Дополнение к идиомам (2) - American English alternatives

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Итак, это второе дополнение, поэтому вот ссылка на первую часть:

https://cont.ws/@thyrise746/18...

Подписывайтесь для получения упражнений (и получения бесплатных уроков английского языка): https://t.me/thyrisefree

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The majority of the idioms in this book are common to both British and American varieties of English.

Sometimes you may see a label [BRITISH], This means that this idiom is mainly used in British English. In this section you can find some of the idioms from the units that have American English alternatives. An example sentence for the American English alternative is also given.

common-or-garden

AMERICAN garden variety

Note: Both these idioms are used like adjectives. They originally referred to plants and have developed differently in each variety of English.

The experiment itself is garden-variety science that normally would attract little public attention.

be flogging a dead horse

AMERICAN be beating a dead horse

Note: ‘Flogging’ is always used in British English, and ‘beating’ in American English.

You're beating a dead horse here. These guys are definitely already defeated.

not get a word in edgeways

AMERICAN not get a word in edgewise

Note: Where people say ‘edgeways’ in British English, ‘edgewise’ is the form that is used in American English.

Jamie dominated the conversation and Zhou could hardly get a word in edgewise.

go back a long way

AMERICAN go way back

Note: This is a set phrase in both versions. Both are used in British English.

This here is Dan Parker. We go way back.

a grey area

AMERICAN a gray area

Note: ‘Grey’ is usually spelled ‘gray’ in American English.

He complained about the way Hollywood reduced the complex gray areas of life to black and white.

have an axe to grind

AMERICAN have an ax to grind

Note: ‘Axe’ is spelled ‘ax’ in American English.

If you have an ax to grind or feel strongly about something, the job of trying to get something done may become a lot easier if you go online.

the icing on the cake

AMERICAN the frosting on the cake

Note: ‘Frosting’ is the American English word for icing.

If you become friends after you have enjoyed a good professional relationship, that is the frosting on the cake.

in the pipeline

AMERICAN in the works

Note: The idiom means exactly the same but ‘the works’ in the American English version refers to the working parts of a machine, so that the image is of something being manufactured or produced. The use of ‘pipeline’ in the British English version focuses more on the movement of something that is due to arrive at some point in the future. Obviously, both versions are about development and processes.

They confirmed a deal that's been in the works for several weeks.

in two minds

AMERICAN of two minds

Kennedy was of two minds about the plan, but in the end he authorized it.

lead someone up the garden path

AMERICAN lead someone down the garden path

They led me down the garden path and made me believe there would be a job for me.

on the cards

AMERICAN in the cards

There's no need to look so surprised. It's been in the cards, as they say, for a long time.

plain sailing

AMERICAN smooth sailing, clear sailing, easy sailing

Note: In British English, only ‘plain sailing’ is used, whereas in American English there are several choices.

All of a sudden, my life started to improve, which is not to say that it was all smooth sailing from then on.

Their twenty-four year relationship hasn't always been clear sailing.

put your foot in it

AMERICAN put your foot in your mouth

Note: Both versions refer to being clumsy. Perhaps the British English version is easier to relate to a situation, whereas the American English idea focuses more on actually saying something inappropriate or embarrassing.

This man should have a press adviser to stop him from continuously putting his foot in his mouth.

sweep something under the carpet

AMERICAN sweep something under the rug

Note: A rug is smaller than a carpet, but the idea is obviously the same.

You can't just sweep this problem under the rug.

wear the trousers

AMERICAN wear the pants

Note: In American English, ‘pants’ means ‘trousers’. In British English, ‘pants’ means ‘underpants’, so although these versions seem different, they mean exactly the same both idiomatically and literally.

My father said he wanted to discuss the investment with my mother, to which the salesman demanded, ‘Who wears the pants in your family?'

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