Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: on the game (used idiomatically: yes)
Thus ' I look at the sun ' and ' I sit in the sun'use the English word ' sun'in two different ways . Saussure compared language to a giant game of chess . If you walk in on any game you assess the relative positions of all the pieces — regardless of how they got there . Everything depends on difference between sounds and between words — not on the words themselves . 10 .
Idiom: have a few (used idiomatically: yes)
What ? Bob said do you want a drink and Ron said do you want a drink and I said to Ron do you want a drink Ron and everyone said do you want a drink and You had quite a few . No , not that many . But er
Idiom: on the skids (used idiomatically: no)
The company is now owned by the banks . Market Report SHARES were on the skids again yesterday and dealers reckon the rollercoaster ride could last right up to Christmas . A spate of job losses , profit down - gradings and dividend cuts reflects the depth of the slump and observers feel that the Government may have to slash interest rates by a further 1 % to 6 % . The Bundesbank meets this morning , but the chances of a German rate cut are remote .
Idiom: take stock (used idiomatically: yes)
An important objective in counselling is to help the older individual live for today rather than for an uncertain tomorrow . Counselling should encourage reflection on the past , and use the life review as a positive , formative part of growing into old age . When older people think of the past they are not just taking stock of their lives but trying to decide what to do with the time that they have left , and trying to do so in relation to concluding or making sense of what has gone before . They are checking on the legacy they want to leave behind them . This can be seen to coincide with the characteristics of an ‘ ideal’ old age outlined by Erikson ( 1965)(see page 40–42 ) , concerned with identity and generativity .
Idiom: run out of gas (used idiomatically: no)
The man spoke harshly . ‘ Indeed , yes — on the main highway . Matt and I ran out of gas , for the simple reason that the dear old boy had forgotten to fill up while I was with the wholesaler . Nor did I notice this fact until we were well on our way home.’ ‘ Did you get everything on the list I gave you?’
Idiom: on the cards (used idiomatically: yes)
With a Risc processor rated at 55 mips ( million instructions per second ) , this is the industry 's fastest general - purpose computer . Wizard . IBM has announced the Wizard adaptor , which puts a 33MHz Intel i860 Risc 64-bit processor on an expansion card for 386-based PCs with MCA ( Micro Channel Architecture ) buses and the OS/2 operating system . It will be used for oil industry and financial modelling and similar supercomputing tasks . The card delivers about 27 mips and costs £ 5,568 plus VAT , with the memory expansion at £ 2,915 .
Idiom: take root (used idiomatically: yes)
They furiously denounced a so - called ‘ Economist’ heresy among Social Democrats for fostering such a switch in priorities and insisted on the primacy of the political task . By the turn of the century , the ‘ Economist’ trend had died away and under the tutelage of the intelligentsia workers became progressively more politically conscious . As we have seen , however , trade - unionism failed to take root less because of intelligentsia influence than because of the constraints placed upon it by the tsarist State . Moreover , revisionist work on the underground has demonstrated that the supposed conflict between politically - orientated intelligenty and economically - motivated workers has been much exaggerated . At times workers displayed suspicion of the pretensions and relatively privileged way of life of their educated allies , but for the most part the discord between the two was slight .
Idiom: by the back door (used idiomatically: yes)
Mr Major remained buoyant yesterday as he campaigned in Cambridgeshire , insisting that the Tories were on course for victory . Ministers said they were encouraged by reports from candidates that the party 's vote was holding up and appeared to be firmer than Labour 's . They claimed that mid - week polls showing a large Labour lead had shocked some floating voters into the realisation that opting for the Liberal Democrats would let Mr Kinnock in by the back door . Mr Major said that plans for devolved Scottish , Welsh and regional assemblies , combined with moves to a federal Europe and an end to the first - past - the - post voting system , were ‘ of far greater importance than the general election itself’ . He said that some forms of proportional representation would ‘ let in’ minority parties such as the National Front and the Communists .
Idiom: call a spade a spade (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ You 're very cautious , Inspector . Since your officers removed the Black prince from the gallery yesterday , I 'd be a fool not to understand the significance . Let 's call a spade a spade . The answer is no . I was too agitated to notice anything like that at the time.’
