Evidently his wife was not going to patch up peace at a word . 他的太太显然不是用一句话就可以和解的。
He patched up an old bicycle to ride to work and save carfare . 他修补了一辆旧自行车,骑车上工,省下了交通费。
Humour can be used for patching up differences, apologizing, saying "no", criticizing, getting the other fellow to do what you want without his losing face . 幽默可以用来消除隔阂、致以歉意,有礼拒绝,诚恳批评,让别人按照你的意愿行事而又不丢面子。