Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: slip through the net (used idiomatically: yes)
What must be certain is that their problems will be heard and evaluated . Personnel review procedures Some undesirable employees will always slip through the net ; and some employees will change over time . Thus , for personnel practices to be truly effective , employees should be continually observed and periodically rechecked , especially those in sensitive positions such as systems programming . Supervisors should be trained to be observant and sensitive to the needs , morale and problems of employees subordinate to them , and must be aware of the proper channels through which specific problems may be detected and dealt with .
Idiom: larger than life (used idiomatically: yes)
I 've lived in London all my life , and I 've built up three businesses from scratch . ' ' Three ? ' It seemed a little excessive , even for someone as larger - than - life as Luke Hunter . ' What happened to the other two ? ' His eyes danced with amusement .
Idiom: land of nod (used idiomatically: yes)
' I think my grandmother would fit in very well here . ' I meant it as well , even though I knew she 'd miss the hang - gliding . The next morning I was a day older , no wiser and put in a bad mood right from the off because I was dragged from the Land of Nod kicking and screaming ( well , grunting and stumbling actually ) by the Celtic Twilight hammering on my door . I christened the new residents of the flat above that just in case they ever decided to form a folk - singing duet and needed a stage name . From the first moment I saw Inverness Doogie and his Welsh wife , Miranda , I had them down as a sort of suicidal Sonny and Cher .
Idiom: every last (used idiomatically: no)
I run out of courage halfway through , and leave some . He is clearly surprised that I do n't want all of it . He bends down and licks the surface of the sideboard with long thorough flat sweeps of his wide rude tongue for every last scrap . On the way up he flaps it wickedly at me . Devil tongue .
Idiom: one of those things (used idiomatically: no)
granddad . drink too much ? Can we have one of those things ? Well , I do n't one glass one alright , I go .
Idiom: life and limb (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ What do you mean?’ She glared back at him . ‘ First you try to kill yourself by running off into a blizzard , and now you risk life and limb because you ca n't even bring yourself to admit to me that you 've never skied in your life before.’ The blue eyes narrowed challengingly . ‘ You have n't , have you?’
Idiom: in the running (used idiomatically: yes)
Part of his stock - in - trade when he wants to take over an organization . He sows dissension . Howard thinks Marler is in the running for his job.’ ‘ Marler would n't play . I do n't like him , but he 's a cynical bastard and wo n't be taken in by the likes of Buckmaster.’
Idiom: behind closed doors (used idiomatically: yes)
If we were to win , it would be the most unpopular victory in the history of the Cup . ‘ Why they are not playing it on the Saturday , I do n't know . They say that the police have not got the resources — but this game is going to be behind closed doors . ’ Because of difficulties with his squad getting time off work , Kelly fears he could be without as many as five players . Keeper Blake is fit and will play , but skipper Adie Cowler , veteran of Woking 's Cup runs of the last two years , will have to dash up to Peterborough on Friday after completing a morning at his interior design business .
Idiom: cut and thrust (used idiomatically: yes)
Last November he trounced Mr Wilson at the ballot box , both defeating a budget initiative sponsored by the governor and increasing the number of Democrat assemblymen . Mr Wilson 's hopes that the new group of freshmen Democrats would remain immune to the Speaker 's charms have already been dashed ; last month they lined up behind Mr Brown to defeat a Wilson nominee for superintendent of schools . Such cut - and - thrust politicking has always been Mr Brown 's speciality . However , this year the Speaker has also been reaching outside his Sacramento stronghold : convening an economic summit in Los Angeles to examine the state 's recession ; pushing laws to reform California 's hated workers ' -compensation scheme ; leading a team of legislators to Washington to plead for the state 's interests ; putting himself forward as a mediator in a fractious dispute over teachers ' pay in Los Angeles . Mr Brown has even been sounding a little more conciliatory towards Mr Wilson over this year 's budget , when the state will have to close a $ 10 billion deficit .
