Meaning: american hellebore

n.
North American plant having large leaves and yellowish green flowers growing in racemes; yields a toxic alkaloid used medicinally

hell Idiom, Proverb

a snowball's chance in hell

little or no chance to succeed If I write the test now, I won't have a snowball's chance in hell.

all hell broke loose

people did crazy things, everybody was fighting When the fire alarm sounded, all hell broke loose.

all over hell's half acre

all over the place, everywhere I left the gate open, and the cows are all over hell's half acre.

catch hell

get a scolding or lecture, get it, get shit """Did you catch hell for cheating?"" ""Yes. The teacher lectured me and gave me zero on the exam."""

come hell or high water

no matter what happens, by any means I'll buy that ranch, come hell or high water. I'm determined.

get hell

receive a scolding, catch hell, get it He got hell for breaking a glass. Mrs. Fisk told him he was bad.

give you hell

lecture you, scold you, tie into you She'll give you hell if you come late to her class, so be on time.

go to hell

leave, go, drop dead, take off When I asked him to move his car, he told me to go to hell.

go to hell in a handbasket

go to hell feeling peaceful or unconcerned, ignorance is bliss We don't get involved in issues. We're wasting our lives and going to hell in a handbasket!

haven't got a hope in hell

have no chance to win or succeed or survive etc. If the parachute doesn't open, I haven't got a hope in hell.

hell and high water

troubles or difficulties of any kind They went through hell and high water in order to get the food to the flood victims.

hell bent for election

going fast, determined to get somewhere There goes Joe, driving hell bent for election - always in a hurry.

hell-on-wheels

a short-tempered, nagging or crabby person She is hell-on-wheels in the morning so you should be careful of her.

hell's half acre

(See all over hell's half acre)

hell to pay

angry people to face, questions to answer When I come in at 4 a.m. there's hell to pay.

hellish

bad, awful, unfair If we have to pay our medical bills, it's a hellish arrangement!

in a nutshell

briefly I tried to explain the problem to him in a nutshell but there still wasn

like a bat out of hell

very fast, go like stink When Harriet is late for work, she drives like a bat out of hell.

like hell

with much effort and energy, not so, untrue I had to run like hell this morning in order to catch the bus for work.fast, go like stink That dog can run like hell.

one hell/heck of a something

the emphasis that something is very good or bad The residents of the town gave the Prime Minister one heck of a welcome when he visited them last winter.

raise hell

make noise, disturb the peace, raise Cain The neighbors are drinking and raising hell again.

road to hell is paved...

(See the road to hell is paved with good intentions)

shell out

pay money for, fork over How much did you shell out for that calculator? Thirty dollars?

shellack

defeat in a game, win by many points The Bears were shellacked by the Pirates. The score was 19-2.

the hell you say

I do not believe it, get out, go on Harper won the election? The hell you say!

the road to hell is paved with good intentions

good intentions achieve nothing without action, actions speak louder... Convert your charitable feelings into action! The road to hell is paved with good intentions!

till hell freezes over

until the end of time, until the end of the world You can wait till hell freezes over but they won't pay their bill.

to hell with that

that is not a good idea, no way """You could plead guilty."" ""To hell with that!"""

until hell freezes over

forever.

walk on eggshells

be very careful, watch your step Your son is so afraid of making a mistake he's walking on eggshells.

what the hell

why? how? what the heck What the hell is he doing with my diary? Where did he get it?

a cold day in Hell

never

Aw Fancy...What the hell?

what?? damn!

bloody hell

an exclamation of surprise or frustration

fuckin hell

an exclamation of surprise, annoyance, wonder etc.

fucking hell

(interj) an exclamation similar to "fuck!", most likely to be heard as fuckin'ell

hella

a hell of, a lot:"I got hella scrilla" -- ??? (??? [??])

out of one's shell

out of one's shyness or silence不羞怯沉默；开怀畅谈
John wouldn't come out of his shell and talk to the boys and girls at the party．约翰放不开羞怯沉默的性格，无法与聚会中的人交谈。

to hell and gone

Idiom(s): to hell and gone

Theme: RUIN

very much gone; has gone to hell. (Use hell with caution.)
• All my hard work is to hell and gone.
• When you see everything you've planned to hell and gone, you get kind of angry.

through hell and high water

Idiom(s): through hell and high water

Theme: DIFFICULTY

through all sorts of severe difficulties. (Use hell with caution.)
• I came through hell and high water to get to this meeting on time. Why don't you start on time?
• You'll have to go through hell and high water to accomplish your goal, but it'll be worth it.

shell sth out

Idiom(s): shell sth out

Theme: PAYMENT

to pay money (out). (Slang.)
• You'll have to shell plenty out to settle this bill.
• The traffic ticket turned out to be very expensive. I had to shell out $150.

mad as hell

Idiom(s): (as) mad as hell

Theme: ANGER

very angry. (Informal. Use hell with caution.)
• He made his wife as mad as hell.
• Those terrorists make me mad as hell.

hot as hell

Idiom(s): (as) hot as hell

Theme: HEAT

very hot. (Informal. Use hell with caution.)
• It's as hot as hell outside. It must be near 100 degrees.
• I hate to get into a car that has been parked in the sun. It's hot as hell.

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.

have a snowball's chance in hell

Idiom(s): have a snowball's chance in hell

Theme: CHANCE

to have no chance at all; to have a chance no greater than that of a snowball in hell. (A snowball would melt in hell and have no chance of surviving. Use hell with caution.)
• He has a snowball's chance in hell of passing the test.
• You don't have a snowball's chance in hell of her agreeing to marry you.

go to hell in a hand-basket

Idiom(s): go to hell in a hand-basket

Theme: RUIN

to become totally worthless; to go to (hell). (Informal. Use hell with caution. Not used as a command.)
• The whole country is going to hell in a hand-basket.
• Look at my lawn—full of weeds. It's going to hell in a hand-basket.

give sb a shellacking

Idiom(s): give sb a shellacking

Theme: FIGHTING

to beat someone.
• My dad gave me a shellacking when I broke his fishing rod.
• If you do that again, I will give you a shellacking.

give a shellacking

Idiom(s): give sb or sth a shellacking

Theme: OVERCOME

to beat someone (in a contest) decisively.
• The other team gave us a shellacking.
• The Bears gave the Packers a shellacking.

get a shellacking

Idiom(s): get a shellacking AND take a shellacking

Theme: PUNISHMENT

to be beaten—as in sports. (Slang.)
• Our team played well, but got a shellacking anyway.
• I practiced my tennis game so I wouldn't take a shellacking in the tournament.

drop a bombshell

Idiom(s): drop a bomb(shell) AND explode a bombshell; drop a brick

Theme: SHOCK

to announce shocking or startling news. (Informal or slang.)
• They really dropped a bombshell when they announced that the mayor had cancer.
• Friday is a good day to drop a bomb like that. It gives the business world the weekend to recover.
• They must speak very carefully when they explode a bombshell like that.
• They really dropped a brick when they told the cause of her illness.

More Idioms/Phrases

drop off to sleep drop in the ocean drop in one's tracks drop around sometime drop a bombshell driving force behind drive sth home drive sb up the wall drive sb crazy

English Vocalbulary

american hop american hornbeam american indian american indian day american-indian language american ivy american kestrel american labor party american lady crab american language american larch american laurel american legion american leishmaniasis american licorice american lime american liquorice american lobster