Notable English Idioms: Part 02

Fit as a fiddle - In good physical health.

Cheap as chips - Inexpensive or good value

Ball is in your court - It is up to you to make the next decision or step.

Jump ship - Leave a job, organization, or activity suddenly.

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Notable English Idioms: Part 01

Hit The Nail On The Head  -
1. To describe exactly what is causing a situation or problem;
2. To do exactly the right thing;
3.To do something in the most effective and efficient way;
4. To say exactly the right thing or to find the exact answer;
5.To be accurate or correct about something.

Wild goose chase - A frustrating or lengthy undertaking that accomplishes little.

Ace in the hole -  A hidden or secret strength, or unrevealed advantage.

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Book of Idioms, Episode 33

The term PEANUT GALLERY is evolving. Its usual meaning is the cheap seats in a theater. The Hindu (India): <<The woman — the modern woman — who's walked out on her husband, refers to herself as a vaazhavatti, a term I haven't heard in Tamil cinema for about a decade now. And we're told that her husband hasn't touched her in the six months they were together, thus leaving her “pure” enough to be reclaimed by her former lover. What's left of this tale is undone by simplistic storytelling, an earnest, overemphatic style, and some ugly moralising. The peanut gallery in the theatre went berserk pointing and laughing. >>

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Book of Idioms, Episode 32

UNDER WRAPS: kept hidden. Often used for something that will later be unveiled, but not always—you can say that the design for the new iPhone is still under wraps.

PUT YOUR MONEY WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS: support something financially rather than just talking about it.

Example- CNN: <<Viktor Yanukovych conceded to the major demands made by protesters, he announced Friday on his website. He had been holding out against their raging street demonstrations for months.
Yanukovych said he has initiated new presidential elections and a return to the old constitution that would cut presidential power, and also form a national unity Cabinet.
And he may have put his money where his mouth is. Ukraine canceled the sale of $2 billion in government bonds, the Irish Stock Exchange said.
Russia has been buying the bonds as part of an economic deal between the two countries that helped to set off the fervor of his opposition.>>

To READ THE RIOT ACT to someone is to reprimand someone strongly. To BLOW YOUR STACK is to explode in anger.
Example- Express.co.uk: <<Mike Williamson admits Alan Pardew was right to read the riot act to miserable Magpies

MIKE WILLIAMSON accepts [coach] Alan Pardew was absolutely right to blow his stack over Wednesday’s home rout by Spurs – and says Newcastle fans were equally justified in their mass walk-out.>>


If you are PUTTING LIPSTICK ON A PIG, you're making cosmetic changes that do not change the true nature of something. The original form was "If you put lipstick on a pig, it's still a pig."

A MASH NOTE is a love letter. Buffalo News: <<Just in time for Valentine's Day, Saveur Magazine's March issue has published a two-page mash note to the peculiar confectionary skills of Buffalo's candymakers.

"In Buffalo, chocolatiers concoct their own marshmallow sauce, understand the nuances of caramel, and temper cocoa butter to a luxurious smoothness," say veteran food writers Jane and Michael Stern. >>


IN THE HOT SEAT: in a difficult position of responsibility. Detroit Free Press: <<Welcome to the hot seat, Mary Barra.
In General Motors’ first quarterly earnings report since Barra took over as CEO three weeks ago, GM took a stumble Thursday morning, falling way short of profit expectations.
Barra, not surprisingly, took a glass-half-full approach in her first turn as GM head honcho during an earnings conference call with industry analysts and journalists.>>

"Glass-half-full approach" is also idiomatic. We often say that you should look at a glass as half full (rather than half empty)—that it's better to be optimistic than pessimistic. That idea is often used in constructions like the one above.

