Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: on the face of it (used idiomatically: no)
( The exception is the House of Lords , the highest domestic court of appeal , which is not now bound by its previous decisions . ) Nonetheless , judges retain the power to distinguish cases and by their interpretation they can develop a substantial body of case law . In interpreting acts of Parliament , they assume Parliament to have meant what , on the face of it , the words of an act appear to mean . Unlike the United States Supreme Court , which can delve deep into the deliberations of the Founding Fathers to try to elucidate what was meant by a particular provision of the Constitution , British courts are not permitted to look at the proceedings of Parliament in order to determine what Parliament really meant . The third and least tangible source of the Constitution is that of convention .
Idiom: make history (used idiomatically: yes)
Instonians will be delighted at coming out of the hat first against Leinster kingpins Avoca at home , but now will have to join Holywood in having talks with competition organiser Brian Hanna . Strain eases PORTADOWN centre - forward Stevie Cowan made history today at Shamrock Park as his club defeated Cliftonville to remain a point behind Linfield in this fascinating Irish League championship . Cowan scored the equaliser a minute before half time to bring his total for the season to 44 , beating the club record of 43 held by Martin Malone since 1973–74 . And then midway through the second - half he played a key role in Brian Strain 's vital winner .
Idiom: unknown quantity (used idiomatically: yes)
From a practical point of view Wells 's study of Anglo - Saxon cremation ( 1960 ) was concerned only with determining the technique of cremating and the temperatures achieved . He found that there were reasons to believe that bodies were placed supine below the pyre and that the average temperature achieved was about 900 ° C , but the quantity of fuel required was not determined . There are too many unknown quantities in the complex equation regarding number of bodies , quantity of fuel , rate of woodland regeneration and time , to be able to calculate what impact the presence of a large cremation cemetery would have had on the landscape . There is palaeobotanical evidence for a phase of increased woodland clearance in the sixth and seventh centuries in Britain ( Biddick 1984 , p. 108 and fig . 1 ) . The high number of sites very close to water can be equated with the number of sites at low altitudes , sea - level and up to 15 m above sea level .
Idiom: full of beans (used idiomatically: yes)
Even the most hardened skinflint or the most radical social thinker would have to admit that , in general , charity is a ' good thing ' . However , we must also recognise that some charitable acts are distinctly peculiar . Some people , for example , lie in bath tubs full of cold baked beans for days on end , while others , and this is where our interest lies , take part in Celebrity Golf Tournaments . These events provide an opportunity for dozens of actors who were famous in the ' 70s , ex - motor racing drivers and Eddie Large to enjoy a golfing day - out while earning a bob or two for good old charity . Everybody is happy .
Idiom: on edge (used idiomatically: yes)
After snapping up four birdies , he said : ‘ The course was hideously tricky in that wind . ‘ I would have settled for that before I went out . I could easily have been overawed , I 've been thoroughly on edge all week . But I was okay when I got to the first tee . ’ Welshman Ian Woosnam would have joined them in second place but for a double bogey at the 17th for a 73 , while Scotland 's Colin Montgomerie is tucked in just behind after finishing four over par .
Idiom: up in the air (used idiomatically: yes)
I do n't . So . You 're not the one who 's being chucked up in the air . You 'll give me a heart attack . What 's your daddy doing to you ?
Idiom: on the game (used idiomatically: yes)
Kevin is in charge of the shirt because he is playing so well and long may it continue . I 've got a lot of players fighting to get in this team , and the Russian will have to join them . ’ The Chelsea keeper produced three top-class stops before half-time as Boro threatened to break open the defensive grip Chelsea were looking to keep on the game . For the second 45 minutes it was Chelsea who made the chances , with Boro keeper Steve Pears reacting well to keep them out . Porterfield added : ‘ We started well but lost it a bit and I was happy to be level at half-time .