Idiom: out and about (used idiomatically: yes)
It was just one of those things that you can not explain . They had two daughters , Violet and Madge , and two sons , Luther and John . Both girls were keen cyclists and since they lived near the road they could get out and about . They both married , with Madge going to live in Cotherstone , just about the nearest village to us , and Violet staying near the bottom of the dale . Luther did leave the community for good , going off to work in Darlington , where he married and settled down .
Idiom: close to home (used idiomatically: yes)
Staff meetings reverberated with heavy sighs ( martyrs are very fond of sighing ) and we were trying to help our clients sort out their lives ! Not surprisingly , we rarely identified our clients as being martyrs . It would have been rather too close to home . Martyrs seldom complain openly about their lot . They usually deny feeling sorry for themselves —‘No , everything 's fine!’— but they make it clear that life is tough for them .
Idiom: under the wire (used idiomatically: yes)
Point counting is the most accurate method of establishing the modal composition of a sediment , albeit a time - consuming method ( Chayes , 1956 ; Galehouse , 1971a ) . Point counting of many thin sections is tedious ; however , its uses generally outweigh the time spent in data accumulation . There are various methods of point counting , the most obvious being the spot identification of each grain as it appears under the cross wires of the microscope ( e.g. Van der Plas & tobi , 1965 ; Soloman & green , 1966 ) . However , in a sediment with a large proportion of lithic clasts this may involve changing many times to a different magnification ( generally larger , to identify the whole clast ) . One method ( Ingersoll et al . , 1984 ) obviates this by identifying minerals within the clast , rather than the complete clast , although this produces a modal composition based on total mineralogy rather than based on detrital grain mineralogy .
Idiom: fly the flag (used idiomatically: no)
Remittances are a fading asset . The other stand - by has been the money earned by Greece 's merchant navy . Ships flying the Greek flag make up the world 's third - biggest merchant fleet , after Liberia 's and Panama 's ( having recently beaten an uppity Japan back into fourth place ) , and account for 40 % of the European Community 's total tonnage . Ships owned by Greeks but flying other countries ' flags double the Greek - flag tonnage . In all , shipping in 1992 made almost as big a contribution as remittances to closing that trade deficit .
Idiom: have a ball (used idiomatically: no)
He was saying stuff like ‘ and heres a rare and unexpected attack from Ipswich ’ , he just seemed like he was a Leeds presenter . Old Norman Hunter sounded like he was bored of it all and just kept saying ‘ looking at it , you just ca n't see where a goals gon na come from ’ . Speed came on for White and did n't seem to have many problems although that 's prob- ably because he did n't touch the ball much . Strach said before the match ‘ if we get the first goal , then there 's only gon na be one winner ’ — fair enough , but you 've got to get the first goal . Hunter was on about Deane not getting away from his marker enough , from corners and stuff he just sits and gets marked instead of moving out to the far post .
Idiom: come to mind (used idiomatically: yes)
Whenever our reality changes for the better , in a way which takes us by surprise , we should get to work on our self - image fast ! SELF - IMAGE Pick an area of life in which you wish to move forward — perhaps health , work , relationships , money or spirituality — and scribble down whatever comes to mind about your self - image in that area ( e.g. ‘ Me and health’ ; ‘ Me and work’ ) . When you have finished — it might take five minutes or five hours — look through your notes and pick out the central themes . Is there a single word which sums it all up ( e.g. loser , spoiler , thinker , cynic , martyr , goody - goody , complainer , doormat , groveller ) ?
Idiom: open someone's eyes (used idiomatically: yes)
He walked away five or six steps and I was still there . You think , God help me I do n't want to die , and you close your eyes and you sill see him . It 's like a bad dream , and you see a guy pointing a gun at you , but he 's still there when you open your eyes , and he wo n't go away . Then he pulled the trigger . I do n't know what happened .
Idiom: hands down (used idiomatically: no)
ICI and other big manufacturers are involved in four price - fixing cases currently grinding their way through the elephantine procedures of the European Community . Fines of Ecu10 m imposed by the European Court in 1986 for alleged competition infringements on poly - propylene were reduced on appeal to Ecu9 m , but are still being appealed against . In 1988 , fines of Ecu2.5 m were handed down on PVC and of Ecu3.5 m on low - density polyethylene ; the PVC penalties were overturned on appeal and the European Commission is in its turn appealing ; an appeal on LDPE awaits decision . In 1990 , ICI , the Belgian company Solvay and others were fined Ecu17 m on soda ash ; an appeal is expected to be heard next year . If the cartel mentality has been one striking component of ICI 's culture , commitment to research and development , and the fostering of individual scientific brilliance , has undoubtedly been another .
