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English idioms -
07-27-2011, 10:44 AM
Hi.
I would like to practice English idioms. So I will write more than five sentences using the idiom for the day. Any correction or advice will be appreciated. Am I using the idiom properly? Thank you. No.1 cut a deal No.2 add insult to injury No.3 hang on No.4 make a big deal No.5 work out ................................................ Today's idiom is cut a deal. A scene from the movie Batman (1989). Jack stole Carl's woman. So Carl is trying to kill him. After surviving Carl's death trap, Jack goes to Carl to kill him. If I remember it correctly, the scene was something like this. Jack;You set me up for a woman. A woman! Carl; Jack!......Maybe we can cut a deal. (Carl is preparing the gun facing his back to Jack.) Jack; Don't bother! ...................... Last year the company cut several deals with suppliers. (from a textbook) ....................... My wife and I have cut a deal to divorce after 20 years marriage life. ......................... Toyota and Nissan cut a deal to merge, in order to survive the winter season of the automobile industry. ...................... I'll never cut a deal with anyone. =I don't bargain. =I don't compromise. ....................... 
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07-27-2011, 12:09 PM
That definitely sounds American. I doubt if we in the UK would use that idiom-- Not to my knowledge anyway although often we do pick up American style expressions.
Here is a website with many Idioms. Idioms/A This looks useful also: Phrases that start with the letter 'B' Here also is alist of cliches which we often over use without thinking Cliches: Avoid Them Like the Plague
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07-27-2011, 03:09 PM
"Cut a deal" is probably an American expression. I hear it mostly used in regard to legal situations than anywhere else.
"My lawyer cut a deal with the prosecutor so I won't see the inside of a jail cell."
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07-27-2011, 04:26 PM
I didn't know it was just an American expression either.
Anyway, "Cut a deal" would most likely be said in a business situation and the like. It is a familiar idiom. "Make a deal" means the same thing.
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07-27-2011, 05:06 PM
Quote:
"Make a deal" implies a mutually beneficial arrangement, and might be something a mother says to her child. "I'll make you a deal: you take out the garbage, then you can play video games." "Cut a deal" sounds a someone is getting an advantage, or it may not be completely fair, but is the resolution. "They didn't have the evidence to go for murder one, so the defense cut a deal to drop the charges to manslaughter."
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07-27-2011, 11:02 PM
Thank you, BBB and Kuuzoku, for your detailed explanation of the idioms.
The two country have cut a deal with each other in regard to the elimination of non-agricultural tariff. They have cut a deal, and the plea-bargain's been accepted at the minor court. Princess Amidara and the chief of Naboo natives cut a deal in order to face the new enemy, the Emperor Parpatine. Maybe we can make a deal. First school, and you will be able to do anything you like after graduation. I'll make you a deal. First, homework, and then you can enjoy TV.
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No.2 add insult to injury -
07-27-2011, 11:24 PM
Hi.
There is a Japanese idiom equivalent to "Add insult to injury"; 泣きっ面に蜂 (a bee sting to the crying face. When a child is crying, a bee flies to him and stings into his face.) I lost my wallet at the street yesterday, and to add insult to injury, I got lost. I lost my credit-card two weeks ago, and then to add insult to injury, a lot of expensive demand notes have arrived at me, which I don't remember. I had a severe headache and took a pain killer, and then to add insult to injury, my stomach began to ache. My English teacher corrected my English essay completely, and to add insult to injury, he denied my personality. I and my wife divorced, and then to add insult to injury, my daughter's gone with her. Hey! It seems impossible to write something happy, with this idiom!
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07-28-2011, 12:58 AM
These don't seem like QUITE when I would use "add insult to injury". To simply have a bad thing happen, and then another isn't quite enough. It must be more related and more egregious.
I lost my wallet at the street yesterday, and then to add insult to injury, whoever found it stole my credit cards! I had a severe headache and took a pain killer, and then to add insult to injury, the pain killer gave me a stomachache. My wife left me, and then to add insult to injury, she took my pet dog with her.
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07-28-2011, 02:52 AM
Quote:
My previous example sentences are not for "to add insult to injury" but for "to make the matter worse", right? I lost my wallet in the street yesterday, and to add insult to injury, it started to rain. (wrong) I lost my wallet in the street yesterday, and to make the matter worse, it started to rain. (correct) The second bad-luck should be closely related to the first bad-luck, or, the second tragedy is caused by the first tragedy, when it comes to "add insult to injury". The tsunami killed tens of thousands of people, and to add insult to injury, it destroyed the atomic power plant. I offer my deep condolences to those who are affected by that tragedy.
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