worldBrE /wɜːld/ NAmE /wɜːrld/► SEE ALLbe, live, etc. in a world of your ownbe/mean (all) the world to sbcome/go down/up in the worldcome into the worldfor all the world as if/though…for all the world like sb/sthhave the world at your feetin an ideal/a perfect worldin the worlda man/woman of the worldnot (do sth) for (all) the worldnot/never set the world on firethe… of this worldout of this worldsee the worldwhat is the world coming to?(all) the world and his wifethe world is your oystera/the world of difference (between A and B)the (whole) world over(think) the world owes you a livingwith the best will in the worldthe bottom drops/falls out of sb’s worlda brave new worldnot have a care in the worldwithout a care in the worlddead to the worldhow, what, why, etc. on earth…how, why, etc. in the world…not be the end of the worldnot long for this worldbe lost to the worldthe next worldthe outside worldthe world outsidedo sb/sth a power/world of goodpromise (sb) the moon/earth/worldit’s a small worldtell the (whole) worldthink the world of sb/sthon top of the worldwatch the world go bythe way of the worlda window on the worldbe worlds/a world away (from sth) ●be, live, etc. in a world of your ˈownseem not to be aware of things happening around you; be a person who has ideas that other people think are strange沉浸在自己的世界中；生活在自己的小天地里◆I’m not surprised he didn’t know about it — he lives in a world of his own, that boy. 他对此事一无所知我毫不奇怪。这孩子完全生活在自己的世界中。●be/mean (ˌall) the ˈworld to sbbe very important to sb; be loved very much by sb是…的一切；是某人最喜爱的人（或事物）；对某人非常重要◆Her job means the world to her. 对她来讲，工作就是一切。◆They’ve only got one child and he’s all the world to them. 他们只有一个孩子，孩子是他们的一切。●come/go ˈdown/ˈup in the worldbecome less/more successful; become poorer/richer衰落；背运；发迹；飞黄腾达◆Since she left Harvard she’s gone down in the world. 自从她离开哈佛后，一直走背运。●come into the ˈworld (literary) be born出生；降生人间◆Our lives changed completely when little Oliver came into the world. 小奥利弗的出生彻底改变了我们的生活。OPPbreathe your last●for all the ˈworld as if/though…●for all the ˈworld like sb/sth (written) exactly as if…; exactly like sb/sth完全像…；活像；恰似◆She stood up and shouted at him, then sat down and went on with her work for all the world as if nothing had happened. 她站起来朝他大喊大叫，然后坐下继续工作，仿佛什么事都没发生。●have the ˌworld at your ˈfeethave many advantages, and so have many opportunities to choose from; be very successful and admired全世界都在自己脚下；春风得意；前途无限◆When you’re young you’ve got the world at your feet. 青春少年样样红。◆She’s got money; she’s well-educated; the world is at her feet. 她既有钱又受过良好教育，前途一片光明。●in an ˌideal/a ˌperfect ˈworldused to say that sth is what you would like to happen or what should happen, but you know it cannot在理想的世界里；在理想的状态下◆In an ideal world we would be recycling and reusing everything. 理想的状况是所有的东西都能回收再用。●in the ˈworldused to emphasize what you are saying（用于强调）世界上，天下，根本◆There’s nothing in the world I’d like more than to visit New York. 能够去纽约旅游是我最大的心愿。◆Don’t rush — we’ve got all the time in the world. 别急急忙忙的，我们有的是时间。●a man/woman of the ˈworlda person with a lot of experience of life, who is not easily surprised or shocked生活阅历丰富的人；老成持重的人●not (do sth) for (all) the ˈworldused to say that you would never do sth决不◆I wouldn’t sell that picture for all the world. 我决不卖这幅画。●not/never set the ˈworld on fire (BrE alsonot/never set the ˈThames on fire) (informal) never do anything exciting, unusual or wonderful不会做出惊人之举；不会引起轰动；不会成大器◆He’s good, but he’ll never set the world on fire. He’s not dynamic enough. 