1.air用作动词的基本意思是“晾,晒,吹”,指在通风暖和处晾〔晒,吹〕衣服、被子等。引申可作“炫耀; 诉说”解,指炫耀〔诉说〕自己的想法或苦衷。
2.air可用作及物动词,也可用作不及物动词。用作及物动词时接名词或代词作宾语。
3.air后接副词out表示“通通风,透透空气,晾一晾”。

air out(v.+adv.)
通通风,透透空气 freshen (a room) by letting air move through it
▲air sb/sth ⇔ out
It's so stale in here, Mary, please open the window and air this place out. 这里的气味太不好了。玛丽,请打开一扇窗子,让这个地方透透空气。

用作不及物动词
▲S+～(+A)
The straw mattresses are airing there.草褥子正在那里晾着。
The programme airs daily.本节目每天广播。
用作及物动词
▲S+～+n./pron.
We air the room by opening the window. 我们打开窗子让屋子通风。
The big window had been opened to air the room. 大窗户被打开让房间换空气。
He hadn't wish to air the matter. 他不希望把此事传开。
They were tired of the doctor airing his knowledge. 他们讨厌这个炫耀知识的医生。
He aired his notions at a public meeting in a newspaper. 开会时他在报纸上陈述了他的观点。
He spoke on the radio, airing his views to the nation. 他在广播里对全国发表观点。
She is not the kind of person one can introduce into company; she is too fond of airing her opinions.她不是那种可以引以为友的人,她太爱发表议论了。
The ladies now have an opportunity to air their indignation. 女士们现在有机会表明她们的义愤。
Don't air your troubles too often.别老是诉说你的烦恼。
◇ 用于be ～ed结构
The dormitory was aired in the morning. 宿舍早上通风。
The mattress needs to be aired. 垫子需要晾晒。
The grievances were aired in Parliament last week. 冤情上星期在议会陈述了。
There his weekly broadcasts were aired from the 1920s until he was silenced by the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church. 自二十世纪二十年代起他每周广播直到被罗马教廷的等级制度禁止。

air, broach, express, utter, vent, voice
参见express条。

air, advocate, agitate for, preach
参见preach条。

［同义词］ v.  aerate; display, expose, publicize, reveal, ventilate, wind n.  atmosphere; appearance, attitude, character, look, manner
［反义词］ v.  conceal, cover up, hide
［词源］＜古英语aer(空气,航空)

1.air的基本意思是“空气,空中,天空”,引申可表示“飞行,散步”等。air作物质名词泛指“空气”时,不可数,不用冠词; 指某种具体的“气”或“天空”时用冠词。
2.air也可作“曲调,歌曲,旋律”“播送”“风度,神态”“姿态,架子”解,是可数名词,用冠词。
3.air也可借喻作“徒劳”或“流传,传开”解,不用冠词。
4.airs可表示“架子”“做作的姿态”,不用冠词。

airs and graces
做作的姿态,装腔作势 affectation
I can't stand his airs and graces.我不能容忍他装腔作势。
I have never met your sister before; does she always give herself such airs and graces?我以前从未见过你姐姐,她总是那么装腔作势吗?

as free as the air
自由自在 happy-go-luck
Now that I have passed my exams,I feel as free as the air and can do whatever I like.我考试及格了,可以自由自在,爱做什么就做什么了。

beat the air
徒劳,白费气力 waste
To argue with him is like beating the air.和他辩论是白费气力。

build castles in the air
做白日梦,不能实现的希望,计划等 day-dream hopes, plans that are unlikely to be realized
I have been building castles in the air with you.我一直和你一起做白日梦。
Instead of working at her lessons,Mary spends her time building castles in the air.玛丽没有努力学习功课而是花费了很多时间空想。

by air
乘飞机; 航空邮寄(信件) in an aircraft
I shall send the letter by air.我要由航空寄这封信。
We can now travel by air.现在我们可以坐飞机旅行。
It saves a great deal of time to travel by air. 航空旅行节约很多时间。

