Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: on the face of it (used idiomatically: yes)
If they 're not going to score now they never will . ' Striker Kevin Campbell looks the most likely to drop out as Arsenal ponder a run of six games which have brought them just two points and one goal . On the face of it this may seem a strange tactic for a side who , on paper , possess probably the most lethal front - line in the Premier League , but Graham , still likely to be without ankle - injury victim Paul Merson , is seeking to restore stability to stop the slump . In a furious outburst after their match at Highfield Road , Atkinson described Villa 's performance as ' the worst since I took over ' . Atkinson fumed : And he was scathing in his condemnation .
Idiom: break even (used idiomatically: yes)
The underwriting agent reported a 30pc fall for the six months to March 31 , dropping to £ 2.6 m from £ 3.7 m in the same period last year . And it only managed to pay an interim dividend of 2.75p , compared to 5.5p last time . Wise Speke 's performance showed that although stockbroking commissions had increased by £ 400,000 in the period it had only managed to break even . Sturge chairman David Coleridge said : ‘ Wise Speke 's performance in the first half year suffered from the depressed level of activity in the Stock Market as a result of political and economic uncertainty prior to the General Election . ‘ In the last few weeks , however , the level of activity has improved considerably and we are confident that Wise Speke will make a reasonable contribution to the group 's profits for the full year .
Idiom: sit tight (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ I thought of that . But that 's how it works sometimes . They 're ordered to sit tight until the thing 's big enough and ripe enough to be taken . They obviously thought that Helmstadt was worth sacrificing.’ ‘ Or that you would n't succeed … ’
Idiom: make a move (used idiomatically: no)
Morgan has been looking for a white knight for the last two weeks since insurance broker Willis Faber announced it was selling its 20 per cent stake in the merchant bank to Banque Indosuez , part of Compagnie Financiere de Suez . Willis Faber is holding back almost half the shares until it receives shareholder backing for the sale at a meeting on November 29 . If someone wants to make a move on Morgan , the would - be predator will have to move before the Willis Faber meeting . Shares in Morgan edged up 1p to 469p last night . Tie Rack looks rather out of fashion as sales slow down Outlook .
Idiom: up in the air (used idiomatically: yes)
Howard Clark is called back into the squad … and there 's good news of Chris Pike he 's recovered from the flu Rochdale are high flyers … only been beaten once this season … so United have to be ready to take off we 're up in the air for the goal of the week from the star of the week … Oxford United 's Chris Allen The biggest Central South crowd of the weekend will be at Blenheim Palace … for the big horse show … that 's where we start our action roundup
Idiom: up for grabs (used idiomatically: yes)
The annual P&O European Ferries - sponsored event gets underway on Sunday at 10 am from the Valley Leisure Centre . Competitors face a half - mile swim in the Valley pool , a 15-mile cycle , ending with a run of 4 . miles . Up for grabs are six travel awards from Larne to Cairnryan for the first male and female in each of three age categories . And the organisers are also inviting novice and first - time triathletes to compete for one of a dozen spot prizes . The entry fee is £ 7.50 .
Idiom: under fire (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ The changes are not delivering the goods ’ JILL PALMER THE Government 's cash-before-care NHS shake-up has come under fire — from sickened hospital managers . The men in dark suits put in charge of the changes do n't like their new look health service . Most health chiefs believe the reforms have gone too far and too fast according to a report published yesterday .
Idiom: break someone's heart (used idiomatically: yes)
Out of reach , and all of them too busy with their own lives … But they must have seen how he hated it . ‘ I broke my heart over him when he went to the shop,’ said Cis . ‘ He hated it . Oh — he hated it.’
Idiom: in light of (used idiomatically: yes)
Alternatively , they may be seen as relating to foreign investments which should be translated at the year - end ( the closing rate method ) . The essential difference between these methods arises because the exchange rate between the local currency and the domestic currency of the holding company may have changed between the two dates . Management process and accounting As outlined in chapter I , the management process is primarily concerned with decision - making , that is choosing a course of action from a set of possible courses of action in the light of agreed objectives . These decisions range from the routine ( for example , preparing daily work schedules ) to the non - routine , such as beginning a new contract . Decision - making underlies the commonly encountered division of the management process into planning and control .
