Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: make history (used idiomatically: no)
In this case , although people were selective about which bits of the past they emphasized ( concentrating on state - renouncing ) , they did not so much reinterpret the past in the light of their present preoccupations ; rather , they polished an idealized account of rights , with their ancestors as heroes of duty . The argument now goes a step further : the process by which Zuwaya made history was substantially the same for all Libyan tribesmen . That is to say , Libyans whose families had settled in the cities some generations before were perhaps exempt from this process ; but the majority of Libyans made their history in the same way , and shared this picture of the past . In particular , Qaddafi has a similar image ; and his statements about the just society incorporate many elements of the tribal image of the past . Qaddafi and the social factor
Idiom: wear the trousers (used idiomatically: yes)
Take the case of Essex Junior School in Newham described in Spare Rib issue 55 : At the beginning of the school year , Mr Bailey , the head teacher , would remind the staff about various rules at the school and he would also give us his view about clothes . He did n't want female teachers or pupils to wear trousers — the teachers because it is ' unladylike and unprofessional ' and the girls for ' reasons of hygiene ' , says Cathy Pemberton , an ex - teacher from Essex Junior School in Newham . The girls are mainly Asians ( Muslims and Sikhs ) . If they come in trousers they are warned or made to take them off .
Idiom: wear the trousers (used idiomatically: yes)
' What 's so urgent and private that you could n't discuss it over the telephone ? ' In his study , Adam , wearing a dinner jacket , poured whisky into a cut - glass tumbler and confronted his brother . Mike wore black leather biking trousers and a heavy seaman 's turtleneck sweater . He said , ' I 've now been waiting two bloody years for my commission on the Framwell deal . ' Mike 's agreed commission was two per cent of the purchase price of any property that Miranda acquired , either directly or indirectly , through him .
Idiom: to boot (used idiomatically: yes)
Then they jumped on him , pulling him down the steps . He tried to fight back , but there were too many of them — he could not tell how many , for the attack came from all sides at once . They had wooden clubs in their fists and steel - capped toes to their boots , and they used them viciously . Huw slipped and fell under the rain of blows , and pain exploded in his skull — and then the miracle happened . A piercing whistle shrilled through the night air , and at the same instant the darkness was pierced by the white light of a bull 's - eye lantern .
Idiom: get off the ground (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ I got the role in Neighbours soon after I finished High School . I was originally going to do between one and 12 weeks on it , but now I 've been there two and half years,’ she said . ‘ My singing career sort of got off the ground through the show too because it was when a few of us from the show got together to sing at a benefit concert for a football club in Australia that I first publicly sang ‘ The Locomotion.’ ‘ It was just about the only song I knew the words to and was an impromptu thing , but it got things started . ‘ I owe the show a lot obviously , but my contract is up for renewal in June this year and I will have to think about it seriously then .
Idiom: wear the trousers (used idiomatically: yes)
[ For a time Alfred Knopf published both Ivy and Elizabeth in the States . ] ' I went to see her at Claridge 's … they are always so obsequious when one asks for her … . I think I caught her on the hop , for she was wearing trousers and sandals and … no , I can not remember what else … . Whatever one wears with trousers … . She must have worn something … a blouse , do you think , or jumper ?
Idiom: rock bottom (used idiomatically: yes)
Simply more holiday with Enterprise Lakes and Mountains … Spring & Autumn SPECIAL OFFERS At the beginning and end of the season when the resorts are quieter and more relaxed , we can offer special holidays at really rock - bottom prices . In the spring the flowers are at their most glorious , and the weather is much better than in the UK . We offer special spring holidays to St Johann , Soll , Ellmau , Going , Westendorf and Scheffau .
Idiom: behind someone's back (used idiomatically: yes)
But Robert did not feel able to say so . Instead he gave a weak smile and fingered the locket , through the cloth of his lapels . Malik clasped his hands behind his back . He moved over to the window and looked out across rain - driven Wimbledon . In the distance , a police car wailed its way towards them up Wimbledon Hill .
