboard
to do or say something that is too extreme for a particular situation
I hope politicians will not go overboard in trying to control the press.
With the new price cuts coming, I might be tempted to build a Q9650 or Q9550 to tided me over the next 3 yrs and then go with an upgrade.

on the clock
　a car with 43,000 miles on the clock

for Phenom 2 to be able to compete with a Q9400/Q9550 or above it has to be able to hit 4.2 Ghz on air atleast, because the Q9400/Q9550 are faster clock for clock and can hit 3.8/4.0Ghz respectively. That is the problem.
opening salvo
the first in a series of questions, statements etc that you use to try to win an argument

composite sketch

Police released a composite image late Tuesday of the woman seen in the video with Tori Stafford, the eight-year-old who was abducted two weeks ago in Woodstock, Ont.

AmE a composite drawing or photograph consists of pictures of each separate part of the face put together into one drawing, and is used especially to help catch criminals

MAT LEAVE

But three days before her leave ended she was told her job was redundant — even though someone else was still doing her job.
If you are made redundant, your employer tells you to leave because your job is no longer necessary or because your employer cannot afford to keep paying you. (BRIT BUSINESS; in AM, use be dismissed)

Instead, Petkovski took a severance package and moved on.
severance pay/package
money or other things that you get when you have to leave a company because your employer no longer has a job for you

We're just little peons trying to fight these corporations who have deep pockets and fancy Bay Street lawyers, and we're moms trying to get on with our lives," she said.
Bay Street 加拿大金融界

20/20 vision of hindsight

rather than with 20/20 vision of hindsight

It means that it's very easy to be wise/knowledgeable after events have happened. The 20/20 is a way of medically recording perfect vision.

It's a common saying in the U.S. An Americanism, the term originated about 1940 and soon was transferred to other examples of twenty-twenty (20/20) hindsight.

這句話讓我想到了
Monday morning quarterback
n. Informal
One who criticizes or passes judgment from a position of hindsight.

Don't burn your mouth

It's a jump ball for market share
The soup is very hot. Don't burn your mouth.
slow on the uptake
not quick to understand something new
Sometime Tim's a little slow on the uptake.
slow off the mark
not quick enough at reacting to something
do a slow burn
AmE informal to slowly get angry


food scraps

Absolute horse poop!!
The lawyer for Dziekanski's mother said police officers aren't off the hook just because they perceived something. The perception must be reasonable, he said.
"off the hook" means that you will not be punished for a rule or agreement you violated.



Bubble blowers are among the oldest and most popular of children's toys. Even when families had no money for toys, they could find a wire to twist into a circle and some soap for blowing bubbles.

Suds are the bubbles that are produced when a substance such as soap is mixed with water

barnstorm

brought a beaming Cowell and fellow judges Piers Morgan and Amanda Holden to their feet.

bring (one) to one's feet and bring something to its feet
to make someone or an audience rise up applauding or cheering in approval or in salute to someone or something. (Usually refers to an audience.)

gob·smacked /ˈgɔbsmækt US ˈgɑːb-/ adj BrE spoken informal
very surprised or shocked

barnstorm---
AmE to travel from place to place making short stops to give political speeches, theatre performances, or aircraft flying shows

a barnstorming audition on "Britain's Got Talent

These tights are all itchy.

feet of clay
someone that you admire who has feet of clay has faults and weaknesses that you did not realize they had

wipe your feet (=wipe them on a mat to remove dirt)

shuffle your feet (=move from one foot to the other)

get/have cold feet informal
to suddenly feel that you are not brave enough to do something you planned to do

stage fright n
nervousness felt by someone who is going to perform in front of a lot of people

itchy fingers informal
someone with itchy fingers is likely to steal things

if clothes are itchy, they make your skin feel slightly unpleasant, so that you want to rub your skin with your nails
= scratchy
　These tights are all itchy.

wanting to go somewhere new or do something different
　I've only been back home for a few months and I've already got itchy feet (=the desire to go somewhere new)

wail on

A convenience store customer conveniently comes to the rescue. At first, the guy you saw looked like he's shopping for something to snack on. You can see now, that is not the case. He was craving what was in the cash register. But the guy in the back steps up from the booth, leaps into action, you don't want to see that coming at you. He grabbed a stepstool and wailed on the would-be robber. The guy got away, but not without suffering some serious punishment and dropping some cash on his way out the door.

wail on ---
To strike an opponent heavily and repeatedly in a fight; To beat heavily on anything

Render unto Caesar

He said surveys -- including one done recently in Queens, New York,
where children reported being on the receiving end of verbal and physical abuse --
chronicle the problems Sikhs face.