Idiom: at the end of the day (used idiomatically: no)
Why Keiran Goss left the law for the guitar Star of the County Down ' At the end of the day , it is as a songwriter that I would most like to be remembered ' A QUALIFIED solicitor who has practised law is currently one of the biggest draws on the Irish music scene . The only case Kieran Goss has ever handled is the one which contains the tool of his chosen trade — the guitar .
Idiom: wouldn't hurt a fly (used idiomatically: yes)
( In this respect , Straw Dogs could almost have been called John and Mary in Cornwall . ) His young wife says , ‘ You 're here because there 's no place else to hide.’ It seems as though he would n't hurt a fly , except there is an inkling that he could become nasty when he starts to throw fruit and vegetables at the cat , who is as suspicious of this ‘ foreigner’ as the natives . When the cat is found hanged in the closet ( the first act of violence after nearly an hour 's build - up ) , his wife reproaches him with being a coward because he will not confront the men she thinks have killed the animal . There is also the suggestion that he does n't satisfy her sexually .
Idiom: play ball (used idiomatically: yes)
An outer tentacle of London stretched before her in all its identical horror , a ribbon of living units on each side , a mock Tudor pub at every roundabout , fragmented countryside surviving amidst the sprawl of buildings . She had been offered a job called ‘ copy chief at one of the agency 's clients on the strength of the work she had done for this client at the agency . As the money was better , all the children still at home , and moreover as the bank had begun to play ball - games again , she had felt constrained to accept . Misery acquaints one with strange employment . That is how Jane entered British Industry .
Idiom: down the road (used idiomatically: yes)
The yellow lights on their anorexic columns look mad , like cyclopean triffids , very thin , very tall . But they are one example of white South Africa 's debt to Soweto . The township got electric light a few years ago , yet for as long as anyone could remember power - station cooling stacks had blasted out steam day and night ; the power went to white Johannesburg a few miles down the road . No one thought it odd , just the way things were in the ‘ old’ South Africa . Today , Soweto has lights — so you can see who is mugging you , the locals like to observe .
Idiom: night and day (used idiomatically: no)
Well who work nights . it 'll , it 'll apply to nights and days that wo n't it ? I mean we might find that we 've got a problem with members generally getting paid I 'll be astonished if we get paid time off for this .
Idiom: in the pink (used idiomatically: yes)
She had wanted it since last Christmas when they went to the pantomime in Dublin and she had seen the girls on the stage dancing in pink velvet dresses like this . They had heard that they sold them in Clery 's , and that was only a few minutes from where the bus stopped when it went to Dublin . Benny was large and square , but she would n't look like that in the pink velvet dress . She would be just like the fairy dancers they had seen on the stage , and her feet would n't look big and flat in those shoes because they had lovely pointy toes , and little pom - poms on them . The invitations to the party had been sent out ten days ago .
Idiom: turn a blind eye (used idiomatically: yes)
This was the second of the two main developments in the emancipation process which took place in 1856 . Neither the creation of the Secret Committee on the Peasant Question , however , nor the orders to Nazimov promised to be significant milestones . By setting up the Secret Committee Alexander acted in the style of his father ; by ordering Nazimov to delve more deeply into the views of the north - westerners he showed sympathy for a landless concept of emancipation which belonged to the reign of Alexander I. The regime seemed to be moving in the direction not so much of freeing the serfs as of turning a blind eye to them ( by consigning their future to yet another assembly of antediluvian officials ) or making their condition worse ( by opting for a form of emancipation which would blight their future ) . If the government had executed the plans it came up with in 1856 , peasants would have been justified in thinking that the devil of serfdom was preferable to the deep blue sea of reform . Even in 1856 , however , there were signs that the ideas of Lanskoi , Levshin , and the north - western gentry might eventually be upstaged .
