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П

падать духом - to loose heart: “When the gymnast fell down from the bars he lost heart and did not complete his programme.”

 

палец о палец не ударить - not to lift a finger: “All the time we were staying there, the girl did not lift a finger to help her mother.”

 

пальцем тронуть - to lay a finger on: “If you lay a finger on this child, you will regret it.”

 

паршивая овца - the rotten apple: “His elder son was the rotten apple.”

 

первые плоды - first fruit: “I am going to show you the first fruit from my work.”

 

перебиваться с хлеба на квас/воду - live from hand to mouth: “They lived from hand to mouth after their father’s death.”

 

передать пальму первенства - to give the palm to: “He had to give the palm to his competitor.”

 

перейти Рубикон - to cross the Rubicon: to take a final irrevocable step which may have dangerous consequences.”

 

перековать мечи на орала - to beat one’s sword into a ploughshare: “They shall beat their swords into ploughshares: nation shall not lift up sword against nation.” (Isaiah II, 4)

 

переходить из рук в руки - change hands: “The picture changed several hands till at last it appeared in my house.”

 

печатать деньги - to coin money: to take so much money from one’s business that it is almost the same as minting it oneself

 

пить как бочка - to drink like a fish: to be a hard drinker

 

платить втридорога - to play through the nose: “I did not have time to stop so I think I paid through the nose for this bag.”

 

платить той же монетой - to pay back in the same coin: “Roger has attacked us in the advertising overseas; we will pay him back in the same coin.”

 

платоническая любовь - platonic love (love with mixture of sexual passion): “I really love her. In all the right ways. Platonic ways.”

 

плоть и кровь - flesh and blood: human with all the weaknesses of human nature

 

плохо дело - a bad business: “In the train he was robbed all his money; a bad business!”

 

плыть против течения - to sail against the wind: “Denis never minded how much opposition he provoked; he liked sailing against the wind.”

 

по молодости лет - through inexperience: “Everybody agreed that they could forgive her; she had made this mistake through inexperience.”

 

по натуре (по характеру) - in grain: “He is a cowboy in grain.”

 

по одежке протягивать ножки - to cut one’s coat according to one’s cloth: “Now her husband has lost his job, she will be obliged to cut her cost according to cloth.”

 

по пятам - hard on someone’s heels / on the heels of / on the neck of: “The recession trod on the heels of the oil crisis.”

 

по совести говоря - in all conscience: “I should have thought that his charges were high enough in all conscience without his asking for any extra money.”

 

по уши - up to the ears: “Mary was up to the ears in work.”

 

по уши влюбиться - to be head over heels in love with / to fall head over heels in love: “They are head over heels in love.”

 

повести разговор в нужном ключе - to strike the right note: “The teacher struck just the right note addressing to students; he was serious but friendly.”

 

повторять как попугай - parrot-fashion/parrot like/parrot-wise

 

под каблуком - under one’s thumb: “He has his daughter completely under his thumb. She would never disobey him.”

 

под маркой - under colour of / under the guise of: “Under colour of consulting the lung specialists, the journalists received a lot of information for his article.”

 

под открытым небом - in the open air: “The family enjoyed spending their week-ends in the open air.”

 

под пятой - см. под каблуком

 

под рукой - close at hand: “If you need help we are always aloes at hand.”

 

под эгидой - under the aegis

 

поддерживать существование - to keep body and soul together: “When I lost my job, I could hardly enough keep body and soul together.”

 

подливать масла в огонь - to add fuel to the fire: “He added fuel to the fire by telling her that it was a lie.”

 

подложить свинью - to play somebody a dirty trick: “It was he who played this dirty trick on us.”

 

подмазать - to grease someone’s palm: to bribe

 

поднять руку на кого-либо/что-либо - to raise/lift one’s hand to: “I’ve never raised my hand to him, but one day I shall if he goes on like this.”

 

подписать самому себе смертный приговор - to sign one’s own death-warrant: “You have depended on your brother for your livelihood for the last twenty years. By quarrelling with him, you have signed your own death-warrant.”

 

подрезать крылья - to clip someone’s wings: “Every time I ring my doctor for an appointment, I am crossed by his receptionist. It’s time her wings were clipped.”

 

подсластить пилюлю - to sugar the pill: “You should better sugar the pill by writing Tom a letter of gratitude before making him dismissed.”

 

поезд ушел - to miss the bus: “I am fifty years old but I still haven’t been promoted. Now it is so late; I’ve missed the bus.”

 

позолотить ручку - to cross one’s palm with silver: to bribe

 

поймать на месте преступления - to catch someone red-handed: “You were caught red-handed! We saw you take money out of the box.”

 

поймать на слове - to take someone at his word: “I told Stephen to be sure to visit us if ever he came to Spain. Two weeks later, he arrived at our villa with six suitcases, He had taken me at my word.”

