Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: green light (used idiomatically: yes)
And the historian M. R. D. Foot , writing anonymously,(as is house style ) in the Economist , declared , Though the Cabinet is supposed to be a decisive body , much of its time [ in 1955]was taken up with postponing decisions : whether to legislate against immigrants from the Caribbean or of Indian ancestry ; whether to help the Egyptians build the Aswan High Dam ; what to do about Cyprus or Malta , about admitting Japan to GATT [ the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade ] , about the textile market , about the death penalty . To upbraid Eden for failing to give the green light to the Home Office 's draft four - clause Commonwealth Immigrants Bill , is a bit harsh . The Cabinet was deeply divided on the issue , between those , such as Alan Lennox - Boyd , the Colonial Secretary , who argued that immigration curbs could damage ‘ the Commonwealth concept’ , and those , such as Duncan Sandys , Minister of Housing and Local Government , who warned the Cabinet that ‘ in certain districts , such as Birmingham and Lambeth , colonial immigration had already led to serious over - crowding and consequently to social disturbance’ . An unnamed minister ( probably the Lord President , Lord Salisbury ) , in the absence of control on coloured immigration , spoke of ‘ a real danger that over the years there would be a significant change in the racial character of the English people’ .
Idiom: in the pipeline (used idiomatically: yes)
A similar chunk of Argentaria , a Spanish banking group , will be sold to the world 's investors next week . A third issue of Britain 's BT , worth up to $ 1.5 billion , will be made in mid - July . Other big sales in the pipeline include those of Singapore Telecom and East Japan Railways , and a string of privatisations in France and Italy . International equity issues are all the rage . Several trends have contributed to the growing attraction of peddling a new share issue in a number of markets simultaneously .
Idiom: lame duck (used idiomatically: yes)
Are Israel and Syria Ready for Peace ? JERUSALEM – The resumption of peace talks between Israel and Syria after eight years of saber - rattling is not a diversion from the political troubles of Israel 's lame - duck prime ~ minister . Nor are the talks a Syrian ploy to avoid facing an international tribunal on the assassination of Lebanon 's former prime ~ minister , Rafik ~ Hariri . An Israeli - Syrian peace deal is strategically vital for both sides , and both sides know it .
Idiom: to the bone (used idiomatically: yes)
Table 3.3 Breakage of major skeletal elements ( % ) Similar trends are apparent in the plots of proximal against distal limb elements in Fig . 3.9 . The distal humerus and proximal tibia and femur are preferentially preserved in the predator assemblages where the greatest breakage overall occurs , while the species that do little damage to the bone cluster near the origin . The kestrel and tawny owl assemblages are distinguished in these analyses as being the most divergent . The sample size for the little owl is small and the variable results for this species can probably be attributed to this .
Idiom: out on a limb (used idiomatically: yes)
Because of what transpired in the latter part of 1989 , seldom has your insight been so penetrating and accurate , and between now and August is a time of unrivalled opportunities for you to make your mark . Scorpio * ( 24 October to 22 November ) April does n't have to be a month of trials and tribulations or agonising over career or professional matters , if you are prepared to make some snap decisions and take what transpires towards the very end of March as a signal to go even further out on a limb . The full Moon in Libra on the 10th is bound to shed fresh light on complex situations and enable you to astound those who believe that you are too insecure to compete . You now realise that you have accepted a secondary role and sacrificed too much , whilst three of the planets in Capricorn signify that , regardless of the consequences , you must break out .
Idiom: wipe someone's eye (used idiomatically: yes)
That will do.’ Wakelate nodded glumly and made a new excursion into the pantry . ‘ You are kind , madam , kind,’ said the grieving uncle , wiping his eyes and blowing his nose into a huge silk handkerchief . ‘ I know you cared for the boy yourself.’ ‘ What was his name?’
