Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: on the hop (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Like much of your own verse?’ I hazarded . Caught on the hop , Edward frowned . For a moment I expected a knuckle - rapping response , but after a brief hesitation , he said , ‘ My verse was obscure because I was obscure to myself . I was a young man then … a young fool .
Idiom: home and dry (used idiomatically: yes)
The bore - holes nearest the ridge gave ages below seven million years , while those furthest away gave ages of over 160 million years . [ See Fig . 6 ] With this discovery the concept of sea - floor spreading was home and dry , and almost universally accepted . Many scientists saw at once its far - reaching implications and a whole spate of major papers were published in 1967 and 1968 , which quite suddenly added up together to make a completely new way of looking at the Earth 's main working parts : Plate Tectonics . Continental Drift and Plate Tectonics
Idiom: up the ante (used idiomatically: yes)
Even when , in 1978 , McLaren returned from Brazil with the news that Great Train Robber Ronnie Biggs was now ‘ lead singer’ of the Sex Pistols and someone McLaren earnestly claimed to be the missing Nazi war criminal Martin Bormann was the new bass - guitarist , Branson took it with disarming enthusiasm . A singing Ronnie Biggs was ‘ a good idea’ . It was McLaren 's pleasure always to up the ante … ‘ And we 'll call the record ‘ Cosh the Driver’ , Richard ' . Branson demurred at that .
Idiom: in the flesh (used idiomatically: yes)
It was a small , unpretentious , privately run hotel , with small rooms where conversations were not likely to be overheard . Charles was about the same age as Richie and had something of the same military bearing . Not so tall , he was dark and clean - shaven with sharp , observant eyes and a cleft in the flesh of his chin . He was wearing a well - tailored dark grey suit and a Vikings tie . He was the epitome of conservative respectability , but Patrick knew he had a hand in some of the most hairy activities of the secret intelligence services .
Idiom: on board (used idiomatically: no)
Newall was arrested on Wednesday after his yacht was tracked in the Atlantic by the frigate Argonaut and another Royal Navy ship . He was handcuffed and taken to a locker room where he was chained to a metal grille by the arms and legs . Yesterday , the Argonaut 's skipper , Captain Bob Stevens , told how the suspect was lured on board for a ‘ routine’ check on travel papers . Arrest When he rowed to the frigate , machine - gun carrying police told him : ‘ Hello , you are under arrest.’
Idiom: behind the scenes (used idiomatically: yes)
Then I grew up . ‘ TB’ was organic , low - fi , low - budget and defined the then fledgling Virgin record label . This sequel has the benefit of 20 years of studio technology , the might of Warner Bros , and behind the scenes , the unholy alliance of producer Trevor Horn and record company bigwig Rob Dickins . Apart from that , nothing much has changed . Echoes of those early themes and motifs weave in and out of‘II’ like friendly ghosts , Oldfield again favouring mantra - like repetition , layer upon layer of instrumentation , building to crescendo and giving way to acoustic guitar in a grand reprise of the original .
Idiom: err on the side of (used idiomatically: yes)
Cheshire Fire Brigade who set up an emergency operation centre on site said the cloud had been taken by the prevailing wind east of Northwich . A fire brigade spokesman said they had fed the name of the compound into a computer and the print - out said it could be toxic if it caught fire . ‘ We have to take precautions to protect members of the public and we err on the side of caution . If a fire involves a chemical compound the chances are it can be more toxic.’ DRAWING THEM IN ON THE WIRRAL
Idiom: cold feet (used idiomatically: yes)
It is not a mistake that all that happened as a result of Conservative policy , because the Conservative party has consistently been dedicated to raising the living standards and the material prosperity of our people . That is why we have consistently adopted a pro - European stance . We are following the commitment that we gave in 1973 to ever closer union , so why are we now beginning to get cold feet ? Surely the House appreciates that some problems go beyond national frontiers , particularly those affecting pollution and international trade . Our ability to negotiate a better deal for our people can only be strengthened by ever greater co - operation with other countries .
