Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: the icing on the cake (used idiomatically: yes)
Progress has already , has also been made on erm , the army 's pressed for County Council support to launch their Best Trained Workforce of Britain promotion , and , and a day 's been set , the twenty second of April , far forward . Erm , in paragraph thirteen , Invest in People , the target date for er , achievement in the award has been delayed from the twenty seventh of , sorry the twenty eighth of February , until the twentieth of May , and the reason for that has been staff effort required to get community action going . It seemed far more important to out and the programmes on the top line , and then the icing on the cake , which is community service . Now , that 's all Chairman , the report is for information . Thank you Lance , any comment , questions ?
Idiom: bite the bullet (used idiomatically: yes)
BUSH WHACKS CLINTON THE ' POT SMOKER ' George battles back ' I bite bullets — he bites nails ' MARK DOWDNEY GEORGE BUSH came out slugging yesterday — and savaged the White House contender Bill Clinton .
Idiom: in the family way (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ I 'm playing hookey,’ he said . ‘ One can have too much of a good thing.’ Joshua had a vision of a packed Party conference rising to its feet to applaud a black woman Tory trade unionist very much in the family way . There was usually one such every year . Two more coffees were brought to the table by the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament .
Idiom: send someone to Coventry (used idiomatically: yes)
At the mercy of this resentment , this hateful millstone envy of the Calibans of this world . Because they all hate us , they hate us for being different , for not being them , for their own not being like us . They persecute us , they crowd us out , they send us to Coventry , they sneer at us , they yawn at us , they blindfold themselves and stuff up their ears . They do anything to avoid having to take notice of us and respect us . They go crawling after the great ones among us when they 're dead .
Idiom: throw in the towel (used idiomatically: yes)
On the tube ? Like tonight?’ Preston threw in the towel before it went the whole distance . He could have come back on that one , if he 'd really tried , but sometimes it was much easier to lie on the floor and watch the lights on the ceiling and listen to the count going on . ‘ Okay,’ he said .
Idiom: do the right thing (used idiomatically: no)
The IMF Needs Fresh Thinking on Capital Controls CAMBRIDGE – Why does the International ~ Monetary ~ Fund make it so hard for people like me to love it ? The IMF has said and done all the right things since the crisis . It has acted as quickly as any international bureaucracy can to establish new lines of credit for battered emerging - market countries . It revamped its loan conditions to fit the times .
Idiom: fly the flag (used idiomatically: no)
Life 's hard enough to bear if you 're not a genius . Jane did n't know how he — or Mozart , Schubert , Monet , Van Gogh — had lived , let alone created . And in a society ruled by money and false morals , these grey people still often win , in the ceaseless struggle between personal profit and the common good : the ignorant , illiterate , hypocritical Town Council , the blinkered planning officers , the successful local speculators ( nicknamed the Mafia ) who flew their own flag over their local headquarters , as if they were a private army — all the Holier than Thou brigade . They were the enemy , not any foreign power . Events , at last , seemed to be taking on a constructive momentum of their own .
Idiom: state of the art (used idiomatically: yes)
Fig . 7 comprise the forecast precision of a neural network to that of a mathematical model , based on the operating data of a state - of - the - art hot wide - strip rolling mill .
Idiom: horses for courses (used idiomatically: yes)
In so far as top businessmen play a decisive role in company strategy — as distinct from its public presentation — the talents they need will vary from one situation to another . The kind of entrepreneur required in a new and expanding industry is likely to be somewhat different from the one required to handle the contraction and reorganisation of an old staple industry . ' Horses for courses ' in this context implies that entrepreneurial ( and managerial ) mobility is at . Least as important as its initial recruitment . Not surprisingly , therefore , entrepreneurs and managers can become locked into an existing company structure which may perform not particularly well but adequately enough to survive , or to survive while its position is steadily being undermined by import penetration .