Idiom: in the flesh (used idiomatically: yes)
THEY CAME , they saw , they conquered . The world 's greatest rock n'roll band returned in triumph to their native land last week . And thousands of Ulster fans of Bono , the Edge , Larry and Adam flocked in droves to Dublin and Cork to see their heros in the flesh once more and pay homage to their idols . It is six year 's since U2 played Belfast 's Kings Hall in 1987 on their world - conquering Joshua Tree odyssey . Since then they have become even bigger and richer , and their concerts even more popular .
Idiom: go round in circles (used idiomatically: no)
Er now I do have as I say some detailed points on constraints and things but perhaps I 'll leave those for the moment . Mr Cunnane I think it may be helpful , bearing in mind that you do not support the proposed level for housing provision in Selby to try to as isolate that element from our discussion . To what extent if if you accept the County Council 's proposed housing provision for Selby , and I appreciate that 's hypothetical but I er I think it would help me to get this element isolated from our discussion , otherwise we may go round in ever decreasing circles . What level of employment land provision would you support in Selby ? I would assume that the County Council 's assessment of need at a hundred and twenty two hectares does take cognizance of the s the anticipated growth in housing .
Idiom: plain sailing (used idiomatically: yes)
Not only will you feel a sense of achievement but you will have re - educated your way of eating and the way you think about yourself . And you will look so much better — slimmer , fitter , healthier , with more confidence and vitality — all wonderful improvements in your life . But life ( and particularly slimming ) is never plain sailing . There will be times when our good intentions fail miserably and we feel very disillusioned . This is normal !
Idiom: tell it like it is (used idiomatically: yes)
The first part of this chapter will concentrate on studies of relatively small groups . The purpose of such research is to describe the culture and life style of the group of people being studied in a way that is as faithful as possible to the way they see it themselves . The idea is not so much to seek causes and explanations , as is often the case with survey - style research , but rather to ‘ tell it like it is , . It may well be that , as a result of such descriptions , the researcher , or other people , develop theories about why the people concerned behave as they do . However , such hypotheses are expected to emerge from the research as it goes along , rather than be specified from the start and used as a guide to the kind of data that is sought and collected .
Idiom: hot air (used idiomatically: yes)
It is reached by way of a beautiful mountain railway journey from Lauterbrunnen or by cable car from Stechelberg . Murren has a huge variety of signposted walks to take you over the hills and into the mountains . At the end of June , Murren is host to International Ballooning Week , and the skies fill up with myriads of colourful hot air balloons . Directly above the village rises the peak of the Schilthorn mountain which was featured in the James Bond film ‘ On Her Majesty 's Secret Service’ . The top station has a large revolving restaurant and a sun terrace with wonderful views over Switzerland , including the Eiger , Monch and Jungfrau mountains .
Idiom: pecking order (used idiomatically: yes)
Neath have been a force in the Welsh game for most of its 120 years but were never , until lately , the force . They have been champions of various things in four of the past five seasons compared with only two previous post - war Welsh Championships and one cup . Of course clubs such as Neath and Pontypool are not really supposed to be at the head of the Welsh pecking - order , which goes some way to explaining why they become so unpopular when they do . Anyway , in what seems the distant past of the late Seventies , when I was reporting from The Gnoll , they were not much good , not many players from Neath won caps and , once the new Welsh Challenge Cup had been won in 1972 , an utterly barren decade ensued . The story of how Brian Thomas , one of the ‘ 72 Cup winners , came in and hauled the club out of its curious mixture of complacency and mediocrity is an example of what can be achieved in apparently inauspicious circumstances .