 

пойти насмарку - to go away; to go down the drain

 

пойти прахом - to go the dogs: “Dan ruined himself, all his life went to the dogs.”

 

показать свое настоящее лицо - to show oneself in one’s true colours: “When she lost her temper, she showed herself in her true colours.”

 

показывать зубы/когти - to show one’s teeth: “Our landlord has always been such a kind, easygoing man, but when I accidentally smashed his window he really showed his teeth.”

 

поклоняться золотому тельцу - to worship the golden calf: to worship money, to subordinate everything else to mercenary considerations

 

полет фантазии - a flight of fancy: “Her plan is a flight of fancy, Nothing else.”

 

полная чаша - full cup: “My cup was full. I was happy.”

 

половина успеха - half the battle: “We have got the best equipment for the job; that is half the battle.”

 

положить конец (предел) - to draw the line: “I don’t mind Carol bringing her friends home but I draw the line at strangers she picked up in the bus.”

 

получить головокружение от успехов - to get dizzy with success: “He made a stupid mistake, that’s because he is dizzy with success.”

 

получить пальму первенства - to bear/carry the palm: to signal one’s triumph

 

получить по шее - to get it in the neck: “He got it in the neck for being rude to his little sister.”

 

получить удар в спину - to be stabbed in the back: “He has been my best friend for the last twenty years. I would never have dreamed he would stab me in the back like that.”

 

поменяться ролями - turn the tables: “The team beat us last year, but we hope that this year we will turn the tables on them.”

 

понаслышке - to know by name: to know a person’s name, but not to know him to speak to

 

попасть в переплет - to get the works: “You will get the works if you are not careful enough.”

 

попасть в точку - to hit the nail on the head: “His answer hit the nail on the head and soon everything was settled.”

 

попасть впросак - to put one’s foot in it: “You put your foot in it when you told him how much you admired his wife. Don’t you know they were divorced last year?”

 

попасть не в бровь, а в глаз - strike home: “When you mentioned her daughter you struck home.”

 

попасть пальцем в небо - to be wide of the mark: inaccurate, wrong

 

попасться на крючок - to be hooked on: “He was hooked on, and soon got married.”

 

попутный ветер - a fair wind: “The President wished a fair wind to the athletes.”

 

попытать счастья - try one’s hand at: “She had tried her hand at different areas until she understood what her real calling was.”

 

порочный круг - a vicious circle: “The more cruel you are, the more you will hate, and the more you will hate, the more cruel you will become - an so in a vicious circle for ever.”

 

посеешь ветер - пожнешь бурю - to sow the wind an reap the whirlwind

 

после дождичка в четверг - till the cows come home

 

последнее слово (достижение) - the last word in: “The hotel is the last word in luxury and elegance.”

 

последняя капля, переполнившая чашу - the last straw: “It’s the last straw that breaks the camel’s back.”

 

посмотрим, чья возьмет - two can play at that game/that’s a game that two can play at: “If you complain to the landlord about the people you bring in at all hours; that’s a game that two can play.”

 

поставить кого-либо на место - to put someone in one’s place: “When the young guy took the lady by the hand, she promptly took her hand away from his, intending to put him in his place.”

 

поставить точки над I - to dot the i’s and cross the t’s: “to dot the I’s and cross the t’s we should discuss all the details and male ourselves absolutely clear.”

 

посчитать по пальцам - to count on the fingers/on the fingers of one hand: “You could count on the fingers of one hand the number of times old Westwood arrived late at the office during the thirty years he worked for the firm.”

 

потерпеть неудачу - to come to grief: “He made it plain that he harbored a grudge against them and would not be sorry to see them come to grief.”

 

потерять голову - to lose one’s head: “When the boat sprang a leak, Susan completely lost her head and began to stream hysterically.”

 

потерять мужество - to lose one’s nerve: “It is better not to lose your nerve in such a situation.”

 

потерять счет времени - to lose count of time: “Have you lost count of time, brother? I have put two and twenty summers behind me.”

 

похожи как две капли дождя - like two peas in a pod: “The two sisters were like two peas in a pod.”

 

поцелуй Иуды - a Judas kiss: a treacherous action disguised as kindness

 

почивать на лаврах - to rest on one’s laurels: “He realized that he had fallen into habits of thinking that he could rest on laurels.”

 

пошевелить рукой - to stir a hand: “He didn’t even try to stir a hand.”

 

правая рука - a right arm: “Since mother’s death. Ann has been father’s right arm.”

 

правдами и неправдами - by hook or by crook: “Roger will get a degree by hook or by crook; he won’t let anyone stop him.”

 

превозносить до небес - to praise to the skies / to crack one up to the nines: “Don’t crack Phil up to the nines, he does not deserve it.”