Just another ignorant sadistic stooge protecting the corrupt corporate elite.

It shows how afraid the manipulative ruling class are of the ordinary people.
stooge /stuːdʒ/
informal someone who is used by someone else to do something unpleasant, dishonest, or illegal - used to show disapproval

"Render unto Caesar…" is the beginning of a phrase attributed to Jesus in the synoptic gospels which reads in full, “Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s”

administer sth to sb

treat somebody with kid gloves also handle somebody with kid gloves
to deal with someone very gently or carefully

A group of graduating seniors opted for construction over destruction, building a garden in an on-campus traffic island.

We will target their ships because we know their flags. Last night, an American-flagged ship escaped us by a whisker.
by a whisker---- by a very small amount

"The Canadian government evokes women's rights as the primary motivating factor in our involvement in Afghanistan, and yet when it deals with Saudi Arabia it puts on kid gloves," said NDP deputy leader Thomas Mulcair.

administer sth to sb
to give someone a medicine or medical treatment
　Painkillers were administered to the boy.
　This unit teaches students how to administer First Aid .

leapfrog the competition
If one group of people leapfrogs into a particular position or leapfrogs someone else, they use the achievements of another person or group in order to make advances of their own.

See ya later, alligator.

After while, crocodile!

water taxi
A ferryboat that takes passengers to a variety of possible destinations instead of operating over a fixed route.

knockoff

Castro said Cuba had "resisted and it will continue to resist.""It will never beg for alms. It will go on forward holding its head up high.
Alms are gifts of money, clothes, or food to poor people.

While her starting salary is less than she hoped to get with a masters' degree, she says there are other perks.Perks are special benefits that are given to people who have a particular job or belong to a particular group.
...a company car, private medical insurance and other perks...
One of the perks of being a student is cheap travel.

brigandish
like a brigand or robber

The rebels have dismissed the brief truce as an "act of hoodwinking" designed to deflect mounting international concern over the fate of civilians trapped in a narrow area in the northeast along with rebel fighters.
hoodwink
to trick someone in a clever way so that you can get an advantage for yourself

knockoff AmE informal
a cheap copy of something expensive

debit card
a plastic card with your signature on that you can use to pay for things. The money is taken directly from your bank account

a bad rap

The plan was foiled thanks to a dog which usually gets a bad rap.

Hobbs, 29, a probationary firefighter graduated from training in March.

Santa Clara County declared a local state of emergency to allow officials to recoup some of the costs of maintaining public safety while the 911 system was down, Alexiou said

snippet

a bum/bad rap
especially AmE informal unfair treatment or punishment
　Cleveland always gets a bum rap in the press.

jump someone---attack someone


recoup--to get back an amount of money you have lost or spent


on probation
　a period of time, during which an employer can see if a new worker is suitable
　a three month probation period

A probationary period is a period after someone starts a job, during which their employer can decide whether the person is suitable and should be allowed to continue.

來自棒球的俚語

Someone who is on the ball is intelligent and able to do a good job. But a person who threw a curve ball did something unexpected. Someone who steps up to the plate is ready to do his or her job. A pinch hitter takes the place of someone else at a job or activity.

A person who strikes out or goes down swinging attempted something but failed. We also might tell the person that three strikes and you are out. But someone who hit a home run or hit it out of the park did something extremely well.

Sometimes I have to give information quickly, without time to think it over. Then I would say something right off the bat. If someone is doing an extremely good job and is very successful, you might say he or she is batting one thousand.