Idiom: life and limb (used idiomatically: yes)
Both Matilda and Lavender were enthralled . It was quite clear to them that they were at this moment standing in the presence of a master . Here was somebody who had brought the art of skulduggery to the highest point of perfection , somebody , moreover , who was willing to risk life and limb in pursuit of her calling . They gazed in wonder at this goddess , and suddenly even the boil on her nose was no longer a blemish but a badge of courage . ‘ But how did she catch you that time?’
Idiom: pass muster (used idiomatically: yes)
He probably appeared , in the minds of the presidential staff , the perfect choice . He came on the scene as a mild - mannered lawyer from Oregon with reasonable Republican credentials ( his brother was a former Republican state attorney - general ) , a degree in Christian ethics , art commission experience and a taste for performing choral music . He looked good enough to pass muster , but not so valuable that his inevitable sacrifice to the god of political expediency on the altar of high culture was likely to bring tears . He was , in a word , expendable . Naive to the ways of Washington , he stepped into a war for which his experience had not equipped him .
Idiom: on the ropes (used idiomatically: yes)
We 're guardin ' this tent all night an ' it looks like rain . I 'd much sooner guard it from the inside,’ he grinned . Freddie smiled and began pulling on the rope . ‘ Oi ! What yer doin'?’ one of the riggers shouted at him .
Idiom: save the day (used idiomatically: yes)
Japan ’s recent election hinged critically on Abe ’s views of the Bank of Japan ’s monetary policy stance . He argued that a timid BOJ should learn from its more aggressive counterparts , the US Federal ~ Reserve and the European ~ Central ~ Bank . Just as the Fed and the ECB have apparently saved the day through their unconventional and aggressive quantitative easing ( QE ) , goes the argument , Abe believes it is now time for the BOJ to do the same . It certainly looks as if he will get his way . With BOJ Governor Masaaki Shirakawa ’s term ending in April , Abe will be able to select a successor – and two deputy governors as well – to do his bidding .
Idiom: in someone's pocket (used idiomatically: no)
Tebbit tosses grenade on immigration . Alan Travis cautions against parallels with Powell 's ‘ river of blood’ campaign . ‘ ENOCH Powell once advised me : ‘ Never go into the Chamber of the House of Commons without a verbal grenade in your pocket’,’ Mr Norman Tebbit wrote in his biography Upwardly Mobile . The former Conservative party chairman certainly ignited a powerful piece of ordnance in the Chamber on Thursday during the statement on Hong Kong . In the process his demand that there be no further large scale immigration infuriated the Foreign Secretary , Mr Douglas Hurd , who retorted : ‘ I do not need any education on the importance of strict immigration control for entry into this country.’
Idiom: cut loose (used idiomatically: yes)
Light was behaving as a swarm of particles , a broadside of torpedoes . Only those electrons which were struck by one of these projectiles would be effected . Whether such an electron was ejected ( a buoy cut loose ) depended on how much energy this projectile had ( was it enough to sever the mooring ? ) . According to Planck 's equation [ 1]the quantity of energy depended directly upon the frequency . Below the critical frequency the effect was too feeble to displace the electron ( the torpedo could not wrench the buoy adrift ) .
Idiom: get the better of (used idiomatically: no)
Yeah , but their military has everything into military , no they have n't even now the military get the best of everything that was , that was it , that was it , even now , the economy is ruined , there 's nothing there but I would still bet you that , I 'm not gon na say that , that their eating well , but they 'll , they 'll be eating , they 'll be eating twice the amount of as a civilian
Idiom: under fire (used idiomatically: yes)
Whereas British democracy is deeply rooted despite its supposedly “ unwritten ” constitution , and the US constitution has been amended only 26 times since 1787 , France has redrafted its constitution 15 times since 1789 . Only the Third ~ Republic ( 1875 - 1940 ) lasted longer than the current Fifth ~ Republic . Established quickly in 1958 by de ~ Gaulle in the midst of the Algerian crisis , tthe institutions of the Fifth ~ Republic came under fire from the very first day . The antagonism that much of the left felt toward the Fifth ~ Republic , which was tailored to fit de ~ Gaulle ’s outsized figure , faded only in 1981 , when François Mitterrand , one of de ~ Gaulle ’s most vocal opponents , benefited from the power vested in the presidency . Since then , a consensus has emerged in favor of the 1958 constitutional structure , because it has provided France with the strong executive it had always lacked .