clear the air
换气 make the air in a place fresh by opening a window
The nurse clears the air of the room every morning.护士每天清晨给房间换空气。

give air to
阐明,详细解释 state or explain in detail
The lady was giving air to her troubles.这位女士正在讲明她的麻烦。

give oneself airs
盛气凌人,神气活现 act proud; act vain
He gives himself airs.他盛气凌人。
Mary gave herself airs when she wore her new dress.玛丽穿新衣时洋洋自得。
John gave himself airs when he won first prize. 得了第一名约翰神气活现。

go up in the air
十分恼火 become very angry
When she saw the damage to her car she went right up in the air.当她看到自己的汽车被损坏时,她立即火冒三丈。
My parents went up in the air when I told them that I wanted to move out into a flat.当我告诉父母说打算搬进公寓去住时,他们很生气。

hang in the air
悬而未决 leave undecided or unsettled
The question hung in the air; how is he going to tell his father?问题悬而未决,怎么跟他父亲讲呢?
Because the committee could not decide on a time and place the matter of the spring dance was left hanging in the air.由于委员会决定不了时间和地点,故春季舞蹈表演一事仍悬而未决。

hot air
夸夸其谈 bluster
I know he says he can run a mile in four minutes, but that's all hot air.我记得他说过能在4分钟内跑完一英里,但那完全是吹牛。
Don't take notice of Hammond's letters, they are nothing but hot air.不要理会哈蒙德的那些信,全都是夸夸其谈。

in the air
悬而未决,没充分计划好; (谣言等)传开,散布开; 流行开 (of stories, rumours etc.) spreading not fully planned, uncertain
My plans are still quite in the air.我的计划还很渺茫。
Whether we go to Paris is in the air.我们是否去巴黎尚未决定。
The plan for choosing a chairman is still in the air.选举主席计划尚在酝酿阶段。
Plans for the picnic are still in the air since we can't decide where to go. 由于我们不能决定去哪儿,野餐计划还未定。
What changes they will make nobody knows, but there is something in the air. 无人知道他们作出什么变动,但有些传言。
There are rumours in the air that dozens of people were dead in the fire.有谣言传说许多人在那场大火中死亡。
Baseball is beginning to be in the air in China. 棒球运动开始在中国风行起来了。
The war filled people's thoughts everyday, it was in the air.战争每天都弥漫在每个人心目中。
Their right flank was left in the air.他们的右翼无掩护。
Rain is in the air.可以感到下雨了。
Summer is in the air.夏天的气息可以感觉到了。

in the open air
在户外 outside
He is now taking a walk in the open air.他正在户外散步。
She feared the drink to be poisoned in the open air.她怕饮料在户外被放进了毒。
The boy fastened his eyes on the toys in the open air.在户外那孩子眼睛盯着玩具。
Time failed me to finish my speech in the open air.我想在户外把话讲完,但时间不够了。
She fabricated a good excuse for staying in the open air.她编造了呆在户外的借口。
I feel that he is capable of fulfilling the task in the open air.我觉得他有能力在户外完成这项任务。

off the air
停止广播 not engaged in broadcasting
The ball game is off the air now.球赛现在停播。
The station goes off the air after midnight.广播电台后半夜停止广播。
We needn't turn on the TV because it's off the air. 我们不必打开电视,因为现在没转播。

on the air
广播 broadcasting
We shall be on the air in 5 minutes. 过5分钟我们开始广播。
What's on the air this evening?今天晚上广播的内容是什么?
Most radio stations are on the air from 4 a.m. to 12 p.m. 大多数广播站广播从凌晨4点到午夜12点。

out of thin air
无中生有,突然出现 out of nowhere; out of nothing visible
I can't simply conjure up the money out of thin air. 我是不能像变魔术似的把钱变来。

put on airs
装腔作势,摆架子 behave in an unnatural way in the hope of impressing people
It's a great pity that she puts on such airs all the time. 她总是装腔作势,真是非常遗憾。
She didn't want him to think she was just putting on airs. 她不想让他认为她摆架子。
He puts on high airs with his learning.他因有学问而摆架子。

