Language Café

Origin: The word may have derived from the Scottish term for clothes, duddies. The term "dude" was first used in print in 1876, in Putnam's Magazine, to mock how a woman was dressed (as a "dud"/dude). Meaning: Dude is an American English slang term for an individual. It typically applies to men, although the word can encompass either sex.

Meaning: have a great time doing something enjoyable; a great deal to do, especially at someone else's expense.Origin: The phrase originates from the military. It was used in the literal sense, for a day spent in the field, doing maneuvers and drills, and the first reference is found in 1747, in Scheme Equip. Men of War. Over the years, it began to be used with reference to other events as well, and by the 20th century, the current meaning was well in use.

Meaning: a variable in a given situation that could have the most significant impact on the outcome, or a noteworthy special talent or quality.Origin: First used in the 1930s in America.

Meaning: a thing that is annoying or disappointing.Origin: Perhaps from German Bummler, from bummeln 'stroll, loaf around.' As in to be a 'bum,' or a homeless person.这两个习惯用语里都有一个主要的字。那就是：Bum. Bum指那种游手好闲，不务正业的人。每个社会都有这样的人，他们衣服穿得破破烂烂，随身带着大包小包的流浪人。这些包里的东西就是他们所有的家当了。人们把他们称为bums。有bum出现的用语，一般都含有贬意。Bummer 的意思是：不愉快的经历。Bummed out 的意思是：feeling really depressed, disappointed or sad，用中文说就是，感觉特别沮丧、低落。

Origin: Used by the rapper Drake in a 2009 song, although it has existed before then going back to mid-2000s. Meaning: "low-key" means "not really," "not a lot," "minimally," or, like Drake used it, "secretly."

Definition: An oxymoron and a portmanteau of "friend" and "enemy" that can refer to either an enemy pretending to be a friend or someone who really is a friend but also a rival. Origin: I'm sure it's older than this, but the word 'frenemy' first got a lot of attention when it was the title and subject of an episode of "Sex and the City." (Season 3, episode 16).这是一个爱与恨的关系，Frenemy即可以指暗中较劲是敌人但表面假装是朋友，也可指确实是朋友，但又彼此是对手，比如在学校里、职场上、情场上...

Definition: When you are so hungry that your lack of food causes you to become angry, frustrated or both. Origin: Hangry is a portmanteau of "hungry" and "angry".

Definition: A perceived feeling of resentment and hostility/ a sense of entitlement.Origin: The phrase 'a chip on one's shoulder' is reported as originating with the nineteenth century U.S. practice of spoiling for a fight by carrying a chip of wood on one's shoulder, daring others to knock it off. 说起Chip，我们总想起薯条，potato chips。Chip还有木屑的意思，而chip on one's shoulder，就是心里有根刺，怀恨在心的意思。这成语出自十九世纪的美国，当时多数家庭都要砍木为薪，很多地方都有木屑。好勇斗狠的少年想找人打架，会在自己肩上放一块木屑，问人家敢不敢拨下来，拨下来就有架打了。还有一说法是渔民扛木头，如果你将它碰翻，你就是在挑衅他。所以，carry/have/wear a chip on one's shoulder是说准备随时吵嘴，打架的样子，一般是指感到委屈，一有机会就爆发的人。

Definition: Do or say something that causes trouble and make a lot of people angry or worried/change the status quo.Origin: The phrase originally referred to the disturbance likely to be created by putting a cat inside a dovecote (or dove house). This disturbance is caused by the cat's tendency to hunt and kill the birds, only made easier by their close proximity. In colonial India, a popular pastime was to put a wild cat in a pen with pigeons. Bets would be made on how many birds the cat would bring down with one paw-swipe.

Definition: A gambling term meaning risking everything to reap substantial reward.Origin: Go for broke is a phrase from Hawaiian Pidgin[1] meaning "to wager everything". It was the motto of a World War II Japanese-American military unit, the 442nd Infantry Regimen.