Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: reach for the stars (used idiomatically: yes)
' Dhia , it 's a new shoulder I 'll need soon , never say a new assistant . ' He was wearier than he 'd admit , and glad to sit and rest . ' Ach away , granda , ' Ranald said , stretching his angular arms into the blue of the sky as if reaching for a star . ' You 're that tough , you 'll outlive us all . ' ' I 'll outlive you , anyway , saints preserve you , ' the old man nipped in smartly .
Idiom: one of those things (used idiomatically: no)
It 's only got ta be a little tin foil . Cocktail stick . One of those bud things . Yeah cotton buds . Sort of cut in half .
Idiom: break new ground (used idiomatically: yes)
First for Melrose Sevens BAY OF PLENTY are the first New Zealand team to send a team to the Melrose Sevens next month . Barbarians break new ground THE BARBARIANS have invited three foreign stars to join their Easter tour — Canadian no.8 Glen Ennis , Japan 's Toshiyuki Hayashi and the US Eagles lock and captain Kevin Swords . The Barbarians are to break new ground when they embark on a three - match tour of Russia at the end of May — playing in St. Petersburg , Krasnoyarsk and Moscow .
Idiom: rewrite history (used idiomatically: yes)
Pardon refused after First World War executions THE PRIME Minister yesterday ruled out posthumous pardons for more than 300 British soldiers executed for cowardice and desertion during the First World War . John Major said : ‘ I have reflected long and hard but have reached the conclusion that we can not rewrite history by substituting our latter - day judgment for that of contemporaries , whatever we might think.’ He said about 30 files in the Public Records Office , including some which were closed to the public , were examined . ‘ The files record each stage of the case up to the final decision by the Commander - in - Chief .
Idiom: to all intents and purposes (used idiomatically: yes)
In 1986 the government appointed Sir Roy Griffiths , the private sector consultant behind the earlier general management reforms in the NHS , to carry out an inquiry into community care . The primary concerns were twofold . First , spending on residential care in private sector homes for elderly people through the social security budget was rising at an exponential rate and was to all intents and purposes out of control , being demand led . Reports on residential care indicated that its quality was extremely variable and that monitoring arrangements were far from satisfactory . Second , the development of community care facilities was extremely patchy and there was a widespread belief that the policy , aside from the isolated initiatives such as the DHSS pilot projects , was simply not working
Idiom: make history (used idiomatically: yes)
Though the task of both understanding the situation and working for change may seem daunting , my experience of the Philippine health movement leaves me reassured . There is after all no right answer . Like peoples everywhere we are making history . Being part of a movement , collectively analysing , planning , working and reviewing the plan gives confidence that the outcome could represent the best alternative as viewed by the majority . Learning to work with people
Idiom: quick as a flash (used idiomatically: yes)
She felt this thing in her back . The car revved up and made off . It was that quick — quick as a flash.’ The bullet entered her back and exited through her chest , puncturing a lung and breaking a rib . She spent 24 hours in the intensive care unit at Washington Hospital Centre — breaking the news to her family in a telephone call a week later .
Idiom: in the works (used idiomatically: no)
He was elected FRS in 1912 . He was a vice - president of the Chemical Society ( 1906–9 ) and was a member of the board of studies in chemistry at the University of London , and the governing body of the Imperial College of Science and Technology , London . Messel remained a bachelor and lived in the works at Silvertown until he retired . A modest and sincere man , his indefatigable hard work and innate sense of justice made him popular with his workforce . He was in great demand socially and became an admired figure at the Savage Club .
Idiom: cock of the walk (used idiomatically: yes)
But yes , she has something or I would not have taken her . I am training her so that she can cook for royalty,’ Auguste declared grandly . ‘ And the young cock of the walk?’ Auguste smiled . ‘ Our Mr Peckham ?
Idiom: get the picture (used idiomatically: no)
A tuxedo - clad Madonna opened the show with a gender - bending song - and - dance number with three scantily clad women in a brothel - style atmosphere . Wearing a Marlene Dietrich - style tux and top hat , Madonna caressed the thigh and slapped the buttocks of a lingerie - clad female dancer . ' Get the picture ? ' Madonna teased the audience at the end . ' If you 're looking for trouble you 've definitely come to the right place , ' said actor Christian Slater , host of the three - hour awards show telecast on the cable network from Universal Amphitheatre .