Idiom: right as rain (used idiomatically: yes)
Oh yeah . not taking her tablets when you 're feeling better we 'll come up and pick you up and take you out . Course , he went on Saturday , did n't and she was as right as rain ! Mm mm mm . Mm .
Idiom: have words (used idiomatically: yes)
There 's an excellent example in the Erm , but if it 's I do n't know anything about the weather , so I could n't look at that and analyse it in any way . I just had to say that is beautiful and I wish I had more words to describe it , but I have n't yet . Er , a scientist then , is often caricatured as an absent minded professor . So occupied with abstruse ideas , that he is incapable of coping with every day activities .
Idiom: up and running (used idiomatically: yes)
A major contribution will be Billingham 's £ 5 million reed bed . Similar trials are now underway on Wilton 's nylon works . Ammonia loads , now less than half the 1970 level , are set to fall further too , thanks to the new £ 66 million sulphuric acid recovery plant , which will be up and running within the year . The plant will also cut BOD . On Merseyside mercury discharges are less than half the 1987 levels .
Idiom: up to here (used idiomatically: yes)
Mm , it was It just imagine doing this in the weather that we had , God , up to here , wind and rain Right whose pears are those Paul ? Those are nice , I want some pears
Idiom: catch fire (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ It just hit the buildings fully . I thought I was having a nightmare . ‘ The whole thing caught fire and people in the street fell down , hit by pieces of the plane.’ A distraught mother said : ‘ We got out of our car and we saw an aeroplane flying very low over our house . ‘ My husband said , ‘ He 's going down.’
Idiom: in the long term (used idiomatically: yes)
Speaking at the Gallaher Business Challenge Awards , he said the change in tactics signalled a move away from concentrating purely on job promotion . A competitive world market made it essential for businesses to be at least as competitive as their overseas rivals . ‘ A more competitive Northern Ireland economy will of course lead to , in the long term , an increased level of secure and worthwhile employment,’ said Mr Brooke . ‘ The Gallaher finalists fit this profile — they have already marked themselves out as winners.’ The criteria for the awards emphasised total quality management and innovation .
Idiom: out and about (used idiomatically: yes)
Aye . We 'd had a little car before he got there . He said are you speaking to the no , no , around town he says , I do n't mind doing a bit more , you know , out and about not much about they just sat in the traffic , you know . Mm but erm so had it been a Foxhalls , something about a minute no , he said only for about a mile , that was it .
Idiom: call someone's bluff (used idiomatically: yes)
Those in his own party who have an ulterior motive in seeing the Government defeated over Maastricht have had their doubts about his leadership confirmed , not least by what appeared to be three conflicting government lines within one week and the belated admission that Parliament is a spectator rather than a player in the game . Hurd went some way to placate this view by assuring MPs that if they did not wish to incorporate the treaty into British law , by voting down the whole bill , then the treaty would not be ratified . He had little doubt that there was any danger of that happening and the MPs knew their bluff was called . But there is still a long way to go and the political timebomb is still ticking . Unless Major and the Hurd can neutralise it , the Government 's credibility is set to take the full force of the shock wave .
Idiom: for the time being (used idiomatically: yes)
Mirror appointed a second merchant bank adviser , Schroder Wagg , at the end of last year to work alongside its existing adviser , Samuel Montagu , which handled its flotation last May. Both banks have their own lawyers , while Mirror Group also retains a firm . Ernst & Young is acting as investigating accountants for the merchant bank and , for the time being at least , Coopers & Lybrand Deloitte , continues as the company 's accountants . Mirror directors are understood to be deeply concerned about the mounting costs as the company continues to work on its 1991 results figures and a report on its financial health , now expected later this month . The £ 12 m , which continues to rise , compares with the £ 17½m paid by the company in expenses when it raised £ 250 m in its stock market flotation last year .
