Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: make or break (used idiomatically: yes)
Agnew made his mark in midfield at Barnsley where his ability to produce a telling pass brought him to the notice of Blackburn , who shelled out 750,000 for the Shipley - born player . Almost before he got used to wearing the famous blue and white , Agnew suffered an injury which put him on crutches and out of action for virtually a season . Rivals Now he faces a make - or - break season with the Ewood Park club , which has shown that when it comes to cash it has no serious rivals . Agnew knows that he has to prove to manager Kenny Dalglish not only that he can make a comeback but also that he can do his stuff at the highest level . If he fails he 's likely to become expendable and could even wind up back at Barnsley , a forgotten man .
Idiom: win the day (used idiomatically: yes)
Suppose there is an established delivery service in your area . A new service could set up by gaining enough contracts with major customers of the old service to take over . People would only switch if the new price was below the old , but if the incumbent firm hears of these plans after ( say ) only one contract has been signed it may be able still to win the day by immediately offering all its other customers new terms . If this will always happen , potential entrants will be deterred . Therefore we can probably conclude that conditions ( 3 ) and ( 4 ) or some close equivalent , are in fact necessary .
Idiom: round the clock (used idiomatically: no)
For three weeks the Price Is Right celebrity was in a deep coma at Bristol 's Frenchay Hospital . Then came the first signs of recovery with the opening of his eyes and a squeeze of his wife 's hand . Devoted Jean Crowther and their sons and daughters kept a round - the - clock vigil at his bedside . One of Leslie 's first visitors since coming round was Rev Richard Hall , vicar of All Saints Church in the family 's home village of Corston , near Bath . ‘ He is still weak , but he is telling jokes,’ he said .
Idiom: grind to a halt (used idiomatically: yes)
I could recognise . Ooh , ooh , hiss He needs to get his act together because if this continues then it will be Moat today and it 'll be other issues tomorrow and frankly the business of this council will grind to a halt . I think to support this motion is desperately unfortunate for a number of reasons . I think that to support this motion would be extremely unfortunate and would lead to potential disaster , not for the county council but indeed for the Highfields community .
Idiom: song and dance (used idiomatically: no)
It was as early as 1932 that Lincoln Kirstein 's subsequently very famous appraisal of Cagney as ' the first definitely metropolitan figure to become national ' appeared and this particular theme was soon taken up in newspapers through America and Britain . The Cagney phenomenon was remarkable but it was also very complex and of great long - term significance . Cagney was an authentic city man with impeccable East - Side Manhattan credentials ; he was born on the lower East Side but raised in Yorkville and he was fully conversant with the Irish , Italian , German , Scandinavian , and Jewish idioms of his native city but he was also a professional entertainer who graduated through vaudeville and song - and - dance routines to being a hard - boiled actor . Soon after making The Public Enemy Cagney was to publicize his battle with Warner Bros over the roles he was being made to play and it became very evident that he was a shrewd and realistic businessman who perfectly understood his commercial and artistic value to the studios . On both sides it was understood that Cagney was not just a man off the New York street but rather a remarkable screen performer .
Idiom: under the table (used idiomatically: yes)
I know . Yes , I know . Me and Bernard , if me and Bernard want to go , she di now was she , foot like that they 're under the table , when you see his feet , his ! And then he has to get up and go ! So I 'm kicking him under the table !
Idiom: hands down (used idiomatically: no)
The sentence handed down by the military court against the two CIMADE employees is not available .
Idiom: at a snail's pace (used idiomatically: yes)
You could imagine Tutankhamun sparing a man on the point of execution , or ordering the death of thousands , without the slightest twitch of an eye muscle . ‘ I want to see the second one — Neferukhebit,’ said Huy briskly . He had had enough of carrying on at a snail 's pace . If toes had to be trodden on , too bad . Merymose might get it in the neck from Kenamun , but if this madman was to be nailed quickly , the odd official would have to sacrifice his dignity .
