Идиомы: Транспорт - Английский

Let's
hit the road

When it's time to leave one
place to go to another, we say ‘let’s hit the road’.

I’m going to my favourite
country… Belgium. Well, come on then. It’s time to hit the road.

Middle-of-the-road.

If we want to describe a type of
music, or person or even an organisation that is not extreme we can say they’re ‘middle-of-the-road’.

I used to love metal. These days I prefer something a little more
middle-of-the road.

A long way down the road

If we want to talk about
something that’s far in the future, we say ‘it’s a long way down the
road.’

I’m not sure if we're ever going to get there. No, Belgium still seems to be a long way down the road.

Reinventing the wheel.

If someone wastes time trying to
create something that has already been made, we say they’re ‘reinventing the wheel’.

We've had a lot of experience with disasters, and don't have to reinvent the wheel every time something happens.

Asleep at the wheel.

If someone is not doing their
job, or not taking their responsibilities seriously, we say they're asleep at the wheel.

Why was our government asleep at the wheel when the crisis began?

The wheels have come off.

If something goes wrong or fails
we can say ‘the wheels have come off’

It sticks out a mile.

If something is very obvious and
easy to see, we say 'It sticks out a mile'.

When I took Colin to work with me that time, we really stuck out a
mile.

I'd run a mile.

If we really don't want to get
involved with something, we can say, 'I'd run a mile'.

Ah, my boss. He wants me to wear more 'normal' clothes. But if he tried to get me to dress like that, I'd run a mile.

Give them an inch and they'll
take a mile.

If you want to say that someone who's been given a little bit of freedom then tries to take much more, you can say

'Give them an inch and they'll take a mile'.

In the driver's seat

If someone is in control of a
situation or in charge of something, we can say they're 'in the driver's seat'.

Huge consumer demand for electricity has put energy companies in the
driver's seat.

A backseat driver

If someone tries to take control
of a situation that they are not responsible for, we can say they're a backseat driver.

Mike's a real backseat driver and I find it so irritating.

A Sunday driver

We call someone who drives at an
annoyingly slow speed, a Sunday Driver.

Come on you idiot, get outta the way! Last thing I need's a Sunday driver! Aah!

I missed the boat

If we miss an opportunity to get
involved in something because we waited too long, we say 'I missed the boat'.

I sent off my university application at the last minute and nearly missed
the boat.

It's plain sailing

If something is very easy and
there are no problems, we can say 'It's plain sailing'

The roads were busy as we drove out of town but after that it was plain sailing all the way to the coast.

We're in the same boat

If we are in the same bad
situation as other people, we say 'we're in the same boat'.

Oh well, at least I'm not alone. Yes, we're in the same boat.

On the wagon

If you decide not to drink
alcohol for a period of time, we say you’re ‘on the wagon’.

No, I don't care for a cocktail. I'm on the wagon.

Jumping on the bandwagon

If you start to do something
after it has become successful or popular we say
you’re jumping on the bandwagon.

Publishers jumped on the CD-ROM bandwagon even though they didn't know if they could sell CD-ROMs.

Fallen off the wagon

When someone starts drinking
alcohol after a period of not drinking it, we say they’ve fallen off the wagon.

He’s back to watching TV again. Fell off the wagon I guess.