很多人表示學了英語多年，但是真的和老外交流還是會有障礙。也許有時候只是因為你不知道這些必備的英語俚語短語，所以搞不懂老外的意思。
· in a jiffy不大一會兒
=in a moment, right away. at once
i'll be with you in a jiffy.
· have ( a case of ) the jitters忐忑不安
the new teacher had a case of jitters when he first stood in front of the class.
· keep up with the joneses與別人比闊，與別人攀比
he likes keeping up with the joneses.
· get a kick out of doing something從……得到很大的樂趣
he gets a kick put of racing.
· take kindly to something/someone願意接受
don't you feel that people in the lab don't take kindly to a nosy reporter?
· kill someone with kindness好得讓人受不了
the old lady almost killed me with kindness when i lived at her home.
· parade one's knowledge買弄學問
he is a well-learned man, bit he never parades his knowledge.
· be at large逍遙法外(也可以形容動物不受約束)
the murderer was still at large. the victim's parents was determined to find enough evidence to sue him to court.
· rest on one's laurels故步自封，吃老本
you are sure to be lagged behind if you rest on your laurels.
· turn over a new leaf洗心革面
the juvenile delinquent promised that he would turn over a new leaf if he could be given lenient punishment.
· have a hollow leg(喝酒)海量
the best man has a hollow leg. he drinks a lot instead of the bridegroom.
· pull someone's leg開某人的玩笑
never ever pull his leg. he is a man without a sense of humor. he takes everything seriously.
· keep someone at arm's length與某人保持距離
my boss is my uncle. in order to avoid unnecessary misunderstanding, i'd better keep him at arm's length in company.
· let someone down使某人失望
joe really let me down by having broken his promises for several times.
· can't for the life of one怎麼……也不行
i thought i could recite my speech backwards, but when i stood in front of the audience, i couldn't for the life of me remember what to say.
· air one's linen in public家醜外揚
the wife was often beaten by her husband, but she never told others. she didn't want to air her linen in public.
附：記單詞技巧之音義聯想法
世界上任何民族的語言，都存在一些模擬大自然聲響的擬聲詞。例如，漢語中有模擬狗叫的 汪汪 聲、模擬物體坍塌的 嘩啦 聲和模擬敲鑼的 噹噹 聲。英語中不僅有擬聲詞，而且還有音譯詞，它們和漢語中的擬聲詞一樣，其發音與詞義有著緊密的聯絡，易於聯想便於記憶。受擬聲詞和音譯詞記憶效果的`啟發，我們可以有意識地利用漢語的發音模擬英語單詞的讀音，並將單詞的讀音與其詞義聯想起來進行記憶，這種方法叫做音義聯想法或者諧音法。該法能達到聞其聲知其義的效果，讀過兩遍即可做到過 耳 不忘。使用音義聯想法時必須注意：①掌握國際音標的準確拼讀。②要因詞施用，不可勉強而為。③只把諧音作為記憶單詞的輔助手段和提示線索，不依賴諧音拼讀單詞。
1 模擬生物或物體發出聲響的擬聲詞。
① cough n./vi. 咳嗽 ② tick n.滴答聲
2 由單詞發音轉化而來的音譯詞
③ engine n.引擎，發動機 ④ humour n.幽默
3 將單詞發音與其詞義進行聯想的諧音詞。
⑤ candy n. 糖果〔看弟吃糖果，自己流口水〕 ⑥ holy a. 神聖的〔神聖的厚禮〕
⑦ myth n. 神話〔神話是祕事⑧ sleev n. 衣袖〔使力舞衣袖〕
