Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: in hot water (used idiomatically: yes)
The role is demanding and the director 's such an arrogant bastard ! Nothing I seem to do is right . I 'm in hot water over various things — nothing important enough to bore you with , but I know the director wants shot of me — he 's said as much and I 'm sure my days are numbered ; I feel like I 'm struggling to keep my head above water — Oh , I knew this particular pool was going to be deep , but he 's there waiting just above the surface to shove me under , finding some half - baked reason to be rid of me . I know I 've been a bit stupid , but I 'm trying to get my act together and all Luke - do - it - all - Denner does is give me a hard time ! Damn that man !
Idiom: pull the plug (used idiomatically: no)
In the case of the chronically dependent patient ( the polio victim , say ) , if the ventilator is turned off , he will die . He is receiving long - term life - sustaining treatment . ' Pulling the plug ' in such a case is significant from a medical - legal point of view . Its significance , in terms of the legal consequences which would follow , can be assessed , however , only by drawing a crucial distinction between the situation where the patient requests that further support be terminated , and that where the ventilator is turned off without the consent of the patient . What law governs the situation when a lucid adult whose continued existence depends on a ventilator decides that his existence is no longer tolerable and that he wishes to die ?
Idiom: at sea (used idiomatically: yes)
But like you , he has been talking to my shipping office in Monaco and learns that there has been no communication for four days . He accuses me of a double - cross . To make it look as though the ship is lost at sea . I said it was preposterous , but that made him even angrier . He said that when he tried to contact the Spidex company in Paris — who supplied the cargo — it has disappeared .
Idiom: out of pocket (used idiomatically: yes)
Do n't Follow America on Health Care TORONTO – With the United ~ States Supreme Court set to begin considering the Affordable Care Act ( the historic health - care reform derided by opponents as " Obamacare " ) , it is worth noting that the number of Americans without health ~ insurance reached an all - time high in 2010 , the year the law was enacted . Roughly 50 million US residents ( one in six ) pay out - of - pocket for medical expenses . The 2008 recession is not the only reason for this staggering figure ; long - term political and policy choices are also to blame . Globally , but especially for rapidly growing economies , the lesson is simple : avoid America 's private health - care model .
Idiom: break even (used idiomatically: no)
In such a case you are entitled to keep your contractual rights although many new owners will try to renegotiate these . If you you do n't agree and are fired , you may take the new owner to an industrial tribunal . YOU can also sue in the courts for breach of contract if your new employer breaks your terms and conditions , even if you have only just joined the firm . Unfortunately legal action is expensive , but you can insure against taking bully bosses to court . For £180 a year the Legal Protection Group policy will pay up to £50,000 of lawyers ' bills in a single action .
Idiom: add insult to injury (used idiomatically: yes)
Yes it is , er I mean , what we tried to do was to write er a comedy on a big scale that was n't a marshmallow , er in fact it er the , the comedy deepens and it gets pretty sour , and I think some of the criticism of the play has been that ‘ is it a comedy , or is it a serious play’ . I mean I , I tend to think it 's a , it 's a play that 's got some very very funny bits in it , I do n't want to give away what the story 's about , but whilst there 's been the frivolity on the slopes , the whole thing starts to take on a , a , I tell you what it was , I remember reading an article by Dr Ruth , who said that good skiers are good in bed because the image of , of the skier is very potent , you know , and very strong . I took that line , so the main , the main character goes skiing for the first time , ca n't do it , and is frustrated because everybody else around him can do it including his girlfriend which er adds insult to injury and there is in there of course , a very attractive dashing Austrian ski instructor ; that 's the catalyst really for the drama . And ‘ On the Piste’ is at the er Oxford Apollo , starts tonight , and it 's running for the rest of the week . Now this weekend , three firemen from Didcot will be taking to a bicycle to cycle the length of the Ridgeway .