Idiom: with a vengeance (used idiomatically: yes)
The best explanation is that assessment was more realistic in Rutland than anywhere else . The chronicler Hall emphasised the consternation produced by the government 's success in establishing a basis for swingeing taxation , and although wealth can seldom or never have been overstated for fiscal purposes , the Rutland muster book could perhaps be the exception that bears out his claim that ‘ some avaunced them selfes more than they were worth of pride , not remembryng [ realising/ suspecting]what was coming’ , naively succumbing to the blandishments of the commissioners , who ‘ did what they could to set the people to the vttermoste’ . The reckoning came with a vengeance when ‘ The kynge out of hand sent commissions to gather ye loane , this was called practisyng of the loane , which sore emptied men 's purses.’ Improbable though it may sound , Rutland men found themselves having , with ‘ much heauiness’ , to fork out on the basis of the full value of their property which they had unguardedly divulged . No doubt when the subsidy commissioners came on the scene they were prevailed on to restore assessments to approximately the levels of 1515 .
Idiom: song and dance (used idiomatically: yes)
It occurs in a book called The Scots Week - end , published by the Carswells in the late 1930s , and crying out for some other publisher to take it up and put it on the market , where it would be grabbed by many eager Scots . Catherine and Donald Carswell were a husband and wife literary team who flourished at the same time as another pair , Willa and Edwin Muir . Their book was published by Routledge , and a fine and stimulating rag - bag it is , with the best poems and songs and dance instructions and recipes and a whole round - up of the traditional wisdom of Scotland , if there be any . A section called An Examination Paper is where I met my downfall . They set a number of questions on many subjects whose answers are readily available , but there is one above all which still scuppers me , especially as there are no solutions in the book nor in any subsequent edition .
Idiom: over the moon (used idiomatically: yes)
Ruth exhaled a hugh sigh of relief as she stepped out of the hotel foyer into fierce sunlight and a wall of hot air hit her after the cool of the air - conditioning . It was all done , the conditions agreeable to both parties . Her clients would be over the moon at the accommodation in this particular hotel . Some incentive to the company 's sales staff to increase sales . She felt sure the campaign would be a huge success .
Idiom: grist to the mill (used idiomatically: yes)
' And you are both ready for the bazaar , I see , ' he said , for he had already watched them carry through the packing - cases filled with their work , ready to be transported on Mr Hanson the grocer 's small cart , due to call at Vetch Street at ten o'clock , for them to start setting out the stall . ' Sands tells me , ' he observed , ' that some grand rich people , relations of his , have promised to come along to buy — to ease their consciences , one supposes , they having so much , and the poor devils whom the bazaar is to benefit having so little . ' ' All grist to our mill , ' said McAllister cheerfully , never thinking that Mr Sands 's grand relations might prove to be Nemesis , arriving in group form , to smoke out Miss Sally - Anne Tunstall , American heiress and the ambassador 's niece , the Marquess of Blaine 's one - time intended , AKA — also known as — in the language of American police reports — Miss Sally - Anne McAllister , skivvy and Dr Neil 's fiancée . On the contrary , all seemed set fair , and when they had loaded the packing - cases on to the cart Matey and McAllister set off for the church hall , to lay out the stall , to have everything ready for the afternoon 's visitors , Dr Neil having promised to come along to help them . ' Try to keep me away , ' he had whispered , ' although it is exquisite torture for me these days , my dear McAllister , to have you so near , and be unable to stroke every bit of your delectable body .
Idiom: close call (used idiomatically: yes)
No wonder that Rab was drunk . For Winnie herself , it required the tightest hold , the fumes of the stuff , to keep her wits about her . One close call the barman . You could , for nothing , real or imagined , the slightest slight , get crippled in a place like this . It was madness they had stayed , drank still , and deeply , of the heady wine .
Idiom: turn heads (used idiomatically: yes)
But as feelings of guilt suddenly swamped her , only then did Fabia appreciate how much she had been herself with Ven . Somehow — though how when it bothered her so — she had all too frequently managed to forget that she was supposed to be Cara Kingsdale , professional journalist . ' No , ' she answered quietly , and felt so guilt - ridden then that she could n't look at him , but turned her head and stared out of the side - window . That feeling of guilt sat heavily with her for most of the drive to Prague . Only then did she see that she should never have accepted Ven 's invitation .
