美国人平时所用的许多短语，看似普通，但有的会有特別意义，究竟是俚语、口语或俗语，没有绝对的定义。其实名称不重要，最重要的是懂得意义和用法，不是吗？

8. to pay through the nose: to pay too much for something or excessively expensive

（花费太多，代价过高，与" to cost an arm and a leg" 意义相近）

Don't pay through the nose when you buy the furniture. (不要花太多的钱买家具。)

Some women paid through the noses for their jewelry¹. (有些女人花大把的钱购买珠宝首饰。)

9. to take center stage：to be in the spotlight² (引人注目的中心人物；以某人为公众瞩目的对象)

Mrs. Lin always takes center stage at a party. (林太太总能成为宴会上的焦点。)

President Bush takes center stage wherever he goes. (布什总统不论走到哪里，都是公众瞩目的焦点。)

His constant taking center stage could deprive him of his privacy. (他好出风头的毛病让他毫无隐私可言。)

10. to drag（one's）feet：to procrastinate³ or postpone⁴（慢慢的拖延，行动迟缓，拖拖拉拉）

It is not a good idea to drag your feet when the work needs to be done. (拖延工作是不好的。)

No employers like for their employees to drag their feet on any project. (工作拖拖拉拉的员工总是不受欢迎的。)

11. to paint（someone or oneself）into a corner：to trap oneself or someone; to be in trouble（使自己或某人陷入困境, 应该注意的是即使主语是复数形式，corner 仍然用单数）

Don't try to paint yourself into a corner. (不要让自己身陷困境，无法脱身。)

After a heated debate with his boss, Mr. Chen has painted himself into a corner. (和老板激烈的争辩之后，陈先生处境十分不妙。)

12. to ask (someone) for (one's) hand: to ask girl's parents for marriage approval（指男人请求女方家长应允将女儿嫁给他，

这里的"someone"是指女方的家长，"one"则是指要求婚的对象，hand 只能用单数形式）

Mr. Su asked me for my daughter's hand. (苏先生到我家来向我女儿提亲。)

He has asked her parents for their daughter's hand. (他请求她的父母应允他们的婚事。)

13. to move onward⁵ and upward：to be promoted; from good to better situation（情况得以改善，或往更好的情況发展）

He hopes to move onward and upward with his current company. (他希望能在现在就职的公司里顺利发展，步步高升。)

Many young couples try to move onward and upward during their marriage. (许多年轻夫妇都希望能够婚姻美满幸福。)

14. to call a spade a spade: to be honest, blunt or frank（直言不讳，有啥说啥）

My wife always calls a spade a spade about her work situation. (我妻子对别人谈起她的工作时，总是直言不讳。)

Calling a spade a spade on foreign affairs sometimes seems difficult for diplomats⁶. (外交官在处理外交事务的时候很难做到直言不讳。)

15. to play cat and mouse：to play games with aggressive and passive attitude（玩猫戏老鼠的把戏，欲擒故纵)

In business negotiations⁷, there are always cat-and-mouse games. (在商业谈判中，常会有一些猫戏老鼠的把戏。）

The police have played cat and mouse with the murderer. (警察对凶犯采用的是欲擒故纵的策略。)

16. to go on the dole⁸：(of the unemployed) to live on public welfare（失业人员依靠政府救济金生活。)

Thousands of Americans are out of jobs and may go on the dole.(美国成千上万的失业者靠领取政局救济金生活。)

Some people have gone on the dole for years. (有些人多年来就是靠政府救济生活的。)