mouse 成语

as poor as a church mouse

very poor, having little, the wolf is at the door How can they refuse to help her? She's as poor as a church mouse.

build a better mousetrap

improve a common product If you're not an inventor, you try to build a better mousetrap.

play cat and mouse with someone

tease or fool someone by pretending to let him go free and then catching him again The boxer was playing cat and mouse with his opponent although he could have won easily.

poor as a church mouse

(See as poor as a church mouse)

play cat and mouse

tease or fool by pretending to let sb．go free and then catching him again欲擒故纵
The policeman decided to play cat and mouse when he saw the woman steal the dress in the store．警察发觉那女人在商店偷衣服时，他欲擒故纵，暂时先不抓她。

quiet as a mouse

Idiom(s): (as) quiet as a mouse

Theme: SHYNESS

very quiet; shy and silent. (Informal. Often used with children.)
• Don't yell; whisper. Be as quiet as a mouse.
• Mary hardly ever says anything. She's quiet as a mouse.

The mouse that has but one hole is quickly taken.

If you depend on just one thing, and it fails you, you will have no alternatives.

Mickey Mouse

If something is Mickey Mouse, it is intellectually trivial or not of a very high standard.

While the cat's away, the mouse will play

People whose behaviour is strictly controlled go over the top when the authority is not around, which is why most teenagers have parties when their parents have gone on holiday. The parents are the scary authority figures, but the cat's away and the kids are the mice partying and enjoying their freedom.

mickey mouse|mickey|mouse

mickey mouse¹ adj., slang Inferior; second rate; chicken; easy; gimmicky. Watch out for Perkins; he's full of mickey mouse ideas.
mickey mouse² n. (derogatory) A stupid person; a policeman; a white man (as used by blacks).

play cat and mouse with|cat|cat and mouse|mouse|pl

v. phr. To tease or fool (someone) by pretending to let him go free and then catching him again. Joe's uncle had fun playing cat and mouse with him. The policeman decided to play cat and mouse when he saw the woman steal the dress in the store.

poor as a church mouse|church|church mouse|mouse|p

adj. phr., informal Penniless; broke; extremely poor. The newly arrived boat people were poor as church mice.

mouse

mouse
see play cat and mouse; poor as a churchmouse; quiet as a mouse. Also see under mice.

poor as a churchmouse

poor as a churchmouse
Having little or no wealth and few possessions, as in She's poor as a churchmouse, so you can't expect her to donate anything. The reason for this long-used simile is unclear, but most believe that, since churches are not known for storing food, a mouse inside one would fare poorly. It has survived such earlier phrases as poor as Job. [Second half of 1600s]