take air
为众人所知,被传扬 spread about among people; become known
The story has taken air among all the neighbors. 这件事情已在邻里传开。

take in the air
到户外散步,户外透透气 go outdoors; take a walk or ride
He took the air.他到户外散步。

vanish into thin air
无影无踪,化为乌有 disappear
We used to see a lot of our next-door neighbours, then one day, without any warning, they vanished into thin air.过去常见到的隔壁邻居,然而有一天,他们招呼都不打就走得无影无踪了。
I searched for the ball for ten minutes, but it had vanished into thin air.我找球找了10分钟,但它仍然无影无踪。

walk〔tread〕 on air
喜气洋洋,兴高采烈 be very gay or pleased
During Christmas everybody walks〔treads〕 on air. 圣诞节期间每个人都喜气洋洋。

The air is chilly. 这空气寒冷。
The air of the hills is very pleasant.这山里的空气非常凉爽。
The air is now at its hottest.空气正热。
We breathe air.我们呼吸空气。
Let's go out and have some fresh air.我们出去呼吸点新鲜空气吧。
The air was heavy with perfume of the flowers.空气中有浓郁的花香。
Many birds are flying in the air.许多鸟儿在空中飞翔。
I saw something flowing in the air.我看见有什么东西在空中飘动。
There is an air of sadness in the village. 村子里气氛悲哀。
The air was heavy between us.我们之间气氛沉闷。
He has a proud air.他神情傲慢。
He has the air of a scholar. 他有一种学者风度。
He has an air of importance.他摆出了一副煞有介事的神态。
They were displeased with her haughty airs.他们讨厌她高傲的派头。

in the air, in the open air, on the air
in the air是“在空中”“不定的”“散布的”“无掩护的”“在众人心中的”“可感觉到的”等意思; in the open air是“在户外”的意思; on the air是“广播”的意思。

in air, in the air
in air的意思是“在空气中”,而in the air的意思是“在空中,计划悬而未决; 谣言等流行”。

take air, take the air, take to the air
take air的意思是“事情或消息传开”; 而take the air的意思是“到户外散步,呼吸新鲜空气”; take to the air的意思则是“乘飞机或当飞行员”。

air, look
这两个词都可作“样子”解。其区别在于:
1.air所表达的表情往往是虚假的; 而look则是真实的。例如：
被告说到这件事时带着要保密的样子。
The accused spoke about it with an air of secrecy.(是装出来的)
The accused spoke about it with a look of secrecy.(是真情的流露)
2.作“神态”讲,即表达抽象概念,只能用air,而不能用look。例如：
Judy always gives himself airs.朱迪常摆架子(表示抽象概念)。

air, manner
这两个词均表示“态度”“模样”。其区别在于:
1.manner是通过观察某人的行为后所得出的印象,而air却是故意摆出的架势。
2.air通常是就全身的表现而言,而manner是就肢体的动作而言。
3.air是第一次见面时就可以看得出的印象,而manner是经过仔细观察才可以得出的印象。例如：
His manner is always formal.他的态度总是郑重其事的。
He was a man of suave and courteous manners.他是一个态度和蔼而有礼貌的人。
She has an air of languor about her.她总是一副无精打采的样子。

in the air, in the sky
二者有所区别:in the air指在离地球较近的“天空”; 而in the sky指在离地球较远的“天空”。例如:
A bird is flying in the air.有一只鸟在天上飞。
There is no cloud in the sky.天空没有一丝云彩。

1.别对我摆架子!
［误］  Don't put on airs to me!
［正］  Don't put on airs with me!
［析］  表示“对…摆架子”时, put on airs后面用介词with,不用to。
2.他乘飞机来到太原。
［误］  He by air to Taiyuan.
［正］  He came to Taiyuan by air.
［析］  by air是介词短语,不可用作谓语。