If I say I want to touch base with you, I will talk to you from time to time about something we plan to do. I might say I touched all the bases if I did what is necessary to complete a job or activity. And if I covered my bases I was well prepared. However, someone who is way off base did something wrong or maybe even dishonest or immoral. A person with strange ideas might be described as out in left field.

Let us say I want to sell my car but I do not know exactly how much it is worth. If someone asks me the price, I might give a ballpark figure or a ballpark estimate.

If someone offers me an amount that is close to my selling price, I might say the amount is in the ballpark. However, if I say we are not in the same ballpark, I mean we cannot agree because my ideas are too different from yours.

Finally, when a situation changes completely, we say that is a whole new ballgame.

常用成語(聽力練習1)

a la carte. a la carte.

means ordering single items you want, not a package.
Or, With a separate price for each item on the menu.
for example, A set meal is $26, or you can eat à la carte.

do an about face, do an about face.
means to do a complete change in the way someone thinks or behaves.
for example, Few observers believe the president will do an about-face and start spending more.

stay Abreast of, stay Abreast of.
Means to make sure that you know all the most recent facts or information about a particular subject or situation.
for example, It's important to keep abreast of the latest developments in computers.



Abuzz with, abuzz with.
If someone says that a place is abuzz with rumours or plans, they mean that everyone there is excited about them. (JOURNALISM).

Account for, account for.
Means to form a particular amount or part of something.
　for example, Afro-Americans account for 12% of the US population.
to be the reason why something happens, explain.
　for example, Recent pressure at work may account for his behavior.
to give a satisfactory explanation of why something has happened, or why you did something.

By some accounts, by some accounts. Means according to some people

by all accounts, by all accounts.
Means From all reports available, from what everyone is saying.
For example, By all accounts the party was a great success.

Ace in the hole, ace in the hole.

Informal, means something that you keep secretly to use when you need it.
for example,　That fifty dollars is my ace in the hole.

Across the board. across the board. if something happens or is done across the board. it affects everyone in a particular group, place etc. If a policy or a situation applies across the board. it affects everything or everyone in a particular group.

scalping Obama commencement tickets

Arizona State students scalping Obama commencement tickets
scalp---AmE informal to buy tickets for an event and sell them again at a much higher price
賣黃牛票

Midway through the presentation, protesters came on stage castigating Summers personally and his role in the government's bailout of the banks. They displayed a banner that read we want our money back.
If you castigate someone or something, you speak to them angrily or criticize them severely. (FORMAL)

have your panties in a knot

Megsy you have your panties in a knot. How do you know he wasn't going to co-operate. You sound like a cop with an attitude.
Agitated, upset, anxious.
-----------
too many paranoid pot smokers are...better cut back on the bud, it's making you nuts
If you nip something such as bad behaviour in the bud, you stop it before it can develop very far. (INFORMAL)

Chu said officers have since been told they don't have blanket authority to take cameras from the media or the public, unless they have made an arrest, have a warrant or believe important evidence may be destroyed.
You use blanket to describe something when you want to emphasize that it affects or refers to every person or thing in a group, without any exceptions.
There's already a blanket ban on foreign unskilled labour in Japan.
= comprehensive


His friend Daren Mckay said Brass still has the barbs from when he was repeatedly stunned when Mounties arrested him on the reserve in September.

A dozen warships from countries including Britain, France, Germany, Iran and the United States dot the now notorious waters in the gulf in an attempt to deter pirate attacks.

like maybe a zip code or two off

今天的洋基開幕戰CC Sabathia 四又三分一局就被打爆，5-10。
Sabathia was a little off with his control in his dreadful Yankees debut -- like maybe a zip code or two off.
有一球洋基打出一支很可能是安打的球被球迷沒收了，教練卻沒有要求看重播。
He said he didn't make the request when the umps sounded sure of themselves, an unworthy alibi indeed. 很爛的藉口

But there will be pressure aplenty for start No. 2, because he can't possibly throw up two clinkers like this in a row, not for $161 million. He can't, can he?

aplenty ---literary in large amounts, especially more than you need

clinker---AmE informal something or someone that is a total failure


Try to ride it out.(在看cbs新聞有關經濟的報導)
試著渡過難關。
If someone rides out a storm or a crisis, they manage to survive a difficult period without suffering serious harm.
if you ride out a difficult situation, you are not badly harmed by it

get the butterflies

今天在看CBC多倫多線上新聞的時候聽的的片語，差一點就聽不出來。
a grab bag of project all over the Go system

在大聯盟官網上看到的，差一點就看不懂。
You still get the butterflies, you still get the sleepless nights. It's good. It's like that excitement, it's that nervous energy. And that's what you're looking for," Mets third baseman David Wright said.