Idiom: pissed off (used idiomatically: yes)
And then the next bit , she says it again . No , yeah , that scrapbook , yeah , that 's not got to be in till later , has it ? He was really pissed off . Oh , you 're gon na go down well . Yeah .
Idiom: state of the art (used idiomatically: yes)
Fuel consumption for an engine of this size is acceptable with a constant 56 mph returning 24.2 miles per gallon and a constant 75 mph providing 18.7mpg . The tank holds 18 gallons of unleaded and 0-to-60 is achieved in a little under 10 seconds . The LSE package also includes a state of the art security alarm , improved headlights , an increase in rear luggage space and an incar entertainment system with four co - axial speakers . Land Rover has produced something more than a face - lifted Range Rover . They have a vehicle that will now send other manufacturers back to the drawing board .
Idiom: lift a finger (used idiomatically: yes)
( Wringing her apron in mock indignation ) That 's the third time this week I 've picked his Good polyester - dacron trousers up off the floor and Hung them up in their crease . What 's the use ? Does n't lift a finger , does David Never a handsturn from him , believe me . The kitchenette is a closed book . Do n't you be downtrodden Muriel .
Idiom: on paper (used idiomatically: yes)
MARY RICHMOND / Mother Voice over Martin Richmond from Chalford Hill near Stroud in Gloucestershire had been jailed in Kathmandu before Christmas after entering the country on forged papers . He and a friend had been on a cycling tour of the Himalayas , when they paid for the papers from a local travel agent . Minutes after being escorted from jail by the British vice - consul , Martin phoned his mother .
Idiom: one for the road (used idiomatically: no)
For example , if we have raised our body temperature by exercise or effort then cooling ourselves by taking a cold shower , a swim , or a cold drink makes us more comfortable . Also , if we are cold , warming our hands in front of the fire is very comforting . A similar line of reasoning — warm the skin if the body is cold — explains the idea of ‘ one for the road’ or the ‘ stirrup cup’ . The nip of alcohol causes the blood vessels to dilate and so warm the skin and make us comfortable in spite of being out in the cold . It can , however , be dangerous insofar as it promotes heat loss : your body is tending to become cold in a cold environment .
Idiom: on the rocks (used idiomatically: yes)
SIX men on a sea angling trip were rescued after their vessel went aground off the coast of north east Scotland . The 30-ft Fleetwood Mac got into difficulties in the entrance to Rosehearty harbour , near Fraserburgh , in heavy seas last night . Rescue services arrived to find the men had abandoned their boat which was sinking and were stranded on rocks cut off by a rising tide . The men were rescued by the Fraserburgh lifeboat and taken to Fraserburgh hospital where they were released after treatment for cold . SHETLANDS
Idiom: at sea (used idiomatically: yes)
We felt able to announce that we could increase this from 30 to 50 miles at virtually any point around the coast of Great Britain and Ireland . This is a major landmark in the Institution 's policy continuously to improve the lifeboat service.’ Stressing that the RNLI 's primary aim and duty is to save lives at sea the Chairman emphasised the critical aspect of speed of response . ‘ Every single minute counts . A minute may sound a short time , but it can easily mean the difference between life and death to someone in the water.’
Idiom: take someone's word for it (used idiomatically: yes)
I 'm quite convinced that society could be run without money and every one of us would actually become far better off — not economically , of course , but emotionally and culturally . You may say that you could hardly trust me saying it because I 'm wealthy enough to be able to come here from Japan to study . In that case , do n't take my word for it , but please read News From Nowhere by William Morris . Then , if you still ca n't imagine a world without money , there must be something wrong with you . I 'm not saying I want to see Morris ' Utopian vision in action exactly as it is , but a lot of his idea is still very inspiring a century after it was written .