Idiom: flash in the pan (used idiomatically: yes)
That is why , as examples , the Films Group and ICI Advanced Materials are outside C&P and not part of its plastics business . Lindsell agrees that C&P 's 11 businesses [ see separate list overleaf]are in several cases mature and that assessment of their future growth potential has to take account of this . But he emphasizes very strongly that in no way does this mean that there is no longer scope for their further development , or that their return to profitability is a flash in the pan , to be reversed whenever the next downturn comes . Certainly , trading conditions over the past 18 months have been very buoyant . However , the sheer size and mix of activities in C&P give it ‘ swings and roundabouts’ protection against the ups and downs of the economic cycle .
Idiom: out of order (used idiomatically: no)
Of course , it may be that under certain circumstances a more autocratic relationship is appropriate . For example , where a decision has to be made quickly then it may be more appropriate to tell an individual what to do rather than persuade him . This may be appropriate in an organisation like the Army where discipline and the carrying out of orders is essential to the success of that organisation . Here there also may be more compliant subordinates who prefer this more authoritarian style there may be individuals in any organisation who do not want responsibility and who prefer to be told what to do . We suggested earlier that leadership will need to take account of different situations and the different relations that leaders will have with others .
Idiom: save someone's skin (used idiomatically: no)
Amina and Miriam were continually wandering from house to house in the compound , searching for something new to amuse themselves . Sometimes they were to be found in a corner , solemnly talking to a rather battered doll whose arms and legs were always popping off , waiting to be clipped on by a passing ‘ brother’ who was inevitably obliging . Now they untangled themselves to watch as I layered face cream on to my face and hands in the endless battle to save my skin from drying up altogether . The jars of Cornish hand cream , with their pictures of St Michael 's Mount , looked incongruous somehow . The children opened each jar and sampled them all .
Idiom: on the face of it (used idiomatically: yes)
IT WAS after the Manchester City board appointed John Benson as manager in 1983 that Peter Swales , the chairman , announced : ‘ It was a unanimous choice — which is unusual for us.’ The unusual , to say nothing of the bizarre , seems always to lurk close by the main door of Maine Road . Yet yesterday 's appointment of Howard Kendall as manager seems , on the face of it , one of the most rational and sensible moves the Blues have made in recent years . Kendall , aged 43 , was City 's initial choice after Mel Machin had been sacked , but discussions broke down when the former Everton and Athletic Bilbao manager insisted on a release clause in his contract should he be approached by England . City then tried for Kendall 's former Everton team - mate Joe Royle , the Oldham manager .
Idiom: play with fire (used idiomatically: yes)
He said ironically , ‘ I thought I had , earlier . And , though I have my suspicions as to the cause , I 'd like to know what made you act the way you did.’ A sudden reckless urge to play with fire made her deliberately provoke him . ‘ You ca n't credit that I just got bored?’ She heard the breath hiss through his teeth .
Idiom: all over the place (used idiomatically: no)
The nature of the high a drug provides depends on the type of neurotransmitter it interferes with . But the brain is a complex place ; the separate systems within it that use different neurotransmitters all interact . A drug acting on one set of synapses can have secondary and tertiary effects all over the place . That is why drug experiences are so varied . The range of things that can be addictive , though , is wider even than the range of available drugs .
Idiom: pull strings (used idiomatically: yes)
To wit , the chance to be Ms Galahad , the Amazon on the white horse ( or , in this case , the dyke in the black taxi ) , who rescues the fair damozel in distress . Because the innocent bystander wandering into frame is , predictably , the delicious Riva herself . Such a credulity - straining coincidence is only possible when a dybbuk pulls the strings . Rainbow sees who the woman is , and jumps back into the taxi . With a scream of rubber worthy of the car chase in The French Connection , she brakes , swerves , jumps the pavement and steers straight at one set of combatants .
Idiom: look before you leap (used idiomatically: yes)
Finding new partners reassures them that they 're still attractive and desirable . How impulsive is your mate ? ' Look before you leap ' is a maxim impulsive people fail to follow . People who are n't impulsive think through the consequences of their actions before taking decisive steps . They can resist temptation long enough to make decisions based on good sense .
Idiom: breathe down someone's neck (used idiomatically: yes)
In fact , despite the fact that Friday was always their busiest day , the girl seemed to be enjoying herself . She greeted Folly cheerfully . ‘ I must say , it 's a lot better here without the old dragon breathing down my neck . I could almost get to like it.’ She handed over a neatly wrapped ‘ mixed bunch’ to one customer , with a chatty , ‘ Here you are , love,’and moved swiftly on to the next .
