Sens: ability to survive

capacité à survivre, habileté à survivre; viabilité

sur Idiome

a sure bet

certain to win, a good choice to bet on The Lions are a sure bet in the final game. They'll win easily.

a sure thing

a predictable result, sure to happen For them, success is a sure thing. They plan for success.

catch me by surprise

surprise me, not warn me The snowstorm in May caught us by surprise. We didn't expect it.

cool under pressure

calm during a crisis, able to perform well when you must do it Jo was very cool under pressure. When the judge asked questions, she answered clearly and calmly.

for good measure

adding enough or a bit more than required For good measure, we added a a bottle of wine to the punch.

for sure

yes, certainly, no doubt I'll pay you back tomorrow for sure. I promise.

hang ten (surfing)

let your toes hang over the edge of the surf board When you get tired of standing on the board, just hang ten.

make sure

be certain, check carefully Make sure you mail the letter. It must be sent today.

measure up

do enough work, achieve high quality With more training, he'll improve. He'll measure up to our standards.

net surfer

a person who frequently uses the Internet Lisa is a net surfer. She can help you get on the Internet.

rest assured

be sure, be certain, count on If Johnny said he would vote for Kim, you can rest assured he will.

scratch the surface

barely begin, uncover only a few facts His first lecture on Stravinsky only scratched the surface.

sure bet

(See a sure bet)

sure thing

(See a sure thing)

surf the Net

survey the Internet or global computer network Olga is surfing the Net again - looking for a boy in the US.

to be sure

without a doubt, certainly To be sure it would be better to talk to the president of the company in person.

channel surfing

switching from one television channel to another in search of an interesting programme

couch surf

to sleep on different friends' couches each night because you are a homeless college student:"Hey man, where you stayin? Dude, I'm couch surfing right now."

sur

south or southside

assure of

make sb． certain about使…放心；使…确信；向…保证
He assured me of his final success．他使我确信，最后他会取得成功的。
I can assure you of my full support for your plan．我向你保证，一定全力支持你的计划。
The doctor assured the young father of his baby's safety．医生肯定地向这位年轻的父亲说孩子的病是能治好的。

at leisure

when one has free time在空余之时
I am quite at leisure if you want me to do anything for you．你要是需要我帮忙，我完全有空。
Please look through the manuscript at you leisure．请在闲暇的时候把这份稿子看一下。

at (one's) leisure

measure off

mark off by measuring划出；量出
They measured off the area in which they would work．他们划出了他们将要工作的地区。
I asked the shopassistant to measure off two metres of blue corduroy for me．我叫营业员给我量两米蓝灯芯绒。

measure out

appoint in measured amounts量出；按量分配
The chemist carefully measured out a dose of herbal medicine and told me how to brew it．药剂师仔细地配好一付中药，并告诉我煎药的方法。
He opened the flourbin and measured out some flour．他打开面粉柜，量出了一些面粉。

measure up to

display qualities，skills，etc．of a required standard胜任；适合；符合标准
The products did not measure up to specifications．这些产品没达到规格。
If she doesn't measure up to the job，she'll just have to leave．要是她不能胜任这工作，她只得离去。

sure of

certain of确信；深信
I am sure of success．我相信能成功。

take by surprise

1．fill with surprise or amazement；astonish 使吃惊；使惊奇
Your good examination results have taken all the teachers by surprise．你考试的好成绩使得所有老师都感到吃惊。
When our teacher quit in the middle of the year to work for the government，it took us all by surprise．我们的老师在年中辞职去政府部门供职时，我们都感到吃惊。
2．appear in front of sb．suddenly；come before sb．is ready 出其不意地出现；在（某人）未准备妥当之前来到
The passenger took the thief by surprise．He caught the latter's hand as it sneaked into his pocket．那位旅客在扒手刚把手伸进他的口袋里的时候，突然抓住了他。
Our guests came half an hour early，taking my mother by surprise．我们的客人提前半小时来了，弄得我妈妈措手不及。

take pleasure in

have satisfaction or enjoyment in 对…满意；乐意做
He takes great pleasure in teaching his little sister．他很乐意教他的小妹妹。

swift and sure

Idiom(s): swift and sure

Theme: CERTAINTY

fast and certain. (As with the flight of a well-aimed arrow. Fixed order.)
• The response of the governor to the criticism by the opposing party was swift and sure.
• The boxer's punch was swift and sure and resulted in a quick knockout and a very short match.

