General idioms, sayings and vocabulary heard in class and elsewhere
2010 Explanations
to hedge one's bets auf Nummer sicher gehen
   
   
2009 Explanations
to sit on the fence        to be neutral
to bug someone to annoy him
Fish and guests stink after 3 days.  
this is gonna raise the temperature something that makes the tension raise
to ride high / to ride on the high horse to be arrogant
to dump money down the drain to spend money stupidly
to have distinct views to have a sharp opinion
She was quite something. she was an impressive person
The story begins to unravel. Die Geschichte beginnt sich zu entfalten.
to be over the hill to have passed his or her best years
to fire sb. up jmd. einheizen
She lands the more powerful responses die besseren Antworten geben
to trash talk to talk nonsense, making fun of each other

Beans, beans, the musical fruit
he more you eat the more you toot
 (The more you toot, the better you feel
So eat your beans at every meal!)

 (kindly brought to us by C.A.)

(and the full story:-)
and bla, bla, bla... (S.L.)
Isn't that fascinating?!? (S.L.)
What's that? I didn't understand you!
a lame duck  
to save face  
to starve the enemy out den Feind aus seiner Festung hungern
It's going down the tube den Bach ab gehen
to get in at the ground floor to be in an affair right from the beginning
to get off track vom Thema abkommen
the social fabric of a society das soziale Gefüge einer Gesellschaft
a cause celebre eine berühmte Sache
to be au courant auf dem Laufenden sein
the latest bells and wistles  
Don't put all your eggs into the same basket. Setze nicht alles auf eine Karte
Great minds think alike  
to be a battle-ax to be a though and hard fighting person
This is a killer. This stops a thing immediately
a man of means wealth man
a lack of savvy a lack of cleverness
to catch the bug to be passionate for something
pushing up Daiys being dead
This was verboten. ...
to clear the benches something the brings all the players in
to stuck at the fifty yard line in einer Patt-Situation stecken
needless to say (J.G.)
to persue a topic  
Oh G! (T.N.)
to coin a term einen Ausdruck prägen
to fall flat on his back ausser Gefecht gesetzt werden
to get off track vom Thema abkommen
   
2008  
We missed the boat on that. We missed that.
That door is closed. That's no more possible.
to put the cart before the horses Do start with the wrong end.
a knock-down-drag-out fight a very hard fight
to switch gears to change the topic
to worm his way in to enter through the back door
You are so fun a child! You are funny!
Hero or goat?
You can't get in town without the horses. You need some equipement to work properly.
to dress to the nines to dress very nicely
dressed to kill dressed in a very attractive way
to jump on the band wagon auf den Zug aufspringen
It cracked me up. It made me laugh.
He is off his rocker. He is crazy.
At the end you have to pay the fiddler.  
A blow to the gut ein Schlag in den Magen
Do not smile before Christmas. (Teaching for dummies)
word-of-mouth recommendation Mund-zu-Mund-Propaganda
to find the 50-yard line to find a compromise
to be penniless
to pass with flying colors to pass brilliantly
to kill the golden goose  
a cliffhanger election a very tight election
a one-two punch ein Doppelschlag
the home turf advantage the homefield advantage
Vocabulary
   
2010  
to carouse drink alcohol and enjoy oneself with others in a noisy, lively way
"seacaptains carousing in Surinam" picture in lecture
effigy in a symbolic way
to burn something in effigy e.g. a dummy
coercion the practice of forcing another party to behave in an involuntary manner (whether through action or inaction) by use of threats, intimidation, trickery, or some other form of pressure or force
period the American word vor "full stop" is "period".
   
   
2009  
an archenemy the worst enemy
frenemies persons with a love-hate relationship
a payback a revenge
to be frivolous  
nullities Nichtigkeiten
ginormious gigantic + enormous
phony fake
a boarding school Internat
a cobbler a shoemaker
to be emotionally drained emotional ausgelaugt sein
a no-brainer easy question
a kook ein Spinner
booze Schnaps, Alkohol
a blowback ein Rückschlag
full throttle vollgas
   
2008  
a wimpy someone who cries and complains for everything
a carpet bagger Someone who shows up in a disaster or war area to make money
a convent A place where monks and nuns live
a pivateer (wikipedia)
a WASP White Anglo-Saxon Protestant
TGIF Thank God it's Friday
a paddywagon (wikipedia)