От составителя

Фразеологизм, или идиома, – это устойчивое выражение, значение которого не определяется отдельными значениями составляющих его слов.

В настоящем словаре представлено около 1500 русских фразеологизмов с их наиболее точными эквивалентами в британском варианте английского языка, а также около 1500 английских фразеологизмов с их русскими эквивалентами или, при отсутствии соответствующих русских идиом, переводом их значения. Русско-английская часть словаря снабжена дополнительно примерами употребления английских фразеологизмов в современном разговорном языке.

Все фразеологизмы приводятся в алфавитном порядке.

Надеемся, что словарь окажется полезным и удобным для всех, кто будет им пользоваться.

Русско-английские идиомы

ад кромешный

(a) hell on earth

The wounded soldiers described the battle as ‘hell on earth’.

альфа и омега

the alpha and omega

ангельское терпение

the patience of Job

You need the patience of Job to deal with customers like that.

Ахиллесова пята

Achilles’ heel; a chink in someone’s armour

His Achilles’ heel is that he always wants to be right.

The lack of experience may be a chink in his armour.

бабушкины сказки

an old wives’ tale

It is an old wives’ tale that drinking milk prevents cold.

бабье лето

an Indian summer

бальзам на душу

music to someone’s ears

What he said was music to my ears.

бедный как церковная крыса

(as) poor as a church mouse

My uncle was as poor as a church mouse.

без всякого преувеличения

to say the least

Her behaviour towards her boss was very rude, to say the least.

без обиняков

straight from the shoulder

John told me, straight from the shoulder, that he was not at all pleased with my work.

бить баклуши

to twiddle one’s thumbs

Don’t sit around twiddling your thumbs. Get down to work!

бить в цель

to hit the mark

His remarks hit the mark perfectly and really provided an important message for the graduating students.

бить мимо цели

to miss the mark

His speech missed the mark and he failed to gain support from the audience.

бить ниже пояса (кого-л.)

to hit someone below the belt; to be below the belt

In the run-up to the election, he won’t hesitate to hit his opponent below the belt.

Her remarks about my money problems were a bit below the belt.

биться головой о стену

to bang one’s head against a brick wall

He was banging his head against a brick wall trying to teach that dog to obey.

биться не на жизнь, а на смерть

to fight tooth and nail

They fought tooth and nail to defend their son against the false accusations.

благодарить судьбу

to thank one’s lucky stars

You can thank your lucky stars that she was there to help you.

блаженное неведение

a fool’s paradise

You are living in a fool’s paradise if you think that the business will recover shortly.

бледный как полотно

(as) white as a sheet

He looked as white as a sheet after the accident.

блуждать в потемках

to be in the dark

I’m totally in the dark about what’s going on.

Бог его знает

God knows!

Will we ever win? – God knows!

боевое крещение

baptism of fire

He was given a very important project to carry out in his first month. It was a real baptism of fire.

Боже мой!

good God/gracious/grief!; oh dear!; dear me!

Good God! You’ve finished the work already!

Oh dear! I’ve lost my keys.

Dear me! I forgot to phone him.

Боже упаси!

God/heaven forbid!

I hope we won’t have any trouble with the car. – God forbid!

бок о бок

side by side

They walked along the river side by side.

более или менее

more or less

The distance is ten miles, more or less.

Have you finished yet? – More or less.

большая шишка

a big cheese/gun/noise/shot/wheel

Bill’s father is quite a big shot in the government.

бояться собственной тени

to be afraid of one’s own shadow

Jane never goes anywhere – she seems to be afraid of her own shadow.

брать быка за рога

to take the bull by the horns

I decided to take the bull by the horns and asked my boss for a holiday.

брать верх (над кем-л./чем-л.)

to get the upper hand (over someone/something)

Our team managed to get the upper hand in the end.

брать голыми руками (кого-л.)

to beat someone hands down

The last time we played chess he beat me hands down.

