Gooogr/pie_idioms huggingface dataset:
Idiom: full marks (used idiomatically: yes)
The result is that a student may have answered half the paper in a manner worthy of a Law Lord , and yet obtain a third class because he has not answered the other half . Another point to be remembered in this connection is that an examiner is much more willing to give the first 50 per cent . of marks on a question than the second 50 per cent . , and full marks are practically never given . A candidate may , therefore , get 50 per cent . on the whole paper if he answers all the questions moderately well , whereas he certainly will not get 50 per cent .
Idiom: rule of thumb (used idiomatically: yes)
FO It 's certainly not a science . … [ Take]temperature — you 've got a thermometer in the car but you begin to feel what is about thirty degrees C. You sense that that 's about thirty . Identifying some kinds of pollutants , however , is simply not possible by rule of thumb assessments made on the spot . Indeed , some sorts of pollution may also for a time evade detection in the laboratory . Analysis can only reveal the presence of a pollutant for which tests are actually carried out and it adds to the costs and time required ( another constraint , of which field staff are well aware , against sampling too freely ) to analyse routinely for pollutants on more than the usual parameters — BOD , suspended solids , ammonia .
Idiom: with a vengeance (used idiomatically: yes)
There is no doubt in her mind that it has all been worthwhile . What she does regret , though , is the comparative lack of guitar repertoire from her favourite Romantic period ( she cites Rachmaninov as a special hero ) . Against that , though , there is a ‘ vast contemporary repertoire — the guitar has come into its own in popularity in this period , and people are now writing for it with a vengeance . She is already at work on her next disc , but what of that Rodrigo concerto which set her off in the first place ? ‘ We are going to record the Rodrigo concerto in 1995 .
Idiom: on the back of (used idiomatically: yes)
Using the additional capacity on ISDN lines , they were able to set up video phones , involving a small camera on the top of the VDU while receiving pictures superimposed on the screen , to converse face - to - face with supervisors and other staff . Although BT said they were continuing to look at the results of the experiment , initial findings included the fact that not only was BT satisfied with productivity achieved but the staff themselves were only too sorry to see it end . With what it reckons to be a higher proportion of ISDN lines per thousand of population compare with anywhere else in the UK , HIE clearly hopes to see a rapid expansion of inward investment and other forms of economic development on the back of teleworking . Of course , not all jobs would be suitable for teleworking . Apart form requiring a certain amount of self - discipline from those doing it ( and when the legality of remote logging of work - rate seems doubtful under the health and safety laws for VDU operators ) , the tasks which seem capable of being gone this way seem to boil down to two types : self - contained project assignments ( computer programming , report writing , design ) and batch - related clerical work ( data entry or telesales ) .
Idiom: follow in someone's footsteps (used idiomatically: yes)
additional responsibility . We look forward very much to his succession to the Chair , and we wish him very well and I know that he can count on the full support of all the honorary officers , and all of you as members of the Council as he takes on these new responsibilities . May I say how deeply honoured I am to be invited to chair N C V O. I am acutely conscious with a degree of trepidation and indeed humility , that I face a huge challenge in following in Alan 's footsteps . You would anyhow not expect on this occasion any words of wisdom from me , indeed my wife and four daughters would doubtless tell you that you should never expect words of wisdom from me . So may I simply say briefly , but nonetheless with emphasis and sincerity two things .
Idiom: keep a low profile (used idiomatically: yes)
The Local Government union NALGO calls it an infamous act of betrayal to Jamie Robertson , who helped bring in thousands of new jobs to the area following the closure of the railway works in the mid nineteen eightees . The council says it had no choice … jobs are being cut to help maintain services as they struggle to balance the budget . Tonight Jamie Robertson , the man at the centre of the row , is keeping a low profile . He spearheaded Swindon 's revival as a boom town in the late eightees , helping to attract major firms like car makers Honda and one of Europe 's leading information distribution firms Galileo . Business experts in the town are now increasingly worried about Swindon 's future without a development focus .
