Sport Idioms

off base – быть не в своем уме, нелепо заблуждаться
The general was off base with his estimate about how many soldiers were needed for the battle. 

touch base with someone – контактировать, связываться
I touched base with my uncle before he left on his trip to Mexico. 

get to (reach) first base with someone or something – сделать первый успешный шаг к цели
I spent several hours talking about changing my work hours but I wasn't able to get to first base with my boss. 

get two/three strikes against someone – быть в ситуации, когда успех маловероятен (в бейсболе отбивающий делает только три удара)
His absence from work and being late were serious problems. He now had two strikes against him. Any more problems and he would have to be fired. 

cover all of one's bases – предусмотреть все возможные нюансы, случайности
He covered all of his bases before going to the job interview and performed very well. 

arrow in one's quiver – неиспользованное, оставшееся про запас средство
His ability with languages was another arrow in his quiver and helped him in his business life. 

ball is in your court – мяч на твоем поле, твоя очередь действовать
We made an offer to buy the business and now the ball is in the owner's court to accept our offer or not. 

kick off - вводить мяч в игру ударом с центра, начинать 
They kicked off the campaign to raise money for the hospital with a large fund raising event at a restaurant. 

carry the ball – действовать активно
The director decided to let his assistant carry the ball on the assignment for the new sale's contract. 

clear a hurdle – взять барьер, преодолеть препятствие
We finally cleared a major hurdle in our effort to get a license to sell our products.

(be) cricket – по правилам, честно (обычно используется в негативной форме)
The way that the government treated the union leaders was not cricket. 

go to the mat – ввязаться в спор
The coach would always go to the mat for his players when they were having problems. 

hit the bull's-eye – попасть в десятку; не в бровь, а в глаз
We hit the bull's-eye when our sales target was met for the year. 

jump the gun – совершить фальстарт, действовать преждевременно
My friend jumped the gun and applied for the job before applications were being accepted. 

on your marks – на старт (приготовиться к старту)
The race began as soon as the judge yelled, "on your marks, get set, go." 

play ball (with someone) – сотрудничать, задабривать
The young men refused to play ball with the police and were taken to the police station for questioning. 

play by the rules – играть по правилам
The team members refused to play by the rules so they were asked to leave the tournament. 

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