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马年春节，我特意跟对中国文化不大了解的同事介绍了今年是“马年”，一位同事下班前告诉我：
“为了纪念马年春节，我提前回家。”他说Gallop home.
接着又有一同事来说，我要回去，eat like a horse.
又有一位校领导发信来说：
“Abilene is a bit of a one horse town, but I'm hoping wild horses couldn't drag you away from here because you have more horse sense than almost anyone I know.”
用的全是和马有关的短语。
我想到我们这个小镇在德克萨斯，牛仔们的家乡，到处都是马，关于马的短语还真不少。不妨整理一下，祝大家的马语水平马上提高。
a charley horse, 抽筋。例句：He has a charley horse while swimming.
better get on my horse 指该走了。例句：It’s getting dark. I’d better get on my horse.
dark horse, 黑马。例句：Never underestimate Professor Wang for he is a real dark horse in this grant application process.
horse of a different color,另当别论。例句：We usually don't support such tickets, but if the principal orders it, that's horse of a different color. 这种求助申请我们一般是不接的，不过如果是校长的命令，那要另当别论了。
a one-horse race. 稳操胜券的游戏。例句：This application is a one-horse race for Professor Wang. 汪教授申请这东西如囊中取物。
back the wrong horse 押错宝。 例句： His only fault is to have backed the wrong horse in the committee. 他的唯一过错是在委员会成员中押宝押错。
beat/flog a dead horse, 指责已经无济于事的事情，例句：I know that we made a wrong choice with the system, but there is no point beating a dead horse now. 我知道我们系统选错了，可这时候来事后诸葛亮有什么用处。
change horses in midstream 临场换人，中途改变。例句：This mid-term election is too competitive for us to change horses in midstream. 中期选举竞争如此激烈，临阵换人不妥。小布什争取连任的时候，伊拉克、阿富汗战争都还没有结束，就有很多支持者说不能change horses in midstream.
Closing the stable door after the horse has bolted， 马都跑光了才来关马厩（羊全都亡了才补牢）。例句：Applying the security patch after your password has been compromised is like closing the stable door after the horse has bolted. 密码被人盗了你才来安装安全补丁，恐怕是马后炮了吧。
eat like a horse, 饿极了，能狼吞虎咽。
For want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the man was lost.少钉一根钉马掌丢了，马掌丢了马丢了，马丢了人也丢了。指忽略小细节，事情会越来越严重。如桐城话所说的那样：“小洞不补，拉到一尺五”。
get something straight from the horse's mouth， 指从当事人那里哪来的第一手信息。例句：Oral histories are important as we can get something straight from the horse’s mouth. 口述历史当然重要了，可以听到当事人的第一手描述。
Hold horses, 指“等等”。Hold your horses. Let's check your assumptions first.等等，我们先看看你这些假设成立不成立。
If wishes were horses, then beggars would ride. 要是梦想是马匹的话，乞丐还不都骑着飞起来，意思是空想是没有用的。要是梦想能成真的话，不仅母猪，就是老板都会上树。
drive a coach and horses through something, 漏洞大得都能赶马车过去。 例句：Professor Wang made all sorts of excuses for his lack of action to fix his formatting, but I drove a coach and horse through his arguments. 汪教授找出种种借口为自己的排版问题开脱，被我驳斥得体无完肤。
You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink. 这像中文说的：牛不喝水强摁头也不行。
get off high horse 别高高在上的了，谦卑一点。 Get off your high horse and talk like a normal human being, 别跟我唱这些高调了，说点人话行不行？
horses for courses 指一行人做一行事，隔行如隔山. 例句：Horses for courses. I am a fashion designer, not a plastic surgeon. 隔行如隔山，我是搞时装设计的，我又不是整容师。
horse sense, 常识。例句： I’ve never seen anyone with more horse sense than this guy. 我从来没看谁像他这样有常识。
nod is as good as a wink to a blind horse”点头示意，就跟和瞎马挤眼睛一样无用”，指你如果暗示对方，对方就是不理，你暗示也没有用。例句：Nod is as good as a wink to a blind horse. Just go back to your poker face. 你跟他挤眉弄眼，他跟你装聋作哑，还不如目无表情往下玩。
one-horse town, 指巴掌大的小镇。
put the cart before the horse, 本末倒置
put a horse out to pasture 把马放到草场上让其 不再当差，略有我们“马放南山”这点意思。
最后，祝大家胃口好, eat like a horse； 愿你们的孩子参与考试, 如one-horse race；愿你在你所在的行业，成为black horse；原你投资炒股，不会back the wrong horse...
好了, better get on my horse! 新年快乐！
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