Idiom: to the bone (used idiomatically: yes)
Had it been the biggest mistake of her life ? Gavin had said the theatre crowd were a gossipy lot — what if Dane found her story too good to keep to himself ? The very prospect of her life being picked over like some succulent titbit chilled her to the bone . Moving on automatic pilot , she forced herself to tidy up the make - up room , washing sponges and organising the cosmetics she 'd need the following evening when the play had its first - night performance . She was still there some time later when Dane entered the room , a faint weariness evident in his vivid blue eyes .
Idiom: in the final analysis (used idiomatically: yes)
The point is that the objectivity conditions for ontological claims are not provided , nor , strictly , can they be . The " fundamental ontology " essentially paints a picture of the world from my own point of view . I am the ultimate source of meaning of all " existential facts " ; all such facts , in the final analysis , turn out to be explicable in terms of facts about my own existence . Everything relating to an " external " world , including the existence of " others " , is subsumed under the general aspect of my own manner - of - being . An existentialist analysis , consistently pursued , thus yields in effect a subject - oriented description of the world , with peculiar reductivist implications of its own .
Idiom: for a song (used idiomatically: no)
The progress of the past four years had been an ‘ extraordinary ’ achievement by volunteers , staff and management and Mr. Duggan 's own highlights have included the formation of the successful Kingsley Theatre Club and the occasional meals with visiting chefs . This has allowed local people to enjoy a pleasant evening out at their local Kingsley ‘ restaurant ’ . He 's also pleased that the centre is now the base for several local groups including the Women 's Institute , the WRVS lunch club , a mother and toddler group , and the ‘ hobby horse ’ club for eight to twelves which attracts over 20 on a Friday evening for folk songs and dance . The ‘ superb ’ yoga group , who met on Thursday evenings , had some spare capacity still and attracted people from a wide area . Kingsley Centre also had the Post Office run by Maureen Florence and was looking to extend the shop which , like a planned coffee shop , would also be run by Chainreaction .
Idiom: hear things (used idiomatically: no)
HvK To make an image of the music that will deepen the understanding of those who watch . I remember some years ago being called by a man who told me he had just now heard things for the first time in the Beethoven Fifth . I said , ‘ This is very good , but the performance you are talking of is on film . Do n't you mean ‘ seen’?’
Idiom: on a roll (used idiomatically: yes)
I use a punchcard roll and began by punching out the customary two rows of holes for the overlapping join , only to find that the first row stretched the plastic slightly , giving a wavy edge . On this occasion I simply punched out an extra row of holes and cut away the damaged edge . However , then I hit upon the idea of finishing the card by punching out four rows of holes and cutting between them , so that two rows remained on the blank roll ready to make the start of the next card when required . This completely eliminates the problem without wasting any card ! Dear Anne ,
Idiom: rough and ready (used idiomatically: yes)
Generations of inventors and investors have kept us on the technological frontier . In a world of naysayers and traditionalists , the American character has always stood out — cheerfully optimistic , willing to run risks , ready to try anything . During World War II , it was the rough - and - ready American GI who could fix the stalled jeep in Normandy while the French regiment only looked on . Horatio Alger captured this spirit in hundreds of stories . With titles like Bound to Rise , Luck and Pluck , and Sink or Swim , they inspired millions of readers with a gloriously simple message : in America you can go from rags to riches .
Idiom: make history (used idiomatically: no)
You just press a button and watch the match . It makes you a better umpire . ' GREYHOUND racing history was made in a remarkable race in Birmingham last week . In winning the greyhound Grand National at Hall Green , Kildare Slippy jumped five flights of hurdles — and still broke the track record on the flat . Not quite the same as Ed Moses breaking the 400 metres best while running over hurdles , maybe , but quite an achievement nevertheless .
Idiom: keep the peace (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Worse than that . It bounced off the roof of another jobber 's Porsche . He got bound over to keep the peace for punching the guy who got fired.’ ‘ Was Cawthorne let go?’ I asked .