брать за душу

to tug at the heartstrings

The story of a lost child was one that really pulled at the heartstrings.

брать свои слова обратно

to eat one’s words

You shouldn’t say that to me. I’ll make you eat your words.

брать себя в руки

to get a grip on oneself; to pull oneself together

Come on, get a grip on yourself and tell me what happened.

She started to panic but managed to pull herself together.

брать слово

to take the floor

Mr Smith took the floor to talk about the government’s new plans to reduce unemployment.

браться за ум

to come to one’s senses

John, you should come to your senses and stop gambling.

бросать в лицо (что-л. кому-л.)

to throw something in someone’s face

She was always throwing her husband’s clumsiness in his face.

бросать деньги на ветер

to throw money down the drain

Don’t gamble on the horses. That’s just throwing money down the drain.

бросать камень (в кого-л.)

to throw stones at someone

Many politicians seem to spend too much time throwing stones at each other.

бросать на произвол судьбы (кого-л.)

to leave someone in the lurch

Soon after their son was born he went off and left her in the lurch.

бросать перчатку

to throw down the gauntlet

He threw down the gauntlet by challenging my conclusions.

бросаться в глаза (кому-л.)

to catch someone’s eye; to stick out like a sore thumb

His shiny black car caught my eye.

The dinner is formal; if you wear old jeans you’ll stick out like a sore thumb among all the well-dressed guests.

бряцать оружием

to rattle one’s sabre

He may rattle his sabre at his enemies in public, but then will bend over backwards to agree behind closed doors.

буква закона

the letter of the law

There was the danger that the judge may follow the letter of the law rather than its spirit.

буря в стакане воды

a storm in a teacup

This isn’t a serious problem – just a storm in a teacup.

была не была

here goes

‘Well, here goes!’ shouted the parachutist and jumped out of the plane.

быть беде

the fat is in the fire

The fat’s in the fire now that she has discovered about her husband’s lover.

быть на высоте

to give a good account of oneself

John gave a good account of himself during the match.

быть навеселе

to have had one too many; to have had a few (too many)

He looks as if he has had one too many.

She’s jad a few; you should take her home and put her to bed.

быть на побегушках (у кого-л.)

to fetch and carry (for someone); to be at someone’s beck and call

She is so lazy because her husband is always there to fetch and carry for her.

I had to be at his beck and call 24 hours a day.

быть нечистым на руку

to have light fingers

The employee on the till had light fingers and got fired.

в бегах

on the run

The jail-breakers were on the run from the police.

в глубине души

in one’s heart of hearts

In her heart of hearts, she knew that she wasn’t cut out to be a surgeon.

в здравом уме

in one’s right mind

No one in his right mind would go there.

в интересном положении

in the family way

I’ve heard that Martin’s wife is in the family way.

в кулаке (у кого-л.)

under someone’s thumb; in the palm of someone’s hand; in someone’s pocket

My sister is completely under her husband’s thumb.

The mayor had the local press in the palm of his hand and was never criticised by any of them.

Most of the officials in that country are in the pocket of a few very rich businessmen.

в курсе дела

in the know

Let’s ask Paul. He’s in the know.

в лицо (кому-л.)

to someone’s face

He wouldn’t dare say it to my face!

в лучшем случае

at best

The buses were all late and at best I could only hope to be home before midnight.

в любом случае

in any case/event; at any rate

In any event, I’ll see him on Tuesday.

At any rate we must go tomorrow.

в мгновение ока

in the twinkling of an eye

The new machine can do all the calculations in the twinkling of an eye.

в общем и целом

on the whole; all in all; first and last

On the whole, this was a very good journey.

All in all we haven’t done badly.

She is, first and last, a hard worker.

в объятиях Морфея

in the land of Nod

She was in the land of Nod and I didn’t want to wake her.

в одно ухо входит, а в другое выходит

to go in one ear and out the other

Everything she says to her son seems to go in one ear and out the other.

в одной лодке

in the same boat

When I told her that I was broke she said that she was in the same boat.