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 31

GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY: get involved in the difficult, unpleasant, or mundane parts of a job or task. The idiom must be used in this form; if you say that someone has dirty hands, it suggests instead that the person has committed wrongdoing. TechCrunch: <<It was fascinating to spend time with Corddry at Facebook headquarters to get an in-person look at how he works on a day-to-day basis. In keeping with his history, he puts a lot of importance on his team getting their hands dirty and knowing how servers work in data centers, side by side with the technicians who operate them.>>

FROM THE GET-GO means from the beginning. And a LEMON may mean a car that is defective ... from the get-go! Deadline Detroit: <<Chevy Cobalts Were Lemons From the Get-Go.
The public relations nightmare for General Motors, which rose from the dead not all that long ago, continues to escalate.
And it [isn't] pretty.
Danielle Ivory and Rebecca Ruiz of the New York Times write that "long before the Chevrolet Cobalt became known for having a deadly ignition defect, it was already seen as a lemon. Owners complained about power steering failures, locks inexplicably opening and closing, doors jamming shut in the rain — even windows falling out.">>


To be ON ONE'S HIGH HORSE is to be arrogant. You can tell someone to get off of his or her high horse.
To (WAKE UP AND) SMELL THE COFFEE is to be realistic, to become aware of something you've been ignoring. Oman Observer: <<I was laying out my argument as to why I would never consider using [a smartphone camera] for my photographic work when he suddenly thumped his coffee mug down on the table and said loudly, ‘Do you know what your trouble is, Clive? You’re elitist! Smartphones are every bit as good as DSLRs [digital single-lens reflex cameras], so get down off your high horse and smell the coffee.” Then he got up and walked out, leaving me to pay the bill!>>

HANDS DOWN: unquestionably, absolutely. You can also win something hands down, easily or decisively. Bristol Press (Connecticut, USA): <<BRISTOL — L.J. Johnson lit a spark for Bristol Central in Friday night’s Class L boys basketball state tournament quarterfinal just when the team needed it most.

With the Rams holding a slim 40-37 lead after a Farmington 3-pointer with 3:19 to go in the third quarter, Johnson knocked down two straight 3-pointers of his own to give Bristol Central a 46-37 lead. He later closed out the scoring in the period with another 3-pointer as the Rams took a 54-39 lead into the fourth quarter.

“Hands down, that was the best game of his career,” Bristol Central coach Tim Barrette said.>>


PAINT YOURSELF INTO A CORNER: put yourself in a difficult situation by doing something that restricts your options. Indian Express: <<­Having demonised Japan as the country most responsible for China’s historical sufferings, China has painted itself into a corner and has no alternative but to continue a policy that could result in a dangerous military confrontation with Japan (and its ally, the United States).>>


TEST THE WATERS: explore a possibility before making a commitment. Phillippine Star: <<AS 2016 draws nearer, politicians have started to test the waters on the feasibility of pursuing positions in government. On May 9, 2016, the Philippines will elect a new president, vice president, half of the Senate, congressmen and local government officials. >>


STRAIGHT ARROW: an honest, moral person; a conventional person. You can also use it as an adjective, with a hyphen: a straight-arrow cop who is tempted by the offer of a bribe. Sioux City Journal (South Dakota, USA): << He's a straight arrow bending under the pressures of his job, including the isolation it imposes: He has lately fallen into an affair with a beautiful Russian informant as his job keeps him away from home.>>


OUT OF LINE: improper, against the rules. Toronto Star: <<If Toronto District School Board staff felt his behaviour was out of line at a raucous committee meeting last week, Trustee Howard Goodman apologizes.

But he’s not sorry for being “very frustrated” and pressing for an answer as to why the board has resisted paying an outstanding fee to a provincial organization he believes it is contractually obligated to pay.>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 30

TALKING POINT: in public discourse, such as political debate, a persuasive statement designed to be repeated in support of one's position. Sometimes this is also used to mean simply a topic of discussion. PolitiFact: <<As the fall election nears and most everyone agrees his promise of 250,000 new jobs in four years won’t be met, Gov. Scott Walker is rolling out a bullish new measure of business growth -- and suggesting it shows Wisconsin could reach the mark by mid-2015.

But his impressive-sounding talking point -- that 17,000 new ready-to-hire businesses have sprung up on his watch -- crumbles upon examination.>>

"Bullish," I might add, means optimistic.