 

превратить в лепешку - to come down on someone like a ton of bricks: “If dad catches you reading his dairy, he’ll come down on you like a ton of bricks.”

 

превратиться в слух - to be all ears: “What you say is very interesting. I am all ears.”

 

предмет насмешек - “When he was on the outs, an object of fun for some rich kids.”

 

пресечь в корне - to nip in the bud: “They tried in vain to nip in the bud our plans.”

 

при закрытых дверях - behind closed doors: “They discussed her proposal behind closed doors.”

 

прибрать к рукам - lay hands on: “The two brothers have not laid hands on the mine but I am sure that very soon they will.”

 

пригреть змею на груди - to cherish a snake in one’s bosom: to have one’s kindness repaid with spite or ingratitude.”

 

придержать коней - to hold one’s horses: “Hold your horses!”

 

придержать язык - to hold one’s peace: “Bolivar stirred his sugary coffee and held his peace.”

 

придерживаться темы - to stick to the point: “You should stick to the point instead of discussing problems that have nothing to do with the subject.”

 

прикладываться к бутылке - to hit the bottle: “Whenever he had a chance, he hit the bottle.”

 

прикусить губу - to bite one’s lip: “She bit her lip for having made such a stupid mistake.”

 

приложить все старания - to leave no stone unturned: to spare no effort to obtain one’s end.

 

приложить руку у чему-либо - to have a finger in a pie: “As soon as he heard there was to be a new program for gifted boys, he started preparing his own proposals. He has a finger in every pie.”

 

принимать близко к сердцу - to take to heart: “I took very much to heart what he had told me about his parents.”

 

принимать за чистую монету - to take a face value: “You should not take his words at face value.”

 

припертый к стене - with one’s back to the wall: “With our backs to the walls and believing in justice of our cause, each one must fight on to the end.”

 

прислушаться к голосу рассудка - listen to reason: “I warned you that you shouldn’t have gone to India but you wouldn’t listen to reason.”

 

пристать как пиявка - to stick/cling like a leech: “You didn’t know what she was up to? Sticking to David like a leech.”

 

приходить в голову - to cross one’s mind: “It crossed my mind that he might have taken my book.”

 

приходить в негодность - to fall in disrepair: “The equipment fell in disrepair after it had not been used for some time.”

 

провести параллель - to draw a parallel: “It is difficult to draw a parallel between the ancient and the modern world.”

 

продрогший до мозга костей - chilled to the marrow: “We had better turn up the heating. Jack was chilled to the marrow, watching this football match.”

 

произвести шум/фурор - to set the world on fire: ‘I should say you have set the world on fire with your last album, Simon.”

 

пройти (сквозь) огонь и поду - to go through fire and water: “You know I would go through fire and water, my honey, to be with you.”

 

Прокрустово ложе - the Procrustean bed: forcible method of reduced people to one standard regardless of his own needs or wishes

 

пролить кровь - to shed blood: “The solders shed their blood that we might live.”

 

Прометеев огонь - Prometheus fire: sacred fire burning in the heart of a man and giving him inspiration

 

промокнуть до нитки - to be wet to the skin: “We will be wet to the skin if we do not hurry.”

 

промывка мозгов - brain-washing: “I feel a little sorry for them - they’ve been brainwashed.”

 

проскользнуть между пальцев - to slip through one’s fingers: “I took too long making up my mind, and let the house slip through my fingers.”

 

против ветра - in the teeth of the wind: “Though he knew about their strong opposition, nevertheless he made a decision to move in the teeth of the wind whatever it might cost him.”

 

против шерсти - against the grain: “It goes against the grain to treat him like that.”

 

проще простого - easy as ABC

 

прямой ответ - a straight answer: “Are you going to lend me the money or not? I’d like a straight answer.”

 

прятаться за бабью юбку - to hide behind a woman’s skirts: “It is not fair to hide behind Ann’s skirts now when someone should take responsibilities for what has happened.”

 

пулей - like a shot: “I would run like a shot if I heart that he wants to see me.”

 

пуп земли - the hub of the universe: central figure

 

пускать в трубу - to go down the drain: “All his money went down the drain.”

 

пускать корни - to take root: “The ides of Karl Marx have never taken root in the United States or in Germany.”

 

пускать пыль в глаза - to throw dust in someone’s eye

 

пустить по миру - to bankrupt

 

пустить утку - to shoot a line: “Martin was shooting a line that he is the son of the lord, but nobody believed him.”

 

пуститься наутек - to take to one’s heels: to run away

 

пушечное мясо - cannon-fodder (fodder is the food fed to the animals on a farm): “The soldiers were regarded as cannon-fodder.”

 

пятая колонна - the fifth column: people in an occupied country who collaborated with the invaders

 

пятьдесят на пятьдесят - fifty-fifty: “His chances to win the game is only fifty-fifty.”