Idiom: larger than life (used idiomatically: yes)
The provision of food and drink was just another example of this phenomenon . ‘ All you can eat’ buffets were exactly that , accompanied by limitless supplies of soft drinks . Like everything else in the States the helpings are larger than life and you very soon learn to resist the temptation to start the meal with an appetiser . However the Americans are so helpful and flexible that if a starter does particularly take your fancy you are perfectly welcome to make a meal of that and nothing else . their sandwiches are composed with countless varieties of breads and fillings making meals in themselves and it is not unusual to see one dessert shared among several people .
Idiom: under lock and key (used idiomatically: yes)
On Monday morning Greg had no classes before eleven , so he took the early bus to Burnley and went straight to the Public Library . The reference section he already knew from his work on local history — a long , narrow room , darker than the rest of the library by reason of the heaviness of the books and their respectable bindings . With a nervous swallow he bearded the formidable young lady at the desk at the head of the room : she had always struck him as the sort of librarian who would prefer to see all the desks in her domain empty and all the books permanently under lock and key . ‘ Contemporary writers,’ she said , as if they bordered on the unmentionable . ‘ Was it biographical or critical material you wanted?’
Idiom: on board (used idiomatically: yes)
In theory , all Japanese drift-netters are still restricted to 12-km nets , with a mesh size of 150 mm ( 6 inches ) , but in practice this regulation has been completely ignored , and the high seas drift-net fleets operate with nets of up to 50 or 60 km ( about 31 or 40 miles ) , and with a range of mesh sizes , as small as 80 mm ( 3.2 inches ) . The only concession made by these vessels to the ordinance is to break up their massive sets into several lengths of 10–12 km with a gap of 100–200 metres between each length of net . Drift-net vessels , like the tuna boats fishing on dolphins , have long been stubbornly refusing to take observers on board . For many years no reliable accounts existed of their effect on oceanic life . But according to a report by an observer from the US National Marine Fisheries Service , during a 6-week period in summer 1986 , a single Japanese squid vessel working in Alaskan waters killed 53 dolphins and porpoises and 14 fur seals by entanglement in its nets .
Idiom: walk free (used idiomatically: yes)
In the literature there has been concern expressed how the dead victim may be blamed . For example , Radford presents the killing of Jane Asher in which her husband was portrayed in court as a model husband and father , with his dead wife as a ‘ two - timing flirt’ . In that case the judge passed a six months ' suspended prison sentence , allowing the defendant to walk free from the court . Lees argues that such ‘ provocation’ is regularly used by some male defendants as a defence or mitigation for killing ‘ their’wives and lovers . Blaming the victim
Idiom: go to ground (used idiomatically: yes)
Whole thing just went like a matchbox . And I got up and I was gon na tie her up like but and by gosh I thought I 'd better make for the door again . And there was a lot of space between the hut and the door and the wind took me and flung me right up against the tank and I went down to the ground and crawled on me hands and knees . I did n't go out again . I remember before that the wind changed pretty suddenly from southwest to nearer west I think and I 'd made a new hen house I thought indestructible .
Idiom: good riddance (used idiomatically: yes)
Or perhaps , Showaddywaddy as Prole Art Threat ? The past is gone . As for the ' 70s , good riddance . A Person With A Life , No Fixed Abode I dusted off the cobwebs from good old Stalin On Pop Music ( Icepick University Press , 1979 ) , always the perfect volume for settling arguments of this type .
Idiom: on ice (used idiomatically: yes)
Beyond him a gleaming snow - light travelled across the lake , and , for a moment , it appeared to flake from his hair . It shimmered even more vividly around the sunlit icy reflection at his feet with the bright iron of the skate - blades between . Frere stood tall on the ice , his head thrown back in laughter . The breath was cold at Louisa 's lips . There was a faltering , unanticipated agitation within her .