THE GRIM REAPER: death. Often capitalized. Death has often been personified as a skeleton holding a scythe, and the metaphor of death as a reaper (harvester) is common in many cultures. News 8 television (Boise, Idaho, USA): <<The grim reaper paid a visit to the students at Highland High School Tuesday afternoon as part of the annual "Every 15 Minutes" program.
This national program aims to teach students about the harsh reality drinking and driving could result in. ...
The students watched nearby behind yellow caution tape, as some of their friends who were covered in fake blood, cuts and bruises were being pried out of cars by the jaws of life, while others were being zipped into body bags.
Manning said the idea behind this program is that every 15 minutes, someone in the United States is killed in a drunk driving accident.>>

The "jaws of life" is a machine used by police to extract people from car wrecks.


Police officers often interrogate people they've arrested in pairs, with one officer (or "cop") being friendly to the suspect while the other acts threatening. The idea of the "good cop" and "bad cop" is now used idiomatically. Jakarta Globe: <<Basuki has been the bad cop to Joko’s good cop. In contrast to the typically soft-spoken and Javanese Joko, Basuki has gained a reputation for being a tough guy not afraid to shake up [Jakarta]’s sleepy bureaucracy.>>

Note also the use of the word "to" in the first sentence—it means "in contrast to."


Not exactly idioms, but two common expressions that may be confusing for English learners ... to go AWOL is a military acronym, meaning Absent Without Leave. But now it may be used in any situation where someone has disappeared without permission. And to PLAY HOOKY originally referred to a child who skipped school—now it, too, may refer to almost anyone.

Example: 660 Radio News, Calgary, Alberta, Canada: << Redford still AWOL
Former Alberta Premier Alison Redford continues to play hooky from her job at the legislature.
The National Post reports, as of Wednesday afternoon, the Calgary Elbow MLA has missed seven sitting days; if she misses three more, she could have to pay a fine.
She’s being heavily criticized by her colleagues, and people in her riding.>>


You can also DANCE TO SOMEONE'S TUNE, consistently do what someone tells you to do. This one can also appear as "dance to the tune of ..."—tricky, tricky! NDTV, India: <<Moradabad: Terming the Lok Sabha elections as a battle between two completely different ideologies, Sonia Gandhi today alleged that BJP was dancing to the tune of RSS, whose "parochial and extremist" thought was aimed at dividing the society.>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 29

A THING has several meanings. If you have a thing for someone or something, that's an attraction, especially a romantic attraction. Belfast Telegraph: <<"Katy [Perry] has always had a thing for Prince Harry," an insider divulged to British newspaper Daily Star. “So she decided to be cheeky and invite him to spend American Independence Day with her and friends in July."

But what about this Time magazine headline, where "a thing" is used by itself? <<Camel Milk is a Thing and Costs $18 a Bottle>> This usage is pretty new, and I think it's mostly North American so far. It means a popular trend, a current phenomenon.

English Idioms is a thing! Glad you all have a thing for learning idioms.


DROP THE BALL ON something: mishandle it, fail to live up to responsibilities for something. 3AW radio, Australia: <<Neil said public safety is the most vital issue in Victoria at present and the government has "dropped the ball" on law and order.>>

Three related idioms -
To PUSH SOMEONE'S BUTTONS is to do something that you know will provoke a strong reaction.
If something MAKES YOUR BLOOD BOIL, it makes you very angry.
And if something RUBS YOU THE WRONG WAY, it annoys you (like a cat that you pet against the natural direction of its fur). Chicago Now: <<If I asked you to give me a list of people that really push your buttons, get your blood boiling, just make you so upset, I bet it wouldn’t take you long to have those names pop out at you. You probably see their faces constantly.

We all have people in our lives that really rub us the wrong way and can change our attitude and the trajectory in our day. I know that I do, and it’s a work in progress to change that.>>


MOM-AND-POP (adj.): small, family owned (said of a business, often a retail shop). Primarily North American (the British say "mum" instead of "mom" for mother). Is there an equivalent British expression? KFOX television, El Paso, Texas: <<A recent change to customs checkpoints in Mexico that makes it easier for shoppers to take their merchandise back into the country, could mean a boost in sales for businesses in El Paso this summer. ...

"This has been done to facilitate Mexican nationals coming into the United States to shop," said George Salom, president of the Central Business Association. ...

