Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: break ranks (used idiomatically: yes)
Nothing in the Gala parade could compete with this . One or two of the surrounding faces expressed alarm but loud laughter was the general response . The adults were almost holding each other up but the little brownies and wolf cubs made my most appreciative audience , breaking their ranks and staggering about helplessly in the roadway while their leaders tried to restore order . I caused chaos , too , in the Houlton Silver Band , who were hoisting their instruments prior to marching off . If they had any ideas about bursting into tune they had to abandon them temporarily because I do n't think any of them had breath to blow .
Idiom: swings and roundabouts (used idiomatically: yes)
no liability shall arise to the Vendor and the Purchaser shall not have any claim whatsoever against the Vendor in respect of any breach of any of the Warranties if and to the extent that such breach or claim would not have arisen but for any voluntary act , omission , transaction or arrangement after Completion of the Purchaser ; VENDOR 'S ARGUMENTS C.4 where there is a corresponding surplus arising from some other matter — e.g. over provision of liabilities ( swings and roundabouts ) ; PURCHASER 'S ARGUMENTS On similar assets only ( ‘ like for like’ ) .
Idiom: one of those things (used idiomatically: no)
' How ? ' ' I never knew . It was one of those mad things where you do n't know if you 've done something wrong and no one will ever tell you . What happened was , one of my students wrote something in an examination essay and it got me fired . I never found out what .
Idiom: nuts and bolts (used idiomatically: no)
Er But one thing I must stipulate Nuts and , nuts and bolts and stuff like we 'll deal with the other side . But Yeah .
Idiom: hold your own (used idiomatically: yes)
Well let me tell you … ’ ‘ I said no such thing,’ Sean interrupted . ‘ You could hold your own with the best . I said ' twould not suit you , and I meant it as a compliment . You 're not the one for dressing up , visiting , gossiping , idling your time away.’
Idiom: have a heart (used idiomatically: yes)
Let 's go there tomorrow , she 'd suggested , and then talked about her previous visits , enthusing about the place so much that he grew quite determined to dislike it . But it was n't until Ellen came to pick him up that he discovered that she had already bought everything for a picnic lunch . One o'clock in Piazza dei Partigiani after a stressful morning at work was very different from eleven o'clock the night before after making love , but Ellen was bubbling with such enthusiasm that he had n't the heart to voice his reservations . But he still thought it was crazy , and he 'd been right . Here they were , parked a thousand metres up the dough - shaped mountain , huddled in Ellen 's Fiat 500 because despite the sun the wind outside was wicked .
Idiom: get lost (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ My friend is sick — in hospital.’ She turned as he reached her , hardly out of breath after his steep climb . ‘ It was too late to come , we got lost in the town.’ She could just see by the light of the wrought - iron lamps that he was wearing a shirt with frilled sleeves , and that his hair fell about his face . He stood close to her , and she felt the heat from his body .
Idiom: make tracks (used idiomatically: no)
Once you start kicking it you 've no chance , you 've got to pass the ball . You 're listening to the FOX Report . Also playing are Witney Talent to bulldock in the second division of the Beezer Homes League while Abingdon town makes the short track to Maidenhead United in the Vauxhal League division to Falf . Cricket ; excuse me , and in the Benson and Hedges Cup , the Combined Universities team are 170 for 7 after 51 overs in this first match of their round group . They 're chasing Lancashire 's 210 with 4 overs to go .
Idiom: strike a chord (used idiomatically: yes)
The events of May 1968 inflated still further the Sartrean myth of Nizan the youthful iconoclast . Reproduced in the heady atmosphere of the May events , Nizan 's work at last coincided with its sociopolitical environment . Above all , the belligerent youthfulness of his writings struck a chord in the hearts of student militants . Nothing illustrates more dramatically the extent to which Nizan 's work fired the imagination than the spectacle of Sartre himself publicly criticising traditional " institutionalised " intellectuals for their lack of imagination , publicly insulting Raymond Aron for his failure to take note of the significance of the May events , and extolling by implication Nizan the youthful iconoclast , an exemplary dissident intellectual in tune with the spirit of the times . Beyond the immediate cultural spectacle of the May events , however , a more fundamental question was being asked concerning the political strategy of the French communist party .
