muck about

faire les idiots, plaisanter

Jouer ou plaisanter au lieu de se comporter sérieusement.

En anglais simple : To play or joke instead of behaving seriously.

• We were just mucking about.
• The children mucked about and laughed on the way home.
• Please don’t muck about during the lesson.

Synonymes : fool around, mess around, joke around

Expressions courantes : muck about together, muck about in class

traîner, perdre son temps

Passer du temps sans faire grand-chose ou sans but précis.

En anglais simple : To spend time doing little or doing things without a clear purpose.

• Stop mucking about and finish your homework.
• I mucked about in the garage all afternoon.
• We have no time to muck about today.

Synonymes : mess around, waste time, muck around

Contraires : get on with it

Expressions courantes : muck about all day, muck about outside

bidouiller, tripoter

Essayer d’utiliser ou de modifier du matériel sans bien savoir comment il fonctionne.

En anglais simple : To try changing or using equipment when you do not really know how it works.

• Don’t muck about with my computer.
• He mucked about with the settings and broke the printer.
• Have you been mucking about with the engine?

Comment l'utiliser : muck about with something (Don’t muck about with the heating controls.)

Synonymes : mess around with, tamper with, fiddle with

Expressions courantes : muck about with something, muck about with controls

faire tourner en bourrique, faire perdre du temps

Traiter quelqu’un injustement en lui faisant perdre son temps ou en ne tenant pas ses promesses.

En anglais simple : To treat someone unfairly by wasting their time or making promises you do not keep.

• Stop mucking me about.
• They mucked her about for weeks before rejecting her application.
• I won’t let another employer muck me about.

Comment l'utiliser : muck someone about (The company mucked us about over the delivery date.)

Synonymes : mess someone around, give someone the runaround

Expressions courantes : muck someone about, muck customers about