Idiom: join the club (used idiomatically: yes)
They include almost everything you need to make a party go with a swing , such as invitations , prizes , goodie bags and gifts . And even better , you can make your choice from your armchair . To join the Party Club , send off your child 's name and birthday date in good time to : Party Club from Stockingfillas , Tennant House , London Rd , Macclesfield , Cheshire SK11 0LW , and you 'll receive the two books and an order form six weeks before the big day . Video memories Remember Tales of the Riverbank , Tiswas , Crackerjack and Basil Brush ?
Idiom: easier said than done (used idiomatically: yes)
Like Southern Europe , the US economy must move away from the consumption / housing - led growth model of the last decade . President Barack ~ Obama has encapsulated this challenge by setting the goal of doubling US exports over the next decade . But this is easier said than done . The structural shift towards exports will be difficult and time - consuming mainly because producing the high - tech goods that the US should be exporting requires a skilled workforce , which has largely been lost and can not be re - created overnight . During the ten years preceding the peak of the bubble in 2007 , about four ~ million jobs were lost in the US manufacturing sector , whose share in total employment fell from more than 17 % to 12 % .
Idiom: on and off (used idiomatically: yes)
Champions NESTON travel to NORTHERN after picking up four wins out of five while NEW BRIGHTON skipper Tim Watkins ' keeps faith with the side that drew with Liverpool last week for the trip to ORMSKIRK . It 's same again for SEFTON as they visit WALLASEY , where skipper Mark Anderson is hoping to return after a back injury . Alistair Campbell will be chasing the 25 runs he needs to reach 500 for the season with club delighted by his contribution on and off the field . Said Anderson : ‘ He has been a great fillip to us not just with his excellent performances on the field , but throughout the club . His coaching and help at nets has been of benefit to all our players.’
Idiom: turn a blind eye (used idiomatically: yes)
NEW Welsh Secretary John Redwood has denied any ' undue haste ' in plans to improve the A494 road between Ewloe through Queensferry to the River Dee . In a letter to Alyn and Deeside MP Barry Jones , Mr Redwood also says the building of the proposed new third Dee crossing does not remove the need for widening the A494 up Aston Hill . UN ' will not turn blind eye to rights violations ' By Daily Post Correspondent THE world will not mind its own business or permit exemptions when countries violate basic human rights , the UN secretary - general and America 's Secretary of State told a key conference yesterday .
Idiom: mind over matter (used idiomatically: yes)
For full details ask for our 1990 ' China Solo ' or Vietnam / Cambodia / Laos Brochures . COMPUTERCRAFT MIND over MATTER COMPUTERCRAFT is the leading specialist in providing computer consultancy , training , support and programming to the housing , charity and voluntary sectors . Our success is based on making an organisation 's use of new or existing computer systems efficient and effective .
Idiom: run out of steam (used idiomatically: yes)
But computer designers are still divided over GaAs 's tactical value in world of digital computers . Some argue that the technological barriers to improving silicon chip performance could be overcome with a little effort and imagination without recourse to more esoteric elements . Others are convinced that silicon is running out of steam . It is a schism which may have contributed to the stalled development of GaAs as an alternative in digital technology . It is clear that computer designers need the chemists ' understanding of the physical and chemical properties of silicon and the III - Vs and the rules under which they seem to operate at the atomic and molecular levels .
Idiom: from scratch (used idiomatically: yes)
But Derek and I both made mistakes at first ; simple things really , such as accidentally standing on the creance just as the bird came across , so that the poor thing got dumped . But these birds were , as I said , fully trained and could recover from such humiliating blunders by their inexperienced handlers . If you were trying to train one from scratch and made an error like that it could easily mess up an entire day 's work . After each flight we were picked up on little points , such as our positioning or the way we were holding the glove : too high or too low , the wrong angle . One big mistake I made , being used to handling Dawn , was trying to walk the hawk all the way back to its perch .