Idiom: carrot and stick (used idiomatically: yes)
The job of training future doctors should be too important to leave to chance . Sticks and carrots Colin Coles suggests that the ‘ carrot and stick of reward and reappraisal should be introduced more widely in medical education,’ with rewards for good teachers and help and , if necessary , penalties for bad ones . Already some medical schools have made progress in implementing such schemes . In 1978 a committee was established at the University of Washington School of Medicine , Seattle , to develop a programme for evaluating teaching in the school .
Idiom: in broad daylight (used idiomatically: yes)
" Yes , mam , " I went off into Meg 's and my bedroom . I sat down at the little table , as well I might . Could homework stay in anybody 's head in broad daylight outside ? No . Could I keep a bike like Ben 's out of my head ?
Idiom: out and about (used idiomatically: yes)
Later this year , she hopes to do a two - week sponsored horse ride — to raise both money and public awareness . She explains : ‘ In practical ways , the deaf - blind can be fare more competent than people think . But we do need more friends and volunteers to help us get out and about so that we do n't feel life 's passing us by.’ She adds : ‘ Two years ago , you would n't have caught me dead getting married but now I think it 'd be nice to have a husband — and a little girl I could teach to ride.’ Clever communication ‘ I spell out words on Julia 's hand,’ says Lisa
Idiom: out of the box (used idiomatically: yes)
Would we draw attention to ourselves ? ' ' As you know full well , ' said Jaq , ' she can make free with our own food stocks . ' Which , presently , Meh'Lindi did , ravenously consuming fish , flesh and fowl from out of the stasis - boxes which they had brought to the suite from Jaq 's ship , the Tormentum Malorum , which went by the alias of Sapphire Eagle while they were visiting Stalinvast . Rich planet though Stalinvast was , real food could n't necessarily be guaranteed in a hive city , even in an Empire Hotel ; not least in a time of strife . Jaq noted how wistfully Grimm regarded what he rated as gourmet ambrosia disappearing into the monster 's maw remorselessly .
Idiom: take the plunge (used idiomatically: yes)
The first has been handled sensitively , and actress Nicola Strong has given some powerful performances as the daughter coming to terms with her past . The second storyline is going for the wider market , and some might argue , a little too near - the - knuckle for such an early evening show . Tonight Kim and Neil take the plunge and spend their first night together . Comedy hour … SMITH AND JONES ( BBC1 , 9.30pm )
Idiom: pull strings (used idiomatically: yes)
And then when he was thatching , you would start on one end and erm putting er f pushing the the the st the thatch into the stack . And then you 'd have a length of erm either you made little thinner straw ropes or erm what we called er it was a sort of a coconut twine . Erm that again had been rolled into balls and then he 'd have erm about a dozen sticks which which held these balls and stuck them in then after he 'd he 'd erm er thatched one erm length , one row , he 'd pull the string over and attach it to to the the thick s er rope that was er going over the stack . And that from one end to the other . And then there was these these thick er straw ropes going over and then there were the other which were going sideways along the roof to hold the thatch down .
Idiom: green light (used idiomatically: yes)
A few last checks by the Bridge Commander , and it was declared ready for traffic , seven minutes ahead of time . The first vehicles loomed out of the darkness on the south bank , driving only on convoy lights with each one following the barely seen , under - chassis - mounted , single White light of the one in front . Rig Commanders stationed on the inshore ramp guided the drivers on with brief flashes of their green lights , and the convoy drove steadily across . The bridge was held against the current by the engine power of twenty - eight port engines , finely adjusted by the pilots on their stands above the rig cabs . From the start to finish , the bridge had taken under three hours to build .
Idiom: word of mouth (used idiomatically: yes)
The story has been passed down from generation to generation by word of mouth .
Idiom: in the can (used idiomatically: yes)
Have some potato /Have a potato . 87a . Put them in a can /Can them . b. Put them in a box /Box them .