Idiom: make the cut (used idiomatically: yes)
There would probably have been some cutting in Act 5 . If Duke Egeus did not ask Hermia to choose between Demetrius and life in a nunnery in Act 1 , there would be no point pressing her for an answer four acts later . There is a clue that cuts were made ( though we can not tell how extensive — for , unlike Act 1 , Act 5 was not reprinted in 1693 : it was inherited from the 1692 stockpile ) . Illus.4 shows the opening of Act 5 as it appears in both quartos . The Duke 's speech ( boxed in ) would have to go ; and with it probably the ' Composition in imitation of Hunting ' and the Duke 's line cueing it in .
Idiom: pigs can fly (used idiomatically: yes)
Thirdly , his chosen course —compounded by last week 's injunction to block illicit publication of the report —is wrong because it is unworkable . Lord Young is behaving as though the’ Spycatcher’battle had never happened . Once leaked , most kinds of information can no more be rebottled than pigs can fly . Persisting with the injunction now offers foreign publishers another opportunity to humiliate the government and over legal principles which this time look trivial beside those at stake in the’ Spycatcher’affair . Three reforms are needed .
Idiom: high and low (used idiomatically: yes)
But Leonard himself was smitten , he says , by his family 's past , by its name and meaning . He used to drive his cousins ' crazy ' with its ' mythology ' . Like his mother , Leonard was even then subject to alternating highs and lows , which added spice to their friendship . Morton saw that Leonard and Mrs Cohen were very close , and nothing emphasised this more than her willingness to take them and their friends out for meals , especially to a favourite Greek restaurant where she would be the life of the party , not least in singing , and encouraged by good wine which the restaurateur would ply them with in order to get the mood of the evening going . At other times she would refuse to let Rosengarten in the house , especially if Leonard had had a late night out .
Idiom: by the back door (used idiomatically: yes)
Earlier this month , the group bought an 8.3pc stake in UK tour operator Owners Abroad , helping to foil a hostile takeover bid from rival Airtours . It has announced its intention to tender for a further 12.5pc stake . ‘ AT THE tail - end of 14 years in power our rump of a Conservative Government can think of nothing but half - hearted socialist measures , as if through introducing socialism by the back door it will somehow ease its own exit by the front’— Commentator Auberon Waugh . ‘ THIS drama about the decline of our coal mines has been running for at least 75 years . Now , just before the final curtain falls , ministers are caught , red - handed on stage , with the corpse’— Tory peer Lord Deedes .
Idiom: buy time (used idiomatically: yes)
Churchill in the cabinet in August 1954 expressed the fear that the United States , conscious that it must soon lose its nuclear lead over the USSR , might be tempted in the interval to try to snatch what advantages it could in the Cold War . In so doing it might by accident precipitate a general war , one from which the United States might emerge victorious , but which would leave Britain and Europe a radioactive desert . From such comments as these one might infer that the British were anxious to buy time until the Soviets acquired sufficient nuclear power to persuade Washington to become more cautious . Nor is it unreasonable to assume that given a sufficient respite they hoped that Britain 's own nuclear force might become strong enough to act as a deterrent to a Soviet attack on the home islands . More nuclear weapons , properly shared out , might decrease the risk of global war .
Idiom: do me a favour (used idiomatically: no)
My fault . Should have spotted it myself.’ Gedanken smiled , ‘ I wo n't let on,’ adding as an afterthought , ‘ at least , not if you do me a favour.’ ‘ Oh,’ he said suspiciously . ‘ What might that be?’
Idiom: in the pipeline (used idiomatically: yes)
It advises the reader not to leave their bedroom window at night because all sorts of pitfalls await them ; crocodiles , ghosts , monsters . The illustrations have been done by an adult artist , but taken from Richard ' ; s original ideas . And there are plenty of those , there could be dozens more in the pipeline . Male speaker This is about a young boy who is trying to avoid going to the dentists so he comes up with a series of excuses to give his mother .