в первую очередь

in the first place

In the first place, I don’t have enough money to buy a new house.

в подметки не годиться (кому-л.)

cannot hold a candle to someone

She can’t hold a candle to her mother when it comes to cooking.

в полном разгаре

in full swing

The party was in full swing.

в порядке вещей

all in a day’s work

Dealing with complaints from quests is all in a day’s work to anyone working in a hotel.

в поте лица

by the sweat of one’s brow

I can proudly say that whatever I achieved was by the sweat of my brow.

в своей стихии

in one’s element

She is in her element when she’s singing.

в своем уме

in one’s right mind

You’re not in your right mind! That sounds crazy!

в стельку пьяный

as drunk as a lord

When he came home last night, he was as drunk as a lord.

в ус не дуть

not to give a damn

She was unemployed, but she didn’t give a damn.

в форме

on form

John was back on form and nobody could beat him.

в хороших руках

in good hands

This hospital is excellent – your mother will be in good hands.

в худшем случае

if the worst comes to the worst

If the worst comes to the worst, we’ll have to stay in the hotel for another night.

в чем мать родила

in one’s birthday suit; in the buff/altogether/raw

I used to go down to the beach and swim in my birthday suit.

He always sleeps in the raw.

в шкуре (кого-л.)

in someone’s skin

I wouldn’t want to be in your skin.

важная птица

a big cheese/gun/noise/shot/wheel

She is one of the directors of our company – a big noise.

валится из рук (у кого-л.)

to be all fingers and thumbs

I’m all fingers and thumbs today. Can you thread this needle for me?

валить с ног (кого-л.)

to lay someone low

The blow laid him low.

I was laid low by the flu for about two weeks.

валиться с ног

to be ready/fit to drop; to be on one’s last legs

After walking several miles I was ready to drop.

I worked all day in the garden and felt like I was on my last legs.

валять дурака

to play the fool

My father told me to stop playing the fool and start working hard for my examinations.

вбивать в голову (что-л. кому-л.)

to get something into someone’s head

The teacher couldn’t get the Latin grammar into his pupils’ heads.

вбивать себе в голову

to get it into one’s head

For some reason, he got it into his head that everybody was persecuting him.

вверх дном

upside down

The children turned the house upside down.

вводить в курс дела (кого-л.)

to put someone in the picture

I was new to this project and the manager put me in the picture.

вдоль и поперек (досконально)

inside out; backwards and forwards; through and through

He has lived in London for 30 years and knows the city inside out.

She knows the fashion business backwards and forwards.

I’ve studied his report through and through but couldn’t find any mistakes.

вдоль и поперек (во всех направлениях)

far and wide, the length and breadth of something

The police searched far and wide for the missing girl.

We travelled the length and breadth of the town looking for a good hotel.

вдохнуть жизнь (во что-л.)

to breathe life into something

The new director will help to breathe life into the project.

везет как утопленнику (кому-л.)

just someone’s luck

It was just my luck that the train left five minutes before I got to the station.

верить на слово (кому-л.)

to take someone’s word for it; to take someone on trust

John will be late again. Take my word for it.

He always took his friends on trust.

вертеться как белка в колесе

to be on the go

With three children to look after she is always on the go from morning till night.

вертеться на языке (у кого-л.)

to be on the tip of one’s tongue

What’s the name of that tree? Hold on, it’s on the tip of my tongue.

вертеться под ногами (у кого-л.)

to be under someone’s feet

I can’t cook the dinner with three children under my feet all the time.

верхушка айсберга

the tip of the iceberg

The reported cases of the disease might be only the tip of the iceberg.

вечный сон

the long sleep

вешать голову

to lose heart; to look down in the mouth

Don’t lose heart, even when you’re faced with serious difficulties.

She looked very down in the mouth when I told her that I couldn’t go with her.

взад и вперед

back and forth; to and fro; up and down; backwards and forwards

The lion was pacing back and forth inside the cage.