Idiom: the icing on the cake (used idiomatically: yes)
' Two other factors will make us a better team this season — Keith Finlay has come back to the club from North Fermanagh and that has stiffened our batting while Tony Johnson from Barbados is a superb all rounder . ' Harvest The icing on the cake for Strabane may well be the continued good form with the ball of the ageless Terence Patton whose medium paced deliveries have produced a promising early harvest . The vice - captain took 4 for 41 in last Sunday 's Schweppes Cup success and 24 hours earlier in the Senior Cup , Patton finished with 6 for 11 . The Tyrone men have another important League fixture this afternoon — visitors Limavady inspired by the mercurial Des Curry are likely to provide the first searching test of Strabane 's ability to stay the course .
Idiom: make a move (used idiomatically: yes)
Stearsby refused at the ninth and Rowlandson 's Jewels unseated Graham Bradley at 15th , The Chair . Remarkably , at that stage , 34 runners were still standing , with Willsford cutting out the running from Golden Minstrel . It was noticeable that Docklands Express and Cool Ground were both together in the middle of the field , neither having yet made a move . Willsford and Golden Minstrel continued to take the field along until Hotplate jumped to the front at the 21st , the fence before Becher 's on the second circuit . Romany King then joined the issue , as Llewellyn inched nearer on Party Politics .
Idiom: break someone's heart (used idiomatically: yes)
There is even a bar ! Sunday is usually a day of urgency — talks , Mass , lunch , conclusion , benediction and sad farewells follow in quick succession , and yet people feel uplifted and refreshed . In Eliza Vaughan 's day it was said of Courtfield : ‘ You nearly break your neck going , but more nearly break your heart leaving there.’ Today the roads have much improved but , as many letters from participants testify , the leaving has n't changed at all ! Fr Frank Thompson MHM
Idiom: fall short (used idiomatically: yes)
He reached Haslemere in early afternoon , hired a taxi and discharged it fifteen minutes later on the other side of the road from the Skein of Geese Hotel and Restaurant a few miles south - east of the town . And there the momentum of his pursuit faltered for the first time . It was not as if what he saw fell short of his expectations . On the contrary , the Skein of Geese was exactly as Heather had photographed it , save only that the trees behind it had been stripped of their leaves and the croquet hoops put away for the winter . A black - and - white Tudor manor house , separated by a gravelled car park from a modern two - storey extension mocked up to resemble stables ; lawns behind sloping away towards the wooded flanks of the Surrey hills ; the colours of St. George hanging limply from a flagstaff ; three geese in flight across a swash - lettered nameboard ; and smoke pluming vertically from slender chimney stacks .
Idiom: think twice (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ It makes sense for the United States . But for Czechoslovakia?’ Yet he accepts that these countries need small , defensively equipped armies that could make a potential attacker think twice . They want ties that link them more to each other— through mutual defence pacts — and to the West , if it can be done without infuriating the Soviet Union . That includes ties to the European Community , the Council of Europe and one day perhaps even the Western European Union , if not NATO itself .
Idiom: have it both ways (used idiomatically: yes)
Why , you do n't have to save money , stay in the centre Tt , I probably could , but I do n't think it , it would go down very well with the students Well they ca n't have it both ways if they can afford to save money they can , but if they do n't , then stay in the centre I could n't stay in the centre , there was n't space in the centre Oh
Idiom: head south (used idiomatically: yes)
The Waveney continued her search until 1900 , when an attempt was made to winch the two survivors into a helicopter , but this too had to be abandoned because of the extreme conditions . Suspended The search was suspended by the coastguard at 1945 and the lifeboat headed south for Eyemouth . On reaching the entrance it was obvious that there was no safe way into the harbour so the coxswain was forced to continue along the coast to Burnmouth . Although the entrance was less dangerous there was an additional hazard — a power cut had extinguished the leading lights needed to enter — but car headlights were used to guide the lifeboat in to land the survivors .
Idiom: off the shelf (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ People seem to like the vintage vibe the 555 has . When I was a kid it was great because you could go to the music store , put down your money and get something like an SG Junior — not an expensive guitar but a really good guitar all the same , a guitar you could keep for life . That 's what we 're aiming for here — trying to make individually - designed guitars with real integrity that you can take right down off the shelf and use at a gig.’ You would n't call the 555 exactly normal - looking . To be fair , the combination of the butterscotch finish and the black scratchplate is perhaps the livery that suits the 555 least ; the other options are black and transparent red , both with white scratchplates , which sounds more promising .