survival of the fittest

Idiom(s): survival of the fittest

Theme: SURVIVAL

the idea that the most able or fit will survive (while the less able and less fit will perish). (This is used literally as a part of the theory of evolution.)
• In college, it's the survival of the fittest. You have to keep working in order to survive and graduate.
• I don’t give my houseplants very good care, hut the ones I have are really flourishing. It's the survival of the fittest, I guess.

surf and turf

Idiom(s): surf and turf

Theme: FOOD

fish and beef; lobster and beef. (A type of meal incorporating both expensive seafood and an expensive cut of beef. Refers to the sea and to the pasture. Fixed order.)
• Walter ordered the surf and turf, but Alice ordered only a tiny salad.
• No surf and turf for me. I want fish and fish alone.

slowly but surely

Idiom(s): slow(ly) but sure(ly)

Theme: SLOWLY

slowly but with a purpose; slowly and deliberately. (The expression without the -ly is informal. Fixed order.)
• Slowly but surely, the little train reached the top of the mountain.
• Progress was slow but sure. Someday we would be finished.

regain one's composure

Idiom(s): regain one's composure

Theme: CALMNESS

to become calm and composed.
• I found it difficult to regain my composure after the argument.
• Here, sit down and relax so that you can regain your composure.

measure up to one's expectations

Idiom(s): measure up (to one's expectations)

Theme: ACHIEVEMENT

to be as good as one expects.
• This meal doesn't measure up to my expectations.
• Why doesn't it measure up?

made to measure

Idiom(s): made to measure

Theme: FITTING

[of clothing] made especially to fit the measurements of a particular person.
• Jack has his suits made to measure because he's rather large.
• Having clothes made to measure is rather expensive.

beyond measure

Idiom(s): beyond measure

Theme: AMOUNT - LARGE

more than can be measured; in a very large amount.
• They brought in hams, turkeys, and roasts, and then they brought vegetables and salads beyond measure.
• They thanked all of us beyond measure.

Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner

Education is something you keep forever.

Marry in haste, repent at leisure.

If you get married too quickly, you may spend all your life regretting it.

One man's trash is another man's treasure.

What is useless to one person could be valuable to another.

Brain surgery

If something is not brain surgery, it isn't very complicated or difficult to understand or master.

One man's trash is another man's treasure

What is useless to one person might be valuable to another.

Silver surfer

A silver surfer is an elderly person who uses the internet.

Slow but sure

If something or someone is slow but sure, they may take their time to do something, but they are reliable.

Sure as eggs is eggs

These means absolutely certain, and we do say 'is' even though it is grammatically wrong.

Sure-fire

If something is sure-fire, it is certain to succeed. ('Surefire' is also used.)

Drastic Times Call For Drastic Measures

When you are extremely desperate you need to take extremely desperate actions.

Marry in haste, repent at leisure

if you marry too quickly, you have the rest of your life to regret it!

Marry in haste, and repent at leisure.

There is a lot of time to regret if you wed in a hurry.

at leisure|leisure

adj. or adv. phr. 1. Not at work; not busy; with free time; at rest. Come and visit us some evening when you're at leisure. 2. or at one's leisure When and how you wish at your convenience; without hurry. John made the model plane at his leisure. You may read the book at your leisure.

beyond measure|beyond|measure

adj. or adv. phr., formal So much that it can not be measured or figured without any limits. With her parents reunited and present at her graduation, she had happiness beyond measure. No one envied him for he was popular beyond measure.

More Idioms/Phrases

best man best seller bet on the wrong horse bet one's boots better half better late than never better than between life and death beyond measure beyond one's depth beyond one's means beyond question beyond reasonable doubt beyond the pale beyond the shadow of a doubt bid fair bide one's time

English Vocalbulary

abiogeneses abiogenesis abiogenetic abioses abiosis abiotic abiotrophic abiotrophies abiotrophy abirritant abject abject poverty abject situation abjection abjections abjectly abjectness abjudicate