Idiom: below the belt (used idiomatically: yes)
The double reduction formula is explicitly stated in the equation racism = power + prejudice which was widely adopted within the movement during the 1980s . It would be unfair to make too many demands of the statements I have quoted . They are examples of people thinking on their feet , trying to rationalize their responses to texts which ‘ hit below the belt’ . The aim was often to convince fellow students ( and me ) of the force of their own political perspective . My point is not to criticize the theoretical deficiencies of these statements .
Idiom: in light of (used idiomatically: yes)
He also warned against a renewed debate about party leadership in light of recent election losses .
Idiom: have no truck with (used idiomatically: yes)
But Roy Hattersley 's performance on BBC radio 's The World this Weekend was not only laughable , but downright pathetic . For him to place the blame for this report at the door of the Conservative Party chairman is nonsense . We in the Conservative Party have no truck with that style of gutter journalism which we were forced to endure last Sunday . In fact , quite the reverse , we do n't have to do anything but stand on our record over the past 13 years . County Councillor Derek Mason , 24 Greencroft Road , Darlington .
Idiom: sleep rough (used idiomatically: yes)
There had been an almighty family row a fortnight before : Tristram had remarked that she was overworked and that they could easily afford a servant , and Harry had taken exception to the suggestion . Father and son had become locked in a verbal jousting match which had ended with Tristram stamping out of the house and staying out all night . Since then , he had returned only when his father was down at the harbour overseeing the refitting of the Russell , staying out all night and sleeping rough , and for the last three days she had not seen him at all . She knew better than to ask her husband what this letter was about however , and awaited his reaction in the reserved , watchful way which she had found safest to adopt in her husband 's presence and which usually concealed more vehement feelings . He handed the letter back .
Idiom: in the long run (used idiomatically: yes)
In their view , Europe has already lost the battle for innovation and economic development , and is gradually becoming an “ industrial museum . ” Russia , they argue , should form partnerships with more dynamic countries . Likewise , many Europeans believe that , while a partnership with Russia might be an asset now , it would corrode Europe ’s economies and politics in the long run . If Europe wants to lead and prosper , according to this view , it should limit its ties with Russia as much as possible . Ongoing disputes between Russia and the European ~ Union reflect this mutual distrust .
Idiom: spare someone's blushes (used idiomatically: yes)
Liverpool , missing seven players through injury and ineligibility , survived some anxious moments in the first half . But Liverpool appeared to have weathered the storm and were heading for their first clean sheet since their Cup final win in May when Spoliaric crashed home a left - foot drive on the hour . But Ian Rush , Liverpool 's most experienced European campaigner , quickly spared their blushes two minutes later , turning well inside the box to drill home a low shot from Hutchison 's pass . Hutchison , the kid Dalglish signed from Hartlepool nearly two years ago , marked his European debut with the winner in the 69th minute when he sent a neat chip over the keeper after being fed by Steve McManaman . Souness had no complaints about Stewart 's dismissal , saying : ‘ He was foolish .
Idiom: out on a limb (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ Then I got a ‘ Beatle’ bass , but it was a bit too muffled in its sound . My whole aim was to get a bass like Jet Harris , a pink Fender , but we could n't afford it , so I did a couple of paper rounds and a milk round , my Dad chipped in and we got one on HP . It was about ninety pounds and he went out on a limb for it , too . So that was the start of it and I 've stuck with P - basses since . ‘ At the beginning of the ' 60s I lived in Ealing , and used to go to the Ealing Jazz Club when guys like Cyril Davis were playing .
Idiom: go under the hammer (used idiomatically: yes)
Owner Teresa White was delighted to win and was given a rose bowl and certificate by the RAC . Mrs White , who is originally from Edinburgh , but who has lived in Chester for six years , said the accolade for the hotel was given because it is a ' gorgeous place , ' built in 1860 , with wood - panelling throughout and full of antiques . COLLECTION GOES UNDER HAMMER Sale sounds like a bargain Ex - Miss UK Amanda Flood , from Chester , with a 1910 HMV gramophone
Idiom: out of sight (used idiomatically: yes)
After looking in a drawer , he handed the passport back . ‘ Nothing for you.’ The Land Rover cruised out of sight at two o'clock . Mick and Paddy had left me just south of Adrar . They would wait five miles ahead , not daring to go further because of my leg .