他还不错，不过决不会做出惊人之举。他魄力不足。NOTE The Thames is the large river that runs through London.泰晤士河是流经伦敦的一条大河。●the… of this world (informal) used to refer to people of a particular type…这类人◆We all envy the Bill Gateses of this world (= the people who are as rich and successful as Bill Gates). 我们大家都羡慕比尔∙盖茨那样的大亨。●out of this ˈworld (informal) unusually good好（或美等）得不得了；非凡的；呱呱叫的◆She cooked a meal which was out of this world. 她做的这顿饭简直是好得没治了。●see the ˈworldtravel, live or work in many different parts of the world周游世界；走南闯北长见识◆A lot of students take a year off after university to travel and see the world. 许多学生大学毕业后用一年时间去四处游历见世面。●what is the world ˈcoming to? ( I don’t know ˌwhat the world’s ˈcoming to) (saying) used as an expression of anger, shock, complaint, etc., at changes in people’s behaviour, the political situation, etc.这世界要变成什么样子了；太不像话◆When I read the news these days I sometimes wonder what the world’s coming to. 我近来看新闻，有时会纳闷这成了什么世道了。◆Instant tea? What is the world coming to? 速溶茶？这是什么怪东西？●(all) the ˌworld and his ˈwife (informal) everyone; a large number of people所有人；许多人◆The world and his wife was in Brighton that day. 那天，大家都跑到布赖顿去了。●the ˌworld is your ˈoysteryou have the freedom to do what you want, go where you want, etc. in the future because you are young, successful, rich, etc.世界是属于你的；你的前途无量◆What do you mean, you don’t know what to do with your life? The world is your oyster! 你说什么，你不知道如何生活？未来是属于你的！●a/the ˈworld of difference (between A and B) (informal) a lot of difference (between A and B)（两者之间的）天壤之别，完全不同◆There’s a world of difference between ‘speed’ and ‘haste’. “speed”（快速）和“haste”（匆忙）两个词完全不同。●the (whole) world ˈovereverywhere in the world世界各地；全世界◆People are the same the whole world over. 世界各地的人都一样。◆Writers the world over joined in protest against her imprisonment. 全世界的作家联合起来抗议关押她。●(think) the world ˌowes you a ˈliving (disapproving) (think that) society is responsible for doing everything for you and you should not have to make any effort yourself（认为）世界欠自己的；（认为）自己该享受◆Why don’t you go out and get a job? The world doesn’t owe you a living, you know. 你怎么不去找份工作？要知道，这个世界并不欠你什么。●with the ˌbest will in the ˈworldeven though you have tried very hard to be fair, generous, etc.不管意图是多么的好◆He’s quite competent, but with the best will in the world, I can’t imagine him as head of a large company.他相当有能力，可是我怎么也不能想象他能担任大公司的总裁。●the ˌbottom drops/falls out of sb’s ˈworlda person suddenly loses all their happiness, self-confidence, etc.某人的世界崩溃；生活失去了意义◆When his wife left him, the bottom dropped out of his world.妻子离他而去，对他来说就像天塌了似的。●a ˌbrave new ˈworld (oftenironic) a situation or society that changes in a way that is meant to improve people’s lives but is often a source of extra problems美好的新世界（以改善人们的生活为目的作一些变革，但常常带来新的问题）◆She promises us a brave new world of high salaries and good working conditions after the reforms.她向我们保证改革之后前景美好：薪水高，工作环境好。ORIGINThis phrase comes from Shakespeare’s play The Tempest. It was later used by Aldous Huxley as the title of his most famous book, which described a vision of the future.这个短语源于莎士比亚戏剧《暴风雨》。后被奥尔德斯 ∙ 赫胥黎用作自己最著名的一本书的名字，该书描述了未来美景。●not have a ˌcare in the ˈworld●without a ˌcare in the ˈworldnot have any worry or anxiety at all无忧无虑◆Sam looked as if he didn’t have a care in the world.看起来萨姆好像无忧无虑。◆She skipped along the road, without a care in the world.她一路上蹦蹦跳跳，没有丝毫忧虑。●ˌdead to the ˈworld (informal) deeply asleep熟睡；沉睡；酣睡◆Within two minutes of getting into bed, I was dead to the world.上床不到两分钟我就睡得死去一般。