這是obama在捷克的演講
there have been times where America's showed arrogance and been dismissive, even derisive. "But in Europe, there is an anti-Americanism that is at once casual but can also be insidious.

Google's ambitious plan to offer a 3-D street level view of communities across three continents hit a snag when angry residents of a UK village blocked the search engine's camera car from photographing their homes.

這是加拿大人抱怨總是買不到新的科技產品，往好的方面想，可以累積需求的能量。
Rather than turn off people, having to wait may actually build up pent-up demand.

Students pitch in as Winnipeg fights rising Red River
Everyone pitched in with efforts to entertain the children.

必備單字、片語

grab bag of---a mixture of different things or styles
　The treaty covers a grab bag of issues.
If you have butterflies (in your stomach), you are very nervous or excited about something. (INFORMAL)
An exam, or even an exciting social event may produce butterflies in the stomach.
dismissive --refusing to consider someone or something seriously
derisive ---showing that you think someone or something is stupid or silly
an insidious change or problem spreads gradually without being noticed, and causes serious harm
hit a snag----To encounter an unexpected problem or delay
pent-up feelings or energy have not been expressed or used for a long time
　years of pent-up anger and frustration
pitch in
to join others and help with an activity
　If we all pitch in, we'll have it finished in no time.
pitch in with　
to join others and pay part of the money towards something
　They all pitched in and the money was collected within a few days.

throw under the bus

To throw (someone) under the bus ------ scapegoat or reject.

這個片語在2004年起大量被運動記者引用而開始流行，到2008年擴散到主流媒體。
通常是用來描述政治刻意和不受歡迎的人和爭議人物保持距離。
David Segal, 華盛頓郵報的記者, 稱這個用法為 "the cliché of the 2008 campaign."

例子：

• "He not only threw me under the bus, he backed up and ran over me again."
• 
  
• "His public performance in the last 24 hours has had the unintended consequence of throwing Senator Obama's campaign under the bus."
• 
  
• "Did the press secretary know it when he threw the president's own father under the wheels of the bus of history, last night?"
• 
  
• "When Obama cited [his grandmother] in his speech on race last spring, the right immediately accused him of 'throwing his grandmother under the bus.'"

hit the nail on the head

最近的重點擺在聽力。
目前周一到周五的白天下載加拿大CBC "the world at six"28分鐘,
美國cbs "evening news with Katie Couric"22分鐘，
還有cnn student news 10分鐘，
晚上，則看加拿大cbc多倫多線上新聞一個小時。

I'm going to be coming back onshore from a rig in the Gulf of Mexico tomorrow. Didn't really need to read this story tonight.
rig a large structure that is used for getting oil from the ground under the sea
AmE informal a large truck


She had this sort of outgoing, bubbly, vivacious personality, a caring person
Someone who is bubbly is very lively and cheerful and talks a lot.

vivacious --someone, especially a woman, who is vivacious has a lot of energy and a happy attractive manner - used to show approval

hit the nail on the head--- To identify something exactly;
to arrive at exactly the right answerto be absolutely correct or accurate

bust a move--這是美國的新聞記者在播報新聞，兩人一起做一些好笑的動作。

cash for clunkers----AmE informal (這是美國汽車的剌激方案)
an old car or other machine that does not work well

it's so kinky-----(這是英國某部長的先生買色情dvd用公費報帳)
informal having or showing unusual ways of getting sexual excitement
kinky sex videos

pistachio--開心果(最近美國加州有很多食物中毒的案例)