Idiom: come unstuck (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ We were 100 per cent responsible for that investment , legally and morally,’ says Equity & Law marketing manager Brian Taylor . The company is hoping to recover some of the money from Wright , but admits much of it has already been spent , making his appointment an expensive mistake . Life companies have stepped into an area with which they are ill - equipped to deal , and have come unstuck , believes Lautro 's chief enforcement officer Mike Abrahams . ‘ They have no expertise in managing their own staff,’ he says . In other incidents the legal situation has been less clear .
Idiom: bite the dust (used idiomatically: yes)
SCOTLAND TOUR TO AUSTRALIA SCOTS BLITZED BY WALLABY BIG GUNS Scotland were not short of pluck , says IAN ROBERTSON , but it was still business as usual Down Under as yet another British side came , saw and bit the dust … Two victories in eight matches can not be construed as a success , even by the wildest stretch of the imagination , but there was some good news as well . Part of the mission was to unearth some new talent for next season and the season after that , and on that score this tour provided plenty of encouragement .
Idiom: change hands (used idiomatically: no)
Well we 'll try that once more and then we 'll let you go . Okay . So the first thing we do is to change hands , that 's good , push , wait change sides , straighten up the tiller , look where you 're going that 's fine . Great . You 're ready to go for your first sail .
Idiom: up the spout (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Exit Captain McTavish , triumphant,’ he murmured , and went out to his shed to lament over his doomed Triumph Tiger under its sheet of polythene . Nails took his usual Ford Escort that night from the parking lot outside the gasworks where the night shift was working , the one he had a key for , and he and Gary went for a drive round the back streets where they would n't meet a patrol car , out into the country for ten miles or so and back again . ‘ That bloke must think his petrol consumption is up the spout,’ Gary remarked , looking at the gauge . ‘ Only fifteen miles . It wo n't show .
Idiom: drive someone up the wall (used idiomatically: yes)
I do n't think that looks different like that . So that 's so big . See the but er , this room drives me up the wall ! I mean I Go on , tell me again .
Idiom: on edge (used idiomatically: no)
It just goes to show how well he 's done , he was playing in the early seventies , but we should win ; what we 've got to do tomorrow is not just win well , but we 've got to pick up those points , we must win . It 's a European qualifier and we do need the points , because Poland away are always difficult . You 're going to be on the edge of your seat . I trust they still have n't got their goalkeeper playing ? er who , Poland ?
Idiom: in a rut (used idiomatically: yes)
It was on points like these that the debate always stuck in a rut .
Idiom: off the cuff (used idiomatically: yes)
Slander is a defamatory statement made by word of mouth or by gesture . Plaintiffs may sue for libel even though they have suffered no financial loss but for slander ( with certain exceptions ) they must be able to prove actual damage and not mere injury to feelings . Historically , the distinction is explained by the view that writing was a premeditated and calculated act , which affected reputation much more drastically and permanently than off - the - cuff comments . With the advent of radio , television and satellite broadcasting , this reasoning is anachronistic , and Parliament has enacted that words spoken in theatres , and in broadcasts for general reception , shall be deemed libels and not slanders . The same provision is made for words spoken on a cable programme .
Idiom: do someone proud (used idiomatically: yes)
We just keep him busy on the racecourse and he runs again at Goodwood next weekend.’ ‘ It 's got to the point where he looks at you in the morning as if he 's wondering where we are going to send him next . But he 's done us proud and you could say he 's an improving nine - year - old and there are n't many of those about . ‘ The Great St Wilfrid is the Stewards’ Cup of the North . To win it was fantastic.’
Idiom: stand on ceremony (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Oh I see . Well , bring him in . We do n't stand on ceremony in this house.’ Patrick drank up quickly . Somehow he did n't think Kate 's mother was quite ready for Willy yet .
Idiom: from scratch (used idiomatically: yes)
The Musée Rodin has published the last of six volumes cataloguing the artist 's drawings . There are over 7,200 drawings extant and it has taken Claudie Judrin ten years to complete the task . Most of Rodin 's drawings are undated , unsigned and untitled , so she had to work virtually from scratch . To mark the completion of the inventory , the Museum is mounting an exhibition which runs until 19 July . It illustrates the criteria adopted in preparing the catalogue and the difficulties encountered , explaining how fakes were identified , what discoveries were made and how the drawings were dated .