Idiom: get to the bottom of (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ It has flattened everybody here — including the players . And coming after two away wins we must wonder what more we have to do . ‘ The only way to get to the bottom of it is to confront the chairman . It is the first time I have asked to know what is going on.’ Crosby took charge after leading Sunderland to the FA Cup final last May and was given a one - year contract .
Idiom: go to your head (used idiomatically: yes)
There is one chap who comes in three times a day for his fix . ' She said the effect of the hangover cure , which has a strong alcohol content , could be quite dramatic . ' If your were teetotal it would go straight to your head and you would feel very high . ' The company says the concoction is available by mail order but it has no plans to mass produce it . Church 's SOS to save youngster
Idiom: out of pocket (used idiomatically: yes)
She 'd gone back into the house to fetch something and his Dad was all ready in the car waiting to drive Uncle Walter back to his house . Uncle Walter had walked down the road a bit with Philip . ' I 've been meaning to give you these of Uncle John 's , Phil , ' he 'd said taking the medals out of his pocket . ' Seeing as you 're interested in that sort of thing . I 've no use for them .
Idiom: round the bend (used idiomatically: yes)
The Duchess of York is reported to be receiving psychiatric help and has therefore fallen victim of the classic dilemma . If you are known to be seeing a shrink you are deemed to be going round the bend . But if you are going round the bend and resist seeking any help you are deemed to be perfectly okay . THE LIMIT RICK SKY
Idiom: rub shoulders (used idiomatically: yes)
Althorp is closed to the public until further notice . It will re - open under new management , when the answer to the big question will be revealed . Has the chocolate - box portrait of Raine , Countess Spencer , resplendent with lacquered back - combed hair and bare shoulders — the picture that rubbed shoulders so anachronistically with Van Dycks and Gainsboroughs — been removed from the staircase ? If the cuddly Lord Spencer , for whom the nation held its breath as he walked down the aisle of St Paul 's Cathedral to give away his daughter Diana , will be sorely missed , it is far from clear whether the departure of his widow from Althorp will be seen as a loss . The families of the nobility have always fascinated the visiting public more than their historic homes and works of art .
Idiom: night and day (used idiomatically: yes)
A lot of the pain and loss is felt when the parent they have known and loved becomes so altered . When a single person has lived with a parent for most of their lives and cared for them devotedly , the effect of the bereavement is likely to be felt in many different ways . For years , perhaps , their life has revolved round the needs of the elderly or sick parent , and care has been constant , night and day . Disturbed sleep has become a habit that will not be broken at once . If they have been used to rushing home from work or watching the clock during any stolen time with friends , they may find it hard to adapt to the fact that there is no longer any need to hurry back .
Idiom: twist someone's arm (used idiomatically: yes)
Tom twisted Mary 's arm and she agreed to donate some money to our charity .
Idiom: go straight (used idiomatically: yes)
You have n't time to put it on . He straight out through the door he forgot about it He must have been out with his bike probably come in got off his bike went straight inside at least I brought my drink with me Well you wo n't offer me a drink . him one as well . It depends if she lets him in .
Idiom: foot the bill (used idiomatically: yes)
It has already been argued in some detail that foot the bill is semantically transparent . It is also un - idiom - like in the fact that bill is fairly freely modifiable : I 'm expected to foot the bill . the electricity bill . all the bloody bills !
Idiom: dyed in the wool (used idiomatically: yes)
His complete acceptance of the ‘ protest’ in ‘ Protestant’did not come till a few years later when some leading members of his Mount Merrion , Belfast , congregation insisted that he object to the Church 's ‘ street corner boy’activities of picketing the Irish Presbyterian Church General Assembly . He considered this for a short time and concluded that he had to make a public stand for those things which he believed . From that point on he was ‘ a real dyed in the wool Free Presbyterian’ . The third group consists of those who were positively attracted by the controversy and some of these were unionist before they were ‘ saved’ Protestants . Harry Cairns first met Paisley in 1958 when he was promoting Albert Duff as a Protestant Unionist candidate against Maginnis , the then Attorney - General , in the rural Iveagh constituency .
