Meaning: acathexia

n.
an inability to retain bodily secretions

athe Idiom, Proverb

a feather in your cap

an honor, a credit to you, chalk one up for you Because you are Karen's teacher, her award is a feather in your cap.

a grandfather clause

a written statement that protects a senior worker They can't demote him because he has a grandfather clause.

birds of a feather flock together

people who are similar become friends or join together Don

breathe a sigh of relief

feel relieved after a time of worry When we saw the children were safe, we breathed a sigh of relief.

breathe down my neck

watch everything I do, follow me as I work It's difficult to work with him breathing down my neck.

breathe down one

follow closely, threaten from behind My boss has been breathing down my neck all day to try and get me to work harder.

breathe easy

relax, breathe slower, stop worrying "Mother said, ""I won't breathe easy until this plane is on the ground!"""

breathe one's last

to die The man finally breathed his last after a long illness.

fair-weather friend

a person who is a friend only when one is successful He is a fair-weather friend only and you can

feather a pass (hockey)

pass a puck accurately but softly Nilsson could feather a pass better than the other players.

feather in one

something to be proud of, an honor Winning the speech contest was a feather in his cap and we are very proud of him.

feather in your cap

(See a feather in your cap)

feather one

look after one

feather your nest

make a comfortable place, prepare your future place, nest egg Charles became a professor and began to feather his nest at the University of Manitoba.

gathering dust

not being used, sitting on a shelf, collecting dust That old coffee tray has been gathering dust for years.

grandfather clause

a written statement that protects an employee "They can't demote him; he has a grandfather clause."

horse feathers

lies, false stories, bull, a bunch of malarkey "When she told her dad she saw a ghost, he said, ""Horse feathers!"""

knock me over with a feather

I was very surprised, I could not believe it, blow me down When she told me she was married to my ex-husband, you could have knocked me over with a feather.

like father, like son

sons are like their fathers, a chip off the old block This is Fred, and this is Fred, Jr. Like father, like son.

ruffle your feathers

annoy you, bother you, get your dander up Don't let that insult ruffle your feathers. Don't let it upset you.

tar and feather

punish severely The teacher said that she would tar and feather anyone who didn

under the weather

" ill; sick; unwell."

weather the storm

survive a crisis, live through tough times Pat lost his job and I had surgery, but we weathered the storm.

bathers

swimming/bathing costume [Aust./N.Z.]

brass monkey weather

very cold weather

leather Tuscadero

female equivalent of The Fonz that appeared on Happy Days:"Now he's zipped up like leather Tuscadero" -- Ice Cube (We had to tear this motherfucker up [1992])

leatherface

an emotionless person

breathe out

1．exhale；emit by breathing 呼气；呼出
He breathed out．他呼了口气。
He breathed out whisky fumes．他呼出一股威士忌酒气。
2．whisper 低声说出
He breathed out the secret．他低声地说出了这个秘密。
He breathed out their names just before he died．他临死前低声说出了他们的名字。

feather in one's cap

sth．to be proud of； an honor值得骄傲的事；荣誉
It was a feather in his cap to win first prize．他赢得一等奖，真是件值得骄傲的事情。
It'll be a feather in your cap if you can get an interview with him．你如果能见到他，那将是件值得骄傲的事。
It is no small feather in a man's cap if he has been no worse than his neighbours．一个人如果不比周围人差，那是一件很值得骄傲的事。

feather one's nest

1．use for yourself money and power，esp．from a public office 营私；饱私囊
He used his position and in fluence to feather his nest．他利用自己的地位和权势谋取私利。
She may do something for you，but she'll be feathering her own nest at the same time．她会为你做些好事，但同时她会从中捞些好处。
Before liberation，many officials feathered their nests through corruption．解放前，许多官吏通过贪污中饱私囊。
2． make one's home pleasant and comfortable；decorate one's house装饰家庭
Furniture stores welcome young couples who want to feather their nests．家俱店很欢迎想装饰房屋的年轻夫妇光临。

gather round

form a crowd near聚集在…周围；环绕
A small crowd gathered round the speaker to hear what he had to say．一小群人围在演讲者周围听他讲什么。

gather up

1．collect all one's power fof a strong effort鼓起勇气；打起精神
After he had been hit， he got up，gathered himself up and ran off．他被击倒后又爬了起来，振作一下就跑掉了。
You'd better gather yourself up to try again．你最好鼓起勇气再试一下。
He gathered up his strength for a hard job．他集中精力去干一项艰苦的工作。
2．pick up and place together；accumulate集拢；收集；概括
Gathering up his scattered papers，he pushed them into his case．他将散落的文件收拢起来，放入箱子里。
Gathering up the thread of his story，he set about writing．他收集整理了故事的线索，开始写作。
The title best gathers up the subject．这个标题把问题很好地概括起来了。
We gathered up a great amount of firsthand data．我们收集了大量的第一手资料。