Idiom: play with fire (used idiomatically: yes)
After an accident in which a pilot was killed by a strike , the remains of the aircraft showed the true potential power of nature . The main spars were burnt where the control cables had been melted away . It was obvious from this that in going into storms we were quite literally playing with fire . The effects of electrical discharges on glass fibre and carbon fibre structures are uncertain , but it is clear that any moisture in the material would be turned to steam by a flash and would certainly cause delamination and very expensive damage . Clearly , therefore , we should take heed of these warnings and never enter clouds which are actively electric .
Idiom: go through the motions (used idiomatically: yes)
A Title : PAPER PEOPLE ’ , which survives as a phrase in Shatov 's mouth , tossed up twice by the polemical flood . A paper person is a walking theory , and one which may not even believe in itself ; and then the paper person will not merely have nobody , he will have no theory to be . He belongs to a paper society which goes through the motions of life , in the air , notionally . Many a reader of The Possessed will have smiled at Von Lemke 's paper cut-outs — the conductor waving his baton , the bustling railway porter , the hell-fire gesticulating preacher — and at the same time he will have wondered why the microcosmic animated toys feel so supremely right for this novel . Shatov directs his paper-person thrust against himself too .
Idiom: pecking order (used idiomatically: yes)
Whereas territorial individuals are dominant in their own area but subordinates in other areas , hierarchically grouped individuals have the same status wherever they go . Their rank is determined not by place but by person . Some individuals manage to intimidate all their companions and rise to the top of the peck - order . Others sink to the bottom . This arrangement can become part of a reproductive grouping , but it is also frequently observed in non - breeding groups , where a hierarchy develops in relation to food sources .
Idiom: go from strength to strength (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ This was a one - horse race . TVR has pulled off what should have been impossible . In a year when many other small car makers were struggling ( and some failing ) , TVR went from strength to strength with a sensational new car and a brand new engine’ Highly commended FERRARI
Idiom: hit home (used idiomatically: yes)
When this attempt by pseudo - Britain succeeds , the real British look desperately for evidence of their own national achievement in the first moon landing , and find it in the fact that one of the astronauts is wearing a British watch : ‘ This is a great day for us . Let no one say we are lagging behind.’ While some of the same satirical zest is evident in The Bed Sitting Room ( 1969 ) , Lester 's chronicle of a post - holocaust world where a stunned Ralph Richardson imagines he is turning into a bedsitter and a doctor tries to keep the old traditions alive by having someone read the BBC News , and the film shows evidence of a superabundant imagination , the narrative is too unfocused for the satirical barbs to hit home , and the result is often tedious to watch . The Americans came to London and invested large amounts of money in local film production , but put nothing into the creative infrastructure . They rode a wave for a while , thinking they saw a pool of talent that could be exploited and a cultural scene rich in potential stories which , together with the relative cheapness of British film production , would be enough to guarantee success .
Idiom: with a view to (used idiomatically: yes)
I doubt it actually , I think they , it ought to be but I do n't think erm the people appointing are likely to look outside the immediate environs , and Erm , it would be unsafe , I think , to work on an assumption that what we 're going to er one post becoming available through natural wastage per year , and even that erm , highish I think . Well , where I currently am is is saying that we should seek to revue the Commission 's overall boundaries with a view to us taking on some extra work , and that meanwhile we should suspend further recruitment . Full stop ? Yes .
Idiom: get on someone's nerves (used idiomatically: yes)
You ca n't do what you sodding well like … ' Her diatribe was cut off by Michael who stormed into the kitchen . The constant bickering between Maura and his mother was beginning to get on everyone 's nerves . ' For Christ 's sake , Muvver , give it a rest . Let the girl go out if she wants to .
Idiom: tit for tat (used idiomatically: yes)
I share my hon . Friend 's analysis of the issue and later this afternoon I shall be announcing in a more detailed answer an increase in the RUC manpower establishment of 441 extra policemen . Rev. Martin Smyth Does the Secretary of State agree that most politicians and Church leaders have asked that there should be no tit - for - tat shootings ? However , will the right hon . Gentleman accept from me , speaking as the Member of Parliament for Belfast , South , that those engaged in terrorism are not inclined to listen to such appeals , and that the security situation must be dealt with ? We sympathise with victims in north Belfast , with those in south Belfast last evening , and with the driver of the car who was attacked this morning .