Idiom: in the soup (used idiomatically: yes)
USES Culinary fresh or dried leaves , with beans of all kinds , in stuffings , with any kind of pork meat , with game , in bean or lentil soups , wherever a warm - hot flavour is required Medicinal leaves fresh or dried , dried flowering tops , a tonic , digestive , antiseptic and diuretic , said to relieve pain of wasp and bee stings at once
Idiom: true blue (used idiomatically: yes)
The soirée seems to be the setting for mere social chit - chat and the group includes breezy social climbers , demure maidens and worried intellectuals but what binds them together , apart from their social exclusivity , is the fear that their class is under threat . And beneath the exchange of gossip and witticism , the doubts and foibles of their inner selves are revealed , a process accelerated by the appearance of gilded socialist Edward Clements . Edward lives in a different part of town , he espouses different ideas — but he 's also seeking acceptance , due to a romantic interest in shy , true - blue Serana . ‘ An American oddball who , like Jim Jarmusch and Spike Lee , takes a sideways look at his own culture , Whit Stillman has directed a film so sharp and amusing that film - goers were shut out in droves from its many screenings in Cannes . Avoiding the cheap temptation to satirize the group as empty - headed money - grabbers or upper - class clowns , Stillman extracts strong contributions from an unknown cast .
Idiom: within living memory (used idiomatically: yes)
And the whole lot smelt — a pervasive stench of damp and mildew . High time something was done about it . Starting in one corner , Helen began to lift garments from pegs and drop them on the floor in a pile — a mack of her father 's , something of Edward 's not worn within living memory , a very ancient corduroy jacket of Dorothy 's , also unused for many a year . It occurred to her that it might be wise to go through the pockets ; her father 's garment yielded an old penny and a broken pipe . In Dorothy 's jacket was a letter .
Idiom: make the cut (used idiomatically: no)
A twelve year old young offender from Cheltenham is currently a resident at the Birmingham unit — at a cost of two thousand pounds a week . Gloucestershire County Council is footing the bill . In a year , it 'll add up to over a hundred thousand pounds — if that happens the social services department says it 's budget will be so stretched it may be forced to make cuts in other areas . He says that the council is obliged by the government to take full responsibility for young offenders — and that includes paying for keeping them in secure units . One local MP says it 's outrageous that it costs two thousand pounds a week to keep the boy at the centre .
Idiom: weak at the knees (used idiomatically: no)
I know we 'd love to come and call.’ ‘ Splendid.’ His smile would have had Daisy weak at the knees . It did not affect mine , though I enjoyed it , vastly . Oddly , instead of reminding me of Bill , it reminded me of Old Red .
Idiom: in the black (used idiomatically: no)
I , too , visit people in the middle of the night wearing black , yet I am greeted by shrieking , moaning , wailing and a - gnashing of teeth . It 's a funny old world . THE MAN IN BLACK WHO BRINGETH THE SACK Money Oofy Prosser
Idiom: up to scratch (used idiomatically: no)
He woke on top of her , she might 've been a beach , he might 've been abandoned there by waves . He rolled away from her and she woke too . One absent - minded hand moved up to scratch a breast . ‘ Did we do it?’ ‘ I do n't know,’ he said .
Idiom: break someone's heart (used idiomatically: yes)
She frequently attacked her attendants and discharged herself from institutions where she had been sent for treatment . Doctors attempted many ' cures ' , including injections of sea water , but they could not control her . Senator Norris said : ' There is no doubt she broke Joyce 's heart . ' Fall of TV 's House of Cards By A J MCILROY
Idiom: in tandem (used idiomatically: yes)
Pop concerts , film premieres and dinner dates . The couple were inseparable . They gave interviews in tandem , coolly maintaining the drama and mystique surrounded the sexy side of the boy and girl next door . On TV stations around the world , they coyly nudged and giggled to each other . They certainly seemed very much in love .