Idiom: keep a low profile (used idiomatically: yes)
Blanche 's antennae were very sensitive at gauging the progress of an investigation but she relied on Dexter to hoover up male gossip that was beyond her reach , idle chatter in the canteen or the gents ' toilet that sometimes hardened into hostility or resentment at some way a case was being handled . It transpired that nothing dramatic had happened since they had left : tests on pairs of scissors at TVL headquarters were getting under way and Hugh Parnham , the third candidate for the Inside Out presenter 's job , had phoned from Scotland to say he would be back in London the next day for an interview . Dexter sat with the superintendent while she dialled the head of the Press Bureau , who told her his phone had not stopped ringing all day : press and television news editors were demanding to know why Scotland Yard was keeping such a low profile on the Nicola Sharpe story . They were desperate for solid information rather than rumour , and a few made veiled threats to scale down their coverage of another case for which the Yard was desperate for publicity unless there was a press conference . The head of the Bureau said the pressure had become so intense by the end of the afternoon , and Blanche had proved so elusive , he had been forced to phone her boss for advice .
Idiom: when all is said and done (used idiomatically: yes)
He stressed that Government estimates for the tax could well be wrong . ‘ In Darlington they estimate the bill for the lowest value bracket at £ 301 . I think it could be more like £ 400 when all is said and done.’ At present houses throughout Britain are being valued so they can be placed into one of eight value brackets . Home owners will be notified which bracket they are in on December 2 .
Idiom: turn a blind eye (used idiomatically: yes)
Dr Gerard Vaughan , a former health minister , was especially vocal in condemning the action , but others took the view that the ‘ informer’ in the case had a duty to report an action which possibly constituted a crime against another human being ; ‘ The fact that he ( Dr Vaughan ) considers such disclosure of information unethical without the consent of the patient is surely irrelevant when the patient is a newborn baby who can not protest for himself his desire to live . It worries me that turning a blind eye to the deliberate starvation of these patients is portrayed as contributing in some way to the high ethical standards of the nursing profession.’ letter in Nursing Times , May 1982 Whatever the ethics of the disclosure , Leonard Arthur did go on trial in August , 1981 , at Leicester Crown Court .
Idiom: carry the can (used idiomatically: yes)
Mr Clark admitted at the Old Bailey he encouraged British firms to sell sanction - busting military equipment to Iraq . But he insisted the decision was endorsed by the Cabinet of the time . At the family home of Saltwood Castle , near Folkestone , Kent , Mrs Clark added : ‘ Members of the Government decided to let Alan carry the can . They thought , ‘ Why not pick on Clark , he 'll take the blame’.’ Mrs Clark was particularly disdainful of Board of Trade President Michael Heseltine .
Idiom: get lost (used idiomatically: yes)
One argues that Wainwright 's books have become ‘ a snare and a delusion’ . Landowners along the routes mentioned have joined ramblers in asking for directions to be revised and ‘ clarified’ . Their plea follows reports of walkers getting lost while clutching an old copy of Wainwright ; or insisting on crossing private land ‘ because the book says so … ’ So what is the publisher 's response ? Jenny Dereham , editor of the Wainwright series , acknowledges that there have been protests , and says that Michael Joseph will consider a meeting with the objectors to discuss the possibility of republication , with revisions , at some future date .
Idiom: go down the wrong way (used idiomatically: yes)
She implied that only a fool could allow what was known as ‘ love’ to enter into consideration in the matter . She stated that a wise woman would choose her mate on the basis of his qualities of character . Lili 's cigarette smoke went down the wrong way . ‘ Nobody ever married anyone because he was virtuous,’ she protested . Then she recanted .
