Словарь американских идиом (8000 единиц)

[touch to the quick] <v. phr.> To hurt someone's feelings very deeply; offend. * /His remark about her lack of education touched her to the quick./

[touchup] <n.> 1. A small repair; a small amount of paint. * /Just a small touchup here and there and your novel may be publishable./ 2. Redoing the color of one's hair. * /My roots are showing; I need a touchup./

[touch up] <v.> 1. To paint over (small imperfections.) * /I want to touch up that scratch on the fender./ * /The woodwork is done, but there are a few places he has to touch up./ 2. To improve with small additions or changes. * /He touched up the photographic negative to make a sharper print./ * /It's a good speech, but it needs a little touching up./ 3. <slang> To talk into lending; wheedle from. * /He touched George up for five bucks./

[tough act to follow] <n. phr.> A speech, performance, or activity of such superior quality that the person next in line feels and thinks that it would be very difficult to match it in quality. * /Sir Lawrence Olivier's performance of Hamlet was a tough act to follow in every sense./

[tough break] See: TOUGH LUCK, TOUGH SHIT.

[tough cat] <n.>, <slang> A man who is very individualistic and, as a result, highly successful with women. * /Joe is a real tough cat, man./

[tough cookie] <n. phr.> An extremely determined, hardheaded person, or someone with whom it is unusually difficult to deal. * /Marjorie is a very pretty girl, but when it comes to business she sure is one tough cookie./

[tough it out] <v. phr.> To live through and endure a trying situation. * /The tourists got lost in the desert without a compass, and they had to tough it out for three days on a single bottle of water./

[tough luck] <n. phr.> An informal way to say that one had that coming; it serves one right. * /So your date didn't show up, eh? Tough luck, fellow./

[tough nut to crack] See: HARD NUT TO CRACK.

[tough row to hoe] See: HARD ROW TO HOE.

[tough shit] <n. phr.>, <vulgar>, <avoidable> See: HARD CHEESE, TOUGH LUCK.

[tough sledding] See: HARD SLEDDING.

[tourist trap] See: CLIP JOINT.

[to use] See: PUT TO USE.

[tow] See: IN TOW.

[towel] See: THROW IN THE SPONGE or THROW IN THE TOWEL.

[tower of strength] <n. phr.> Someone who is strong, helpful, and sympathetic, and can always be relied on in times of trouble. * /John was a veritable tower of strength to our family while my father was in the war and my mother lay ill in the hospital./

[town] See: GO TO TOWN, ON THE TOWN, PAINT THE TOWN RED.

[town and gown] <n.> The residents of a college town and the students and teachers of the college. * /The senator made a speech attended by both town and gown./ * /There were fights between town and gown./

[toy with an] or [the idea] <v. phr.> To consider an idea or an offer periodically without coming to a decision. * /He was toying with the idea of accepting the company's offer of the vice presidency in Tokyo, but he was unable to decide./

[to your hat] See: HANG ON TO YOUR HAT or HOLD ON TO YOUR HAT.

[trace] See: KICK OVER THE TRACES also JUMP THE TRACES.

[track] See: COVER ONE'S TRACKS, IN ONE'S TRACKS, INSIDE TRACK, JUMP THE TRACK, KEEP TRACK, LOSE TRACK, MAKE TRACKS, OFF THE BEATEN TRACK, ON THE TRACK OF, THE TRACKS.

[track down] <v.> To find by or as if by following tracks or a trail. * /The hunters tracked down game in the forest./ * /She spent weeks in the library tracking the reference down in all their hooks on the subject./ Compare: HUNT DOWN.

[trade] See: CARRIAGE TRADE, HORSE TRADE, TRICKS OF THE TRADE.

[trade in] <v.> To give something to a seller as part payment for another thing of greater value. * /The Browns traded their old car in on a new one./ Syn.: TURN IN(3).

[trade-in] <n.> Something given as part payment on something better. * /The dealer took our old car as a trade-in./ - Often used like an adjective. * /We cleaned up the car at trade-in time./

[trade on] <v.> To use as a way of helping yourself. * /The coach traded on the pitcher's weakness for left-handed batters by using all his southpaws./ * /The senator's son traded on his father's name when he ran for mayor./

[trading stamp] <n.> One of the stamps that you get (as from a store or gas station) because you buy something there; a stamp you get with a purchase and save in special books until you have enough to take to a special store and trade for something you want. * /Mother always buys things in stores where they give trading stamps./

[trail] See: BLAZE A TRAIL, ON THE TRACK OF or ON THE TRAIL OF.

[trail-blazer] See: BLAZE A TRAIL.

[trap] See: MIND LIKE A STEEL TRAP, SAND TRAP, SPEED TRAP.

[travel light] <v. phr.> To travel with very little luggage or with very little to carry. * /Plane passengers must travel light./ * /Tom and Fred traveled light on their camping trip./

[tread on the toes of] or [tread on one's toes] See: STEP ON THE TOES OF or STEP ON ONE'S TOES.

[tread water] <v. phr.> To keep the head above water with the body in an upright position by moving the feet as if walking. * /He kept afloat by treading water./

[treat] See: TRICK OR TREAT.

[tree] See: BARK UP THE WRONG TREE, CAN'T SEE THE WOOD FOR THE TREES, UP A TREE.

[trembling] See: FEAR AND TREMBLING.

[trial] See: ON TRIAL.

[trial and error] <n.> A way of solving problems by trying different possible solutions until you find one that works. * /John found the short circuit by trial and error./ * /The only way Tom could solve the algebra problem was by the method of trial and error./

[trial balloon] <n.> A hint about a plan of action that is given out to find out what people will say. * /John mentioned the class presidency to Bill as a trial balloon to see if Bill might be interested in running./ * /The editorial was a trial balloon to test the public's reaction to a change in the school day./

[trice] See: IN A FLASH also IN A TRICE.

[trick] See: DO THE TRICK, TURN THE TRICK.

[trick of the trade] <n. phr.>, <usually in plural>, <informal> 1. A piece of expert knowledge; a smart, quick, or skillful way of working at a trade or job. * /Mr. Olson spent years learning the tricks of the trade as a carpenter./ * /Any one can learn how to hang wallpaper, but only an expert can show you the tricks of the trade./ 2. A smart and sometimes tricky or dishonest way of doing something in order to succeed or win. * /The champion knows all the tricks of the boxing trade; he knows many ways to hurt his opponent and to get him mixed up./