Idiom: on paper (used idiomatically: yes)
A degree is no shortcut to the acquisition of the essential practical skills ; experience is won by time and application : ‘ I know today now there are some good degrees and goodness knows what for the job , but it does n't mean to say you can do the job . You might be able to learn it parrot - fashion out of a book or be able to put it on paper . That 's something I could n't do . I could n't write my job down on paper .
Idiom: sit on the fence (used idiomatically: yes)
In December 1941 , Britain , the Anzacs , the Commonwealth , fought with their backs to the wall . Other nations had thrown in the towel . Bigger nations sat on the fence . The day Britain declared war in 1939 the Australians immediately declared with us . They fought alongside us from then until the bitter end .
Idiom: under fire (used idiomatically: yes)
By the afternoon Sea Rover was well up channel when the French customs cutter Vent D'Aval ordered her to stop . When she failed to respond the French cutter opened fire with her bow chaser , hitting the superstructure of Sea Rover which by then was obviously making for the English coast . Ignoring all orders to stop the tug continued up channel , still under fire from the French cutters . No shots were fired from the British boats as these are not armed in any way . The 499 ton salvage tug then sent out a Mayday distress call to the effect that she was on fire and sinking .
Idiom: second nature (used idiomatically: yes)
He smiled back and shook his head . ‘ I 'm sorry . But it 's not second nature . No.’ ‘ No?’
Idiom: have a ball (used idiomatically: no)
I 'm still the same person . ‘ Last week , the incident happened just after the chance I missed , which may have had something to do with it . ‘ But there were three or four incidents off the ball , and I should have known it was me they would try and pin something on . ‘ Although George Graham is not condoning what I 've done , he knows it was just a bit of over-exhuberance and a bit of silliness . ‘ When anyone can , they stick the knife into Arsenal at every opportunity , but we will come together and we will be back on top again .
Idiom: better the devil you know (used idiomatically: yes)
He had been one of the most energetic scourges of this sceptic isle , but once he was victim of a fatwah , he became an outspoken defender of the freedoms that are available in British cultural life . So too , in less tragic circumstances , artists and intellectuals who instinctively loathed the Arts Council rallied round when Thatcher put the boot in . In both instances it was a case of better the devil you know … In New York , incursions on the National Endowment for the Arts have lead to some equally startling volte - faces . Suddenly , the ineffable goodness of the NEA and public funding is being proclaimed by many whose professional lives have been spent very - nicely - thank - you in NEA - free zones in the private sector .
Idiom: come of age (used idiomatically: yes)
It is certainly the case that crime rates in socialist countries are far less than in the USA and other capitalist societies . However , even if all criminality in western societies could be related to the capitalist system , there is plenty of evidence of both criminal and deviant behaviour in communist societies , such as theft , murder and dissent . It is doubtful that such activities can be interpreted as remnants from pre - communist society , soon to disappear as socialism or communism comes of age . Studying crime : pictures of contemporary criminality In the previous chapter we looked at crime and criminality in a very broad and general manner .
Idiom: all along (used idiomatically: yes)
Why?’ ‘ Well , he was pleased when you agreed to this . Maybe it was what he wanted all along.’ ‘ Hunh.’ Burun nodded .
Idiom: rank and file (used idiomatically: yes)
This is not the first or last case of over - statement . One 's admiration for the brilliance of Fussell 's writing can not suppress doubts about the partiality of the picture he is drawing , with all its entertaining anecdotes and quotes . He gives us two kinds : salty recollections , verses and songs of the rank - and - file ( surely no previous volume from this august publisher has contained so many f - words and c - words ) ; and more elegant expressions of disillusion from the intelligentsia . There are plenty of both , more than enough to sustain an indictment of the war , but insufficient for an understanding of what it was all about . It was concerned with more than the effing and blinding of other ranks or what Cyril Connolly published in Horizon .
Idiom: tie the knot (used idiomatically: no)
‘ Come on,’ I said . ‘ The river looks great , we should have a few today.’ I was about to take the line and hook off him and tie the knot , when my rod - tip dipped . I struck , played the fish , and netted a good chub of almost 4 lb . I slid it into my keepnet , re - baited and cast to the same spot .
