to get off on the wrong foot
To get off on the wrong foot,这是指某人一开始就没给人一个好印象,或一开始由于某种行为而把事情弄糟了。下面这句话里说的这个人就是一个例子:
例句-13: When Joe went to his new job, he got off on the wrong foot. On the first morning he upset his new boss by arriving at the store two hours late. And right now he's out looking for a job again.
这个人说:"乔找到了一份新的工作,可是他刚开始到那家店里去上班时就给人一个坏印象。第一天上班他就晚到两个小时,让他的老板好不高兴。现在他又在找工作了。"
To get off on the wrong foot这个俗语实际上可以适用于任何情况。下面一个例子是一个男学生在说他交女朋友的情况:
例句-14: I finally got a date with that new girl in class but I sure got off on the wrong foot with her: I had car trouble and got to her place almost two hours late.
他说:"那天我终于和班上新来的那个女同学约好了出去玩。可是,当天我的车出了问题,晚了两个小时才去接她,所以我一开头就把事弄糟了。"