Idiom: in the red (used idiomatically: no)
Another famous conventional melody - and - bass , ' Ruggiero'(to which originally a stanza from Ariosto 's Orlando furioso , xliv , 61 , was sung ) , also made probably its first appearance in a Spanish source , the Tratado de glosas ( treatise on ornamental variation)(Rome , 1553 ) Of Diego Ortiz . This teaches players of the vihuela de arco how to make glosas on cadences and recercadas on a cantus firmus which the cymbalo will harmonize or on a single part of a chanson or madrigal , the other parts being played on the ' cymbalo ' with illustrations based on Sandrin 's ' Doulce memoire'and Rore 's ' O felice occhi miei ' . The vihuela tablatures contained villancicos and romances — with the melody in red figures– as in Luis Milan 's El Maestro ( Valencia , 1535 or 6 ) , so that it could easily be sung as well as played . They also included sets of diferencias and dances ( e.g. Milan 's beautiful pavanas ) , transcriptions of sacred and secular polyphony , and fantasias or tientos . These last show the same development of imitative polyphony as the Italian lute fantasias ; indeed , those in Narváez 's Delphin anticipate Francesco da Milano and Gintzler by several years , though Mudarra includes a few simply ' para desenboluer las manos ' .
Idiom: kicking and screaming (used idiomatically: yes)
6 Variety — they have very different philosophises they have very different local and national positions , very different styles of forking . 7 They put some emphasis on consumer choice . Nobody across the programme was dragged kicking and screaming out of their hospital bed into the community . The people who moved into the community were given the choice . There is an issue about how much choice some people can exercise and I recognise that issue but the idea was not to force anybody to make the move .
Idiom: jump on the bandwagon (used idiomatically: yes)
Subject : Batts child abuse In your letter dated Fri , 10 Dec 1993 20:11:14 GMT0BST , you wrote : Well to jump on the bandwagon I used to go to the same school as Batts and although he 's a couple of years older than I am one of my friends sisters used to beat him up . I know it 's a bit of tenuous link but there we are — other than that I 've no great claims to knowing any Leeds players Cheers Chris
Idiom: on the fly (used idiomatically: yes)
Nylon does have an exasperating trait of expanding in the wet and cold , causing the fly to sag . This means that you 'll have to reposition your anchor points — cords attached to various parts of the fly to add stability in high winds — when the rain sets in , and especially if the wind comes up too . Expedition models can have a snow valance on the fly — an extra skirt around the bottom which can be laid on the ground and anchored down by snow or rocks . INNERS These are usually made of cotton , polycotton or nylon .
Idiom: do someone proud (used idiomatically: yes)
We really ca n't see much future for a gang of derelicts like this —‘rather a favourable specimen of what is best in our English culture’ , one character blithely insists — and they do n't see any for themselves . Shaw said that his method was founded upon music , and this extraordinary , teetering play needs the finest of ears to balance its tones and pace its switchback rhythms . Shared Experience does it proud . Inside Eye By LIAM CARSON
Idiom: on the spur of the moment (used idiomatically: yes)
For several years we have been leaning over backwards to avoid the use of the forbidden word , instructing the population at large that it is more dead than the dodo and deleting it from our titles with abandon . Well , knock us down with a feather . The delegates gave an overwhelming vote in favour of retaining the title " The British Deaf and Dumb Association " , not just on the spur of the moment but after the matter had been chewed over up and down the country . It was not a unanimous vote but , my word , those who voted against must certainly have been feeling very lonely . All of which gives one seriously to think that there must be many another way in which hearing folk are completely at sea in their ideas about what is right and proper for the deaf .
Idiom: on the back burner (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Martin and his team keep kicking the ball into the penalty area and all I have to do is nod it into the net,’ the 31-year - old rider said . And , having been presented with the customary bottle of champagne by the Wincanton executive , Scudamore added that he felt a lot less pressure than he had last season . He also made it clear that any thoughts of topping the 221 mark are being put firmly on the back burner , with the fastest 100 , set last year in mid - December , his next target . as if to prove that the National Hunt supermen that brought off this latest feat are in fact human , Pipe admitted that he got it badly wrong over his assessment of In - Keeping . Two days after the filly arrived in his yard , the Somerset trainer told the owner , Helen Read , that the horse would never win a race .
