例如:
They thought they were only dealing with a little girl and, therefore, couldride roughshod over her. But that was a big mistake. They should not dare to have heisted her had they learned in the first place that she is a black belt in karate.
他们本以为她只是个小女孩儿,因此可以完全不把她放在眼里。但这可大错特错了。如果他们事前知道她已经是空手道黑带,肯定就不敢抢劫她了。
此外,这个短语还可以用来形容“践踏法律”,如:
They are riding roughshod over the Basic Law。
他们的行为践踏了基本法。