Idiom: in the loop (used idiomatically: no)
Using a positive control group with PBD , as in this study , was also useful for comparative purposes and in the interpretation of morphological changes in the fundectomy group . A recent study in rats , which considered effects of gastric secretion , showed that pronounced duodenogastric reflux ( induced by a split gastrojejunostomy ) was associated with hyperplasia and adenoma development in the pancreas after 14 months . Whether these findings were a result of stagnation of secretions with increased CCK release in the afferent jejunal loop , a changed alkaline gastric content , or both is unclear . There is , however , no reason to believe that fundectomy is associated with increased duodenogastric reflux . The occurrence of acidophilic atypical acinar cell foci after longstanding fundectomy has not previously been reported .
Idiom: fall on deaf ears (used idiomatically: no)
BULLDOZERS are set to demolish a family 's dream home … because it is 23 inches too wide . Businessman John Foy and his wife Sally have been told the Pounds 250,000 house must go because it flouts planning regulations . Pleas that the couple and their two young children will be homeless and facing financial ruin have fallen on deaf ears . The family drew up plans for the four - bedroom house after their previous home on the same site in the village of Meopham , Kent , was destroyed by fire . They thought months of living in a cramped caravan was all worthwhile when the new house was finished and they finally moved in .
Idiom: give head (used idiomatically: yes)
But schools often under - use the talents and energies of their teachers , or fail to develop them in any consistent and systematic way . That is true , I suspect , at every level : a recent survey of the responsibilities of secondary deputies shows a disturbing tendency to use them as administrators , and not as managers at all . The impact of the National Curriculum and all the changes it brings with it gives heads a pressing reason — just as Mr Baker 's off - the - peg allocation of incentive allowances gives them an opportunity — to review the structures and responsibilities of management in their schools . The new ‘ E’ allowance posts are likely to be particularly important . In so far as they have a derivation , it is from the post of Senior Teacher established at the time of the Houghton Review -but seniority , per se , is not a management function .
Idiom: come to mind (used idiomatically: yes)
At five o'clock next morning , John and Joan Waters returned to Northern Ireland via the Stranraer to Larne ship route . From her home , Joan telephoned William Craig , a party leader in the Northern Ireland Assembly and former minister of Home Affairs in the disbanded parliament of Northern Ireland . His name was the first to come to her mind and his telephone number was in the directory . She told him that it was a life and death matter and could she speak to him ? He said that unfortunately she could not .
Idiom: now or never (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Amen,’ said Hannah Dooley . ‘ Alleluia!’ said the fat man in the front row . It was now or never . I had to go in , and go in fast . ‘ If I were to tell you’ , I said , trying to look each one of them in the eye , which is not an easy thing to do with ninety - odd people , ‘ that Wimbledon was being invaded by alien beings from another planet , you would probably laugh and call me a lunatic .
Idiom: at a stretch (used idiomatically: no)
Jesus Christ , thinks Robinson . He 's got nowhere to go but forward . It 's only three or four paces , but in that moment he sees Tommy tense his arm at full stretch and turn his head away . The gun is pointed at directly at his chest . Now he 's reached Tommy .
Idiom: in my book (used idiomatically: yes)
At home , women may have all the rights they could want on paper , but they often vanish in a cloud of prejudice when you try to put them into practice ! Look how difficult it is for women to get on in the medical or legal profession ! And there 's another point I think I shall bring out in my book . Here in North Africa , as I 've told you before , it 's the richer classes who shut up their women — the poor ca n't afford to . Whereas with us , it 's the young , working - class housewife who suffers most from isolation .
Idiom: on board (used idiomatically: yes)
There were cargo bays and airlocks situated at random among the folds and spirals , but all of them remained closed . Ace had found herself inventing new techniques as she tried to use the shuttle 's processors to hack into the station 's maintenance systems , but there had been no indication that the station had even been receiving her signals . The shuttle had no on - board weaponry : not a single missile , not even a laser with which they might have tried to cut a way in . Someone had to go down there . And , as Ace had pointed out , it had to be her .