Idiom: in someone's pocket (used idiomatically: yes)
Not surprisingly , Angela could quote all the reviews even if she sometimes wondered what exactly they were trying to say . Was n't it she who pasted them with meticulous care into the cuttings - book which Stella so affected to despise ! She watched while her friend began what they both called her tiger prowl , that compulsive pacing up and down , head lowered , hands sunk in her dressing - gown pockets . Then Stella said : " It 's a pity that cousin of yours is so disagreeable .
Idiom: bear in mind (used idiomatically: yes)
Subject : Re : Leeds are worthless ! ! ! Rocky 1.0 m White 1.7 m Cuntona 3.5 m I guess you have to bear in mind that when these values were compiled , White was in the first team whereas Rocky was n't . Personally I think Rocky 's a better player than White . Andy K.
Idiom: she'll be right (used idiomatically: yes)
Just as they were leaving she did at last catch sight of some friends from school . Her mother waited while she pushed her way through the crowds jammed round the booths . ' She 'll be all right with us . ' They all came over to talk , friendly , polite children . ' We 're not going on the big dipper .
Idiom: dyed in the wool (used idiomatically: yes)
But perhaps public agitation will , in the end , be the catalyst required to neutralise the threat . Peter Mantle thinks so , and MEG is heartened by the fact that the handful of farmers in the area who are sitting on the fence and hoping to make a fast punt out of an imminent El Dorado are outnumbered by a mass of people for whom gold holds no allure . Some are dyed - in - the - wool environmentalists , many are businesspeople with tourist interests , but many more are ordinary people . ' The sort who would think nothing of putting their rubbish out on the side of the road , ' as one observer noted , ' but who still feel very strongly indeed that there should be no goldmining here . It has to do with land as well as landscape , and the right to farm in a time - honoured way . '
Idiom: pack a punch (used idiomatically: yes)
The wave , a creature of the sea , seems to suffocate and gasp when it is beached on the shore . It is hardly surprising that it should occasionally wreak vengeance on its executioner . A wave 10 feet high and 500 feet long can pack a punch of 400,000 pounds per linear foot of its crest . Waves organize themselves into trains so that , as one of their number expires , a memory of its strength is bequeathed to its successors , consolidating their length ( the distance between crests ) and speed and height . Sometimes converging swells will synchronize to produce a peak that is higher than any of the separate peaks that preceded it .
Idiom: pissed off (used idiomatically: yes)
You can be very down on yourself.’ I ask Dudley if this is one of his main problems — a kind of lurking self - loathing . ‘ Oh , I do n't know,’ he very nearly snaps , happy to have been talking about piano playing , pissed off he might have to resume a celebrity chat . ‘ I have no fucking idea . In the end , I just want to play the piano and move people .
Idiom: between the devil and the deep blue sea (used idiomatically: yes)
If we pay the rent to the landlady , we wo n't have any money for food ; we are between the devil and the deep blue sea .
Idiom: nuts and bolts (used idiomatically: yes)
They travel the world like itinerant brushsellers , filling loan quotas , peddling financial wares , and living high on the hog . Their bosses are often bright but similarly inexperienced 29-year - old vice presidents with wardrobes from Brooks Brothers and so little credit training they would have trouble with a simple retail installment loan . Their bosses , sitting on the senior loan committee , are pragmatic , nuts - and - bolts bankers whose grasp of local banking is often profound , the product of 20 or 30 years experience . But the senior bankers are fish out of water when it comes to international lending . Many of them never wanted to lend overseas in the first place , but were forced into it by the internationalization of American commerce ; as their local clientele expanded into foreign trade , they had no choice but to follow them or lose the business to the money - center banks .