Idiom: in the dock (used idiomatically: yes)
1 The flying time from Thorney Island to Cherbourg was 35 minutes , and the aircraft were to fly in loose formation . P / O Atherton was a very experienced pilot , with a second pilot as navigator , so one can not accept that they could be so far off course as to reach the target thirty minutes later , especially as the fires started in the docks by the bombing raid of Blenheims of 59 Squadron could be seen from many miles away . 2 There was no torpedo on board when the aircraft crashed — no unexploded torpedo was found by the French , if the torpedo had exploded there would have been a tremendous explosion and the aircraft would have been totally destroyed .
Idiom: get up someone's nose (used idiomatically: yes)
Heston , who had director , script and cast approval , bought Peckinpah extra filming time by returning his salary to the studio , convinced they would n't accept it . They did . And while all this brouhaha was going on Richard Harris was getting up Heston 's famously broken nose . Harris , Heston claimed , may appear to be very strong , but he ' does seem to be one of those people who seemed to enjoy ill health . In any event , on this picture , he was from time to time spectacularly taken with a seizure of one kind or another . '
Idiom: with open arms (used idiomatically: yes)
J.S. Yes . so that it could be handled by abstract people . When the work goes to places where people have cancer , there 's no taboo at all , they just fall about you with open arms and say , ‘ How marvellous to be able to talk about it . That we could talk about having a breast removed or being badly damaged by surgery or our hair dropping out or whatever.’ So , it 's the difference between audiences : if you put it into one context it 's bad art , you put it into another context , it 's brilliant information .
Idiom: steer clear of (used idiomatically: yes)
Now he 's told the House of Commons that the biggest culprits were the Liberal Democrats themselves . ACTUALITY During the campaign Nigel Jones steered clear of the race issue , refusing to be drawn on questions about Mr Taylor 's colour . What Mr Patten objects to is the way that his supporters are supposed to have promoted him as’ the local candidate’ … ACTUALITY
Idiom: off the shelf (used idiomatically: no)
SunSoft Inc 's all - important solution for running Microsoft Corp Windows applications on its watershed Solaris 2.0-on - Intel operating system is reportedly being developed outside by a little - known 10-person firm called Praxsys Technologies Inc in Norwood , Massachusetts . Praxsys is one of a handful of noticeably small start - ups wrestling with the key interoperability issue facing Unix as it elbows its way on to the desktop . ‘ Snoopy,’ the code name given the unchristened Praxsys software , promises to take all current and future off - the - shelf shrinkwrapped Windows applications , whether written for Windows 3.0 , 3.1 or NT , and run them unmodified on any RISC or Intel Corp Unix platform in native mode . Praxsys has remapped the Windows 3.0 application programming interface to XLib and Motif interfaces , expanding Windows to X - Windows stations , devices Microsoft itself ca n't run on yet . As such , it has been designed to straddle client / server architectures .
Idiom: off and on (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ I forgot to wipe the sweat off my hands when I started swinging,’ he said , ‘ and my hands were so slippery that I fell.’ The demanding role meant Crawford had no understudy to begin with , so he carried on with a wrist cast , and Onna White changed the choreography to allow for this . During the two - week break before Billy opened in London , White revised the whole show 's choreography to make the most of designer Ralph Koltai 's massive sets , which included staircases appearing and disappearing , scenes sliding off and on , high overhead platforms sliding forward for dancers , a back projection screen being lowered , and streams of coloured lights . Peter Bowles left the show , as did his song , ‘ Shadrack and Duxbury’ . Another number , ‘ That Would n't Be You’ , was replaced by ‘ Is This Where I Wake Up?’ , sung by Crawford , Diana Quick and the dancers , who included Suzanne Danielle and Jo - Anne Robinson , who subsequently became the star 's secretary and girlfriend .
Idiom: one of those things (used idiomatically: yes)
Sorry . Most people wo n't know they 've got it anyway . That 's right , I mean , again , it 's one of those things , it 's in the benefits package , if you work for a company , you do n't want to know about it until you need to claim . That 's right , then you realise how little it is . Exactly right .