Idiom: by and large (used idiomatically: yes)
They took rates of pay , hours and levels of pay , NALGO locally negotiated job - descriptions and their own personal needs into consideration . Discussions were open and informed ; each member of staff was kept aware of the overall needs of the school and the constraints upon them . The final result was sensitive to — and by and large able to fulfil — all perceived needs . Two years later , the selected strategy and its financial implications have proved themselves with little need for modification . All three staff remain in post .
Idiom: all in a day's work (used idiomatically: yes)
‘ That same day,’ recalled Cossins , ‘ he filmed part of a terrifying scene on rollerskates where he went underneath a lorry . We all held our breath.’ For Crawford , it was all in a day 's work , and split - second timing was the key . After being seen whizzing out of the doors of a rink , he had to skate at speed along a footpath of the common , round a spiral pedestrian walkway , on to a road , grab the back of a passing bus , let go , cut across a main road between cars coming in both directions , go across another road — between the wheels of a moving articulated lorry — and end up in a babywear shop , somersaulting into a cot . The filming was done in Wimbledon and near London 's North Circular Road , with Marc Boyle and Val Musetti arranging the stunts .
Idiom: think twice (used idiomatically: yes)
Isabel forgot him instantly . She glanced down at her hand , wondering yet again why the memory of that day should be so insistent tonight , then her lovely face became expressionless as she wrapped herself in the familiar cloak of indifference . A remote , cool air enveloped her that caused more than one man to think twice about approaching her as she walked slowly down the length of the hall . Entering a room full of rough soldiers , unescorted , and sitting alone at the high table , exposed to their speculative eyes and lewd jokes , held no fears for her . It was raining again when he reached Gloucester .
Idiom: man of the cloth (used idiomatically: yes)
She says it used to be beautiful , but the rectory and the church are a disgrace . She says they used to have garden fetes here . She says people should look up to men of the cloth , and she 's told the vicar he 's a disgrace to his profession . But when a Central News camera crew approached the vicar for an interview , they were n't welcome . He shouts get off his land and his wife screams hysterically .
Idiom: old hat (used idiomatically: no)
He could treat the loser and afterwards pay for drinks all round . Without doubt he was a peculiar man — a mixture of miser and philanthropist … During the day he would cross the bridge to Chelsea to buy old clothes and other cast - offs , walking the streets with his cry of ‘ Old clothes and old hats I 'll buy them’ , or begging his keep in more fashionable parts from ‘ cooks thinking he was such a nice old man … He would get good food from the basement kitchens.’ He would tramp back with his findings to his slum home , where the boys would shout ‘ Moses’ at him and ‘ he would reply by shaking his stick at them.’
Idiom: to the tune of (used idiomatically: yes)
Informed on by the Spanish police , he committed suicide rather than be captured by the Gestapo , by taking an overdose of morphine . His book , The work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction,(published 1936 in German : Das Kunstwerk in Zeitalter seiner technischen Reproduzierbarkeit ) was one of the first works to use deconstruction as a method of analysis and has been highly influential on today 's generation of artists who incorporate texts into their art ( for example , Joseph Kosuth ) . The commission for a new tomb for the philosopher , to replace the simple stone that marks his grave on the Catalan coast , had been given to the Israeli artist Dani Karavan in 1989 by the Arbeitskreis Selbständiger Kulturinstitut and was to be financed to the tune of DM1 million by the German Foreign Ministry . In design it was to be a narrow flight of steps descending a steep slope , partly below ground , that ended abruptly above the sea at a vertical plate - glass wall . This has now had to be shelved with the arrival of a Diktat from the Bundestag criticising both the excessive cost and the involvement of the Foreign Ministry .
