| 词汇 | touch and go |
| 释义 | Idiom touch and go Theme: CERTAINTY - LACKING very uncertain. (Fixed order.)Things were touch and go at the office until a new manager was hired.Jane had a serious operation, and everything was touch and go for two days after her surgery. Slang touch and go Theme: UNCERTAINTY mod. chancy.It was touch and go for a while, but we are out of the woods now.The place was in a real tizzy. Everything was touch and go. touch and go adjective of uncertain outcome, unsure UK, 1815touch and goExtremely uncertain as to the outcome of something. Hyphenated if used before a noun. Our business had a pretty rocky start—it was touch and go for a while there whether we'd even be able to keep going or not. The doctors said it was touch and go at points during surgery, but he is expected to pull through and make a full recovery. It was a touch-and-go match from beginning to end, but fortunately we were able to pull ahead in the last few minutes. touch-and-govery uncertain or critical. Things were touch-and-go at the office until a new manager was hired. Jane had a serious operation, and everything was touch-and-go for two days after her surgery. touch and goExtremely uncertain or risky, as in It was touch and go after the surgery; we were not sure he'd survive it, or It was touch and go but they finally gave me a seat on the plane. This idiom implies that a mere touch may cause a calamity. [Early 1800s] touch and goCOMMON 1. If it is touch and go whether something will happen, you cannot be certain whether it will happen or not. It was touch and go whether she would really go through with the court case. I thought I was going to win the race, but it was still touch and go. 2. If it is touch and go, you are in a very dangerous situation, where people might die. Nancy nearly lost control of the boat. For a few moments it was touch and go. touch and go(of an outcome, especially one that is desired) possible but very uncertain.touch and go mod. chancy. It was touch and go for a while, but we are out of the woods now. touch and goRisky, precarious. This term, which originated in the early nineteenth century, appears to allude to a vehicle barely escaping collision— for example, a ship rubbing against the bottom with its keel but still able to move, or a cart’s wheel dragging against another without harm. An early figurative use in print occurred in a letter written by Ralph Wardlaw (1815): “’Twas touch and go—but I got my seat.” touch and goA risky situation. There are times when a ship's captain or pilot must pick the vessel's way through such a narrow channel that its sides might well scrape against rocks or other potentially destructive hazards. Nevertheless, the captain or pilot had no other choice. That is to say, the ship might touch but it had to go regardless of the risk. Hence, this expression for an uncertain enterprise. A literal application of the phrase is an airplane's touching down on the runway, but then immediately lifting off because a normal landing would be dangerous. Pilots practice the maneuver when learning to fly. |
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