Idiom: wide of the mark (used idiomatically: yes)
Much of this chapter is hypothesis , but hypothesis based on known facts . It attempts to draw together information from several different fields and to construct from this information a theory of how homoeopathic remedies may work . The ideas expressed may well be wide of the mark , or they may not be , but this does not really matter since the purpose of hypotheses is to stimulate more ideas , and the research to either confirm or refute them . If they achieve this then they are of value , irrespective of whether they , themselves , are right or wrong . To get some idea of a possible solution to the problem that in potencies higher than the 12C none of the original starting material is likely to remain in the potency , we have to go back to some basic concepts of chemistry .
Idiom: pull strings (used idiomatically: yes)
Government repayment schedules encourage specialisation , driving costs up still more . Instead of considering more legislation , Bill Clinton should think about deregulating medicine . If the government would stop pulling its medical strings and ration Medicare and Medicaid , costs would go down and more Americans could afford insurance . The baroque complexity of the health - care debate , aptly summarised by you , contrasts with the simplicity of the issue . American health spending is exploding primarily because the government subsidises it .
Idiom: over the hill (used idiomatically: yes)
Wherever we turn we have woods , smooth downs , and valleys with small brooks running down them through green meadows … The hills that cradle these valleys are either covered with fern and bilberries , or oak woods , which are cut for charcoal … Walks extend for miles over the hill - tops ; the great beauty of which is their wild simplicity : they are perfectly smooth , without rocks . A housewarming was impulsively decided on to mark the arrival of the new Alfoxden tenants , and on about 17 July Coleridge , seeking ‘ change of air’ , arrived from Stowey in anticipation of the event . Though Charles Lamb had by now returned to London — envying his forgotten greatcoat for ‘ lingering so cunningly behind’ at Lime Street — the sudden appearance of John Thelwall was more than compensation .
Idiom: have a heart (used idiomatically: yes)
She thought you 'd probably never had a bathroom to yourself and that you 'd appreciate something a bit special.’ ‘ Oh , was n't that nice of her?’ ‘ She has a heart of gold,’ Mrs Porter said decisively , then added , ‘ Which is a good thing , actually , because if she did n't I would n't stay ! She 's very difficult to work for on her creative days!’ ‘ Is she ?
Idiom: break new ground (used idiomatically: yes)
Regular watchers of Rugby Special will have seen Llanelli , who beat Australia earlier in the season , playing some magnificent rugby as recently as last Saturday , when Stephens scored two tries in the victory over Cardiff , who meet Ayr at Millbrae tonight . Whether it is a sign of things to come , Boroughmuir , who have beaten Maesteg and Pontypool in recent seasons , field Grant Wilson at tighthead prop with David Cockburn on the loose . Edinburgh Acads also break new ground with a game against South Wales Police at Raeburn Place this afternoon . Their only change is Andy Richardson for David Jackson at wing forward . Academicals ' title challenge should be boosted by the return of Rob Wainwright and Derek Patterson from long - term injuries .
Idiom: above par (used idiomatically: yes)
This depends on both the current price of the bond and the call schedule . If the bond is currently trading below par , its operative life is likely to be the number of years to maturity . If the current price is above par , the operative life of the bond will depend on the date on which the call price falls below the current price . For example , if the current price is 103 , the bond is not likely to be called until three years before maturity . In this case , the operative life is three years less than the number of years to maturity .
Idiom: fly the flag (used idiomatically: yes)
This , he now recalled , was the same place . He had laughed when told about the ' devil group with lots of surplus young girls hanging around ' . Now he was not too amused as he stepped from his car beneath a large CB aerial flying a strange black flag engraved with a gold five - pointed star ( an occult symbol ) . By this time , the woman had left her car and the officer followed her into the house . He noticed a picture of a furry creature with a goat 's head and cloven hooves as they entered the sitting room .
Idiom: on the cards (used idiomatically: yes)
The amount of debt of the 400 families increased from £ 295,113 in 1984 to £ 836,409 in 1987 , an increase of 183 per cent . In 1984 only 7 per cent of the clients owed money on credit cards but in 1987 this figure was 23 per cent . The amount owed on credit cards was £ 12,407 in 1984 but £ 67,445 in 1987 . Media and social pressures must take some of the blame for the increase in debt . As in the 1950s NACAB will attempt to use the experience of its clients to change policies which may encourage debt .