Idiom: sleep rough (used idiomatically: yes)
He did not give me the money for either . He ate pork chops in tomato sauce with us that evening , and claimed it was the first good meal he had had in six months . He had been hiding out , sleeping rough , until three days ago when he arrived in Paris to look up another man indebted to him . This man allowed him to wash , and sleep for forty - eight hours , and gave him a cast - off , vintage suit , but then turned him out . He had every intention of getting the hell out of Paris just as soon as he had collected all the money owed to him .
Idiom: walk of life (used idiomatically: yes)
This is a very simple philosophy but , in my experience , I have seen it work time and time again . I myself have often been surprised at how quickly so many people feel the benefit . The best way to understand how people , from all walks of life , can be helped is to hear from them personally , so I asked several people from my classes in Devon to write a short summary about how the Alexander Technique had helped them . I have not changed in any way the words in which they expressed themselves . CASE HISTORIES
Idiom: get the better of (used idiomatically: yes)
He gave her a slightly pitying look . ‘ This is obviously your first time here . The ploughs and gritters do their best , of course , but it 's not at all uncommon for the elements to get the better of them for a little while . They always get through in the end , though.’ ‘ I 'm glad to hear it.’
Idiom: make or break (used idiomatically: yes)
The good news is that , aside from being squashed into a tour van , the Kitchens Of Distinction are back on top form again after the various disasters surrounding their last UK tour . Plagues by troubles with management , record companies and poor audience turn - outs — not to mention the agony of seeing their ' Breathing Fear ' 45 being weighted out of the Top 75 by Gallup — band talk during the summer revolved around emigrating to the States and leaving ' them'all behind . Ironically enough , the main reason for the collective 's buoyant humour ( they 're all Harry Enfield jokes and Kenneth Williams double entendres ) is a forthcoming trip across the Atlantic for a five week make - or - break binge , headlining a package bill with — get this , Pop Kids — Bleach and Kingmaker ! See , in America they 're being touted as ( cough , splutter)'The New Smiths ' , which presumably has nothing to do with The New Seekers and a lot to do with , ' Hey , these guys are grreaat ! ' And , as Hamburg so feverishly proves , they are .
Idiom: break ranks (used idiomatically: yes)
One may imagine that bishops would rush to ordain him to make the point . Again , when Jews were refused ordination in the national protestant church in Germany during the Third Reich , the church split , for there were those who said that on principle ( whatever might be the case in the state ) this could not be in the church . But men have not , on the whole , one may note , considered it necessary to break ranks in order to ordain women . They have agreed that there was something to be discussed . So apparently have the majority of women .
Idiom: once and for all (used idiomatically: yes)
In other words , shove off , matey , she 's mine . ‘ I wo n't keep you then,’ Matt murmured , backing away , feeling a total and utter prat . Next time he saw Alexandra he would establish for once and for all just exactly how committed she was , and just exactly to whom . In fact , he was unable to do so . The next time he saw her she was emerging from the very lift he was waiting for .
Idiom: do the trick (used idiomatically: yes)
I must wait . Waiting did not require too much fortitude . One day soon , Dr Kepepwe would do the trick — with luck before the war - damaged moved in to supplant me in her attentions . The days would pass . Help would come .
Idiom: out of your mind (used idiomatically: no)
There are countless stories of famous footballers not having enough money for life after football — Ray Kennedy , Danny Blaniflower … Come on people : How many of you would turn down such a contract if it were offered to you . You would have to be out of your mind not to , IMHO . Bet you his parents and the girlfriend helped him out a bit with his decision —‘You join them Rovers or else!!!’ . I say : wish him luck but not when they come to play us again:- ) .