Idiom: on edge (used idiomatically: no)
Faced with the North 's dangerous nuclear game , we should ask what would have happened if , over the last 20 some years , the North ~ Korea problem had been approached with the sagacity of Metternich and Kennedy . Of ~ course , North ~ Korea is not early - nineteenth century France or the USSR of 1962 . In the eyes of Western ( including Japanese ) political leaders , it has never amounted to more than a small , fringe country whose economic failings made it appear to be poised perpetually on the edge of self - destruction .
Idiom: in the works (used idiomatically: yes)
After having worked as a medic and observed first - hand the horrors of war , Beckmann began to produce ambitious paintings with religious themes and continued in this vein until the early 1920s . His focus soon shifted to subjects he became famous for portraying : the nouveaux riches at play in 1920 's Berlin . 1923 's Dancing Bar in Baden - Baden has a definite ring of the social criticism apparent in the work of most of his fellow German Expressionists . With the 1930 's , however , Beckmann 's works grew far more explicitly sinister , and in 1937 , after it was declared ‘ degenerate’ by the Nazis , he left Germany and settled permanently in the United States . The new edition of Stephen Lackner 's book Beckmann combines a perceptive , unpretentious text on the artist 's work with many well - reproduced and well - integrated photographs of the paintings themselves , 40 of them in colour .
Idiom: all over the place (used idiomatically: yes)
The little boy 's cleaning his teeth . Oliver why do n't you leave Sammy alone ? You would n't like to be chased all over the place the whole time would you ? But I like George . No !
Idiom: have been around (used idiomatically: yes)
Dall has made a single lens microscope that magnifies 1000 times , but he considers the image too faint to be of practical use . As another example of his skill at miniaturisation , he displays his portable 15-cm ( 6-inch ) reflecting telescope , which weighs a mere two - thirds of a kilogram and can fold flat to go in his jacket pocket or between his clothes in a suitcase . It has been around the world with him . ‘ No customs officer has ever spotted it,’ he smiles with satisfaction . The casual visitor to Dall 's crowded study might miss seeing a hyper - sensitive barometer sitting on the shelf , not much larger than a can of beans .
Idiom: state of the art (used idiomatically: yes)
Holloway 's stipulation was that the picture collection was ‘ to decorate the walls of the college’ which is arguably still relevant unless the college risks bankruptcy or physical collapse , neither of which is the case today . In the meanwhile , the Constable bought in at Sotheby 's last month at £ 850,000 may have given the Principal pause for thought . It was in 1988 that the college was led to believe that the three picture would fetch £ 15–20 million , but while the college 's financial situation has improved since then , the state of the art market has done the exact opposite . Paris France looks to the Courtauld Institute for its own art centre
Idiom: bums on seats (used idiomatically: yes)
Yeah . Asking to erm promote a natural body building competition here erm the letter received back was we did n't feel it was suitable . I would like to know why this policy is that er that you did n't consider this a venue of body building to be suitable if it 's not erm it 's gon na put bums on seats and generate income to towards the trust why not ? . Sorry . Someone .
Idiom: in tandem (used idiomatically: yes)
… while Smith B. blossoms in Spring Jack Birkenshaw , back where he has always felt he most belongs , has a hard job ahead in trying to restore Leicestershire to their long - lost glories . But , in tandem with his captain , the bubblingly enthusiastic Nigel Briers , he has already created a strong team spirit , quite possibly thriving on the absence of such departed stars as Chris Lewis . Grace Road has a ‘ starless’ society now , though that may change in time with the development of 20-year old Ben Smith , who justified the high opinions held of him by making his maiden first - class century in the first game of the season . Smith was a regular in the England Under-19 side last year but still played 15 games for Leicestershire and was out in single figures only once in 23 innings .
Idiom: take heart (used idiomatically: yes)
Many women have learnt to be wary and to offer trust slowly . Why , simply because he is a doctor , should he assume that women will come as trusting , respectful , and , above all , compliant patients who can be dealt with quickly ? Despite this Drife should take heart from the cartoons in the journals . It has long been accepted that people make jokes about what frightens them and that groups who feel oppressed use humour as a way of releasing negative feelings to those in power . He should hope that such cartoons continue .