Idiom: on the double (used idiomatically: no)
Casualties reduce this speed in proportion , eg a chariot pulled by three Giant Wolves moves 9″. If one Giant Wolf is slain the chariot moves 6″ , if two are slain it moves 3″ , if all three are slain it is immobilised . If all of a chariot 's crew are slain it will move 2D6″ up to its maximum speed in a random direction , collapsing on a double . 3 3 .
Idiom: wipe the slate clean (used idiomatically: yes)
Valenzuela himself was instructed in interrogation techniques . Whatever his personal misgivings , Valenzuela hid them well and when his compulsory military service ended he signed on for a permanent career in the Air Force . In 1978 , in an attempt to wipe the slate clean , Pinochet declared an amnesty to cover all human rights abuses since the coup . Valenzuela felt reassured . Between 1976 and 1983 , he rose steadily through a series of promotions and posts in Air Force security .
Idiom: walk free (used idiomatically: yes)
Police have recovered a hammer at one of the murder scenes . They 're keeping an open mind on why the women were killed . A nurse has walked free from an appeal court after a conviction for assaulting an elderly patient was quashed . She had been sentenced to three months in jail . MIKE ROWBOTTOM / Swindon
Idiom: body blow (used idiomatically: yes)
* Ariane misses the bus , p 308 . Lead report brings new alarm over petrol THE BRITISH government 's claim that it is not necessary to remove lead from petrol received another body - blow last week . A report by a Ministry of Agriculture , Fisheries and Food provided the first official acknowledgment that lead fall - out from cars contributed significantly to the lead content of food . The government 's case for retaining lead in petrol has been based heavily on the 1981 Lawther report .
Idiom: a hair's breadth (used idiomatically: yes)
She ran in front of the animal and caught at the bridle . The st'lyan tossed her head , and then quietened . Burun guessed that Kiku had been no more than a hair 's - breadth away from being impaled on the st'lyan 's gilden horn . He discovered that he was holding his breath , and gulped for air . If she had been hurt , he would have had the slave bastinadoed .
Idiom: third time lucky (used idiomatically: yes)
But he capitulated without a fight . Without a semblance of a fight . ' Third time lucky ? ' he said . His voice was not his own . ' I 'm probably too tired .
Idiom: feeding frenzy (used idiomatically: yes)
He threw the face away , and went downstairs to join the party . He was ready now . Ready to give in to his feeding frenzy . eleven HERE BE TYGERS .
Idiom: make the grade (used idiomatically: yes)
The Italians excel in discovering the one bag to die for . Naturally , even if you made sufficient headway with your phrase book to ask , they 'd never dream of telling you where they got it . It 's also vital that your shades make the grade . By the time Ray - Ban rip - offs have filtered through to the British high street , you can be sure our European sisters have moved on to something else . Cover - ups also pose a hellish dilemma .
Idiom: hit the mark (used idiomatically: yes)
Like I have to be sure of him . To tell the truth , I can use an extra hand . Today I have to hit as many marks as possible , and Dixie can find them fast . He knows this island . He knows the cut - throughs and footpaths , the bridges , the temporary paths between building sites and brand new office blocks .
Idiom: keep the peace (used idiomatically: yes)
Canadian troops handed over to French , Egyptian and Ukrainian troops on July 28 . A land corridor was successfully opened from the Croatian port of Split to Sarajevo on July 29 . However , Gen. Lewis MacKenzie , commander of UN operations in Sarajevo said on July 21 that 40,000 UN troops were needed in Sarajevo alone to keep the peace and that all sides were breaking " the international rules of war " . Boutros - Ghali on July 22 recommended that the UN Security Council reject a ceasefire plan negotiated on July 17 in London . The ceasefire agreement , effectively disregarded on the ground , was drawn up in separate talks beginning on July 15 between the President of the " Serbian Republic of Bosnia - Hercegovina " ( SRBH ) , Radovan Karadzic , the Bosnian Foreign Minister , Haris Silajdzic , and Bosnian Croat leader Boban .