Idiom: take stock (used idiomatically: yes)
In his report on the service the divisional inspector for Scotland South , Tony Course , observed : ‘ the crews’ response was in the highest tradition of lifeboat service . All knew that they would have to pass through what has been described as a maelstrom , and that they would have to rely on the seamanship of their coxswain to reach the relative safety of open water ; there would be no second chance in conditions which were described as the worst in living memory.’ The lifeboat was struck by a large sea as she was leaving the harbour and Coxswain Wight had difficulty in manoeuvring clear of the narrow channel , before pausing to take stock of the conditions at sea and pressing on to clear off - lying rocks . Coxswain Wight had to head offshore for nearly three miles in a north - easterly direction before he could turn the lifeboat down - weather to the south - east on a course for St Abbs head . She arrived off the head at around 1905 and was asked by the coastguard to search the area off Coldingham Bay , in a southerly direction .
Idiom: on the house (used idiomatically: no)
' I 've started at the College , ' he told Bobby Hunt , ' — it 's very nice there as I do n't have to do anything : the paintings though are past belief . ' He had always taken a strong interest in his students but , compared with Camberwell and Central , the College , having more pretensions , had a social side that created greater togetherness . This became pronounced in 1949 when the College secured a long lease on two houses , 21 and 23 Cromwell Road , into one of which they moved the Senior and Junior Common Rooms , formerly housed in a hut in Queensgate . At Cromwell Road the students made use of the first floor which had a magnificent music room and a ballroom which they loaned to the Senior Common Room for the purposes of the annual Royal College Charity Ball which rivalled the Chelsea Arts Ball . Downstairs the Senior Common Room occupied two large rooms ornamented with marble and gilt columns and eighteenth - century fireplaces .
Idiom: state of the art (used idiomatically: yes)
Any attempt to charge dry cells with conventional battery chargers causes severe electrolyte degradation , eventually shorting out the cell completely and leading to a very rapid heat build up inside the cell . Consequently , dry cell manufacturers , quite rightly , put warnings on their products as such abuse can lead to the cell rupturing and electrolyte leakage . The Coltronics charger avoids these problems , employing state - of - the - art electronics to carefully control and profile the charging current to eliminate heat build up and minimise electrolyte degradation . We should say that this is a more sophisticated design than the simple unit we published and is available by mail order for an inclusive price of £ 39.95 . This price includes adapters , which incorporate dedicated circuitry , for the four sizes of battery .
Idiom: at your fingertips (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ The workshop certainly made people feel more part of a team and demonstrated the power of the networking approach.’ UP TO THE MINUTE— you wo n't have to leave your desk to gain access to latest reports . Wealth of information at your fingertips IF YOU want to know what books are in the library or find out about the latest reports on new topics , you can now do this without leaving the comfort of your office . Provided you can access the Harwell Vax computer — called HARAN — it is possible to delve into five bibliographic databases covering information on journal articles and patents to details on books and magazines held in the library .
Idiom: take a bath (used idiomatically: yes)
You can do what you like . ' Turning away , she bent to pick up her skis and sticks , then began walking away from him , only releasing a pent - up breath when it became clear he was n't going to follow her . Back in the cottage she took a long , hot bath , but the water failed to ease the tension in her body , even though she lay there for what seemed like an eternity , trying to will away the effects of the afternoon . Dane had stirred something up within her , disturbed deep pools that had perhaps never been touched before , and she had n't the faintest idea how to go about calming those waters again . The worst part lay in facing up to the fact that some of the things he 'd said were true , much as she might try to deny it .
Idiom: pass the time of day (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Speak with care , Red.’ He was even more curt and the man took a step back . ‘ I came to pass the time of day , that 's all.’ Red seemed anxious to put things straight . ‘ At Mike Mahoney 's down in Marsh Street they were laying odds on thee having been cut up for cats - meat.’
Idiom: have words (used idiomatically: no)
I have so many words in my head , that I feel they would n't exhaust even if I 'd write to you every day and all my life .
