1.to be in a rut：是指對每天同樣的工作或是墨守成規一成不變的習慣，感到單調乏味
(to be tired of routine job; nothing new or excited) (rut 這個字本意是慣例或老套）。
例如： He has not been promoted for 20 years; he must be in a rut.（他廿年未獲升級，一定感到單調枯燥。)
After thirty years of the same job, he feels he is in a rut.（幹了卅年同樣的工作，他覺得枯燥乏味。） 所以要放棄單調枯燥的生活方式，就是 to get out of the rut.
例如： If you hate your old job, you need to get out of the rut.（假如你不喜歡你的老工作，你就要走出乏味的日子。)
2. to be (或 become) fed up with (someone 或 something)： 意思是對某人或某事感到討厭或厭倦（to get tired of; to be disgusted or to get sick of);
例如： I am fed up with his constant complaints.（他常常的抱怨令我厭煩。）
We all became fed up with his long speech.（他的長篇演說我們都覺得討厭。）
The husband has been fed up with his wife's nagging.（老公對老婆的嘮叨感到厭煩。）
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；我厭了。)
(動詞時態是：feed, fed, fed) 可見這句俚語似乎有「被動味道」，如果用 feed，意思又不同了
例如： The mother will feed the baby with milk.（母親餵嬰兒牛奶。) (feed 是及物動詞)
The cattle feed on grass (牛以草為生。)（feed 是不及物動詞）
但是 The cattle were fed with the grass by the farmer.（農夫用草餵牛。）
(cattle 是複合名詞，意為複數);
可以說： I am fed up with him. (我討厭他)
(但不能說：I feed up with him.）
3. to cut the cord: 意思是父母要讓兒女離家過著獨立自主的生活
(let your children leave home and become independent) (只用於父母與兒女間的關係);
例如： When your children are old enough to take care of themselves, you have to cut the cord.（當你的孩子長大可以照顧他們自己時，你就應該讓他們自力更生。）(即切斷依賴父母的臍帶。)
It is very difficult for many Chinese parents to cut the cord with their children.（許多中國父母很難讓兒女完全獨立自主。）(註：這裡的 cord，是指 umbilical cord 即臍帶。）
4. to start from square one: 意思是上次沒有成功，必須回到起點從頭做起
(something did not succeed in the first place, have to start over again） (這與 to be back to square one 意義相同);
例如： He has to start from square one because his computer destroyed (crashed) his homework. (由於電腦搞壞了他的作業，他必須從頭做起。)
The search committee for the new college president will have to start from square one.（選拔新校長委員會上次沒有成功，現在又要從頭做起。)
We are back to square one. (我們又從頭做)
5. to paint (someone) a picture：意思是解釋某種情況，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. (為了使你更能明白，我願加以解釋。)
He will try to paint us a picture when he gives a speech.（他演講時，儘量想法使我們明白。)
When I write an article for a newspaper, I will paint my readers a clear picture.（當我為報紙寫文章時，我儘量讓我的讀者充分了解。)
但是 to paint a picture，意思又有不同了。