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cool one's heels

/kuːl wʌnz hiːlz/
idiomatic_phrase★中级💡 被迫等待◆成语
◆ 真正含义
被迫长时间等待,通常因他人故意或无意的拖延而感到不耐烦或被轻视。
¶ 字面意思
让某人冷却脚后跟
字面拆解
cool使变冷+one's heels某人的脚后跟
◇ 意境
想象一个人被迫站立很久,脚后跟因长时间站立而感到疲劳或寒冷,暗示无聊、不耐烦或被忽视的状态。
◈ 使用场景
在医院排队挂号时,护士让你在走廊里等了两小时;或者在面试时,面试官让你在门外等了半小时。
◉ 文化注释
该习语起源于16世纪,最初用于描述马匹因疲劳或受伤而停止行走。后逐渐演变为人类社会中因官僚主义或他人故意拖延而被迫等待的隐喻。
非正式

被迫长时间等待(通常因他人故意拖延或无视)

The manager kept me cooling my heels in his office while he took a long lunch.

经理让我在办公室里被迫干等着,自己却去吃了很长时间的午饭。

She made me cool my heels outside the interview room for half an hour.

她让我在面试室外被迫等了半个小时。

💡

常用于描述因他人故意或无意的拖延而不得不长时间等待的情景。

同义词

wait aroundhang aroundtwiddle one's thumbs

反义词

act immediatelytake action

相关短语

keep someone waiting短语
让某人等待
make someone wait短语
迫使某人等待

💡专业提示

避免误解

该习语的字面意思是'冷却脚后跟',但实际含义与字面完全无关。切勿望文生义,应将其视为一个整体的习语来理解。

⚡黄金法则

使用场景

当描述因他人故意拖延、无视或官僚作风而不得不长时间等待时,可使用该习语。例如:'The customer service kept me cooling my heels for hours.'

📖词源

源于16世纪的英语习语,原指马匹因疲劳或受伤而停止行走('cool' 表示冷却,'heels' 指马蹄)。后引申为人被迫长时间等待的状态。

📝用法说明

该习语通常带有负面情绪,暗示等待者感到不耐烦或被轻视。使用时主语通常是被动等待的人。

英汉词典

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