actan ,act of 'God (law)1.■an event caused by natural forces which people cannot control or prevent, for example a hurricane, earthquake, etc. 天灾；自然灾害；不可抗力﹙如飓风、地震等﹚:The insurance policy covers your house against all types of damage, excluding those caused by acts of God. 这份保险单承保房屋可能受到的各种损坏，但不包括自然灾害造成的损害。a 'balancing/'juggling act2.■a process in which sb tries to please two or more people or groups who want different things 搞平衡；摆平:The UN must perform a delicate balancing act between the different sides involved in the conflict. 联合国必须在冲突各方之间寻求微妙的平衡。Managing her home life and work was proving to be something of a juggling act.家庭和工作都要兼顾，简直像杂耍一样。be/get in on the 'act (informal)3.■be/become involved in a particular activity only after it has become successful﹙在某事获得成功后﹚参与，插一手:Sales of ‘green’ products have increased dramatically and now a lot of manufacturers are trying to get in on the act.“绿色”产品的销售量迅速增长，现在许多制造商都想参与其中。do/perform/stage a disap'pearing/'vanishing act (informal)4.■go away or be impossible to find when people need or want you﹙需要时﹚失去捬影，找不到人影:Ian always does a disappearing act when it’s time to wash the dishes. 一到洗碗的时候，伊恩就不见了。get your 'act together; get sth/it to'gether(informal)5.■manage to organize or control sth (better than you have done previously) 圆满处理；更好地组织﹙或管理﹚:If Sally got her act together she’d be a great musician. 如果萨莉计划安排得好，会成为一名伟大的音乐家。He’s been trying to get his life together. 他在努力安排好自己的生活。He seems to be getting it together at last. 他似乎终于弄顺当了。a hard/tough act to 'follow6.■a person or a group that is so good or successful at sth that it will be difficult for anyone else who comes after them to be as good or successful 难以超越的人﹙ 或集体﹚ :The last head teacher achieved a lot—she’ll be a hard act to follow. 前任校长取得了很大的成就—后来的人难以超越她。7.■act/be your age 另见age8.■act/play the fool 另见fool9.■act/play the goat 另见goat10.■behave/act as if you own the place =think you own the place 另见think11.■catch sb in the act (of doing sth) 另见catch12.■clean up your act 另见clean