F2F Class Notes (Ben) [Xiao Qi]

Vocabulary

prop up = to support something that is failing
I placed a prop under the desk to prop up the shaking table.

a safe harbor = a behavior that does not violate any given rule, a legal behavior
For example, in the context of a statute that requires drivers to “not drive recklessly,” a clause specifying that “driving under 25 miles per hour will be conclusively deemed not to constitute reckless driving” is a “safe harbor.”

go out on a limb = take a risk, adopt an uncommon or unusual behavior
I’m going to go out on a limb and ask you two: “Are you together?”

put someone out of their misery = to prevent them from suffering any longer (often by sacrificing them)
The dog was to badly hurt and was howling for hours. We had to put it out of its misery by shooting him

throw off the scent = give false clues, to misguide to someone
She’s been asking a lot of questions about my personal timetable. I threw her off the scent by mentioning a late meetings but I think she’s up to something.

As I live and breathe ! = How amazing !
Mr Underwood, as I live and breathe !
(=I wouldn’t have expected that as I’m alive)

make your bed = to create your own problems
You have made your own bed, now you must lie in it.

press flesh = for a politician, to shake hands with people