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121 fall flat (on one’s face) / fall flat (on its face)
Fall flat (on one’s face) / fall flat (on its face)быть полной неудачейMy jokes fall flat most of the time.English-Russian small dictionary of idioms > fall flat (on one’s face) / fall flat (on its face)
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122 Lucy and the football
•• * В статье обозревателя Washington Post Чарльза Краутхаммера, резко критической в отношении «виртуального мирного договора», подписанного израильскими и палестинскими политиками в Женеве, встретился следующий пассаж, который сначала привел меня в некоторое замешательство:
•• Arafat pocketed every Israeli concession and betrayed every promise he signed in Oslo. It’s Lucy and the football all over again, and the same chorus of delusionals who so applauded Oslo – Jimmy Carter, Sandy Burger, Tom Friedman – is applauding again. This time, however, the Israeli surrender is so breathtaking, it makes Oslo look rational.
•• Смысл фразы Lucy and the football all over again – сильно напоминающей знаменитую сентенцию Йоги Берра (it’s déjà vu all over again) – конечно, ясен, но захотелось все-таки выяснить ее происхождение, точное значение и статус. Помог, как почти всегда, гугл, выдавший следующую статью из Princeton Alumni Weekly:
•• Lucy and the football
•• Will basketball once again break our young columnist’s heart? I grew up in a Peanuts household. My father, a man with a deep appreciation for pathos, fell in love with Charlie Brown as a child, and numerous Peanuts anthologies lined the walls of our library.
•• <...>
•• One annual segment involving Charlie Brown did capture my imagination. Every fall Charlie Brown and Lucy would go outside to kick a field goal with a football. Every fall Charlie Brown would recall that the previous year Lucy had pulled the football away at the last possible moment, causing Charlie Brown to fly 10 feet in the air and land flat on his back. Every fall Lucy would patiently explain to Charlie Brown that this was the year that things would be different. And every fall Charlie Brown would again end up flat on his back as Lucy reminded him of the cruel realities of our world.
•• <...>
•• This season I worry that the men’s basketball team may be preparing to perform a milder version of the Lucy and the football trick on me. After I watched the Tigers get thoroughly dissected by California and St. Josephs – and as Penn made some serious noise in early-season games – I made peace with the notion that this was a rebuilding year. In fact, as we entered the Ivy League season at 4-7, I was even prepared to concede that we might ( shudder) finish lower than second in the league.
•• So what happens? On the Monday after the first full weekend of the season, I check the scores, fully prepared for terrible news. But what I discover is that Princeton has swept Harvard and Dartmouth while Penn has managed to lose in Cambridge. And suddenly I’m a believer again.
•• <...>
•• But warning signs already abound. <...> For the moment, however, my early-season jitters are long forgotten. I am a convert, a true believer, orange and black to the hilt. I have trotted back to the bandwagon like a pathetic puppy and I am ready for another unexpected and magical run to the NCAA Tournament. At least until Lucy again pulls that football away.
•• Итак, речь идет о героях комиксов серии Peanuts. В американском футболе гол «с поля» забивается игроком, для которого другой игрок (в данном случае Lucy) придерживает овальный мяч на земле. Если в последний момент мяч убирается, то бьющий с разбега теряет равновесие и действительно падает на спину. Так что можно понимать это выражение как подвох и даже подлость. Но можно посмотреть на это и с другой стороны. Чарли Браун, как сказали бы в аналогичной ситуации по-русски, опять наступает на грабли. Конечно, рекомендовать это как перевод вряд ли можно – ведь у слушающего появляется соблазн развития метафоры. Но для понимания это сравнение полезно.
•• Остается вопрос о статусе этого выражения. Что это – реалия, крылатое выражение, аллюзия? Или вошедшее в язык фразеологическое сочетание? Судя по отсутствию этого выражения в словарях, последнее – вряд ли. Но если начнет работать механизм языковой моды, то переход в категорию фразеологизма может произойти довольно быстро.
