瘋狂短評
本節為大家提供了許多具有挑戰性的、有趣的、地道的美國成語。無疑，學會熟練使用成語總是會令人感到震驚並留下深刻的印象。
Kim’s Note Everyday language really is filled with idioms. People use idioms because they are an effective way to communicate an idea so that everyone understands it easily. Of course, if English is your second language, idioms make a conversation more difficult to understand. The best way to master idioms, is to practice speaking them in useful sentences. The following dialogues show you how they occur in everyday conversations.
Kill Two Birds With One Stone
壹舉兩得 / 壹箭雙雕
A: Is there anything I can do for you, Stone? I’d like to help you in some way if I can.
有什麽需要我幫忙的嗎，石頭? 我希望能盡點力，幫妳點什麽。
B: I can’t think of anything at the moment, but I know there is something important I have to do
today. It just slipped my mind!
壹下子我也想不起來，我只知道今天確實有要事要辦，我都給忘得壹幹二凈了！
A: Well, it will come to you eventually. Maybe I could run some errands for you or something.
別急，妳到底會想起來的。也許我能幫妳跑跑腿什麽的。
B: Ah! I remember! I need to cash a check because I’m going on a trip to New York next week.
Actually, I want to buy some traveler’s checks. You can drive me to the bank if you have time.
啊！我想起來了！我得兌換支票，因為我下星期要到紐約去旅遊。事實上，我想買些
旅行支票。如果妳有時間不妨載我到銀行去。
A: You remembered just in the nick of time. The bank will be closed tomorrow for a holiday!
還好妳在這時候想起來了，明天是節假日，銀行要關門的。
B: Do you think it’s a good idea to buy some traveler’s checks?
妳覺得買旅行支票合適嗎？
A: Definitely! Don’t carry large amounts of cash with you when you’re traveling. We have a rule of thumb: “Never carry around any more cash than you can afford to have stolen.” To be on the safe side, you’d better ask for smaller denominations: $20 or $50.
那是肯定的！旅行時不要隨身帶太多的現金。我們的經驗之談是：“隨身帶錢要適量，丟了也不會太心疼。”為了安全起見，妳要些面額較小的貨幣，如二十元或五十元。
B: Thanks for your advice. I have some questions to ask you concerning health insurance, too. And maybe you could clue me in on American tax laws too. It’s so hard to learn all the differences between America and China in such a short time. You really are a big help.
謝謝妳的建議。我還想問妳壹些關於醫療保險方面的問題，或許妳還可以給我介紹壹下美國的稅法。妳知道要在這麽短的時間裏就搞清楚美國和中國所有的差異有多難，妳真是幫了大忙。
A: No problem. Actually the insurance business is also done at the bank. Let’s go. We can kill two birds with one stone.
沒問題。其實銀行也做醫療保險方面的業務。走吧，我們可以壹舉兩得。
B: Thanks a million, if you ever have any questions about doing business in China, I hope I can help you as much as you’ve helped me.
太感謝了。如果妳對在中國做生意有任何問題，我希望我可以幫助妳就像妳現在幫助我壹樣。
財富大檢閱
第壹筆財富：
slip one’s mind: escape one’s memory; someone forgets something 使某人壹時想不起來；忘記某事
Kim’s Note This is a softer way of saying, “I forgot”. For some reason, people are more accepting of this excuse than they are of simply saying “I forgot.”
* I meant to call you when I got to Beijing but I was so busy it slipped my mind.
（我本來是打算到北京就給妳打電話的，但是我太忙了，所以就忘了。）
* Sometimes his own telephone number would slip his mind.
（有時候他會把自己的電話號碼給忘記。）
* My aunt asked me to take care of her dog today while she’s out. But it totally slipped my mind.
（阿姨叫我在她外出時照看壹下她的狗，可我把它給忘得壹幹二凈了。）
* It had slipped my mind that you were arriving today.
（我把妳今天抵達的事忘記了。）
第二筆財富：
(something) come to someone: (something) occur to someone / strike someone 某人想起某事；（思想意識等）到某人腦子裏
* Her name finally came to him.
