No. 168
 
dyed-in-the-wool
彻底的，彻头彻尾的

A: Susan's a dyed-in-the-wool communist, and you can't change her mind.
B: Yeah, she told me there will still be a revolution.

此表现、本来是「还未纺织之前已经染上了色」的意思、用于毛织物。在上面的例句的表现中、要注意其轻微的蔑视语气。

【中文翻译】
A:苏珊是彻底的共产主义者、你不可能改变她的念头。
B:嗯，她还告诉我一场革命还将到来。

 
No. 167
cloak and dagger
关于间谍的(电影或传说)

A: The stories about the company are like a cloak and dagger tale.
B: Why don't you write about it then, and make some extra money?

改固定短语由1946年的美国电影「外套与短剑(Cloak And Dagger)」而来。间谍电影经典之作，后来片名成为间谍情节的代名词。

【中文翻译】
A:公司的来历、就像是一个间谍故事。
B:那你为何不借此写部书，挣点外快呢?

 
No. 166
blow one's own horn
骄傲，为。。。自豪

A: I'm tired of working with Renaldo.
B: Yeah, he's always blowing his own horn about all the beautiful girlfriends he has.

解说略

【中译】
A:和雷纳尔多一起工作已经受够了。
B:嗯，他老是为漂亮女友们而洋洋自得。

 
No. 165
one's blood runs cold
提心吊胆

A: My blood runs cold whenever I see my former husband.
B: He does too probably. Why don't you move to another town?

be filled with horror、feel(get) shivers down one's spine都是相类似的短语。former husbandは「前夫」。也叫ex-husband。

【中文翻译】
A:我一见到以前的老公，就胆战心惊。
B:他可能也是如此吧。为何不搬家到别处去?

 
No. 164
bitter pill to swallow
难以忍受之苦

A: Breaking up with his girlfriend was a bitter pill to swallow for Tom.
B: But he deserved it. He was seeing someone else at the same time.

break up(分手)、see(和某人交往)乃是恋爱英语的基本词汇，值得记住。

【中文翻译】
A:对于汤姆来说，和女友分手实在是难忍的痛苦。
B:但他是活该。谁叫他脚踏两条船。

 
No. 163
ivory tower
象牙塔，理想世界

A: Yvonne has spent all her adult life in an ivory tower. How can she work in an office?
B: A large salary should be easy to convince her.

ivory tower(象牙塔)、是指「(脱离现实社会的)学问，思想，艺术的世界、理想的世界」的意思。略有讽刺意味。

【中文翻译】
A:Yvonne的成人后一直生活在象牙塔中。她如何能在公司里工作？
B:高薪水应该轻易的使她心悦诚服（的答应工作）。

 
No. 162
smell a rat
感觉到异常，

A: Someone has been touching my computer. I smell a rat.
B: It's not me. Ask your cat if he's been walking on your keys.

直译便是「(猫)闻到老鼠的气味」。引申为、「凭直觉发现，本能的感觉到」的意思。

【中文翻译】
A:有人动了我的电脑。总觉得不对劲。
B:不是我。去问问你的猫是否在你的键盘上爬过。