Idiom: in the long run (used idiomatically: yes)
A national curriculum centrally determined is about to be imposed on the schools , and this is bound to encapsulate a philosophy of education , its nature and purpose , that arises directly out of the discontents of the last twenty years . for it is in secondary education , and in the transition from secondary education to the next stage , that we are being asked to admit the failure of the system , whether this is measured by parental dissatisfaction or by the number of school and university leavers who do not satisfy their potential employers . Even extremists of the 1960s , who believed that the task of a school was to ensure that children enjoyed themselves while they were pupils , must have had in mind , as well , some further outcome , some advantage that would flow in the long run to the children who had been encouraged , under that regime , to ‘ grow’ and ‘ blossom’and ‘ flourish’in the ‘ learning situation’provided by the class - room . The ‘ flourishing’ was not meant to end when the school door closed . for no one concerned with education could deny that , in teaching , teachers are looking to the future of the child .
Idiom: at a loose end (used idiomatically: yes)
Bob 's phone rang . Dyson , putting his own down a moment later , as Tessa looked around for her gloves , said , ‘ I know what , Tessa . You look rather at a loose end over there . Would you like to become a journalist for an hour or so , and copy out one or two ‘ In Years Gone By columns for us from the files ? It would help us out of a most tremendous hole if you would.n
Idiom: make history (used idiomatically: yes)
ENGLAND UNDER-21 ( for Mid - shires tournament , Birmingham December 14 - 16 ) : J Barrow ( Indian Gymkhana ) , D Luckes ( East Grinstead ) ; S Organ ( Firebrands ) , J Barber ( Old Loughtonians ) , J Lee ( East Grinstead ) , S Osborne ( Gloucester City ) , P Capper ( Formby ) , A Degun ( Barford Tigers ) , S Avery ( Havant ) , R Stokes ( Wakefield ) , G Banbury ( Slough ) , J Chana ( Bournville ) . Leicester offer £ 20,000 , car , and pension as bait for coaching director . LEICESTER are set to make club history by appointing a paid director of coaching . Having failed to lure the former coach Chalky White away from the Rugby Football Union , the Tigers are to advertise the post with a salary of around £ 20,000 , plus a pension and car . The secretary , John Allen , said : ' We need to expand our coaching organisation because people are finding it more and more difficult to do what is needed .
Idiom: off the shelf (used idiomatically: yes)
Clark found that the level of parasitaemia dropped dramatically in the mice following alloxan treatment . To confirm that it was due to free radical production he searched for a less complicated generator of oxygen radicals . His chemist colleagues suggested he tried a substance called t - butyl hydroperoxide — an ‘ off the shelf’ chemical reagent , whose ability to produce free radicals is well known to chemists . Substituting t - butyl hydroperoxide for alloxan in a similar experiment , Clark found as he had hoped , that parasitaemia again dropped radically . These experiments were later confirmed by a group at Syntex Research in California ( Lancet , 1982 , vol ii , p1431 ) .
Idiom: left and right (used idiomatically: no)
During 1988 in a desperate attempt to ameliorate the problem in the short term , the Government opened unused Army camps as temporary prisons . After the destruction of Strangeways prison and the dispute with the POA over conditions this option was again on the agenda in 1990 . Successive Governments , of both left and right , have failed to make any impact upon the excessive use of imprisonment as a means of punishment by the judiciary . To understand the reasons for this we need to look at penal policy in a wider economic and social framework . THE POLITICAL ECONOMY , PUNISHMENT AND IMPRISONMENT
Idiom: night and day (used idiomatically: yes)
They ought to get to know each other , see a little of the place they are in , have time to shop for family souvenirs and sample the local food and culture . If you try to squeeze these requirements in around the mainstream business , you will be left with scrappy little bits of free time that are useless , and your visitors will feel cheated . So you start by saying ( and these are purely arbitrary divisions , you can work out your own ) : ' We 're here for three nights and four days , let 's have one evening completely free , two or three meals in different , interesting locations ( include transport time ) and perhaps half a day free for shopping . Mark that time on the schedule and regard it as sacrosanct . What you 're left with then is the time for the ' meat ' of the programme .
Idiom: hold the purse strings (used idiomatically: yes)
More recently , the emergence of a more radical left wing element in local politics increased tension with the voluntary sector , as , for example , in Liverpool . Nearly all voluntary organisations depend to a substantial extent on funding from statutory services . This has major implications for the relationship between the two ; few local ' voluntaries ' can afford to offend those who hold purse strings and the nature of the services which they offer may sometimes be on the basis of a contract from the statutory sector ( for example , for meals - on - wheels ) rather than an independent initiative . It is fair to add , however , that voluntary initiatives do emerge and prosper , sometimes financed , wholly or in part , by the statutory sector . We have concentrated thus far on the two sectors statutory and voluntary , by which most formal care in the community is delivered .