（他終於記起了她的姓名。）
* The idea just came to me.
（我剛剛想出這主意。）
* I’m trying to remember the address of the hotel, but it just won’t come to me.
（我努力回想賓館地址，但就是想不起來。）
第三筆財富：
go on / run errands: go on a short trip in order to do something for someone or deliver a message 跑腿；為某人辦事；出差
* I have a lot of errands to run this morning for my boss.
（今天早上老板交給我好多跑腿的事。）
* It’s the children’s job to run errands for the parents.
（為父母跑跑腿是孩子們應該做的事情。）
* He was tired of running errands for his sister.
（他已厭煩給姐姐當跑腳了。）
第四筆財富：
in the nick of time: just in time; at the necessary moment 恰好；正是時候
* The fight was getting out of control. It was lucky the police arrived in the nick of time.
（鬥毆失去了控制，幸好這時候警察來了。）
* They arrived in the nick of time to save us.
（在緊要關頭他們正好趕到來救我們。）
* You got here in the nick of time – the train’s just leaving.
（妳來得真是時候 —— 火車正要開。）
第五筆財富：
rule of thumb: a way learned by practical experience; a quick and not very exact way of doing
something 單靠經驗或實踐得來的方法；粗略而簡便的方法
* I never measure rice and water when I’m cooking – I just do it by rule of thumb.
（我做飯時，從不量米量水，只憑經驗。）
* We don’t have a written policy on dating in the office but I’ve learned from rule of thumb that it’s a bad idea.
（對於辦公室戀情我們沒有明文規定，但是我憑經驗就知道那不是什麽好事。）
* As a rule of thumb, you should cook a chicken for 20 minutes for each pound that it weighs.
（憑經驗估計，每磅雞肉應烹調20分鐘。）
第六筆財富：
on the safe side: take a precaution in order to avoid a risk or loss; just to be sure 為了穩妥起見；以防萬壹；安全地
* Take some extra money with you just to be on the safe side.
（以防萬壹，妳還是多帶點錢在身上。）
* I always carry some medicine with me whenever I’m traveling, just to be on the safe side.
（旅行時，我總是隨身帶著藥，以防萬壹。）
* You’d better make a copy of your Identity Card, just to be on the safe side.
（妳把身份證復印壹份，以防萬壹。）
* Although the sun was shining the other day, my father took the umbrella with him to be on the safe side.
（雖然那天陽光明媚，我父親還是帶上了雨傘以防不測。）
第七筆財富：
clue someone in: give someone necessary infomp3ation for understanding something or finding an answer 向某人提供必要的情況；使他對此情況有所了解
* I just don’t understand what’s going on and I don’t want to just wait around for someone to clue me in!
（我不明白出現了什麽情況，我不想就這樣傻等著誰來告訴我。）
* I’m a newcomer here. I would really appreciate it if you could clue me in on the library of the school.
（我新來乍到，如果妳能給我介紹壹下學校的圖書館，我將不勝感激。）
* Since I missed the last meeting, I would like to have you clue me in on what happened.
（我錯過了上次的會議，請妳給我介紹壹下上次談判的情況。）
* He will clue you in about this.
（關於這件事，他會給妳提供情況的。）
第八筆財富：
kill two birds with one stone: do two things at the same time 壹箭雙雕；壹舉兩得
* If you are going to America on a business trip next week, you could kill two birds with one stone and
do your Christmas shopping at the same time.
（如果妳下星期去倫敦出差，妳可以壹舉兩得，同時在那兒購買聖誕禮物。）
* I always get my nails manicured while I get my hair cut, that way I can kill two birds with one stone.
（每次我去剪頭發的時候都會修指甲，這樣我可以壹舉兩得。）
瘋狂實戰
A: Since you’re going to pick up Nancy from the fitness class, why don’t you kill two birds with one stone and pick up Jane after her ballet class?
（妳既然去健身班接南茜，那妳順便把上完芭蕾舞課的珍尼接回來好嗎？）
B: OK, no problem.
（可以，沒問題。）