barrel
barrel
bar∙rel¹ / ˈbærəl ; ˈbærəl /
◙noun [C]
1. a large curved container with a flat top and bottom, made of wood or metal, and used for storing beer, wine etc
• 〔中间鼓起的〕桶:
»The wine is aged in oak barrels.
这种葡萄酒是用橡木酒桶放陈的。
▪ [+ of ]
»barrels of beer
一桶桶啤酒;
--› see picture at CONTAINER
2. a unit of measurement for oil, equal to 159 litres
• 一桶〔石油计量单位，相当于 159 升〕:
▪ [+ of ]
»two million barrels of oil
两百万桶石油
3. the part of a gun that the bullets are fired through
• 枪管; 炮管
4. have sb over a barrel, to put someone in a situation in which they are forced to accept or do what you want
• 使某人处于被动（不利）的地位:
»The manager had us over a barrel – either we work on a Saturday or we lose our jobs.
经理迫使我们就范，要么星期六上班，要么丢掉工作。
5. be a barrel of laughs, [often in negatives] to be very enjoyable
• 很好玩:
»Life is not exactly a barrel of laughs at the moment.
眼下的生活景况不容乐观。
--› see PORK BARREL
--› see scrape (the bottom of) the barrel at SCRAPE ¹ (5)
--› see lock, stock, and barrel at LOCK ² (3)
barrel²
◙verb [I] [AmE informal]
1. to move very fast, especially in an uncontrolled way
• 高速行驶，飞奔; 〔尤指失控地〕飞驰:
»A vehicle barreled out of a shopping center and crashed into the side of my car.
一辆汽车从购物中心飞也似的冲出来，一头撞到了我车子的一侧。
