1. Weather the storm 渡過難關
This one can be a little confusing. When we say “weather” in English, we’re usually talking about how hot or cold it is outside, or whether it’s rainy, snowy, windy or sunny.
“Weather” can also be a verb (action word), though. This idiom means to survive a difficult challenge.
Example Sentence:
“Fred is going through a hard time right now, but he’ll weather the storm.”
This means that Fred will overcome whatever problems he has.
2. Take a rain check 下次吧，以後再說
Here, a “check” means a “ticket”—similar to a “hat check” or a “coat check” that you’d use to claim your hat or coat after it was hung up for you at a restaurant.
A “rain check” would let you claim another chance to do something at a later time.
Example Sentence: If you tell someone, “I’ll take a rain check,” It’s another way of saying, “I understand the delay. We’ll do this later.”
3. Chasing rainbows 追求不現實的幻想
Even though rainbows are real, they seem to disappear as you get close to them.
If you know someone who’s trying to reach an impossible goal, you can say that they’re “chasing rainbows.”
4. It’s a breeze 小菜一碟
A “breeze” is air that blows lightly and gently. It doesn’t move with force; it moves easily.
Example Sentence: “No! It’s a breeze.” In other words, it’s easy!
5. Snowball into (something) 滾雪球
If something in your life “snowballs,” it means that it keeps growing larger. This happens quickly, gaining momentum (energy that keeps increasing).
“Snowballing” can be good or bad.
Here’s a positive example:
“Her first few sales of the new product snowballed into a permanent sales job with the company.”
And a negative example:
“One late night snowballed into many more late nights, and soon he struggled to get out of bed.”
練習時間:
那個慣用語跟你生活經驗有關，請分享
Think about a situation where you would use the idiom in your life and share it with us.