Idiom: change hands (used idiomatically: yes)
I suggest that an attempt may well be made at some future Labour Party conference to dislodge a Labour Prime Minister . If it were successful , he would have to resign as Prime Minister . Whether his successor took over smoothly would depend on the issues discussed above in relation to the Leadership changing hands in a hypothetical House of Commons . The last major problem potentially caused by changes in Labour rules in 1980 is that every Labour MP must undergo a reselection process . This must happen once in each Parliament , usually not later than thirty - six months after the last general election .
Idiom: back to square one (used idiomatically: yes)
For the EU , Irish rejection of the Treaty would probably trigger a lengthy period of instability , and perhaps even an end to the European integration process as it is now constituted . In 2001 , Irish voters rejected the Nice Treaty , which threw the EU into a protracted period of crisis and introspection , which ended only with agreement on the so - called Constitutional Treaty in 2005 . Almost immediately , however , French and Dutch voters rejected that Treaty , bringing the negotiations back to square one . Now , after a lengthy and difficult period of reflection and bargaining , those efforts may be in jeopardy again . The “ No ” campaign has been vigorous , comprising a motley crew of aging Marxists , anti - globalization protestors , traditional euroskeptics , and obsessive “ sovereigntists . ”
Idiom: all along (used idiomatically: no)
And I was quite conscious of that . But er at that time there was plenty work coming in , erm there was , there was no need for us to be apprehensive , and so therefore we had to convince the management that in the best interests of everybody , having agreed that the scheme would go on across the whole spectrum of the workforce , was to move reasonably , you know , quickly through the various machine departments and introduce with a minimum amount of frustration . And we had to keep pushing them all along . It was an incentive I would say for the shop stewards . One , to protect the members ' you know , interests in each department to see that they got the , a , a time limit you know , to go onto the scheme , that the consultation took place .
Idiom: in the driving seat (used idiomatically: yes)
He was passing the open passenger - door of the Volvo , on his way to climb in the boot . Zack behind him . The man in the driving - seat had leaned across to watch him through the hood - slits . A big man , almost touched the roof in the sitting position . Leaning sideways , left hand supporting his weight .
Idiom: to say the least (used idiomatically: yes)
And oh , she wanted to touch him , but a strange timidity , so unlike her , was controlling all her actions . Dr Neil was not in any way surprised at McAllister 's reaction to his lovemaking ; he expected such modesty from a well brought up young girl , and her arms around his neck , her timid responses , fluttering though they were , told him that she felt for him what he felt for her , and further inflamed his own passion , while warning him to go gently . But going gently was difficult , to say the least , for his active mind was giving way to the essential basic desire for a man to possess the woman he loved and who loved him , and his kisses and caresses grew more and more urgent . For McAllister it was torture . The war between desire and fear was consuming her utterly .
Idiom: on someone's mind (used idiomatically: no)
He had helped the actor on one or two cases and found an enthusiasm for investigation which he could never muster for his extremely lucrative solicitor 's practice . ‘ No,’ Charles replied with satisfaction . It was pleasant not to have the complexities of crime on his mind for a change . ‘ Pity.’ ‘ But why are you here , Gerald ?
Idiom: for a song (used idiomatically: yes)
It 's a truly brilliant song that invests the homespun reality of ' 70s Britain with mythic significance . It 's a black celebration , a grimy , twisted tribute to an era that gave us The Black Panthers , Jeremy Thorpe and Paper Lace . For a song with a hook that goes : ' And there were lots of little Osmonds everywhere , ' it 's hugely melancholic . ' The reason I wanted Jeff Wayne was to turn ' The Osmonds ' into an epic . I wanted a surface sugariness to draw you in before you got to the substance of the song .
Idiom: laughing stock (used idiomatically: yes)
He says that when he twists ice out of its plastic container , the ice being extremely cold and dry , he sees a flash of blue - white light as the cubes shatter into pieces . He can not explain this . If anyone writes in to say that Francis Bacon noticed the flashes when he got out of his coach to freeze a chicken in the snow , I shall leave the country , suitably disguised , and write piteous letters about being a laughing stock to all , coupled with the name of sundry . ( It is the influence of chairmen again . ) IT MUST be a plot , for here is another effect that I am asked to inquire about in my ignorant way .