To keep an ear to the ground

它的意思就是保持高度警觉，及早发现那些即将会发生的事情的预兆。

Example: Every two weeks while the Congress is in session, I try to get back home to California to talk to people. This doesn\'t give me much time to relax with my family, but I have to keep an ear to the ground and hear what voters are thinking about.

这位议员说：“当国会举行会议的时候我每两个星期设法抽空回加州一次去和当地的人进行交谈。我没有多少时间可以和家人在一起，但是我得及时了解选民的想法。”

Up to one\'s ears  

很忙

Example: Half the people in John\'s office are home sick, so he is up to his ears!
John办公室里有一半的人有病请假，所以John简直忙得不得了。

下面这个例子是一个丈夫为了逃避到厨房去帮他太太的忙正在找借口：

Up to one\'s ears这个习惯用语在下面这句句子里的意思就不同了：

Example: The boss says he didn\'t know people on his staff were taking bribes. But my guess is he\'s up to his ears in it.\"
Boss说他不知道他手下的工作人员接受贿赂。可是，我猜想他完全是介入这些事的。

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