Idiom: at loggerheads (used idiomatically: yes)
ITV deadlock denied By Jane Thynne , Media Correspondent THE ITV companies have publicly denied that they are at loggerheads after missing the deadline to agree on a new system for commissioning programmes for the ITV network from next year . Arrangements to introduce the new system of central scheduling were to be announced this week , but were called off at the last minute . ‘ There is no bust - up,’ said Mr Greg Dyke , managing director of LWT , and chairman of the ITV Association .
Idiom: come to a head (used idiomatically: yes)
Trade and Industry Secretary Peter Lilley 's decision to abide by European Commission rules on the distribution of regional aid from Brussels immediately unlocked £ 18.9 m of investment earmarked for the stricken former coalfield communities of Durham , Tyne and Wear , and Northumberland . The money , under the EC 's Rechar programme , has been frozen for 18 months while the political dispute raged on . The row came to a head last month when EC Commissioner Bruce Millan said he would consider blocking all European regional aid to the UK unless Whitehall changed its stance . This threatened the go - ahead of several major developments in the region , including the £ 8 m first phase of the Darlington Cross Town Route . In a statement to the Commons Mr Lilley said that , following discussions with Mr Millan , the Commission had agreed to release £ 121 m worth of Rechar grants to the UK , of which £ 8 m goes to East Durham .
Idiom: in the red (used idiomatically: no)
1 ) The Mark Hughes player . this is in fact two players as the one in green and yellow has his boot firmly up the arse of the one in red and white stripes . 2 ) The Steve Bruce player .
Idiom: first off (used idiomatically: yes)
I entirely agree Mr Chairman Mr Chairman could we adjourn and come back after , because I think we 're going to erm the way this committee is going . Well if you knew the traffic situation first off you would n't suggest that You would n't suggest that Maybe , maybe we could press on shall we ?
Idiom: sit tight (used idiomatically: yes)
Yes , well , we 'll come to that . We have n't got to that yet . Sit tight for a moment and we 'll get to it . Now , name question mark asked the doctor now that is the end a sentence , so we have a fullstop there . And we have a new line because
Idiom: out of the question (used idiomatically: yes)
That 's a tremendous compliment to the boy 's achievements in his first season in English football and I 'm convinced he can become even better.’ Mr Ferguson has been a fan of Schmeichel for four years , but it was not until last summer that he could persuade Denmark 's top club , Brondby , to accept an offer . ‘ We tried to sign him in the summer that we bought Jim Leighton from Aberdeen , but the money Brondby were asking was out of the question,’ said Mr Ferguson . ‘ But we did n't forget about him.’ Last season United watched Schmeichel regularly as Brondby won the Danish title for the fourth time in five years and reached the semi - finals of the UEFA Cup .
Idiom: short shrift (used idiomatically: yes)
The criteria of relevance to the central themes of European history have led me to set aside some topics often included in textbooks of this kind . The history of the Ottoman Empire , for example , is only dealt with here in so far as it immediately affects non - Turkish Europe . The smaller nations get short shrift on somewhat different grounds : in so far as they are affected by general trends , their history recapitulates that of the major states . The criterion of historical effectiveness must almost always mean that their history has to be ignored to give space to explain that of bigger and more effective nations . This is not mere deification of success ; many of the most important facts of European history have been its great failures .