Idiom: play games (used idiomatically: yes)
Pardon ? A game . You want to play a game ? What would you like to play ? Er
Idiom: in the short run (used idiomatically: yes)
He found that although the coincidence of business and political cycles was " very marked " with respect to the United States , New Zealand and Germany , this was not the case with respect to Britain because pressing action on the balance of payments swamped the cycle of economic policy - making revolving around elections . Alt 's book on The Politics of Economic Decline has explored the nature of political business cycles in Britain alone and has dealt with the possibility that governments might run the economy to their own electoral advantage through manipulating the rate of inflation , disposable incomes , and unemployment in such a way as to rally short - run popular support at election time . He finds no real evidence of any government attempting to hold down the rate of inflation in the short run in order to promote its own popularity at election time . Before the elections of 1964 , 1966 , and 1970 , real personal disposable income was rising at more than double its normal rate of growth — so supporting the political business cycle thesis , but Alt suggests that these " short pre - election spurts may not do the government of the day all that much good , and there is no evidence that they do ( at least if short - term enough ) the economy any particular harm " . He suggests that there is little evidence that any British Government ever managed the unemployment rate simply with a view only to winning the next election .
Idiom: go all the way (used idiomatically: no)
I thought it sounded like a faulty needle but she said ‘ I 've changed I do n't know how many , all on the ribber bed , so I do n't think it 's that.’ So , round I went to have a look . Indeed , a fault went all the way up her knitting . Laying the work flat , I asked her which stitch she had cast - on ( that is , was the zig - zag row from right to left or left to right ) ? ‘ The right - hand side’ , was the reply .
Idiom: carry the can (used idiomatically: yes)
He is widely accepted as a decent and honourable man . Now he knows exactly what they did , he must act to demonstrate his disapproval . The Chief Whip , Richard Ryder , should carry the can , even though he may not have known exactly what was being done by his people . His resignation should be on Mr Major 's desk today . If it is n't , Mr Major should sack him .
Idiom: watch your back (used idiomatically: yes)
You may believe you 're inviolate , beyond the reach of lesser mortals , but you 're wrong . ' His night - dark eyes hardened to cold jet . ' Watch your back , Aurora , because I 'm going to be behind you when you least expect it . And when you finally trip , I 'll be there to make sure you complete your fall . ' She shuddered , completely at a loss to know what he meant , yet held helpless prisoner by the dark thrall of his warning .
Idiom: keep up appearances (used idiomatically: yes)
Some council employees were forbidden to treat unmarried mothers , lesbians and gays less favourably than ‘ respectable’ people . Partners in same - sex couples and remarried divorcees were accepted in positions of church leadership . Many people had struggled to adhere to a strict moral code for years ( while others had worked hard at least to keep up appearances ) : some may have felt that their efforts were no longer appreciated . Moreover , the so - called ‘ permissive society’ was not protecting women from being treated as sex - objects : far from it ; pornography flourished , kerb - crawlers harassed passers - by on the streets . Regulating what adolescents knew about sex , and preventing them from going to bed with their girlfriends or boyfriends , had become difficult .
Idiom: in your dreams (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ It relieves the monotony of my own company , if nothing else.’ He paused in the doorway . ‘ By the way , was it daylight in your dream?’ Leonora thought for a moment . ‘ Yes .
Idiom: on the mend (used idiomatically: yes)
LENNOX LEWIS is an outsider , insists Bruno FIGHTING TALK : Yesterday 's Mirror Sport Mel 's on the mend JOHN EDWARDS FAST - RAIDING full - back Mel Sterland is poised to end his six - month injury nightmare .
Idiom: have words (used idiomatically: yes)
And Piers . As luck would have it , Piers was dead on time . He spotted her immediately and strolled across , stopping on the way to have a few words with the patron . How did he manage to make conversations with other people such light - hearted affairs , when it was such heavy going with her ? ' You 're on time , ' he said , sitting in the chair opposite her , and calling the garçon across to order a drink .
Idiom: fit as a fiddle (used idiomatically: yes)
Someone shuts the curtain . ' You do n't feel anything , do you ? ' a nurse asks Jackie , on the other side . ' Fit as a fiddle , darlin , ' and I can hear , faintly , through the twisted frenzy of my own pelvis , a cheerful rustle as she turns the pages of her magazine . I am plagued by awkward thoughts , like splinters in my brain : the seventh grade and pocket radios , games of spin the bottle from which I am cheerfully excluded , tight jeans , Bonnie Bell lip gloss , me , boyish and baffled , the menacing breath of puberty . I count to myself .