Idiom: out of the box (used idiomatically: yes)
By 11 am the great British public had now arrived in force . They filled every aisle and till queue . They took everything out of their boxes ; they returned their Christmas goods — yes , even today , and they wanted to know if the Kenwood would work in America . But above all — they wanted to know where the toilets were . ' Would you just mind taking my money then I can go , ' bellowed one woman in the now lengthening queue .
Idiom: keep a lid on (used idiomatically: no)
The fry hatch in 24–48 hours , depending on the temperature of the water and are free - swimming on the third or fourth day when their first food should be rotifers , liquid fry food or other small foods , followed by newly - hatched brine shrimp . Aerate the water using an air stone to allow for food dispersement , and to keep the water fresh . Carry out water changes every other day to keep pollutants to a minimum and keep a good lid on the tank so the air above the water is of a similar temperature , when the labyrinth organ develops . Be sure to allow the fry plenty of growing room . The male will not tolerate any disturbance from his prospective mate while he is nest - building .
Idiom: stand the test of time (used idiomatically: yes)
With the council tax , the Government are set to repeat the mistakes of the poll tax . Like the poll tax , this property tax is deeply flawed . We believe that it is not fair , it is not practical , and it will not stand the test of time . The undoing of the poll tax was its unfairness . The people of Wales — not the local authority associations , not even Her Majesty 's splendid Opposition — killed the poll tax .
Idiom: sour grapes (used idiomatically: yes)
Intellectually substantial and provocative , outernational , cautious but daring , visually striking yet predictable , Vibe is currently surrounded by controversy . Its white , openly gay editor Jonathan Van Meter says he 's a journalist not a hip hop artists , but this assertion ( and the fact that other staff members are gay ) did n't stop Russell Simmons , Def Jam owner and Jones ' original partner in the project , from resigning — because of‘philosophical differences’ rooted in hip hop 's general ambivalence towards homosexuals . Are these just bad vibes and sour grapes or is hip hop just too naughty by nature for the mainstream ? Time will tell . David Troop
Idiom: out of the blue (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Sometimes I think I give and care too much . In fact my gynaecologist looked up the other day and said , ‘ Dame Edna , when will you stop giving?’ A funny thing for a gyno to say out of the blue — and the first time he 's ever looked me in the eye . ‘ It 's the same with my relationship with Madge . People who feel sorry for my old bridesmaid and travelling companion are barking up the wrong tree .
Idiom: jump to conclusions (used idiomatically: yes)
The art is to put across important information without using a language or style that carries a defamatory implication . That art was demonstrated wth conspicuously different talents by British editors and journalists in the aftermath of the revelation that Jeffrey Archer , best - selling novelist and deputy chairman of the Conservative party , had paid a Shepherds Market street - walker £ 2,000 to leave the country . Certain newspapers which jumped to the conclusion that he had engaged in sex with the woman were sued for libel , but were unable to discharge the burden of proving a case which hinged upon the word of a prostitute against the word of the plaintiff and his " fragrant " wife . " The Star " was ordered to pay £ 500,000 damages after a trial which amassed an estimated £ 750,000 in legal costs . Newspapers which confined themselves to demonstrable facts , and left readers to draw their own conclusions , were not sued .
Idiom: go straight (used idiomatically: yes)
Mhm . complete the final role play and come back here at five to three and we 'll look at then step two . Cos you 've got one more role play to do erm at your syndicate groups so do n't come here , go straight to your rooms , but start at two o'clock and then back here at five to three . Okay ? Yeah fine .
Idiom: grind to a halt (used idiomatically: yes)
This was a rebuff which could not go unpunished , especially since the income of the lord of Deols was reputed to be equal to the ordinary revenues of Normandy . Henry was busy in England so he at once ordered his eldest son to take an army from Normandy and Anjou and occupy the lordship with all speed . After some initial success , however , the Young King 's campaign ground to a halt and Henry decided that he would have to take a hand himself . It was time to clarify the confused political situation in Berry . In June 1177 he sent envoys to Paris bearing demands which were clearly intended to bring matters to a head .
