重点讲解：
1. first of all
第一；首先；
eg. First of all, answer these questions.
首先，回答这些问题r2v4kpc5[Wa8jbHkoz。
eg. First of all, could I begin with an apology for a mistake I made last week?
首先，请允许我为上周犯下的错误道歉2qh#L2[Z64+PHa-P_rRo。
2. to be honest
老实说；说实在的；
eg. To be honest, I've got a better offer.
老实说，我有一个更好的工作机会&e6oHY=V5j9rD,&o0P。
eg. To be honest with you, it does not seem to me that you are a management guy.
诚实地说，在我看来你不是个做管理的人x[_~0MjBVNIRDjGWtm。
3. in general
总的来说；总体上来看；大体上；
eg. In general, that's going to generate negative emotions. "
一般而言，这往往会触发负面情绪hEad%n)!XQ!IVJF4|2K。
eg. In general, employers do little to help the single working mother.
一般而言，雇主很少为工作的单亲妈妈提供帮助=yrsnda)+.Lu!I,.-。
4. in common
共有的；相同的；
eg. They had little in common culturally with us.
他们在文化方面跟我们很少有共同之处RoJOdrUxx6fNe8XA。
eg. No matter what type of the reason it was, there was one thing in common: carelessness.
不管是哪种类型的原因，它们都有一个共同点：粗心bn&^H4rs=9TvV*j@。
5. be willing to do sth.
乐意的；愿意的；
eg. In the current economic environment there are few companies willing to invest in such a costly project.
在目前的经济环境下，很少有公司愿意投资成本这么高的项目zb~]uo)zzd&I=NjO~v--。
eg. To get one of these uncommon stamps, some collectors are willing to pay a great deal of money.
为了能得到这些不同寻常的邮票，他们往往愿意花大价钱去购买]h#WQwwC*2。
6. engage in
参与；从事；
eg. Those who are non-smokers are often convinced by smokers to engage in this activity.
那些不吸烟的孩子们也会受到吸烟者的影响，加入这项活动中E7nj+=|fW[him7)c]L。
eg. Faculty who engage in research seem to have more knowledge to pass on to their students.
从事研究工作的教师似乎有更多的学识可以传授给学生UlOR&a5rqjn*D。
7. get to the bottom of
找到…的真正起因；查寻到…的根源；
eg. I have to get to the bottom of this mess.
我必须查清造成这一混乱局面的真正原因c!I4FD88&oB-E+~*adKZ。
eg. We need to get to the bottom of the problem between you and me.
我们要彻底搞清楚我们之间的问题[P_E%-c(Nu]2Gc;G9GQ。
8. depend on
取决（于）；有赖（于）；
eg. How much can you get depend on how much you pay.
你能得到多少取决于你付出了多少q~R(La&P_C。
eg. At many companies, raises depend on a mix of your performance and how much you make compared with others doing the same job.
在很多公司里，加薪是由你的综合表现以及和别人做同样的工作你的贡献有多少决定的o_uTwW#WqrDRi0JB+fFC。
9. back off
（为避免问题或冲突而）后退，避让，退缩；
eg. EFF lawyer Jennifer Granick sent Texas Instruments a letter telling the firm to back off.
电子边界基金会的律师詹妮弗·格拉尼克给德州仪器发出一封信，要求该公司不介入此事&#YO#M0NmC1dI;。
eg. They backed off in horror.
他们心怀恐惧地退缩了ahQ=!-CBjz。
10. speak for
代表…讲话；充当…的代言人；
eg. What others think I do not know; I can only speak for myself .
别人怎么想我不知道，我只能代表我自己讲话^6=~X~Pu|Mta;A。
eg. Obviously I can't speak for other people, but certainly no one I know would entertain the idea.
我显然不能代表其他人的意见，可是我认识的人当中肯定没有人会有这样的想法%t,r+U=~uz~2。
11. other than
（用于否定陈述后）除了…以外；
eg. But other than that he's a great guy.
但是除此之外他还是个不错的人OzOG[YpRN@#BT2!vV。
eg. We have no alternative other than to follow the sense of our own experience.
除了根据我们的经验以外，没有其他办法e(cXSzn383ni41A。
12. to some extent
在某种程度上；
eg. To some extent this was the truth.
在某种程度上，这是事实8&175eoaYf。
eg. These problems are to some extent being acknowledged and addressed.
这些问题在一定程度上正得到承认和解决JvTQ=Le2~RrKAi&aGe。