Idiom: rock bottom (used idiomatically: yes)
Do you know , I am nostalgic for nappies and broken nights . I look in prams , with a soppy smile on my face . At the time , I thought one had hit rock bottom . There 's a bloody great silent conspiracy that goes on , and it 's the conspiracy of those who 've had children against those who have n't yet . What you do n't know , till you 're in it , is that it 's a life sentence .
Idiom: at a loose end (used idiomatically: yes)
None of his office mates agreed and they all left . It got very bitter . He was at a loose end . I do n't know how this affected his relationship with mother , but they are now separated . Dad has gone a bit funny about sex .
Idiom: give something a miss (used idiomatically: yes)
What d ' you say ? ' Bet with a criminal ? ' I think I 'll give the chess a miss if it 's all the same to you , Pete . I 've had rather a hard day — well , I 'm sure you can imagine . ' ' Well , another time .
Idiom: set your sights on (used idiomatically: yes)
Nevertheless , there is just as much of a chance that you will win through your difficulties as there is of reaching the point of throwing in the towel . Relationships are at their most transformative stage , and after the 14th you should be reaping the harvest of love 's labours or indeed digesting the results of your efforts in other directions . And with Venus in the area of the far off , it might be appropriate to set your sights on pastures new . GEMINI May 22-Jun 22 THIS is one of the most important months of the year for your career or for anything that contributes to your well - being .
Idiom: to the bone (used idiomatically: yes)
But I wanted to present an exotic image , a man of the world blown in from foreign parts to bring some much - needed glamour to Karen 's drab suburban existence . I had hoped she would be able to get rid of Dennis quickly , but it was almost 4 o'clock before the red BMW finally appeared and roared away in the direction of the ring road . By that time I was chilled to the bone , exhausted from the relentless battering of the traffic , sullen and depressed . This had better be good , I thought grimly as I crossed the road and walked up the cul - de - sac to the Parsonage . This had better be bloodygood .
Idiom: under the influence (used idiomatically: yes)
However , in order to show the ‘ historical’ nature of this state of affairs they had to stress the existence of previous stages when private property was absent . This idea has often been ridiculed by anthropologists who point out that there is no record or suggestion that there ever was , or ever could be , a stage of total sharing and total freedom of access by everybody at any time to anything . Indeed it is difficult to imagine such a state of affairs , but in fact Marx , especially in Formen makes it quite clear that this is not what he meant at all ; it is only under the influence of Morgan in The Origin that Engels might possible by construed to have implied something so unlikely . Throughout Marx 's work he stresses , as he had done for labour , the fantastic nature of the capitalist concept of property , the fantastic notion that there is something of our personality in the things or places we own . Having pointed out the peculiarity and arbitrariness of this notion he then assumes that , in other systems , the relation of man to his material environment is visualized differently .
Idiom: up and running (used idiomatically: yes)
Word has it that an unlikely combination of forces have come together in a bid to establish a new standard for installing Unix software from graphical user interfaces and will be showing their stuff next month 's Uniforum show in San Francisco . Partners in the effort are thought to include at least Hewlett - Packard Co , IXI Ltd , Santa Cruz Operation Inc and Sun Microsystems Inc with IBM Corp said to be ‘ considering its position.’ The standard will reportedly provide a standard set of techniques for independent software vendors to write to and should allow users to get Unix applications up and running from an install icon within a variety of graphical environments without the need to go back down to the shell , be they native or guest implementations . Some of the stuff in the specification will be new , some is already in use . HP SEEING PINK FUTURE ?
Idiom: hold the fort (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Speaking of Aunt Maureen , do n't you think we should give her the good news?’ ‘ Yes , I suppose we should.’ Luce dialled the number of the gallery , remarking , ‘ She 'll be at work , but Liz should be able to hold the fort it necessary.’ Maureen answered straight away , and listened eagerly , giving excited squeaks from time to time as her niece brought her up to date on everything that had happened . ‘ So all 's well that ends well , to quote Shakespeare,’ she said cheerfully when Luce had finished .
