bad man —1. a morally depraved, wicked man: He resented the fact that his mother had to be living with such a bad man as Khun Chang. 2. (U.S. coll.) a gunman; a villain: He even appointed a typical “bad man ”—that is, manslayer—to office as a proof of his fondness for Arizona. Badlands, the • badlands Badlands, the—(U.S.) the barren waste region in South Dakota: Until recently, buffalo had roamed the Badlands . badlands —barren terrain where soils have been eroded by wind and water: Ground is carved by rain-wash producing an almost impassable surface generally referred to as “bad - lands .” bad loser • two-time loser bad loser—a person who loses a game in poor spirit: We could say Rhydian was a bad loser , but then again we could say that Leon was a bad winner. two-time loser —1. a contestant who loses twice: “Two-time nominee” sounds so much nicer than the alternative—two- time loser —doesn’t it? 2. (sl.) a twice-convicted criminal: Madill was a two-time loser who did time in prison for bur- glary. He carried the gun everywhere. bad money • bad penny, a bad money—a forged currency: “To ring the changes” in low life means to change bad money for good. Note: The expression does not fully correlate in meaning with the phrase good money—1. money that is genuine, not counter- feit: They’ve got some good money , as well as bogus notes. 2. a fairly large amount of money: But for his inherent meanness, he would have gladly paid good money to be rid of her. bad penny, a —an objectionable person or thing that can be counted upon to reappear (in allusion to the saying “a bad penny always turns up”): I persevered … to disuade the dog from darkening my door again but little did I realise at the time, this was a bad penny we were dealing with. Note: a) The expression is not antonymous in meaning to the phrase pretty penny, a—a fairly large amount of money: You can expect these tape decks to cost a pretty penny , although no price has been set as of yet. b) The expression is not antonymous in meaning to the phrase honest penny, an—money gained or earned by fair means: I, then a mere stripling, was trying to make an honest penny by selling homemade candy. bad money drives out good • bad penny always turns up, a bad money drives out good—(saying ) worthless people or things supplant more valuable: The drain of human resources is one example where “bad money drives out good .” Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the phrase throw good money after bad—waste more money or supplies in hopes of recouping previous losses: Creating another failing system to replace the current one is throwing good money after bad . bad penny always turns up, a —(saying ) a worthless person always returns: “What if I never see him again?” “Don’t worry. A bad penny always turns up .” bad mouth • foul mouth bad mouth —1. a curse or spell: I have known of people that have had the record of saying that they could put a bad mouth on you. 2. malicious gossip: Companies don’t want people telling their friends about shoddy products. Word of bad- mouth can kill them. 3. a person who speaks ill of people: The world is filled with bad-mouths . We need more caring people. foul mouth —(also: dirty mouth) a person who uses obscene or abusive language habitually: Terry is turning into a real foul mouth . bad news • what’s the bad news bad news —(U.S. coll.) said of things, people, or places that are unpleasant or undesirable: Milly these days was plain bad news . Her fascination had evaporated. what’s the bad news—(U.S. joc.) what do I owe: After the clerk had run up all of the clothing Meg had selected, her mother nervously asked what the bad news was . bad quarter of an hour • good quarter of an hour bad quarter of an hour—a brief but disagreeable and un- nerving period: He had a very bad quarter of an hour . I never knew a man have such hard luck at cards. good quarter of an hour —not less than a quarter of an hour: He spoke for a good quarter of an hour , walking me through the history of mankind. bad time • bad times bad time—1. wrong or unsuitable time: This would be a very bad time to pull our exhaustion on our readers. 2. time when life is difficult: Julia went through a pretty bad time after the accident—seeing psychiatrists and what have you. bad times —a period of poverty or economic depression: En- gland will not long endure the rulers which these bad times have assigned her. bag of wind • windbag bag of wind—(coll.) a talkative, usually pompous person who has little to say: She’s nothing but a big bag of wind . windbag —1. a bag of air as of a bagpipe: The anatomical structure of the sonorous organs of these Cicadae did not ex- actly resemble the wind-bag . 2. = bag of wind: He is at best a noisy, pompous wind-bag and braggart. 3. a kind of fish which inflate their bodies when stimulated by fear, etc.: When it [blowfish] is hooked it inflates itself to many times its normal size. Among its aliases are balloon-fish, puffball and wind - bag . ball is in someone’s court, the • have the ball at one’s feet ball is in someone’s court, the—is used to say that another person must make the next move: Addison tells him that the ball is in his court . All he has to do is sign the divorce papers and she will too. have the ball at one’s feet—be in a strategically advantageous position: The working class militants have the ball at their feet , as never before. bang on the door • bang the door bang on the door—knock on the door violently (with one’s fist, etc.): The boys used to bang on the door with sticks. bang the door—close the door violently so that it makes a loud noise: Mr. Talboys strode out of the room, banging the door after him. bar girl • bar maid bar girl —1. a woman who serves drinks at a bar: In her early adulthood, Meili worked as a bargirl in order to pay off debts. 2. (sl.) a woman employed by a bar to act as a companion to men customers (also: B-girl): The soft purring caresses and total availability of the bar-girls must have seemed irresistible. bar maid— = bar girl 1: A few evenings a week she works as a bar maid in a local pub in Glasgow. bargain counter • bargaining counter bargain counter —an area in a store where the goods are sold at cut price: You need to be very careful not to be taken in by – 29 – bargain counter