Idiom: down the road (used idiomatically: no)
They surged forward but were held back by two very large and determined security men . I knew the clubhouse well from my amateur days and I quickly turned left , went through the main lounge ( to the horror of one member who recognised me not as a former amateur golfer but as a caddie , God dammit ) , through the back of the already busy bar and through the goods entrance , or exit in this case . I breathed again , and decided to walk a few hundred yards down the road to a Happy Diner for a rapid sandwich and a cup of tea . I had some fruit in my car and this would sustain me during the round . ‘ Can I buy you breakfast?’ asked a voice behind me .
Idiom: all along (used idiomatically: yes)
They were agents for Edinburgh Collieries Co. , Arniston Coal Co. , Hirst Coal Co. and Birkley Coal Co to name but a few . In fact they owned Hirstrigg , South Blair and Braehead Steam Coal . Coal was handled all along the Forth with Charlestown , West of Rosyth being the early front runner shipping 250,000 tons in 1869 . By 1880 , however it had dropped away to under 200,000 tons . Boness handled 125,000 tons in 1860 and increased steadily from thereon .
Idiom: off the wall (used idiomatically: yes)
By JOHN CLEESE GRAHAM CHAPMAN and I wrote together almost full time between 1966 and 1973 , writes John Cleese , while producing sketches for The Frost Report , The 1948 Show and Monty Python , as well as several film scripts none of which made their way intact to the silver screen . As a writing partner he had two rare gifts : the ability to get us unstuck with some inspired off - the - wall conceit when I was enmeshed in very on - the - wall musings ; and in addition , the priceless talent of knowing whether something was funny or not . I noticed this early and relied on it shamelessly . In fact the Cheese Shot Skit — my all - time favourite — owes its life to him .
Idiom: get a grip (used idiomatically: yes)
Yeah er do does Then th they go back . has he got his grip back ? Er no , not altogether Oh .
Idiom: do a bunk (used idiomatically: yes)
He proceeds to mooch about in a hang - dog way until he runs across his younger brother , quiet student Dennis ( William Sage ) who informs him their long - lost father has just been arrested for bombing the Pentagon 20 years previously . Dad ( John Alexander MacKay ) is a former star baseball player who blew it all by turning Sixties anarchist , ‘ the only radical short stop in history ‘ as Burke deliciously puts it . The lads arrive at the local nick to find their Houdini pa has done a bunk and they wander about the country trying to locate him , pitching up in a one horse Long Island seaside town . Here they run across wayward convent schoolgirl Kim , Holly Marie Combs , who directs them to the deserted cafe of Kate , an enigmatic Karen Sillas . Burke falls for Sillas and loses interest in locating father which upsets Sage , he wanders off on his own and runs across young Romanian epileptic Elina ( Elina Lowensohn ) who bizarrely turns out to be pater 's juvenile mistress .
Idiom: one of those things (used idiomatically: yes)
She 's got Sandy staying now I asked her about the letter and she said she could n't remember anything about it but she filled in something when they came back from Belfast and she said open it , so I opened it and it 's one of these things er if you book to go to Dublin before May the whatever , the end of May , then if you went again in the Autumn , you you get er fifty pounds worth of vouchers or something , you go half price . It 's one of those con things like they tried Well , Yes , wh why , I mean why would she go to Dublin
Idiom: brass neck (used idiomatically: yes)
I confess that I literally gasped with disbelief when I heard him calmly announce his determination to get rid of the poll tax at the first possible opportunity . He told The Scotsman the other day,’ the only thing that can stop us is the Labour party.’ That certainly qualifies him for a prize for brass neck . The other prize for the evening 's debate undoubtedly went to the hon . Member for Berkshire , East ( Mr. MacKay ) although that , I think , was a prize for innocence and naivety . The hon . Gentleman proudly proclaimed that the new council tax was a perfect compromise , although it was not clear what it was a compromise between .