Idiom: turn a blind eye (used idiomatically: yes)
Never again . This must be the watchword of the Western democracies who have so painfully and yet so necessarily dismantled Saddam Hussein 's war machine , at such a cost in lives and scarce resources . Never again , because Iraq 's military might was built with the active encouragement of some western powers , while many others turned a conveniently blind eye to their arms merchants ' activities . Never again , because in sheer economic terms it is lunacy to spend upwards of £ 80 million to knock out a war machine that actually only provided some £ 20 billion of contracts for western industry . A pretty poor rate of return indeed .
Idiom: keep a low profile (used idiomatically: yes)
Voice over Tight security surrounds these corridors at Central Television Master Control . They keep a low profile here , but this person and her colleagues have been chosen to perform some of the most important jobs on the station , though they 're never seen . As a Central Announcer , Hilary Holden writes her own scripts and has to be able to cope in a crisis . Hilary explains how she deals with on - air technical problems .
Idiom: from scratch (used idiomatically: yes)
It is easier for a horse to evade going correctly because correct work is hard work , requiring effort . Horses are not stupid and they soon grasp how best to avoid hard graft ! The pattern for retraining is the same as for training from scratch but often there exist problems which have to be corrected en route . A young , green horse will be weak but if worked correctly will gradually build up the necessary muscle to enable him to perform the required movements . He will show his fatigue by being apparently sluggish and lazy to the aids after working well for approximately 20 minutes .
Idiom: down in the mouth (used idiomatically: yes)
it 's sold so cheap . Mm . That erm , made me laugh because he said to his secretary erm you know , I I honestly do n't think your time is she is so down in the mouth . And he had , did did n't you say to him , have n't you got eyes in your head , could n't you see how Well
Idiom: when the chips are down (used idiomatically: yes)
You could find it useful to comment on past reactions and to ask for a fresh angle : ‘ When we 've talked about having some staff working from home , we 've always got bogged down in cost factors regarding the technology needed . Can we start to look at it this time from the benefits to some people in terms of travel and a quiet environment?’ Bear in mind that when the chips are down , we tend to revert to what we feel comfortable with and what we think has worked effectively in the past . In doing so , we confine our influencing ability to certain people and circumstances . The greater our adaptability the wider our sphere of influence .
Idiom: come of age (used idiomatically: yes)
After the purchase of the Sandringham Estate in 1862 by the Prince of Wales , Wolferton Station on the Great Eastern Railway became a royal station . In 1876 a handsome suite of royal waiting - rooms was erected and often used for luncheon parties when the royal party was on a shoot . The station was damaged in a curious fashion during the coming of age celebrations of the Prince of Wales 's eldest son , Albert Victor , Duke of Clarence and Avondale . Sanger 's Circus arrived to give a command performance for the estate workers , and an elephant escaped and demolished the station gates . Queen Victoria had first used the railway in 1842 to travel from Slough to Paddington and thereafter she became a regular railway traveller .
Idiom: steal the show (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ You have to remember they are the current league champions and had been training three nights a week . ‘ Tipperary are already through to the knock - out stages of the league and ca n't be caught , but mindful of their pride and arrogance they wo n't be doing us too many favours.’ Antrim went into the Limerick match with a restructured attack , and it paid dividends with centre half forward Gary O'Kane and Terence McNaughton hurling superbly , and Paul McKillen stealing the show in midfield . LINFIELD have asked Ballymena to name their price for Scottish striker Neil Candlish . The Blues were chasing Candlish before yesterday 's Bass Irish Cup knockout by Bangor .
Idiom: take the plunge (used idiomatically: yes)
You can take your pick from love with or without marriage , sex without marriage , marriage without love or sex , or sex without anything . A recent Office of Population Censuses and Surveys report concluded that marriages between couples who had previously lived together were 60 % more likely to break down . Since over 50 % of us seem to opt for a period of co - habitation before we take the marital plunge , these findings are pretty sobering stuff . Why do so many of us feel the need to test the water first ? Is a period of living together any indication of how the marriage will fare ?