Idiom: by the same token (used idiomatically: yes)
Erm so erm that 's the one I 'd recommend at the moment . The fixed - r the fixed- rates really are n't worth going for . So by the same token , I assume , building societies are also starting paying something over inflation rates , issued ? Yes , erm building societies I mean I think you 're thinking about their equity schemes are n't you ? Erm yes .
Idiom: by heart (used idiomatically: yes)
Its archetype I find Luminous in the darkness of my mind . I derived great comfort , too , from the ‘ real’ poetry I loved and knew by heart , and which now encapsulated my desolation . As I crossed the North Bridge each day on my way to the dreariness of St Andrew 's House , I used to look across the cold Firth of Forth , and Housman 's lines hammered in my brain : As past the plunge of plummet ,
Idiom: take a bath (used idiomatically: yes)
A small polka - dot burp , with headache tablets , And a ship on the lip and a horse , of course , So we all took a bath in the same tub and went to bed early . I was worrying over some homework
Idiom: come to a head (used idiomatically: yes)
Then one day , just as if he had come upon her accidentally , he had said , ‘ You play very well . What about taking me on sometime?’ And so it had started ; and now it had come to a head . ‘ How are we going to manage … I mean , to meet?’ he said .
Idiom: by heart (used idiomatically: yes)
I asked . ‘ I did n't have anyone in mind . I have them by heart , where they belong.’ ‘ All right . But who?’
Idiom: by the by (used idiomatically: yes)
You and I , presented with loads of dosh and plenty of places to live in , would spend our time whooping it up . Meeting Steve the stamp man from Surbiton or Billy from the back of beyond or travelling around attending street parties and generally being gawped at by the Press and the populace is not my idea of whooping it up . Me , I 'd take half a dozen ski trips a year , spend a lot of time on the beach , have a lot of fun in pubs and clubs ( and , by the by , give Middlesbrough FC enough money to win the Football League and FA Cup ) . A shallow lifestyle ? You bet your life .
Idiom: with a view to (used idiomatically: no)
Instead the organisation 's east coast committee voted to press for a temporary import ban on Russian cod to allow EC markets to stabilise . Nigel Atkins , chairman of the east coast committee , said a blockade had been dismissed as being ‘ inappropriate at this juncture’ . He said : ‘ Our intention is to defuse the situation at present with a view to trying to negotiate our way through the problem and secure an outcome in the months ahead which will satisfy all our fishermen.’ Bull market SAY what you like about City ethics , but at least resignation seems not to have passed completely out of fashion in the Square Mile .
Idiom: join the club (used idiomatically: yes)
Big Mac steps up JOHN McCLELLAND , the former Northern Ireland defender , yesterday took over as caretaker manager of St Johnstone following the shock axing of Alec Totten . McClelland joined the Perth club as player-coach earlier this season from Leeds United . Club chairman Geoff Brown blamed the sacking of Totten , who took the club from obscurity to the Premier Division , on the need for a ‘ fresh approach . ’ Totten admitted he was ‘ shattered ’ and said : ‘ St Johnstone may find a better manager , but I do n't think they will get a better ambassador for the club .
Idiom: pissed off (used idiomatically: yes)
I was , to put it mildly , wet behind the ears , politically . In my first year in a London art school my two major preoccupations were whether you really could see William Turner 's late canvases as a precursor to French Impressionism , and how the hell I could afford to clothe myself in the right gear to make a stunning impact on my new friends at the Gateways . I went to the conference armed only with a general feeling of being pissed off that men seemed to have it all their own way . Along with taking LSD and deciding after some very unpleasant attempts never to fuck again , attending Skegness was one of the most powerful and formative experiences of that part of my life . On the Saturday morning we shuffled into the camp 's concert hall for a ‘ plenary session’ .