Idiom: in a fog (used idiomatically: yes)
Yes ? ' Paralysed though she was , not for anything was Dolly going to drop Sergeant Joe in the cart , not for anything would she even admit he was in the house . ' Honest , I 'd never seen ' i m before , I just bumped into ' i m in the fog and it made me sprain me ankle . He carried me here , he knows the fam'ly , and they took me in . He was n't interested in any letter — '
Idiom: for a song (used idiomatically: yes)
It would be hard to fault anything they did and although the unit bears the fiddle player 's name , every member of the band was given his own chance to add a little something to the songs under Pierre 's subtle method of musical direction . Le Rue the man does n't let his talents stop at the violin and vocal duties with the band as his guitar - playing proved . The mixture between cajun , bluegrass and boogie styles was almost seamless and all gained from the five musicians ' vigour and enthusiasm for the songs they were playing . Pierre Le Rue may not have mega sales or an exceptionally large following behind him , but the combination of the band 's musical ability and his stage presence made for a very enjoyable evening . I would n't hesitate about going along to another of the band 's gigs where , it is to be hoped , the audience would give more than a round of applause for the amount of hard work put into the show .
Idiom: make the grade (used idiomatically: yes)
I have lost confidence in myself . With every step I take I say ‘ See those knees ! See how they turned in they are , you will never make the grade!’ It is all so much work and nothing may come of it . The task of writing Soldier 's Tale looms so large in front of me — I hear voices calling ‘ No no you ca n't cast her ! ’
Idiom: to the bone (used idiomatically: no)
His stern , bloated red face overflowed the shining white barricade of his dog collar . Profuse amounts of grey and ginger hair sprouted from nose and ears . Above his eyes a thick , prickly hedgerow jutted at right - angles to the bone . He listened with a terrible look of disdain on his face . Then he thundered :
Idiom: on a roll (used idiomatically: yes)
sam salmon the bed ! Ha ! Salmon on the rolls , and Salmon on ! salmon on toast and sort of stuff like that ?
Idiom: horses for courses (used idiomatically: no)
By Isobel Cunningham THE three - day Cheltenham National Hunt Festival , which gets under way this afternoon , is unlike any other fixture throughout the jump season . Horses for courses is too broad a brush with which to paint a picture . Though a good performance on the Gloucestershire track at any other time of the year counts for something , it 's nothing to get carried away over , while the top performers through the winter months elsewhere are often made to look ordinary as they toil up the Prestbury Park hill . More often than not , those who have seemed moderate since the previous year 's Cheltenham Festival come into their own with a vengeance .
Idiom: to all intents and purposes (used idiomatically: yes)
Ah , I 'm sorry for all that , I 'm really sorry . The position is that when we admit anyone to nursing home care , they can only be admitted if there is a joint assessment partly by a social worker from this department , partly by either the nurse or G P , or consultant , and the , the key element needless to say in that , in terms of need , is very much the health authority input . Erm , therefore we , to all intents and purposes , can not actually control the demand at that level , demand will be set by the people committing themselves to the health service , where the health service are assessing their needs , and saying this patient needs nursing home care . Erm , so if we have n't got enough staff to deal with that process , then there will be deadlock in the hospitals . We 've got an arrangement with the health authority about the maximum time we will take in assessing somebody for discharge from hospital .
Idiom: rank and file (used idiomatically: yes)
His conference speech was marked by the absence of any reference to membership of the European exchange rate mechanism ( ERM ) , and in a BBC interview he added that he would have ' no announcement to make about that ' in his key speech at the Mansion House next week . John Major , the Foreign Secretary , said in another BBC interview that nothing had changed since the EC Madrid summit last June : Britain would become a full member of the European Monetary System ( EMS ) when inflation fell to ' the approximate rate ' of European competitors , and when France and Italy abolished exchange controls . Mr Lawson received a standing ovation for his low - key conference speech , but that appeared to be more of a defensive rank - and - file reaction to widespread media reports of party dissent than enthusiasm for the unflinching substance of the message . Significant passages of the speech , particularly on interest rates , were received in silence and other keynote statements were given only polite applause . Last night , the mood of conference representatives was a mix of public solidarity and private unease .
Idiom: have a few (used idiomatically: yes)
Then hopefully they 're going on to Yeah . Well we had a few problems did n't we ? No , no problem . We 're going straight