English-Russian nonsystematic dictionary > Lucy and the football
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123 come out flat-footed
амер.; разг.решительно высказаться (за); высказать правду прямо в глазаNow don't go getting sore at me because I come out flat-footed like a friend and say what I think instead of talking behind your back, the way a whole lot of 'em do. (S. Lewis, ‘Babbitt’, ch. XXIX) — Брось ты на меня обижаться, я-то тебе правду говорю, как друг, прямо в глаза, а не сплетничаю за спиной, как другие.
...but I want to come out flatfooted and ask you boys to O. K. the proposition of a Symphony Orchestra for Zenith. (S. Lewis, ‘Babbitt’, ch. XXI) —...но я пойду напролом и попрошу вас, друзья, одобрить приглашение симфонического оркестра в наш "Зенит"
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124 fall flat
провалиться, не иметь успеха; не произвести ожидаемого впечатления, желаемого действия...there was no use in building the folk's hopes up and then having them fall flat. (J. Jones, ‘Some Came Running’, ch. LXXIII) —...не было никакого смысла пробуждать в людях ложные надежды, которым суждено было вскоре рухнуть.
My humour had fallen flat with her. (M. West, ‘Summer of the Red Wolf’, ch. 6) — Мой юмор не произвел никакого впечатления на Малву О'Доннел.
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125 put the tin lid on things
expr infmlThat has really put the tin lid on things — Ну, теперь писец котенку
On the way back I had a flat tyre. And I found the spare was flat too. That pretty well put the tin lid on things — По дороге домой у меня полетела шина. И запасная была проколотой, так что я оказался в отчаянном положении
The new dictionary of modern spoken language > put the tin lid on things
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126 in a flat spin
in a (flat) spin в панике/смятении/замешательстве/волненииShe's in a spin over the arrangements for the party.
News of the director's resignation had sent management into a spin.
Англо-русский словарь идиом и фразовых глаголов > in a flat spin
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127 catch someone flat-footed
expr infmlThe new dictionary of modern spoken language > catch someone flat-footed
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128 fall flat
expr infmlFor once he flopped. For much the same reason, I think, he falls a bit flat on television — Он уже раз провалился. И по той же самой причине, я думаю, он не имеет успеха и на телевидении
См. также в других словарях:
The Flat Earth — Studioalbum von Thomas Dolby Veröffentlichung 1984 Label EMI Records Ltd Forma … Deutsch Wikipedia
(the) Flat Earth Society — the Flat Earth Society [the Flat Earth Society] an organization whose members claim that the earth is flat, and refuse to believe in modern science. The society was established in America and has branches in Britain. Its members are called flat… … Useful english dictionary
(the) flat of something — the flat of something phrase a flat surface or part of something She hit the table with the flat of her hand. Thesaurus: outer parts of objects or spaceshyponym central parts of objects or spacessynonym Main entry: flat … Useful english dictionary
the flat — Flat racing • • • Main Entry: ↑flat … Useful english dictionary
The Flat — is an anchorage just north of North Island in the Houtman Abrolhos.Australia 1:100000 Topographic Survey, Map sheet 1641 (Edition 1): Wallabi] It is located at coord|28|16|44|S|113|35|3|E|display=inline,title|scale:25000,Gazetteer of Australia… … Wikipedia
The Flat Hat — Infobox Newspaper name = The Flat Hat caption = type = Twice weekly newspaper format = Broadsheet foundation = 1911 ceased publication = price = owners = The College of William Mary publisher = editor = chiefeditor = Austin Wright maneditor =… … Wikipedia
The Flat Earth — Infobox Album Name = The Flat Earth Type = Album Artist = Thomas Dolby Released = February 1984 Recorded = 1983 Genre = New Wave Length = 37:22 Label = Capitol Records | Capitol/EMI Producer = Thomas Dolby Reviews = *… … Wikipedia
the flat of something — a flat surface or part of something She hit the table with the flat of her hand … English dictionary
on the flat — phrase on level ground that has no slopes or hills The race is run mostly on the flat. Thesaurus: straight, upright and levelsynonym Main entry: flat * * * on the ˈflat idiom ( … Useful english dictionary
on the flat — ► on the flat 1) on level ground as opposed to uphill. 2) (on the Flat) (of a horse race) on a course without jumps. Main Entry: ↑flat … English terms dictionary
on the flat — on level ground that has no slopes or hills The race is run mostly on the flat … English dictionary