Idiom: over the counter (used idiomatically: no)
Chapter Two Carrie stood behind the counter of the dining rooms with her fair hair pulled up at the back of her head and held in place with a pair of large bone combs . She brushed aside a wisp of hair which had slipped down over her face and smiled placatingly at the florid - faced docker leaning forward over the tea - stained counter . ' Two o ' toasted drippin ' ? Yeah , I 've put yer order in , Joe .
Idiom: give and take (used idiomatically: yes)
But it is too big to be workable as a steering group . A principle of multilateral talk - shops is that conversation is not possible with more than 10 delegations in the room . With 20 delegations , each reads prepared statements ; there is no give - and - take , and the communiqué is a watered down least - common - denominator press release . The G-20 needs a smaller informal steering group , a G-6 or G-9 , which could meet on the eve of the main G-20 meeting and discuss how to organize the discussion in the larger group . It would be unwise to be too specific at this point about who should be in the smaller group .
Idiom: rank and file (used idiomatically: yes)
When most of the leading Social Democrats , including I. Martov ( 1873–1923 ) and , following the congress , Plekhanov threw their weight against Lenin , the Bolshevik faction failed to gain control of the Party 's leading organs . Some of the implications of the schism became apparent during the upheaval of 1905 . The Mensheviks threw themselves into the working - class trade unions and other organizations which sprang up , seeking the fusion of the Party and the rank - and - file proletariat . The Bolsheviks , on the other hand , reacted with much more caution to these institutions and tended to emphasize the need to establish Party control over them . A related difference concerned the revolutionary timetable .
Idiom: get a life (used idiomatically: yes)
PRICE OF BEAUTY Marjorie Wallace HOW nice that former Miss World Marjorie Wallace has got her life in order . I remember the scandal surrounding her in the Seventies , when she appeared to be just a naive young girl caught up in the trappings of fame . She looked so happy in your pictures , and may she stay that way .
Idiom: to boot (used idiomatically: yes)
Top Africans and black Americans met in Gabon to foster brotherly feeling . Louis Farrakhan , a radical American activist , attacked African leaders for living well while their people starved . In a surprise result , Burundians voted in their first democratic election since 1962 to boot out their military president , Pierre Buyoya , in favour of a banker , Melchior Ndadaye . Teddy Kollek , aged 82 and mayor of Jerusalem since 1965 , says he will seek another five - year term at elections in November . Stunted
Idiom: on the face of it (used idiomatically: yes)
Now , if it had simply been given to the woman , Common Law would have said , ‘ We can pay no attention to this separate use . If it is the woman 's , it comes under the husband 's control , in spite of anything you say to the contrary.’ But then the property was not given to her ; it was given on the face of it to the trustee . Common Law could not prevent the trustee employing it for the wife 's benefit , and Equity would compel him to do so . And then Equity went one step further .
Idiom: pie in the sky (used idiomatically: yes)
July 1992/ROSS ON WYE / Herefordshire Voice over a crazy pie in the sky idea dreamt up over a few beers finally became a reality today and a new world record . The task for balloonist and skydiver Ian Ashpole from Ross On Wye was this , to walk between two hot air balloons along a fifteen foot stainless steel rope , just one and a half inches wide at ten thousand five hundred feet . There 'd been months of preparation and delays because of the weather .
Idiom: smart alec (used idiomatically: yes)
I closed my eyes . ' Ah , ' I said . ' Dear God , we pray that as well as suffering whatever part of the general physical unpleasantness involved in the Iran - Iraq war you may judge to be rightly his , you can find a spare area in his suffering , er , anti - create , for Mr R. Khomeini , late of Tehran and Qom , to experience at least some of the , umm , despair and continual worry currently being undergone by the novelist Mr S Rushdie , of Bombay and London , heathen and smart - alec though he may well be . Amen . ' ' Amen , ' echoed Uncle H. I opened my eyes .