Idiom: to the bone (used idiomatically: yes)
Is , is there a difference between owning ten acres of and owning ten acres of ? Erm yeah I If you work your own land you will work it until you 're dead to the bone . If you 've got ten people I mean there 's no guarantee they 're gon na work as well you . .
Idiom: in the club (used idiomatically: yes)
Derry claims that the band much prefer English women to American women because most English women would n't touch them with a bargepole and therefore are ' more of a challenge ' . ' It 's a social thing , ' ruminates Ian . ' If you just go and talk to a girl in a club in England , she 'll think you 're stupid . You need some sort of connection … ' You mean you do n't just go —'Hello , I 'm in EMF , fancy a shag ? … '
Idiom: in someone's pocket (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ You 're right , Rayleen,’ I said . ‘ He ca n't let me go until he gives me my keys.’ ‘ Oh , sure,’ said Bunny , fumbling in his pocket . ‘ And a couple of quid , I 've got the munchies.’ Bunny handed over a fiver and as I walked away I heard him whisper to Rayleen .
Idiom: take it or leave it (used idiomatically: yes)
Hello I 'm sorry I 'm late . That 's alright . And then if it 's up to you to to take it or leave it . And you 'll say well there must be a catch in it somewhere they obviously are n't doing it for free . And they 're not of course because what happens is if you follow their advice and put ten pounds into Global Investment for example then Global Investments will at that stage will pay them .
Idiom: on the ropes (used idiomatically: no)
I was most interested in the rope - dancing . A very thin rope is fixed thirty centimetres above the ground . People who want to become the King 's most important officials jump and dance on this rope , and whoever jumps highest without falling gets the best job . Sometimes the King orders his lords to dance on the rope , to show that they can still do it . This sport is , of course , rather dangerous , and there are occasional deaths as a result .
Idiom: on and off (used idiomatically: yes)
So it were n't nothing blocking that up . Mm . But what so i it does he think something from the ga cos it keep coming on and off ? Well he do n't know cos he do n't know how those , figure out how they work . It 's always coming on and off though innit ?
Idiom: the ayes have it (used idiomatically: yes)
Aye . no . I think the ayes have it , the ayes have it . The leader of the house will put amendments five to seven informally . Question is the motions on the order papers , say Aye .
Idiom: hit and miss (used idiomatically: yes)
For example , in beer advertisements there is a strong appeal to working class loyalty , often to particular , local brews . By comparison , pre - Christmas television advertisements for liqueurs are openly aimed at those who are , or would like to be , middle and upper middle class . These appeals to distinctive class values are not hit - and - miss affairs , but are based on careful research into class preferences for particular goods and services . 17 . An important variable in buyer behaviour is usage rate .
Idiom: see eye to eye (used idiomatically: yes)
A hero of the Reich.’ ‘ And all that old balls?’ ‘ Added to which the Reichsführer and Admiral Canaris do not always see eye to eye . To produce Steiner.’ He shrugged .
Idiom: banana republic (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ This country is blocked,’ says Bono . ‘ These people are actually just waking up out of a sleep.’ On the same day that The Boomtown Rats play Leixlip Castle in Dublin to 14,000 people , that Bob Geldof sweeps out on stage screaming ‘ Who 's won?’ referring to the battle with Dublin eldermen for the right to play ; the same day that 30 people are hurt and Geldof refers to Ireland as a ‘ banana republic’and a ‘ despicable nation’ , U2 appear at the Garden Of Eden club in Tullermeny . As an experiment , U2 are to play the unfortunately titled but surprisingly attractive dance - club with ( shudder ) A Showband — Tony Stevens and his awesomely wunnerful band . Let me explain : showbands are slick , soulless , plastic .
Idiom: stand the test of time (used idiomatically: yes)
OLD CHARMER PAULINE McLEOD FOR a film that has stood the test of time , catch Luis Bunuel 's Oscar - winning DISCREET CHARM OF THE BOURGEOISIE ( Cert 15 ; Selected ) . This dark - humoured , surreal movie , originally released 20 years ago , continues to entertain with its intriguing storyline . Six characters attempt to have a meal together , yet behind the facade of respectability can be found corruption , political oppression and even drug - trafficking .