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Идиомы о животных

• alley cat
  бродячая, бездомная кошка

  There is an alley cat which I see near my house very often.
• have a whale of a time
  хорошо провести время

  I went to my friend's birthday party last night and had a whale of a time.
• as clean as a hound's tooth
  очень чистый

  When I finished cleaning the kitchen, it looked as clean as a hound's tooth.
• dog-eat-dog
  человек человеку – волк, волчьи законы

  In Alaska during the gold rush gold-miners had a dog-eat-dog life.
• as sick as a dog
  очень больной

  Yates was shivering with cold and looked as sick as a dog.
• top dog
  самая важная персона в организации

  Mr. Abrahams is the top dog in his company.
• ahead of the pack
  (быть) впереди всех

  I studied hard so that I could be ahead of the pack in my class.
• cold fish
  бесчувственный человек "холодный как рыба"

  Jack Brown turned out to be a cold fish; he didn't care much about his parents.
• let sleeping dogs lie
  не нарывайся на неприятности, "не буди лиха пока лихо тихо"

  "Don't ask him about his problems; he might get angry. Better let sleeping dogs lie."
• rain cats and dogs
  льёт как из ведра

  The sky is overcast, and I bet it's raining cats and dogs in the mountains.
• Holy cow!
  Боже мой! Вот те на! (выражение сильных чувств удивления, удовольствия или гнева)

  "Holy cow," Diane exclaimed when she saw the flames coming out of the window on the first floor of the building.
• cat nap
  короткий сон днём

  "I am going to take a cat nap in the afternoon, so don't disturb me."
• black sheep of the family
  паршивая овца (в семье)

  My cousin Cora is a high school dropout. My relatives think her to be the black sheep of the family.
• hair of the dog that bit one
  напиток, принимаемый с похмелья

  Jeff woke up and had the hair of the dog that bit him first thing in the morning.
• monkey see, monkey do
  копировать, "обезьянничать"

  It was monkey see, monkey do for Derek. He copied everything that his friend did.
• see a man about a dog
  пойти в туалет (эвфемизм)

  Jeremy drank too much beer, so he had to stop his car several times to see a man about a dog.
• as busy as a bee
  трудолюбивый как пчёлка, очень занятый

  Cora has been as busy as a bee since she moved into her new house.
• as awkward as a cow on roller skates
  быть очень неловким, "как корова на льду"

  Jane isn't much of a dancer, and she was as awkward as a cow on roller skates when Jim invited her.
• put on the dog
  экстравагантно одеваться, свободно вести себя или хорошо развлекаться

  Let's go to a luxurious restaurant and put on the dog.
• every dog has his day
  всему своё время

  Celia will be able to travel alone when she grows up. Every dog has his day.
• shaggy dog story
  длинный бессмысленный рассказ

  My cousin told me a shaggy dog story about how she had lost her purse.
• put the cat among the pigeons
  причинять неприятности, "пустить козла в огород"

  "Don't send your secretary to talk to the angry students; it's like putting the cat among the pigeons."
• have a cow
  очень рассердиться или расстроиться

  Mrs. Rivet had a cow when she discovered that her son was doing badly at school.
• as bald as a coot
  совершенно лысый (похожий на птицу лысуху)

  My Uncle Robert is as bald as a coot.
• as blind as a bat
  слепой, "слепой как крот"

  I have lost my glasses, and without them I am as blind as a bat.
• in the doghouse
  (быть) в немилости, иметь неприятности

  Alice was in the doghouse with her boy friend because she had let him down.
• as happy as a lark
  очень счастливый, весёлый

  Maria looked as happy as a lark when she got engaged to Mark.
• let the cat out of the bag
  проболтаться, разболтать, выдать секрет

  "I meant to have kept my engagement a secret and not let the cat out of the bag."
• leopard can't change its spots
  невозможно исправить человеческую натуру, "горбатого могила исправит"

  My boy friend apologized for having deceived me, but I don't believe him. A leopard can't change its spots.
• go to the dogs
  ухудшаться, разрушаться, "пойти прахом"

  "If you don't do something about your business, it will go to the dogs."
• bark up the wrong tree
  ошибаться, идти по ложному следу; обвинять не того, кого следует

  George is barking up the wrong tree when he blames his troubles on his parents.
• fight like cats and dogs
  жить (драться) как кошка с собакой

  The Johnsons have been married for years, and all this time they have been fighting like cats and dogs.
• kangaroo court
  неправедный суд, незаконное разбирательство

  "I refuse to be convicted by a kangaroo court!"
• bull in a china shop
  слон в посудной лавке (о неловком или бестактном человеке)

  My boy friend is like a bull in a china shop; he is not only very clumsy, but he is also tactless.
• lead a dog's life
  вести несчастную (собачью) жизнь

  Ron has been leading a dog's life since he retired.