Seeof coursecourseBrE /kɔːs/ NAmE /kɔːrs/► SEE ALLa course of actionin/over the course of…in the ordinary, normal, etc. course of events, things, etc.of courseof course noton course for sth/to do sthrun/take its coursebe on a collision course (with sb/sth)in due courseas a matter of coursefollow/steer/take a middle coursefind, etc. a/the middle waylet nature take its coursebe (about) par for the coursepervert the course of justicestay the course ●a course of ˈactiona way of doing, managing, or achieving sth处理事情的方式；做法◆What is the best course of action to take? 最好应该怎么做呢？◆Two alternative courses of action are open to us: either we deal with him directly or we get the help of a lawyer. 有两种方法可供我们选择：要么直接与他打交道，要么寻求律师的帮助。●in/over the course of… (used with expressions for periods of time与表示一段时间的表达法连用) during在…过程中；在…期间◆He’s seen many changes in the course of his long life. 在漫长的一生中他目睹了许多变化。◆The company faces some major challenges over the course of the next few years. 这家公司在未来几年将面临一些重大的挑战。●in the ordinary, normal, etc. course of eˈvents, ˈthings, etc.as things usually happen按通常情况；在一般情况下；通常◆In the normal course of events we would not treat her disappearance as suspicious. 在一般情况下，她不露面，我们也不会觉得有什么可疑之处。●of ˈcourse1. ( courseinformal) used to emphasize that what you are saying is true or correct（用于强调所说的话真实或正确）当然◆‘Don’t you like my mother?’ ‘Of course I do!’ “难道你不喜欢我母亲？”“当然喜欢！”◆‘Will you be there?’ ‘Course I will.’ “你会去那里吗？”“当然会去。”2. ( courseinformal) used as a polite way of giving sb permission to do sth（用于客气地同意某人做某事）当然可以，请便◆‘Can I come, too?’ ‘Course you can.’ “我也可以来吗？”“当然可以。”◆‘Can I have one of those pens?’ ‘Of course — help yourself.’ “那些笔我能拿一支吗？”“当然，请便。”3.used as a polite way of agreeing with what sb has just said（用于礼貌地同意某人刚说的话）是的◆‘I did all I could to help.’ ‘Of course,’ he murmured gently. “我尽全力帮忙了。”“没错。”他轻声低语道。4.used to show that what you are saying is not surprising or is generally known or accepted（表示所说的事不令人惊讶或尽人皆知）那自然◆Ben, of course, was the last to arrive. 本自然是最后一个到的。◆Of course, there are other ways of doing this. 当然还有别的方法做这件事。●of ˈcourse not ( ˈcourse notinformal) used to emphasize the fact that you are saying ‘no’（用于强调不同意）当然不◆‘Are you going?’ ‘Of course not.’ “你要去吗？”“当然不去。”◆‘Do you mind?’ ‘No, of course not.’ “你介意吗？”“当然不介意。”●on ˈcourse for sth/to do sthlikely to achieve or do sth because you have already started to do it（因为已经启动而）很可能做成◆The American economy is on course for higher inflation than Britain by the end of the year. 美国经济很可能在今年年底前出现比英国更高的通货膨胀率。●run/take its ˈcourse (of a series of events, an illness, etc.一系列事件、疾病等) develop in the natural or usual way without being changed or stopped持续到自然结束，任其发展，听其自然◆The doctors agreed to let the illness run its course, rather than prescribe drugs which had little chance of success. 医生认同此病只能听其自然，而不用那些几乎没有什么疗效的药。◆We must allow justice to take its course. 我们必须让正义得以伸张。●be on a colˈlision course (with sb/sth)1.be in a situation which is almost certain to cause a disagreement or dispute势必导致冲突（或争端）◆I was on a collision course with my boss over the sales figures.我在销售数字上和老板发生了争执。2.be moving in a direction in which it is likely that you will crash into sb/sth朝着…撞去；有相撞的趋势◆The ship was on a collision course with a huge iceberg.船朝着巨大的冰山撞去。●in ˌdue ˈcourseat the right time in the future; eventually在适当的时候；到一定的时候◆Thank you for your letter applying for the post of manager. We will be in contact with you again in due course.感谢你来信应聘经理职位，我们会在适当的时候再和你联系。●as a matter of ˈcourseas a regular habit, or as a normal way of behaving当作常规；作为理所当然的事；必然◆Before making any important decision, I discuss it with my wife as a matter of course.在做任何重要决定之前，我照例要问问我夫人。◆As a matter of course, you should go to the dentist at least once a year.按常规你应该至少每年去看一次牙医。●follow/steer/take a middle ˈcourse●find, etc. a/the middle ˈwayfollow, find, etc. a plan that is halfway between two opposing plans; compromise走（或寻求）中间道路；取中庸之道◆Kate wanted to stay for the rest of the week, and I wanted to leave straight away, so in the end we followed a middle course and stayed a couple of days.凯特想住到周末，而我想马上离开。最后我们采取了折中方案，只住了两三天。◆In politics you often have to steer a middle course.在政治上经常需要采取中间路线。OPPgo to extremes●let ˌnature take its ˈcoursenot try to change or influence a situation听其自然；任其发展◆As a parent, sometimes you need to sit back and let nature take its course; if you try to stop your child from making any mistakes it can be more damaging in the end.作为家长，有时你得袖手旁观，顺其自然；如果你试图阻止自己的孩子去犯错误，最终可能危害更大。●be (about) ˌpar for the ˈcourse (disapproving) be normal; be what you would expect to happen意料之中；没什么不寻常◆‘The food on this plane is terrible.’ ‘Well, that’s about par for the course.’“这架飞机上的食物太糟糕了。”“是啊，不过这不足为奇。”NOTE This idiom refers to the game of golf. Par is the number of times a good player should hit the ball to complete a particular hole or course.这个习语原指高尔夫球运动。par 指标准杆数。●perˌvert the course of ˈjustice (law法律) tell a lie or do sth in order to prevent the police, etc. from finding out the truth about a crime作伪证；妨碍司法公正◆He was arrested and charged with attempting to pervert the course of justice.他被逮捕并被指控企图妨碍司法公正。●stay the ˈcoursecontinue doing sth until it has finished or been completed, even though it is difficult奋力贯彻始终；坚持到底◆Very few of the trainees have stayed the course.受训者极少有坚持到底的。