Idiom: on and off (used idiomatically: yes)
Quality win : Mech Tool Engineering of Darlington has achieved the quality accreditation of BS5750 for its blast and fire wall designs . Mech Tool is currently manufacturing fire and blast walls for oil company Shell for on and off shore use . Franchise help : A business specialising in franchising has been established in Darlington .
Idiom: on the house (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Why were you spying on him?’ ‘ I wasn't!’ ‘ Yet you must have been keeping watch on the house — why?’ The boy was cruelly embarrassed and Wycliffe felt sorry for him . ‘ Is the girl who lives there accustomed to receive men?’
Idiom: hot air (used idiomatically: yes)
Holly searched for the next opportunity to strike again at the administration of the camp that held him . Darkness outside the hut , and beyond that darkness the ring of light from the arc lamps over the fence and the wire . The hut windows were misted as if a concerted bluster of hot air had steamed them . The lights were on inside the hut . A few men read magazines , Feldstein was as always with a book .
Idiom: have a ball (used idiomatically: no)
' We are going to rival Sunderland for the right to stage the European Championships , ' he said . Meanwhile , Keegan is happy that Newcastle are going out of 1992 on a high after a roller - coaster 12 months on Tyneside . ' I would love to have a crystal ball and see where we will be next Christmas . It has got to be the Premier League , ' he added . The Newcastle boss also revealed why he sold goal machine Mick Quinn to Coventry for a cut - price £ 250,000 and that he had received mail questioning his decision to sell .
Idiom: out of pocket (used idiomatically: yes)
Mackie came through from having breakfasted with Perkin saying she wanted to know how the trial had gone . She was n't surprised to see Doone , only resigned . I made her some coffee and she sat and watched while Doone picked a piece of paper out of his breast pocket and handed it to Sam . ' A receipt , sir , ' he said , ' for three lengths of floorboard retrieved from the dock in your boathouse . ' Sam unfolded the paper and looked at it dumbly .
Idiom: slip through the net (used idiomatically: yes)
Buildings are not listed lightly : they have to come up to strict standards to qualify . If it is not listed , should it be ? There are still many buildings that are not listed simply because they have not yet been properly surveyed , or have somehow slipped through the net . Even though it may not qualify for listing , the building may have interesting features — architectural details , original doors or internal fittings . It may be that the weathered materials from which it is built are particularly attractive and there is something about the building that is pleasing to the eye — soft red brick or golden stone , patterned brickwork or decorative ironwork .
Idiom: take the plunge (used idiomatically: yes)
I do n't know what to think . But if there is n't one then nothing makes any difference , does it , and if there is I 'm sure it 'll all be far too spiritual for anyone to get in a huff over the way the rest of us carry on . ' The part of the city through which they were walking reminded Zen of Venice , but a Venice brutally fractured , as though each canal were a geological fault and the houses to either side had taken a plunge or been wrenched up all askew and left to tumble back on themselves , throwing out buttresses and retaining walls for support as best they could . ' I mean , do you really think the dead sit around counting who goes to the funeral and how many wreaths there are and how much they cost ? ' his companion carried on . ' I just hate cemeteries , anyway .
Idiom: catch fire (used idiomatically: yes)
Things you did n't know you did n't know By Graeme Donald YOU will probably have seen many films in which cases of dynamite catch fire and detonate to great cinematic effect within a few seconds . But that is impossible . Dynamite needs a tremendous heat — around 360F — before it will explode .
Idiom: bottom drawer (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Have you found them yet?’ demanded Bella from the living room . For a wild moment , Marie thought she meant the notes . ‘ They 're in the bottom drawer , with me knickers!’ ‘ Yes , I 've got them.’ Marie took the stockings back into the living - room .