She walked to and fro in the hospital waiting room.

We’ve been running up and down the street looking for you.

The pendulum was moving slowly backwards and forwards.

взбредать в голову (кому-л.)

to take it into one’s head

Ann took it into her head to become an actress.

взвешивать свои слова

to weigh one’s words

I had to weigh my words carefully before asking my boss for more pay.

видать виды (много испытать)

to see the world; to go through the mill

He had the appearance of a man who has seen the world.

The young soldiers really went through the mill during the first two months of their training.

видать виды (поношенный)

have seen better days

My old hat has seen better days.

видеть насквозь (кого-л.)

to read someone like a book

You won’t deceive me with your lies. I can read you like a book.

видеть свет в конце туннеля

to see the light at the end of the tunnel

видит Бог

honest to God/goodness!

I didn’t break the window, honest to God!

винтика в голове не хватает (у кого-л.)

to have a screw loose; to have bats in the belfry

He must have a screw loose to walk around barefoot.

The poor old woman had bats in the belfry.

висеть на волоске

to hang by a thread

His life was hanging by a thread.

висеть над головой (у кого-л.)

to hang over one’s head

The threat of dismissal hung over my head.

витать в облаках

to have one’s head in the clouds

The new secretary must be in love. She has her head in the clouds most of the time.

вить веревки (из кого-л.)

to twist/wrap someone round one’s little finger

His wife can twist him round her little finger.

владеть собой

to keep one’s temper

You should learn to keep your temper.

власти предержащие

the powers that be

The powers that be have decided to demolish the old building to make space for a car park.

влетать в копеечку (кому-л.)

to cost someone a pretty penny

That house must have cost them a pretty penny.

вместе с водой выплеснуть и ребенка

to throw the baby out with the bath water

I know there are weaknesses in the programme but we shouldn’t act too hastily and throw the baby out with the bath water.

вне себя

beside oneself

She was beside herself with joy when she heard the news about her son.

вносить свою лепту

to do one’s bit

We must all do our bit to finish this job in time.

во весь голос

at the top of one’s voice

He was shouting at the top of his voice.

во весь опор

at full tilt; for all one is worth

The boy was running at full tilt down the street.

I ran to the station for all I was worth to catch the last train.

во все глаза

all eyes

The children were all eyes, taking in every detail of their new house.

во всю мочь

with all one’s might

He struggled with all his might to open the stiff door but it stayed shut.

во всю прыть

like greased lightning; like a bat out of hell

He ran out of the room like greased lightning.

The dog ran after the cat like a bat out of hell.

во плоти

in the flesh

I’ve never seen the Queen in the flesh.

во что бы то ни стало

at all costs; at any price

You must at all costs avoid an argument with your employer.

He was determined to get his freedom at any price.

водить за нос (кого-л.)

to lead someone up the garden path; to take someone for a ride

He never realised that she had been leading him up the garden path.

The people who have invested their money in this project have been taken for a ride.

водой не разольешь

as thick as thieves

Mary and Tom are as thick as thieves. They go everywhere together.

возводить на пьедестал (кого-л.)

to put someone on a pedestal

He has put his wife on a pedestal and won’t listen to a word of criticism against her.

возлагать надежды (на кого-л./что-л.)

to pin one’s hopes on someone/something

We are pinning our hopes on the new advertising campaign.

возродиться из пепла

to rise from the ashes

He bought the firm when it was bankrupt. Now it has risen from the ashes and is in profit.

войти в историю

to go down in history

I’m sure that his name will go down in history.

волк в овечьей шкуре

a wolf in sheep’s clothing

I always suspected that he was a wolf in sheep’s clothing.

волосы становятся дыбом (у кого-л.)

one’s hair stands on end

When the boy heard that sound, his hair stood on end.

вольная птица

(as) free as a bird

He felt as free as a bird when he escaped to his country house.

вооруженный до зубов

armed to the teeth

The robber was armed to the teeth and ready to fight.

