Смысл: assail

assail[əʹseıl]
v
<Í> 1. 1) наступать, атаковать, нападать внезапно и яростно
the fortress was assailed on all sides - крепость была атакована со всех сторон
we were assailed by a violent hailstorm - нас застиг сильный град
2) одолевать, мучить
to be assailed with /by/ doubts - мучиться сомнениями
he was assailed by fears - им овладели страхи
3) забрасывать, засыпать
he was assailed with questions - его забросали /засыпали/ вопросами
2. нападать, резко критиковать, высмеивать
to assail smb. with epigrams - высмеивать кого-л. в эпиграммах
3. решительно, с жаром браться за дело, набрасываться (на работу и т. п.)
he assailed the difficulty with eagerness - он ринулся на преодоление трудностей

sail Идиома

clear sailing

(See smooth sailing)

knock the wind out of his sails

cause him to slow down, cause him to quit, knock him down a peg (see knock you down a peg) If you tell him his letter is full of errors, you'll knock the wind out of his sails.

sail into

scold or criticize very hard, attack As soon as I came in the door she sailed into me for being late.

set sail

start sailing, begin a sea voyage The three women set sail for Hawaii on a small sailboat.

smooth sailing

easy job, an operation that has no problems After we paid the bank for our loan, it was smooth sailing.

plain sailing

easy 不费事；一帆风顺
Life is by no means plain sailing．生活决不是一帆风顺的事。
Revolution is never plain sailing，it's full of twists and turns．革命从来都不是一帆风顺的，而是充满了艰难曲折。

sail in

1． enter a port进港
It was on June 3rd that our ship sailed in．我们的船是6月3日进港的。
2．（ladies，etc．）enter in a stately or dignified manner（贵妇人）仪态万方地走进
They were talking of Mrs．Swift when she sailed in．他们正谈论着斯威夫特夫人时，她风姿绰约地走了进来。
3．take decisive action 采取断然行动
He sailed in and finished the job．他一鼓作气，完成了任务。
4．enter an argument or dispute energetically 起劲地参加争论
Just as we thought the heat had gone out the discussion，Mrs．Hughes sailed in．在我们感到讨论陷入冷场时，休斯太太兴致勃勃地加入了讨论。

sail under false colors

pretend to be what one is not 冒充
I had so much wisdom as to sail un der false colors in this foolish jaunt of mine．我居然能在这次愚蠢的漫游中机智地更名改姓，真是聪明。
They are not real merchants．They are political spies sailing under false colors．他们不是真正的商人，他们是伪装的政治间谍。

take the wind out of one's sails

Idiom(s): take the wind out of one's sails

Theme: CHALLENGE

to challenge someone's boasting or arrogance. (Informal.)
• John was bragging about how much money he earned until he learned that most of us make more. That took the wind out of his sails,
• Learning that one has been totally wrong about something can really take the wind out of one's sails.

sail right through

Idiom(s): sail (right) through sth

Theme: EASY

to finish something quickly and easily. (Informal.)
• The test was not difficult. I sailed right through it.
• Bob sailed through his homework in a short amount of time.

Sail close to the wind

If you sail close to the wind, you take risks to do something, going close to the limit of what is allowed or acceptable.

Sail under false colours

Someone who sails under false colours (colors) is hypocritical or pretends to be something they aren't in order to deceive people.

Spend like a sailor

Someone who spends their money wildly spends like a sailor.

Swear like a sailor

Someone who is foul-mouthed and uses bad language all the time, swears like a sailor.

That ship has sailed

A particular opportunity has passed you by when that ship has sailed.

Time does sail

This idioms means that time passes by unnoticed.

plain sailing|plain|sail|sailing|smooth|smooth sai

n. phr. An uncomplicated, unhampered, or easy course. For a graduate of such a famous university as he was, that assignment was plain sailing.

sail (right) through|sail|sail right through|sail

v. phr. To conclude easily and rapidly; finish something. The bright young man sailed through the bar exam in record time.

sail close to the wind|sail|wind

v. phr. To be on the borderline between legality and illegality. The wealthy tycoon sailed close to the wind during Prohibition.

sail into|sail

v., informal 1. To attack with great strength; begin hitting hard. George grabbed a stick and sailed into the dog.
Compare: LAY INTO, PITCH INTO. 2. To scold or criticize very hard. The coach really sailed into Bob for dropping the pass.
Synonym: BAWL OUT, LAY INTO.

sail under false colors|colors|false colors|sail

v. phr. 1. To sail a ship, often pirate, under the flag of another country. The pirate ship flew the American flag until it got near, then raised the black flag. 1. To pretend to be what you are not; masquerade. The garage hired Jones as a mechanic, but fired him when they found he was sailing under false colors. They found out that Smith was an escaped convict who had been sailing under false colors as a lawyer.

sailor collar|collar|sailor

n. A large square collar like those worn by sailors. Little Timmy's suit has a sailor collar. Mary's blouse has a sailor collar.

set sail|sail|set

v. phr. To begin a sea voyage; start sailing. The ship set sail for Europe.

take the wind out of one's sails|sail|sails|take|w

v. phr. To surprise someone by doing better or by catching him in an error. John came home boasting about the fish he had caught; it took the wind out of his sails when he found his little sister had caught a bigger one. Dick took the wind out of Bob's sails by showing him where he was wrong.
Compare: TAKE THE STARCH OUT OF².

make sail

make sail
see set sail.

sail

sail
In addition to the idioms beginning with sail, also see false colors; plain sailing; set sail; smooth sailing; take the wind out of one's sails; trim one's sails.
* * *
- sail close to the wind
- sail into
- sail through
- sail under false colors

sail through

sail through
Also, sail right through. Accomplish quickly and easily, make easy progress through, as in He sailed through the written test in no time, or We sailed right through customs. This expression alludes to a boat moving quickly and easily through the water. [Mid-1900s]

trim one's sails

trim one's sails
Modify one's stand, adapt to circumstances, as in His advisers told him to trim his sails before he alienated voters and bungled the election completely. This metaphoric expression alludes to adjusting a ship's sails to take full advantage of prevailing winds. [Late 1700s]