●how, what, why, etc. on ˈearth…●how, why, etc. in the ˈworld… (informal) used with questions to express the speaker’s surprise, anger, etc.（用于疑问句，表示惊讶或愤怒等）到底，究竟◆How on earth did you know I was coming today when I didn’t know myself until the last minute?你是怎么知道我今天会来的？我自己都是最后一刻才知道的。◆Why on earth would anyone give up such a good job?怎么会有人愿意放弃这么好的工作？●not be the ˌend of the ˈworld (spoken) not be a disaster不是世界末日；没有那么糟糕；不是灭顶之灾◆It wouldn’t be the end of the world if you couldn’t get into college. I’m sure you’d be able to find a good job anyway.没考上大学又不是世界末日，我相信你总能找到一份好工作的。◆Why are you so upset? It’s not the end of the world.你干吗这么难过？这又不是世界末日。●not ˌlong for this ˈworld (old-fashioned) likely to die soon活不了多久；不久于人世◆She looked extremely ill and I fear she’s not long for this world.她看上去已经病入膏肓，我担心她快不久于人世了。●be lost to the ˈworldbe giving all your attention to sth so that you do not notice what is happening around you把整个世界忘之脑后；（全神贯注于某事而）不注意周围的事情◆When I went into his office he was staring out of the window, apparently lost to the world.我走进他的办公室时，他正望着窗外出神。●the ˈnext world(according to some religious beliefs) the place you go to when you die（一些宗教信仰中的）来世◆She had had a difficult life but she was convinced her reward would come in the next world.她一生坎坷，不过她相信来世会有回报。●the outside ˈworld●the world outˈsidethe rest of the world; somewhere where you are in contact with or have the normal way of life of most people外界；普通人的世界◆After 15 years in a monastery, he got a job in the outside world. It was quite a shock for him.在修道院度过 15 年后，他在外面找了一份工作，外面的世界令他难以适应。●do sb/sth a ˈpower/ˈworld of good (old-fashioned) do sb/sth a lot of good; benefit sb/sth对…大有裨益◆She’s under a lot of stress at work, and a few days at the coast would do her a power of good.她现在工作压力很大，去海边住几天会对她很有好处。●promise (sb) the ˈmoon/ˈearth/ˈworld (informal) make very big or impossible promises that you are unlikely to keep作出不可能兑现的承诺◆He promised her the moon, but after ten years of marriage they hardly had enough to live on.他向她作了许多空头承诺，可是结婚十年了，他们几乎入不敷出。●it’s a ˌsmall ˈworld (saying) used when you meet or hear about sb you know, in an unexpected place（用于感慨不期而遇或意外地听到某人的消息）世界真小◆It turns out that he’s a friend of my brother’s! It’s a small world, isn’t it?原来他是我哥哥的一个朋友！世界真小，不是吗？●tell the (whole) ˈworldtell sth to everyone; tell sth publicly告诉所有人；公之于世◆Keep your voice down! We don’t want to tell the whole world about it!小声点！我们可不想让全世界都知道！●think the ˈworld of sb/sthlike, admire or respect sb/sth very much非常喜欢某人／某物；非常尊敬某人◆The children think the world of their new teacher.孩子们非常喜欢他们的新老师。OPPyou, he, etc. can’t stand sb/sth●on ˌtop of the ˈworldvery happy or proud高兴到极点；欢天喜地；非常自豪◆I’m on top of the world; I’ve just had a baby son.我幸福极了，我刚生了个儿子。◆You’ll feel on top of the world after a good rest.好好度个假，你会乐翻天的。OPPdown in the dumps●watch the ˈworld go bywatch what is happening around you, but do little yourself闲看人来人往；静观众生百态◆It was one of those cafes with a terrace where you can sit and watch the world go by.这是那种设有露台的咖啡馆，在那里，你可以坐下静观众生百态。●the ˌway of the ˈworldwhat often happens; what is common大多数人的行为方式；世道常情；事情发生的规律◆Marriages don’t always last for ever. That’s the way of the world, I’m afraid.夫妻并非都能白头偕老。这恐怕是人之常情。●a ˌwindow on the ˈworlda way of learning about other people and other countries世界之窗◆News programmes try to provide a window on the world.新闻节目试图给观众提供一个了解世界的窗口。●be ˈworlds/a world away (from sth)be very different (from sth)（和…）有天壤之别◆Life in the country today is worlds away from how it was a hundred years ago.现在农村的生活与一百年之前有天壤之别。