I arrived for the interview armed to the teeth with letters of recommendation.

вопрос жизни и смерти

a matter of life and death

Go and get the doctor. Tell him it’s a matter of life and death.

воротить нос (от чего-л.)

to turn one’s nose up at something

She always turns her nose up at my cooking.

ворошить прошлое

to rake over the ashes/coals

Jim has already made an apology for his rude behaviour, so there’s no need to rake over the ashes.

воскрешать в памяти (что-л.)

to call something to mind

I know this actor but I can’t call his name to mind.

воспрянуть духом

to take heart

The soldiers took heart when they heard the news.

вот тебе и раз!

well, did you ever!; I say!

Well, did you ever! Mrs Smith has finally decided to move house.

I say! What a surprise!

впадать в детство

to be in one’s second childhood

He was acting very strange, as if he was in his second childhood.

впадать в немилость

to fall from grace

He was one of the president’s closest advisers for several years but fell from grace when the fraud was discovered.

впадать в уныние

to lose heart

After so many unsuccessful attempts to win the championship, he began to lose heart.

впитать с молоком матери (что-л.)

to imbibe something with one’s mother’s milk

We imbibed a love for music with our mother’s milk.

врать как сивый мерин

to lie through one’s teeth

When he said he was not married he was lying through his teeth but I pretended to believe him.

время от времени

from time to time; (every) now and again/then; (every) once in a while

From time to time he sends me flowers.

I drink coffee every now and then.

We go to the cinema every once in a while.

все до одного

one and all

I would like to invite you to dinner, one and all.

всей душой

with all one’s heart and soul; heart and soul

I hope with all my heart and soul that you will succeed.

He loved her heart and soul.

вставать на колени (перед кем-л.)

to throw oneself at the feet of someone; to go down on one’s hands and knees (to someone)

Do I have to throw myself at your feet to convince you that I’m really sorry?

I won’t go down on my hands and knees to her, no matter how important she is.

вствать с левой ноги

to get out of bed on the wrong side

She must have got out of bed on the wrong side today – she is so grumpy.

вставлять палки в колеса (кому-л.)

to put a spoke in someone’s wheel; to throw a spanner in the works

We disagree about it, but I won’t put a spoke in his wheel.

You threw a spanner in the works supplying me with the wrong information.

всыпать по первое число (кому-л.)

to knock someone into the middle of next week; to give someone hell

My brother promised to knock me into the middle of next week if I crash his car.

His wife gave him hell when he came home late last night.

втирать очки (кому-л.)

to pull the wool over someone’s eyes; to throw dust in someone’s eyes

He tried to pull the wool over my eyes with some feeble explanation.

He only gave this information in order to throw dust in our eyes.

втираться в доверие (кому-л.)

to worm oneself into someone’s confidence

Within a few months he had wormed himself into her confidence and soon he was the only person she trusted.

вторая натура

second nature

It was second nature to Sally to tell everyone else what to do.

входить в долю

to go halves

I went halves with my sister when we bought Mum a birthday present.

входить в курс дела

to learn the ropes

I’ll be able to do my job better once I learn the ropes.

входить в положение (чье-л.)

to put oneself into someone’s shoes

Try putting yourself into my shoes – I really couldn’t help your sister at that time.

вчера родиться

to be born yesterday

You must think I was born yesterday if you expect me to believe that nonsense.

выбивать из колеи (кого-л.)

to put someone off one’s stroke

His tricky questions put me off my stride and I got confused.

выбивать почву из-под ног (у кого-л.)

to cut the ground from under someone’s feet; to pull the rug from under someone

The politician completely cut the ground from under his opponent’s feet.

His girlfriend pulled the rug from under him by going to Spain alone.

выбросить из головы (что-л.)

to get something out of one’s system/mind

He couldn’t get that problem out of his system.

выведенного яйца не стоить

not worth a damn

His opinion isn’t worth a damn.

выводить из равновесия (кого-л.)