Idiom: come to a head (used idiomatically: yes)
The key question here — and it is not easy to answer — is whether Edinburgh , by employing Women in the period from the 1870s to the 1900s , was attracting more work than it otherwise would have from London and other publishers ; or whether it was merely managing to prevent the work leaving Edinburgh altogether for cheaper printing centres . Edinburgh employers tended to express the latter view , trade unionists the former . To understand why the " female question " came to a head in 1910 , we need to look at Edinburgh 's competitiveness as a printing centre , in particular after the introduction of Monotype machines ; at the changing attitudes of the men in the Edinburgh Typographical Society ( ETS ) ; and finally at the history of the 1910 dispute itself . EDINBURGH 'S PRINTING HOUSES AND COMPETITIVENESS INT THE 1900S Arguments about competition in the printing trade have to be treated with some caution .
Idiom: up in the air (used idiomatically: no)
He had such a good temperament . I once remember he got a hole - in - one in the Agfa Gevaert tournament at the 16th . I 'm stood at the tee throwing the clubs up in the air and whooping away and he just turns to me and says , ‘ Do n't get too excited , Jacky . If I can finish three - three I can win this tournament.’ He made a birdie at the next , but just missed one at the last and lost by a shot .
Idiom: hold water (used idiomatically: yes)
But , because you are eating fibre - rich food , it may be three or four days before the loss of that fat becomes apparent on the scales . The reason is simply a minor fluctuation in the fluid content of your body . Remember , fibre - rich food holds extra water , so two or three extra pounds of liquid retained inside you can easily obscure the same quantity of lost fat . Be patient . By the end of the first week 's dieting the scales will start to reveal the true story of your excellent rate of ' weight loss , and from then on it will be downhill all the way to your ideal weight !
Idiom: get off the ground (used idiomatically: yes)
Instead she stretched lazily , conscious of his eyes lingering admiringly on her pale curves . ‘ I may decide to fly back to England tomorrow after all,’ she lied teasingly . ‘ I have a very important campaign to get off the ground.’ ‘ I think perhaps I can persuade you to delay that , min elskede , ’ he returned lazily . ‘ You see , I have yet an alternative proposition to put to you.’
Idiom: in a nutshell (used idiomatically: yes)
You could n't get it into perspective at all . The time I was supposed to be going through this a lot of schools were getting a bit of stick because a lot of parents did n't like it . I think we saw a film of the birth of a baby and that was it , sex education in a nutshell . I said once to my biology teacher , " Why are so many girls getting pregnant ? " and she said , " Did n't you listen in lesson ? " I said,"You did n't tell me anything .
Idiom: seal of approval (used idiomatically: yes)
Pierpont Morgan did much the same . He acted as syndicator for huge pools of capital . His name served as a seal of approval that a deal would go ahead and that it would be profitable . He was paid for that seal and for his unrivalled knowledge . He too made billions .
Idiom: out to lunch (used idiomatically: yes)
Even Nannerl was distressed by Wolfgang 's new attachment , and complained that he neglected to write to her and her father . Wolfgang replied indignantly that he had no time to write because he was so busy : he got up at six , had his hair dressed , and then composed until nine , after which he gave lessons until lunchtime . He was usually invited out to lunch , resumed work or attended a concert in the evening , and then went to see Constanze , when her mother ( who was often drunk ) berated both of them . On Sundays he went to the home of Baron van Swieten , an enthusiastic patron of the arts , whose passionate interest in the then neglected music of Bach and Handel stimulated Mozart to collect and study the fugues and other contrapuntal music of J S Bach — an influence which can be detected in his own music of that period . ( Rather typically , Mozart ascribed his interest in Bach 's music to Constanze 's influence ; she had ‘ fallen in love’ with fugues , and insisted that Wolfgang should write some of his own . )
Idiom: do the honours (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Just the punch for me,’ Maggie stated . ‘ Right then,’ said Nevil . ‘ Who 's doing the honours?’ He glanced about the assembled company . ‘ I 'll go,’ volunteered a fair - haired chap .