Idiom: behind the scenes (used idiomatically: no)
This is what happens in the O. Henry stories , for example . The conventionality of particular devices is made palpable by ironic comments from the author — such as : ' Thus , by the commonest article of the trade , having gained your interest , the action of the story will now be suspended , leaving you grumpily to consider a sort of doll biography beginning fifteen years before'(Eikhenbaum 1978 : 255 ) . This draws attention to the formal strategies behind the opening scenes in stories and to the conventional basis of the ' doll biographies ' that accompany the presentation of the major characters . It is by making form perceptible through this parodic treatment of devices that a genre evolves . The other evolutionary principle concerns the introduction of devices from marginal or popular genres into the mainline of literary development to replace outworn ones .
Idiom: go all the way (used idiomatically: yes)
It may even be that just here is where I have to stop . ' ' Do you mean that if you can just explain what the alternatives are you will have answered the question ? Or do you mean that 's as far as you 'll be able to go — not all the way ? ' Marcus reflected . He said , again not answering the question , ' Of course I do n't want to stop .
Idiom: in the club (used idiomatically: yes)
The yearnings are as real for 17-year - olds today , let alone for the Club A Go Go crowd on any Saturday night in 1964 , presided over by Eric Rubberlegs De Vene . The show is a compilation of such nights , from getting stamped in , waiting around , having a drink and a dance , being chatted up , to vomiting in the loos , and leaving with or without a bird . And the loos in his club are an ideal confessional box to hear the virginal hopes of Sue ( Nikki Belsher ) , Sharon ( Nikki Brooks ) , Shirl ( Joanne Engelsman ) and Bridget ( Judith Ellis ) , looking for romantically inclined Mr Right . The boys , Gary ( Paul Darnell ) with his cocksure swagger , the so - funny slob Eddie ( Peter Hepplethwaite ) , and shy Rick ( Andrew Kennedy ) agonizing about his feelings , present different views of what makes their Saturday night . The ' bogs ' are a swamp of high hopes , wild boasts , wet walls and vomit - filled drains .
Idiom: nip and tuck (used idiomatically: no)
The same goes for all the other stores in the chain . By the end of the year about 90 % of everything Kmart sells will be subject to this centralised merchandising system . Staff at the stores will be left managing the other 10 % — fast - changing lines like greetings cards and fizzy drinks — though they can give the 90 % a nip here and a tuck there with the help of the RMUs . Systems like KIN are transforming retailing . Large chains can keep track of shoppers ' preferences daily , enabling central merchandisers to predict selling trends far more accurately than the average store manager could hope to do .
Idiom: hit the ground running (used idiomatically: yes)
That 's a mighty diverse playing list and one which makes their debut album , ‘ In Pursuit Of The Thirteenth Note’ , seem an attractive prospect . Originally intending to go on stage , drop ten poems and have them recorded for vinyl , Galliano have enlisted the help of former Style Council keyboardist Mick Talbot to come up with a calling card that bodes well for the future . Musical flair alone has n't been the reason why the jazz poets / warriors have hit the ground running , it always helps to be seen as part of a fashionable movement . No surprises here , Galliano are neo - modernists , or so the style pundits would have us , and them , believe . Constantine picks up the thread .
Idiom: get the better of (used idiomatically: no)
Many examination scripts are guided by the same philosophy . The candidate will start with one version of the law and then gradually veer round to a contradictory version — thus making sure that the right rule is there somewhere , even though he can not pick it out . Perhaps he hopes by this means to get the best of both worlds ; actually , of course , he gets the worst . If you find yourself changing your mind in the course of an answer , either cross out what you have written and start afresh , or , if there is no time for that , say frankly that you have changed your mind . You must show not only that you have seen the chapel , but that you can identify it .
Idiom: tell tales (used idiomatically: yes)
His usually placid , cheerful features were contorted with rage and she stood dumb while he poured out a stream of abuse upon Ellen and upon her and upon the Wilson family and upon the English and upon everyone and everything he could think of . He swung off the horse and stood in front of her , tired and dirty from travelling and all she heard was a sound like the crashing of waves on pebbles and she put her hands over her ears and swayed in pain at the roadside . She had no idea afterwards how she got to the Villa Alberti where Ferdinando took her to break the news and tell the tale of his fruitless trip . Did she ride ? Did she walk ?