Idiom: weather the storm (used idiomatically: yes)
UNDER FIRE : Reenan at home yesterday THE VERDICT IS YOURS She works tirelessly for those in need … but is it enough to weather storm ? DO YOU STILL WANT DIANA TO BE OUR QUEEN ? YES RING 0891 525 521 NO 00891 525 522
Idiom: have been around (used idiomatically: no)
That will help you in your production planning . ' QA AND OPPORTUNISM Quality systems have naturally been around within Ciba Geigy for a long time and all aspects of manufacturing on the site have been registered to ISO 9001 since 1987 . Now they are going for a more ambitious target — one company - wide registration to include safety , personnel and management services . This will mean a fully integrated quality system across the site .
Idiom: larger than life (used idiomatically: yes)
It 's the flashiness that makes so many of the British films of the mid-1960s almost unwatchable today . Too many of them are visual firework displays without an emotional centre , or a coherent narrative structure . The New Wave films that do work tend to be those built around a single , larger - than - life character , like Tom Jones or Alfie ( 1966 ) , in which Michael Caine plays a cockney Don Juan who ' do n't believe in making anyone unhappy , not if you do n't have to do it ' but is forever breaking the hearts of young girls , until the sight of one of his middle - aged victims going through an abortion forces him into repentance . The formula can be extended to a pop group , as in Lester 's Beatles films , or Boorman 's Catch Us If You Can ( 1965 ) centred on the Dave Clark Five , but it looks more than a little shaky when applied to a more complex , not to say maudlin , character like that written by Shelagh Delaney for Albert Finney in Charlie Bubbles ( 1967 ) . Joseph Losey enjoys himself with Monica Vitti while filming Modesty Blaise ( 1966 )
Idiom: out of order (used idiomatically: no)
As a human variant on such running — or lumbering — gags , there is Wally , a farcically uncooperative caretaker who puts in a regulation grumpy appearance in each of the play 's four scenes in order to enunciate his catchphrase , ‘ Nothing to do with me’ . Much of the play 's humour comes straight from stock . There are jests about administrative gaffes ( ' overtrousers ' mistyped as ‘ overt rousers’ ) or about the craziness of bureaucracy ( the staff have no order forms because they have run out of order forms with which to order them ) . Traditional sniggerings are amply catered for , too . The office 's tubby female employee is the constant butt of lines like : ‘ Of course you 're not fat , Beryl … pull up a couple of chairs and sit down.’
Idiom: make head or tail of (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ They all went on to be priests and then the Troubles started and I left too . Strange , to this day I have never met a priest who was n't afraid to die . I could never make head or tails of that . It flew in the face of everything.’ ‘ If it had been a different time you 'd have been a doctor or an engineer,’ Rose said .
Idiom: off and on (used idiomatically: yes)
Do you remember the trams going down ? Oh yes I wa as kids er , I used to , I could always get in with the , the conductresses . So er , you , you can ring the bell for the custom er , people to get off and on like , you know . But you could jump off them while they were going , so I , an very slowly , did they ?
Idiom: child's play (used idiomatically: yes)
Think you can take it ? " " I do n't know . " " For a man who can catch a gibbon in a Ming vase it will be child 's play . " The French boy laughed loudly and followed the pholy up the log staircase into the gloomy interior of the long hut . The moment Joseph stepped through the doorway he began coughing uncontrollably .
Idiom: catch fire (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Do you think the wheat is safe now?’ ‘ I think so , yes , ma'am,’ he answered . ‘ If the fire had spread to this wheat - rick , all the other ricks would have caught fire too . That brave young man up there on top of the rick is the one who 's saved your wheat.’ ‘ He does work hard,’ said the young woman , looking up at Gabriel , who had not noticed her .
Idiom: in the black (used idiomatically: no)
Stanley Powerlock rules have chromium-plated cases for strength and durability . The steel blades are protected by a Mylar coating for wear resistance , giving protection up to 10 times longer than the blade 's normal life . Clear graduations are printed in black and red , whilst ‘ true-zero ’ sliding hooks maintain a high degree of accuracy . CONSIDER WINDOWS IF YOU ARE REPLACING AN OLD GARAGE DOOR If you are thinking of replacing an old garage door , consider all the options which have ‘ opened up ’ since you last fitted one , say specialists Cardale Doors .