Idiom: stake a claim (used idiomatically: yes)
Attempts to refloat the monarchy after the 1936 abdication of Edward VIII were made easier by the fact that the royal family included a king with a stammer and two princesses . By the 1990s the royal family spanned four generations , and the two princesses had acquired a husband each ( one marriage ended in divorce ) , six children , three children - in - law and half - a - dozen grandchildren . As the cast list expanded through royal marriages and the creation of a brood of ‘ nearly royals’— frivolous young men and women staking a claim to attention in the gossip columns simply because another member of the family had a genuine connection with the Windsors — the roles could be constantly juggled to satisfy an appetite which had been primed by the Palace itself . The change from mythic beings to human beings , while it demeaned individual younger members of the royal family ( ‘ How big is Fergie 's bottom?’ ) , did make their personal lives easier in one respect . In 1953 , Princess Margaret had been obliged to call off her relationship with the divorced Group Captain Peter Townsend on the advice of the prime minister and the Queen 's private secretary .
Idiom: turn the tables (used idiomatically: yes)
The early months of 1944 saw two further Allied successes . In February the Japanese made a great effort to surround a British and Indian force in Arakan , but the result was a resounding victory for our men , who had indeed been cut off for some days , but supplied by air . Fighting with tremendous courage , they turned the tables completely . Meanwhile , General Stilwell advanced up the Hukawng Valley with American - trained Chinese troops . To aid him , a large airborne force of Chindits was landed on the wide bend of the Irrawaddy between Bhamo and Katha .
Idiom: break new ground (used idiomatically: yes)
At first it would be used to launched satellites at a tenth the cost of the shuttle . Britain has often led the way in aerospace technology , without reaping the benefits . Concorde broke new ground , but lost its makers a fortune . So would it be the same with Skylon ? Male speaker
Idiom: fall into place (used idiomatically: yes)
Even to refusing her new boots . She thought guiltily of the money she had been spending on new clothes and of the new slippers she had ordered with the amethyst decoration . And then the full implication of her cousin 's words fell into place . ‘ Marriage ? But I 've been promised to Craig for years , I ca n't break my word.’
Idiom: hit the road (used idiomatically: yes)
Girl , 18 , dies after freak trip in road A GIRL on an evening out died in a freak accident by just tripping over a kerb . Gina Coulstock , 18 , stumbled , fell heavily and was knocked out when she hit the road . An ambulance took her to hospital in Abertillery , Gwent , but she was dead on arrival . Friends and relatives were comforting her stunned family yesterday .
Idiom: in the short run (used idiomatically: yes)
It 's only the inefficient producers that support their agricultures , because it 's those inefficient producers that need support , erm , so , in the , in the long run , world supply , world supply will contract , but in the short run , you know , farmers in these er , efficient countries of the world may well erm , continue in production because they may , may be able to cut their average variable costs , it 's only when in , in the long run , you know , providing farmers can cover their average variable costs , they 'll continue in production in the short run . Right , in the long run , they 've got to cover all their costs , right , they will be driven out of business , but that may take some time . Alright , so in , in the short run , because more is being produced , alright , and demand has been increased very much , or in world terms , then market prices will fall . All market prices will fall . And world market prices also tend to fall because these erm sort of protectionist programmes are often too successful , so not only do we reach self sufficiency , but you reach the status of net exporter .
Idiom: up to scratch (used idiomatically: yes)
What had happened was still too new , too vividly painful . ‘ We just do n't get on,’ Robyn declared neutrally . ‘ He 's angry and irritable and he 's made it clear from the very beginning that he does n't expect me to come up to scratch.’ ‘ Well , well,’ Anne remarked , ‘ so that 's why you were reticent about your stay in the Cotswolds . I thought you were a bit depressed when you returned.’
Idiom: take the piss (used idiomatically: yes)
had a girl from another troop Lynn somebody ca n't remember her last name any way her first name was Lynn and as rumour had it , she 'd had everybody in the bedroom Yeah so we started called her lip , but that happened before I got there so , as I got there it just like , as I joined got in with the regulars it started to peter out a bit , but I got fooled with a couple of times I thought they were taking the piss , alright Lynn how you doing , you know , still . See the thing was she , she , the best fact the only reason she joined the T A was to get Right ok love , we will do our best . Fucking well will