behind the eight ball, PAX, pay peace, pacify, , APPEASE, PLACATE, MOLLIFY, PROPITIATE, CONCILIATE

The Trump Administration Shut a Vaccine Safety Office Last Year. What’s the Plan Now?

The office was dedicated to the long-term safety of vaccines. Experts say plans to track coronavirus vaccines are fragmented and “behind the eight ball.”

By CARL ZIMMER
此辭典有意思：

Pacify | Definition of Pacify by Merriam-Webster

pacify

 verb

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pac·​i·​fy | \ ˈpa-sə-ˌfī  \

pacified; pacifying

Definition of pacify

transitive verb

1a: to allay the anger or agitation of : SOOTHEpacify a crying child

b: APPEASE, PROPITIATEtried to pacify the enemy with compromises

2a: to restore to a tranquil state : SETTLEmade an attempt to pacify the commotion

b: to reduce to a submissive state : SUBDUEforces moved in to pacify the country

Choose the Right Synonym for pacify

PACIFY, APPEASE, PLACATE, MOLLIFY, PROPITIATE, CONCILIATE mean to ease the anger or disturbance of. PACIFY suggests a soothing or calming. pacified by a sincere apology APPEASE implies quieting insistent demands by making concessions. appease their territorial ambitions PLACATE suggests changing resentment or bitterness to goodwill.  a move to placate local opposition  MOLLIFY implies soothing hurt feelings or rising anger.  a speech that mollified the demonstrators  PROPITIATE implies averting anger or malevolence especially of a superior being. propitiated his parents by dressing up CONCILIATE suggests ending an estrangement by persuasion, concession, or settling of differences. conciliating the belligerent nations

Did You Know?

A parent who wants to win a little peace and quiet might give a fussy baby a pacifier. An employer seeking to avoid worker discontent might pay employees well. These actions may seem unrelated, but, etymologically speaking, they have a lot in common. Both "pacifier" and "pay" are ultimately derived from "pax," the Latin word for "peace." As you may have guessed, "pax" is also the source of our word peace. "Pacify" comes to us through Middle English "pacifien," from the Latin verb pacificare, which derives from "pax."

behind the eight ball


In a challenging situation; at a disadvantage. 

An "eight ball" is one of the numbered balls used in the game of pool, and the last one supposed to be hit into a pocket. If the eight ball is accidentally hit into a pocket prematurely, the player will lose, and it therefore needs to be avoided

“八球”是"撞球"遊戲中使用的編號球之一，而最後一個應該打入口袋。 如果八個球意外地過早地撞到了口袋裡，玩家將輸掉比賽，因此需要避免

.If we don't leave early tomorrow, we'll be behind the eight ball, and I doubt we'll reach the cabin by dusk.Because I got the flu, I'm behind the eight ball with my Christmas shopping.

behind the eight ball は何か: 1. in a difficult situation or in a worse situation than other people: 2. in a difficult situation…