petites rue, ruelle « a narrow back street of Port-au-Prince. » quartier pauvres ou mal famés « the back streets of Berlin. » backstreet abortion = avortement clandestin
backstreet of desire = bas-fonds du désir.
cool, admirable. Being a badass goes hand-in-hand with being self confident, secure and uninhibited « he thinks he's such a badass » ; « that action movie was so badass. »
appât (sens propre et figuré) « he lured the youngsters by using his own children as bait. » to bait = amorcer, appâter, provoquer « the defense lawyers tried to bait him and get him to act aggressively »« he delighted in baiting his mother. »
scrutin, vote The result of the ballot will not be known for two weeks.
to hold a ballot = procéder à un vote « The council will have no choice but to hold a ballot if 5 per cent of residents back the move. »
financer → « The company has bankrolled a couple of local movies. » → « They helped to bankroll the party's general election campaign. » financement → « We have a guaranteed minimum bankroll of £1.7m over the five albums. »
dénigrement union-bashing = campagne de dénigrement contre les syndicats Paki-bashing = ratonnade queer-bashing = brutalités ou expéditions punitives contre des homosexuels « an outburst of violent gay-bashing in New York. »
virage « a road full of dangerous bends » = une route pleine de virages dangereux.
to go into a bend, to take a bend = prendre un virage
blind bend = virage sans visibilité.
ensorceler → « She was not moving, as if someone had bewitched her... » to be bewitched by sth/sb être captivé par qch/qn → « The doctor is bewitched by Maya's beauty. »
attacher his hands were bound behind the post the tape which was used to bind the files unir it is the threat of persecution that binds them together.
obliger the treaty binds them to respect their neighbour's independence to be legally bound to do sth.
to be in a bind : être dans le pétrin
to be in a double bind : être dans une impasse
to go on a binge (=spree) = faire la bringue they went on a shopping binge = ils sont allés dépenser du fric dans les magasins an eating binge = une grosse bouffe beuverie bringue (cf.: binge drinking)
incendie « the family died in the blaze. » flambée « to stir sleeping embers into a cheerful blaze. » a blaze of colour = un flamboiement de couleurs. to blaze = flamber « the fire was still blazing. » [eyes] lancer des éclairs (de colère) « she turned and faced him, her eyes blazing. » to blaze with colour = resplendir « the gardens blazed with colour. » tirer « guns were blazing. » to blaze a trail = montrer la voie « these surgeons have blazed the trail in the treatment of bomb victims. » blazing = éclatant « driving all day in the blazing sun. » torride « freezing cold winters and blazing hot summers. » trail-blazing = novateur « a trail-blazing agreement that could lead to a global ban on nuclear weapons. »
blanchir « the flour is bleached artificially. » décolorer « she claims to have never bleached her hair. » eau de javel « soak them in bleach to get the stains out. »
1- mélange → a blend of spices
2- mélanger → to blend all the ingredients together → a band that blends jazz, folk and classical music
3- to blend together = se confondre → paint the walls and ceilings the same colour so they blend together.
fléau → to be a blight on sth. « This discriminatory policy has really been a blight on America. »
urban blight = dégradation urbaine
to blight = gâcher, anéantir. « Families whose lives were blighted by unemployment. »
coup → « he went to hospital after a blow to the face. → it was a terrible blow when he was made redundant. » to come to blows = en venir aux mains → « the representatives almost came to blows » to be a blow to sth = être un coup pour qch → « a further blow to hopes of peace » to soften the blow, to cushion the blow = amortir le choc
that blows! = c'est archi-nul! → your project blows!
bourde → « damaged at birth by a hospital blunder » → « George Bush made a terrible blunder by launching a trade war. » faire une bourde → « to blunder badly faire une grosse bourde » → « Clearly, Sir Alec had blundered badly. » to blunder into sb/sth = buter contre qn/qch → « He had blundered into the table, upsetting the flowers. »
to boast = se vanter (=to brag) « Stop boasting! » to boast about sth = se vanter de qch. « Carol boasted about her costume. » to boast of/that = se vanter de « He boasted of being involved in the arms theft. »« He boasted that he was someone great. » vantardise « This isn't meant as a boast »« her boast of being a great lover. »
obus
to be a bombshell = faire l'effet d'une bombe « his resignation after thirteen years is a political bombshell. » to drop a bombshell = annoncer une nouvelle qui fait l'effet d'une bombe « she dropped a bombshell: "I'm pregnant." » coming as a bombshell = faisant l'effet d'une bombe.
onomatopée utilisée pour désigner le bruit d'un dunk au basket-ball ("boom" pour le dunk, et "shakalaka" pour la vibration du panneau).
fig.: wao! - j'ai gagné! - je t'ai eu ! « I shot the monster ! boom shakalaka ! »
bol, coupe. « a bowl of soup. » Super Bowl = "la super coupe"
"« Go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God on the earth! »" = "Allez, et versez sur la terre les sept coupes de la colère de Dieu."
brettelles "belt and braces" = très prudent, qui garantit une sécurité maximum a belt-and-braces solution
accolades balanced braces bracing = vivifiant
impudent, effronté, sans gêne. « He's brazen, selfconfident, charismatic. »« It's brazen, insane, wonderful ! » to brazen it out = la jouer au culot, au bluff.
bourgeon → early summer, just before the buds open
=> budding = bourgeonnant, naissant → she looked up through the budding trees → Russia's budding democracy
bouquet « a bunch of flowers » a bunch of keys : un trousseau de clés [+bananas] régime a bunch of grapes : une grappe de raisin [+people] groupe → « We were a pretty inexperienced bunch of people. → They're a great bunch : c'est une chouette équipe. the best of the bunch : le or la meilleur(e) de la bande. » bunches = couettes → « She had her hair tied in bunches. »
maître d'hôtel, majordome « The butler, as the senior male servant, has the highest servant status. » bouteiller (officier chargé autrefois de l'approvisionnement en vin).