pay the piper . suffer the results of being foolish 自作自受；承担责任
He wasted much of the fund owing to mismanagement，so now he must pay the piper．由于管理不善，他浪费了大量资金，所以现在他必须承担后果。
Jack had spent all his money and got into debt， so now he must pay the piper．杰克把钱花光并欠了债，现在他可要自作自受了。
pay through the nose . pay at a very high rate；pay too much付出高价
There was a shortage of cars；if you found one for sale，you had to pay through the nose．汽车缺货，如果有卖，也得出高价。
He had wanted experience， but this job seemed like paying through the nose for it ．他想取得经验，但是这个工作的代价太大了。
pay up . pay in full付清
The monthly installments on the car were paid up．为买汽车按月应付的款已经付清。
My goods have vanished and the insurance company will have to pay up．我那批货丢失了，保险公司要偿付保险金。
peck at . bite at with short sharp movements啄
The children watched the birds pecking at the corn．孩子们看着那些小鸟啄玉米。
peck at . eat very little of少量地吃；一点一点地吃
No wonder he is losing weight．He hardly eats． He just pecks at the food．难怪他瘦了。他简直吃不下东西，只吃一点点。
He pecked at his breakfast of egg and bacon．早餐时，他只吃了一点咸肉和鸡蛋。
peck at . strike with repeated small blows 连续轻击
The boy started perking at the keys of the piano．那男孩开始在钢琴键上乱弹一气。
peck at . find fault with constantly屡次找岔子
It is no good pecking at one another．互相找岔子没有好处。
Stop pecking a him．It was only a small thing after all．不要老是责备他，毕竟这只是件小事。
peculiar to . belonging only to（a particular person，place，time，）为…所特有的
That way of speaking is peculiar to people in this part of the country．那种说话方式是这个国家这一地区的人所特有的。
It is a custom peculiar to the region．这是该地区所特有的风俗。
peel off . remove（the outer layer or covering）去掉（外层或覆盖的）
I can peel the skin off with my fingers．我可以用手指把皮剥掉。
peel off . remove（clothing）脱衣服
He was so hot that he peeled off his jacket．他热得把茄克衫脱了。
She peeled off and dived into the water．她脱了衣服潜入水中。
peel off . come off； scale off剥落；脱落
The paint on our house is peeling off in several places．我们的屋子有几处油漆脱落了。
peep at . peek at . look at something secretly 偷看；窥视
Through a keyhole he peeped at what was happening inside．他从锁眼里窥视室内的动静。
She felt she was constantly being peeped at．她感到自己一直受人监视着。
He had climbed the balcony to have a peek at it . 他爬上阳台偷看了它一眼。
peg away . work hard and steadily at something 坚持不懈地工作
He found maths difficult but he pegged away at it every evening and passed the exam．他觉得数学很难，但他每天晚上都用功，最后通过了考试。
To write a novel， one must keep pegging away at it consistently．要写小说，必须不断地辛勤劳动。
peg down . fasten down with pegs用木桩固定
They pegged down their tent，ready for the night．他们用木桩把帐篷固定，准备过夜。
peg down . make somebody keep to a certain line of action；restrict somebody to the rules 约束（某人）的行动
It is proving very difficult to peg him down to a definite date for completion．硬要他定期完成任务，显然是很困难的。
When it comes to getting a clear promise，he's very hard to peg down．想叫他明确答应下来，那实在很难。
peg out . mark out the boundaries of with pegs fixed in the ground用木桩在地上标出
The surveyor pegged out the plot of land．测量员用木桩标出这块地。
peg out . faint or collapse from exhaustion精疲力尽；晕倒
He'll never give up work；he'll go on until he pegs out．他决不中途放下工作，定要干到精疲力尽为止。
peg out . die死
at this height， a climber can peg out from lack of oxygen．在这样的高度，爬山者会因缺氧而死去。
few and far between 稀少， 罕见
People who will work as hard as . Thomas A． Edison are few and far between．像托马斯·爱迪生那样勤奋工作的人很少。
Before the nineteenth century，scientists with an interest in the sea were few and far between．十九世纪以前，对海洋感兴趣的科学家太少了。
He resigned from the firm because promotions were few and far between．他辞去了公司的差事，因为晋升的机会太少了。
pep up . give energy to使有劲；使活跃起来
A holiday in the sun will pep you up and you 'll soon feel better．阳光下的假日会使你活跃起来，你很快就会感到有所好转。
He pepped me up a lot with his comments．他的话使我大为振奋。
perk up . raise （the head， tail，ears，） briskly or spiritedly昂（首）；翘（尾）；竖起（耳朵等）
The dog perked up its ears．狗竖起了耳朵。
perk up . become or cause to become lively and active活跃起来；振作起来
She perked up when I suggested that we go to the theatre that evening．当我建议我们那天晚上去看戏时她可来劲了。
As the spring came on， the patient began to perk up．春天一到，病人的精神就开始好起来了。
permit of . admit of有…的可能
The travel arrangements do not permit of any change whatsoever．旅行安排一点变更的可能性也没有。
This passage permits of more than one interpretation．这段文字可能有几种解释。