had rather/had sooner

choose to（do one thing instead of another）；like better to；would prefer to宁可；宁愿
He invited me to the movies，but I had rather go on a picnic with the girls．他邀请我去看电影，但我倒是喜欢跟女孩们去野餐。
I had sooner live in the city than in the countryside．我宁愿住在城里而不愿住在乡村。

had rather sooner

had rather…than

would regard as preferable；had better宁愿…不愿
He had rather die than surrender．他宁死不屈。

or rather

it would be better to say更确切地说
He came home very late last night，or rather very early this morning．他昨天深夜，或者更确切地说，今天凌晨才回家。

rather than

more willingly…than；instead of 宁可…也不；而不
The dictator relied on abuse of his opponents rather than on sound reasoning．那个独裁者对他的反对者宁可大骂也不愿采取说理的办法。

weather out

1．cancel because of bad weather 因天气恶劣而取消
The usual air show was weathered out．例行的飞行表演因天气不好而取消了。
2．hold out against to the end坚持到底
We weathered out the winter in a lonely dwelling．我们在一所荒凉的房子里挺过了冬天。

would rather

an expression used to indicate strong preference 宁愿
He would rather be poor than get money by dishonest methods．他宁可穷也不愿意用不诚实的手段获取金钱。
Henry would rather that his girl friend worked in the same department as he does．亨利希望他的女朋友和他在一个部门工作。

woolgathering

Idiom(s): woolgathering

Theme: IMAGINATION

daydreaming. (From the practice of wandering along collecting tufts of sheep's wool from hedges.)
• John never listens to the teacher. He's always woolgathering.
• I wish my new secretary would get on with the work and stop woolgathering.

ruffle one's feathers

Idiom(s): ruffle one's feathers

Theme: ANNOYANCE

to upset or annoy someone. (A bird's feathers become ruffled if it is angry or afraid.)
• You certainly ruffled Mrs. Smith's feathers by criticizing her garden.
• Try to be tactful and not ruffle people's feathers.

not breathe a word of

Idiom(s): not breathe a word of (sth)

Theme: SECRECY

not to tell something (to anyone).
• Don't worry. I wont breathe a word of it.
• Tom won't breathe a word.

not breathe a word about

Idiom(s): not breathe a word (about sb or sth)

Theme: SECRECY

to keep a secret about someone or something.
• Don't worry. I won't breathe a word about it.
• Please don't breathe a word about Bob and his problems.

lovely weather for ducks

Idiom(s): lovely weather for ducks

Theme: WEATHER

rainy weather.
• BOB: Not very nice out today, is it? BILL: It's lovely weather for ducks.
• I don't like this weather, but it's lovely weather for ducks.

light as a feather

Idiom(s): (as) light as a feather

Theme: WEIGHT

of little weight.
• Sally dieted until she was as light as a feather.
• Of course I can lift the box. It's light as a feather.

knock sb over with a feather

Idiom(s): knock sb over with a feather

Theme: SHOCK

to push over a person who is stunned, surprised, or awed by something extraordinary. (Folksy.)
• I was so surprised you could have knocked me over with a feather.
• When she heard the news, you could have knocked her over with a feather.

keep one's weather eye open

Idiom(s): keep one's weather eye open

Theme: MONITORING

to watch for something (to happen); to be on the alert (for something); to be on guard.
• Some trouble is brewing. Keep your weather eye open.
• Try to be more alert. Learn to keep your weather eye open.

in fine feather

Idiom(s): in fine feather

Theme: HEALTH - GOOD

in good health.
• Of course I'm in fine feather. I get lots of sleep.
• Good food and lots of sleep put me into fine feather.

in a lather

Idiom(s): in a lather

Theme: EXCITEMENT

flustered; excited and agitated.
• Now, calm down. Don't be in a lather.
• I always get in a lather when I'm late.
• I get into a lather easily.

hell-bent for leather

Idiom(s): hell-bent for leather

Theme: MOVEMENT

moving or behaving recklessly; riding a horse fast and recklessly. (Informal. Typically found in western movies.)
• They took off after the horse thief, riding hell-bent for leather.
• Here comes the boss. She's not just angry; she's hell-bent for leather.