Idiom: lay an egg (used idiomatically: yes)
There are several nymph stages . At the last moult , the adult emerges with wings and the ability to reproduce . Male and female adults mate , the females lay eggs , and the cycle begins all over again . Some insects such as the aphids ( Chapter 4 ) leave out the egg stage at certain seasons of the year , the females giving birth to small nymphs . 1 Spiders ' webs
Idiom: time will tell (used idiomatically: yes)
But increasing maintenance costs and changes in hygiene rules have prompted the council to invite proposals for its redevelopment . So far , though , proposed schemes would retain the building very much intact . Only time will tell though . Riddel 's warehouse in Ann Street was completed in 1867 , and is owned by the government . A ‘ High Victorian’ building , it was built for an Irish metal merchant and has most of its interior courtyard and galleries intact .
Idiom: oil and water (used idiomatically: yes)
Crushed eggshells were mixed with scouring agents to make them go further and pot scour scourers were made from old silk stockings crocheted into squares . A mixture of stale tea leaves and vinegar was used for washing floors and paintwork . Scraps of soap were saved , grated , moistened with a little oil and water and pressed into a block . And I had a catalogue the other day from a , an environmental erm agency it was n't Greenpeace it was something like that that were ac actually now offering these soap savers that we used to have in the war to press your bits of soap into Magazines were full of tips for saving fuel . Lightbulbs would give out more light if they were washed every week in soapy water .
Idiom: behind bars (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Based on what we know so far , I think it 's the husband.’ Blanche laughed . ‘ You have n't even met him yet and already you 've put him behind bars for life.’ The sergeant tapped the side of his nose . ‘ Instinct , ma'am .
Idiom: turn someone's head (used idiomatically: yes)
At Tsu Ma 's toast , however , she looked down sharply , as if abashed . But it was not bashfulness that made her avert her eyes ; it was a deeper , stronger feeling : one that she tried to hide not only from the watchful T'ang , but from herself . She turned her head , looking up at Li Yuan . ‘ Would my husband like more wine?’ Li Yuan smiled back at her , handsome in his own way , and loving , too — a good man for all his apparent coldness - yet her blood did n't thrill at his touch , nor did her heart race in her chest the way it was racing now in the presence of Tsu Ma .
Idiom: in the works (used idiomatically: yes)
An earlier load had been passed on to him , but this was no longer permitted . Tikhon was arrested at the end of April and charged with advocating resistance to the confiscation of church treasures . When ARA village committees wished to elect Russian priests as members , back came the objection , phrased in the usual official provincial style : ' according to the laws of our constitution , the said element ( ecclesiastical ) is harmful to the younger generation , and by the principles of the Soviet government this element is deprived of all active or passive participation in our work . ' Another unwelcome element in Soviet eyes was lacking altogether . Whereas Nepmen were already flourishing in Kursk guberniia , they could not yet arise here in an area where as the Indian civil servant observed , rich and poor peasants alike were afflicted .
Idiom: lame duck (used idiomatically: yes)
Of course the most cursory glance at Dunning 's ‘ Threnody in Sapphics’(not to speak of more miserable performances like ‘ Isabelle of Hainault’ in The Exile number 3 ) shows that Pound had , as it were , no alternative ; there was no way to vindicate Dunning by imagist principles . He could not be vindicated by any other principles , either . But before we jump to the conclusion that Pound had simply had a brainstorm , or had been trapped by misplaced compassion for Dunning as a lame duck , we ought to consider another possibility — that imagism , and Pound 's endorsement of Ford 's insistence on ‘ the prose tradition’ , had never been for him more than an aberration , though in the short term a very profitable one , from a way of feeling that impelled him always toward the cantabile , a proclivity that would , in the interests of melody , tolerate notably eccentric diction . It is thus that he declares himself for Dunning 's sapphics , flashing out at ‘ any one who can not feel the beauty of their melody ’(my italics ) . And within six years , wanting to register ( in The Criter -ion for 1934 ) the distinction of Binyon 's version of the Inferno despite its consistent inversions of prosaic word order , Pound found himself in the same situation , having to contend with those who had learned too well or too inflexibly the lessons he himself had taught them :
Idiom: touch base (used idiomatically: no)
When you have decided what you want , a kit company will build the parts in its factory and then supply a complete weather-proofed structure , including the roof . Depending on size , this takes around a week to erect . All you or your workmen have to do is supply a concrete base and clad the outside walls in brick or stone and give it the finishing touches . You can see the latest kits at the National Self-Build Homes Show , which opens tomorrow at London 's Alexandra Palace and continues until September 20 . Adults £5 , children , students and pensioners £2.50 .
