1.to be in a rut：是指对每天同样的工作或是墨守成规一成不变的习惯，感到单调乏味
(to be tired of routine job; nothing new or excited) (rut 这个字本意是惯例或老套）。
例如： He has not been promoted for 20 years; he must be in a rut.（他廿年未获升级，一定感到单调枯燥。)
After thirty years of the same job, he feels he is in a rut.（干了卅年同样的工作，他觉得枯燥乏味。） 所以要放弃单调枯燥的生活方式，就是 to get out of the rut.
例如： If you hate your old job, you need to get out of the rut.（假如你不喜欢你的老工作，你就要走出乏味的日子。)
2. to be (或 become) fed up with (someone 或 something)： 意思是对某人或某事感到讨厌或厌倦（to get tired of; to be disgusted or to get sick of);
例如： I am fed up with his constant complaints.（他常常的抱怨令我厌烦。）
We all became fed up with his long speech.（他的长篇演说我们都觉得讨厌。）
The husband has been fed up with his wife's nagging.（老公对老婆的唠叨感到厌烦。）
如果只用「to be fed up」也可以：
I will not wait for her; I am fed up. (我不想再等她了；我厌了。)
(动词时态是：feed, fed, fed) 可见这句俚语似乎有「被动味道」，如果用 feed，意思又不同了
例如： The mother will feed the baby with milk.（母亲喂婴儿牛奶。) (feed 是及物动词)
The cattle feed on grass (牛以草为生。)（feed 是不及物动词）
但是 The cattle were fed with the grass by the farmer.（农夫用草喂牛。）
(cattle 是复合名词，意为复数);
可以说： I am fed up with him. (我讨厌他)
(但不能说：I feed up with him.）
3. to cut the cord: 意思是父母要让儿女离家过著独立自主的生活
(let your children leave home and become independent) (只用於父母与儿女间的关系);
例如： When your children are old enough to take care of themselves, you have to cut the cord.（当你的孩子长大可以照顾他们自己时，你就应该让他们自力更生。）(即切断依赖父母的脐带。)
It is very difficult for many Chinese parents to cut the cord with their children.（许多中国父母很难让儿女完全独立自主。）(注：这里的 cord，是指 umbilical cord 即脐带。）
4. to start from square one: 意思是上次没有成功，必须回到起点从头做起
(something did not succeed in the first place, have to start over again） (这与 to be back to square one 意义相同);
例如： He has to start from square one because his computer destroyed (crashed) his homework. (由於电脑搞坏了他的作业，他必须从头做起。)
The search committee for the new college president will have to start from square one.（选拔新校长委员会上次没有成功，现在又要从头做起。)
We are back to square one. (我们又从头做)
5. to paint (someone) a picture：意思是解释某种情况，使人更加明白。
(to explain the situation; to make things more clear);
例如： In order for you to understand better, I will paint you a picture. (为了使你更能明白，我愿加以解释。)
He will try to paint us a picture when he gives a speech.（他演讲时，尽量想法使我们明白。)
When I write an article for a newspaper, I will paint my readers a clear picture.（当我为报纸写文章时，我尽量让我的读者充分了解。)
但是 to paint a picture，意思又有不同了。