Idiom: in light of (used idiomatically: yes)
In the alternative , in the event that any such determination or finding was made , it was unsupported by the evidence before the justices . ( 4 ) The justices were under a duty to make any secure accommodation order only for so long as was necessary . In the light of the evidence that a full planning meeting was due to be held on 30 December 1991 , the justices should either have adjourned the application until after that meeting or should have made an order to last until shortly after that meeting . In the premises , the duration of the order made by the justices was excessive . ( 5 ) The justices erred in failing to consider the evidence of potential detriment to the child if he remained in secure accommodation , particularly in the light of the evidence .
Idiom: in bed with (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ He is , he sees the sense in hiding . But he scarcely thinks it will come to that.’ ‘ He means he wants to stay in bed with Mary.’ ‘ Of course he does , but he knows the score . He and his brother are going to organize the soundest folk among their cousins and get the word to the boys on the other side from Pitnacree up to Cluny .
Idiom: by and large (used idiomatically: yes)
This raises another major problem in studying continuities in pathology , that of disentangling continuity of disorder from the continuity of causal social stressors . For instance , childhood conduct disorder may often lead to anti - social behaviour in adulthood , but this may reflect either the continuity of the disorder or the different effects of the same social stress acting first upon a child and later upon an adult ( Graham , 1983 ) . The assumption which seems to prevail in the literature on conduct disorder is that certain disordered personality characteristics are formed which tend to continue , although the data on continuities in adverse social conditions which would confirm this assumption is by and large absent . However , the implication is that intervention should focus on the prevention or early treatment of the disorder . Robins suggests that early identification of disorder should be possible through the school system , as most of her sample were already in obvious social difficulties before the age of ten years .
Idiom: hum and haw (used idiomatically: yes)
And , after his return to England at the beginning of the year , he was forced to catch up with all the work he had neglected . There were letters to write , interviews to give , meetings with eminent writers whose work he might never have read or of whom he had no very high opinion , and of course the official round of duties : a speech at the Alliance Française on 19 January , and another at a lunch of the Anglo - Swedish society two weeks later . In January also he had to speak at Pusey House in Oxford on " The Lambeth Conference and Education " , but one student 's disappointment at his performance on this occasion suggests the strain and lack of preparedness which were forced on him during this period : " In questions Mr Eliot was most feeble and hesitant , humming and hawing much and throwing back the questions with " Is that not what I said ? " or " Does it not prove my point ? " This may be temporarily quashing but it does not satisfy … "
Idiom: in the club (used idiomatically: no)
Many PPLs do most of their flying at around 1500 to 2000 ft , with few navaids . However , even if you fly something fully equipped , a quarter mill is still useful for the day when ( a ) you 're flying something more basic or ( b ) your electrics have packed up , you ca n't trust your instruments , the viz is a bit iffy and you just have to get home — but safely . My map - reading skill comes from many years using the OS ' 1 inch = 1 mile ' maps in club , national and international motor rallies , where you are bouncing along at high speed , often at night , in poor conditions . The driver relies on his navigator 's skill at ' reading the road ' — what 's next in the way of bends , cross - roads , bridges , T - junctions and so on , and how the road curves in the next few hundred yards . It becomes a running commentary from navigator to driver .
Idiom: on the shelf (used idiomatically: yes)
Kathleen had not dared to mention those things , must pretend that she had not noticed their absence . A small clock had gone from the sitting room , and a watch in a slightly mildewed case . A set of leather - bound novels by Thackeray and the Works of William Shakespeare in red morocco had gone , too , leaving obvious gaping holes on the shelves . What had gone from the attic she could only guess , for she did not remember half the things they stored there . But a short fur jacket that had belonged to Faith , one which fitted Kathleen and which she had looked forward to wearing the following winter , that had gone from its polythene bag in Faith 's wardrobe .