Idiom: get the better of (used idiomatically: yes)
I won the 200 metres in fine style , clocking my best indoor time of 21.05 seconds . I felt that there was more to come , and looked forward to running against John Regis in the European Indoor Championships in Lievin three weeks later . I was well satisfied ; I had beaten what I considered to be a bogey track for me , determined not to let either the track or the stadium get the better of me . I had experienced a similar feeling of determination in the past . Just after I had passed my driving test I drove up a local hill on the way to my aunt 's house , coming to traffic at a standstill .
Idiom: at a stretch (used idiomatically: yes)
They helped give Vauxhall its best share of the UK market in 1992 at 16.7 per cent . Total UK car sales , at 266,072 , were 7 per cent up on the 1991 figure . Mr Ebbert said : ' While the UK market improved only slightly and there was some softening of continental markets , a combination of record UK market share and increased export business kept our production plants at full stretch . ' He added : ' Market conditions in Europe are worsening overall and our expectation is that 1993 has little hope of being as productive and profitable for the company as last year . ' Turnover , at £ 2.998 billion , was the highest in the company 's history .
Idiom: down the tubes (used idiomatically: yes)
Once regular rainfall was established , the palms could be removed and real trees planted . " Rain occurs when cold and warm fronts meet and all you need to do is create a source of low temperature to generate precipitation " . The trees are anchored by 20 metre polyurethane roots , formed by injecting liquid chemicals down a steel tube . The perforated plastic and foam trunk , branches and leaves absorb dew and frost during the night and gradually release water throughout the day , cooling surface air . Financial Times 6 June
Idiom: get the better of (used idiomatically: yes)
Never mind , though , because the instrumental ‘ good Mesh’ rides out , a regular opus next to‘Dies Irae I’ , but then so is a malfunctioning washing machine . Only two tracks in and you 're wondering how much you want to go on . By the time ‘ Cobweb Soup’ grinds in on thin guitar it 's already too late , as curiously gets the better of you . Alas , the joke — if that 's what it is — is wearing thin , the calamitous arrangements and bland narrative vocals militating against even the most patient hearing . The strangeness of this music puts you off the scent of its skillfulness , which is a shame in a way , but there 's absolutely no way it is unintentional .
Idiom: on the carpet (used idiomatically: yes)
She asks if we 'd like whisky or rum in our coffees , and the tension eases . I say whisky and Des says rum . She joins me on the carpet , and we all sit blowing on our coffees and warming our hands on the mugs . ‘ Glad you finish unscrambling that number,’ Des says . His eyes stay shut .
Idiom: on thin ice (used idiomatically: yes)
Doctor Plumfield surveyed Kate and Evelyn as they sat in front of him . Kate had asked for another day of leave to try and get her family affairs sorted out . It had been granted grudgingly and she knew she was on thin ice as far as her superiors were concerned . Sympathetic they may be , but at the end of the day she was a DI and should put her work first . Particularly a murder investigation .
Idiom: on the square (used idiomatically: yes)
They walked out onto the marble floor , a dancing floor . A string orchestra should have started to play an old - fashioned waltz . Melanie , a few paces behind Finn , trod carefully , carefully on the white squares only . If she did not tread on any of the black , perhaps when she got to the end of the floor she would shiver and rouse in her own long - lost bed , in her striped sheets , and say good morning to the apple tree and look at her own face in the mirror she had not broken . She had not seen her own reflection since .
Idiom: at the end of the day (used idiomatically: yes)
Dating back to the 18th Century the main house has been converted from the former guest quarters . Dinner in the superb restaurant will be provided and after breakfast you will have time to explore the area which is in the Muscadet region . At the end of day two you will transfer to Les Jardins du Crouesty . Situated above the Port of Crouesty this resort is ideally placed for enjoying the famous seafood and the surrounding sandy beaches and areas of interest . You will stay in spacious and well - appointed self catering studios for the remaining 6 nights and a programme of ½ day tours organised by the Port du Crouesty will be incorporated , featuring :