Idiom: on the back of (used idiomatically: yes)
His friends Jock and Tony were there . Altogether the beach group occupied three tables close to Rain and Oliver . One of the men , bearded , with roughly patched jeans and a loud laugh , leaned on the back of Rain 's chair , his head close to hers , and talked to Oliver as though she were not there . After a spell of this , during which he gave no hint of moving , Rain decided to escape . She rose , the chair tipped with the man 's weight .
Idiom: keep the peace (used idiomatically: no)
Do you remind them of Angela Williams , the first person to be prosecuted for smoking on the tube or of Paul Deiring , the first person to be jailed for smoking on the tube ( he could n't pay his £ 25 fine ) or do you make like Eric Butler , the Bernard Goetz of the Victoria Line , who , in 1987 , mocked and taunted by drunken youths , retaliated with a sword - stick and was punished in the courts for his efforts . No , of course you do n't . You keep your peace . A ND you resist all eye contact , remembering the words of barrister Caradog Morgan who earlier this year , in defending one Victoria Carrington , freelance insurance consultant accused of assaulting two fellow passengers because they had joggled her newspaper and dared to look at her right in the face , said , ' There is a convention on the Underground that people do not look each other in the eye . ' Jammed down here between Tooting Bec and Balham on a train that 's going nowhere , with no reason given why , one can dread all sorts of things .
Idiom: in the short run (used idiomatically: yes)
And , third , Greece , now the sickest man of Europe , must be treated in a way that does not spread the infection to the other countries on the eurozone 's periphery . All of this requires financing – bank recapitalization alone could require hundreds of billions of euros ( though these needs would be mitigated somewhat if the sovereign debt of large eurozone countries looked healthier ) . In the short run , it is unlikely that Germany ( and Northern ~ Europe more generally ) will put up more money for the others . Germans are upset at being asked to support countries that do not seem to want to adjust – unlike Germany , which is competitive because it endured years of pain : low wage increases to absorb the former East ~ Germany 's workers and deep labor - market and pension reforms . The unwillingness of the Greek rich to pay taxes , or of Italian parliamentarians to cut their own perks , confirms Germans ' fears .
Idiom: down the tubes (used idiomatically: yes)
Plastic tubing , 7 ft of it , appears on stage with him then disappears up his nose into what I presume is his stomach . Into a container connected to the ( exterior ) end Rose pours four bottles of beer , a dash of tomato sauce , a smidgin of chocolate sauce and , for that subtle garnish , a dollop of milk of magnesia . This vile cocktail , this blended brew from a malevolent Moulinex , is forced by a plunger down the tube and into Crowley 's tum - tum . It is a putrid pink colour . Moments later , after some ‘ internal juggling’ , it reappears from Crowley 's gizzard and once again fills the container .
Idiom: run riot (used idiomatically: yes)
But it 's no way to settle an argument by ignoring it you know it or letting your er letting your She says mind run riot . You , I mean , if she if she likes the girl , which she obviously does , why not just rap her door or wait till she sees her and say you know whatever you call it , did I do something on you , and why are you treating me like that but th
Idiom: fall by the wayside (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Once I got going , I did n't want to stop,’ he said of his years of study . ‘ It was great fun and it was nice to met other people not involved in the services.’ Many fellow students who fell by the wayside over the years did so through domestic pressure , added the squadron leader , who attributed his success to the invaluable support of his wife , Fay , a midwife at the Friarage Hospital , Northallerton . ‘ For a married person it is n't something you can do without the support of your partner . It takes so much of your time , 15–20 hours a week from February to October and sometimes a lot more,’ he said .