| 释义 |
wall 1. noun ► behind the wallimprisoned US, 1989.► go over the wallto escape from prison US, 1934.► go to the wallto lose money in stock investments US, 1988.► off the wallin auction fraud, where non-existent bids are said to come from UK, 2003.► the walla maximum security prison US, 2002.► up the wallcrazy; crazed by circumstances; angry UK, 1951 2. verb to lean against the wall at a party or other social gathering US, 1997
idiomwalldrive sb up the wallspoken to annoy someone a lot:I can't get the last crossword clue and it's driving me up the wall!I love Garrett, but he drives me up the wall - every day I find things he's "cleaned up" or moved.I work in an office. You know - meetings, phones, everybody driving each other up the wall.go to the wall1 if a person or company goes to the wall, they fail, usually because they have no more money:Thousands of companies have gone to the wall in one of the worst recessions since the war.Many small investors went to the wall when the stock market crashed.2 to be so sure that what you believe in is right, that you are ready to suffer because you support it:Poets have tended to see what is happening, and to speak out, and to go to the wall for it.Do you believe the boy's story? Would you go to the wall for it?hit a brick wall(also run/come up against a brick wall)to be in a situation where something is preventing you from doing or achieving what you want:The campaign for a playground seems to have hit a brick wall, and children still have nowhere to go in Holybourne.We can give you some tips on tracing your family tree, and what to do when you run up against a brick wall.hit the wallto reach the point in a process where it is difficult to achieve any more or go any further:I felt I'd hit the wall with my playing, so I enrolled on a course at the Guitar Institute of Technology.Everyone talks about hitting a wall at the 24-mile mark when you run the marathon, and that's just what happened to me.like talking to a (brick) wallused in order to say that you are annoyed because someone refuses to listen to your advice, explanation etc:I've told the kids not to play football near the house, but it's like talking to a brick wall.I don't know why I bother talking to you any more, I might as well talk to the wall.nail sb to the wall(also nail sb's ass to the wall AmE)to punish someone and make them suffer, because you are very angry with them ◆ used especially in newspapers:You couldn't do this play in England - you'd be nailed to the wall.The Commissioner was eagerly awaiting the slightest slip on his part, to jump in and nail his ass to the wall.off the wallused about someone or something that is very strange or unusual:Jessica's new furniture designs are completely off the wall.Prentice was a left-wing liberal who might do something off the wall, like act on principle, for heaven's sake.off-the-wall: Community radio's appeal lies in the excitement it generates in the search for off-the-wall ideas. phrasewall[walled, walled, walling]
wall in 1. wall in sth • wall sth in to surround an area with a wall: Part of the garden had been walled in, to make a sheltered spot for growing tender plants.2. wall in sth/sb • wall sth/sb in to surround an area or person: The grey tower blocks walled in the space completely. The shopkeeper sat behind his counter, walled in by racks of cheap watches, pens, and cassettes.3. wall yourself in if you wall yourself in, you put yourself in a position where you are no longer free to change what you are doing: The bureaucrats were prisoners of their own system. They had walled themselves in.
wall off 1. wall off sth • wall sth off usually passive to build a wall around or in front of something to separate it from the surrounding area: The garden was walled off to protect it from the wind. Several of the caves have been walled off with rocks or bits of old timber.2. wall off sb/sth • wall sb/sth off usually passive to keep someone or something completely separate from other people, things, countries etc: It had clearly been Dad's intention to wall off his past entirely.+ from Burma was effectively walled off from the rest of the outside world. The drug works by walling off the bacteria from the other cells, so that they cannot affect the rest of the body
wall up 1. wall up sth • wall sth up usually passive to fill an entrance, window etc with bricks, stone etc so that it is completely blocked: The only doorway had been walled up long ago. Two of the windows were walled up, and there was very little natural light.■ SIMILAR TO: brick up/in2. wall up sb • wall sb up usually passive to completely enclose someone in a small space by building a wall to block the entrance, so that they cannot escape and will certainly die: the ghost of an unfortunate woman who was walled up in a small room and left to starve to death When the house was demolished, two complete skeletons were found walled up in the basement.
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