Salom said that anywhere from 40 to 80 percent of sales across the board in El Paso are based on shoppers from Mexico. He said this will positively impact everyone, from the major retailers to the mom-and-pop shops.>>

"Across the board" is also an idiom, meaning " in every part, area, or field of something."

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 28

ONE'S TWO CENTS: an opinion that one realizes is of only small value, for instance in a situation where many others are offering an opinion. This is American, but I believe the UK uses "one's two pennies' worth." Often you hear "just my two cents," and on the Internet you'll see "just my $.02." Jakarta Globe: <<Jakarta. President-elect Joko Widodo has again come up with an innovative idea; one that is unheard of in the history of Indonesian politics. Indonesia’s future leader is asking the public to add its two cents in filling out his cabinet, and in the process, revealing the potential nominees.

Jokowi Center, a team of volunteers helping Joko gather suggestions and examine candidates for his cabinet lineup, launched a poll on its website jokowicenter.com on Thursday, allowing Indonesians nationwide to cast their votes for names provided by the site, or nominate their own favorites.>>


WITHIN A WHISKER means very close but not actually happening. And to CRY FOUL is to allege unfairness. Jakarta Globe: <<Indonesia’s outgoing leader on Monday came within a whisker of telling retired general Prabowo Subianto to admit defeat so that the country’s most bitterly fought leadership contest could be resolved.

Prabowo has almost certainly lost the July 9 election but on Sunday cried foul and demanded the General Elections Commission (KPU) investigate vote cheating before he would accept its result. The commission is due to announce the result on Tuesday.

“Admitting defeat is noble,” President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told reporters in a clear reference to Prabowo.>>


ON THE ROPES: failing, almost defeated. The idiom comes from boxing. The National (Abu Dhabi): <<This latest return has not solely been fuelled by appetite for his music. Mooted since 2006, the eventual delivery in October 2013 of Morrissey’s memoir Autobiography ratcheted up, with fortuitous timing, wider interest in a career that seemed on the ropes—though a big concert draw, Morrissey had been without a record deal for four years.>>

A DARK HORSE is a candidate or competitor that is not expected to do well but suddenly emerges with a serious chance to win. France was considered a dark horse in the World Cup competition, but today they have a chance to advance to the semifinal round.


PUT THE KIBOSH ON (pronounced with a long I, accent on the first syllable): to stop something. Jakarta Globe: <<Jakarta. Acting Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama has put the kibosh on a proposal submitted by city councilors to fly to the United States on a study trip.

“They are proposing an overseas visit, to the United States. I don’t know how many people, but they won’t be regional councilors soon – so why would they want to go there?” Basuki said.>>


SHOOT FROM THE HIP: act quickly based on one's feelings, speak without closely considering one's words. Of American origin but now more widely used. Forbes: <<If you ask executives whether they study the available data before making an important decision or just shoot from the hip, it’s likely that just about every one will say they take the data-driven approach. A study reveals the fascinating truth: decision-makers do indeed look at the data, but only one out of ten does what the data suggests if it contradicts his or her gut feeling!>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 27

PULL THE PLUG ON: discontinue, withdraw support from. Ann Arbor News (Michigan, USA): <<Eaton said it's his understanding that the council-approved site plan for the Packard Square project expires in January 2015. He said it could be extended for another two years, but he's wondering if it's time to pull the plug on the project.
"This is something that has been dragging on for more than a decade," Eaton said of the Georgetown Mall saga. "This guy brought the property in 2001.">>


CUT YOUR LOSSES: abandon a failing effort so as not to waste more money. Forbes: <<As much as you want to make that sale, there’s a point where you’ll need to cut your losses. Dealing with difficult clients is sometimes necessary, but these two types of customers won’t be worth your time or energy.>>


COOL YOUR HEELS: wait. Ann Arbor News (Michigan, USA): <<Ann Arbor News:
Our first interactions at Slurping Turtle added to the chilly feeling. They only take reservations for six or more, and won’t seat your party until all have arrived. Twice we arrived two by two, and although there were many open tables, we were forced to cool our heels until the final stragglers found parking. >>


GET THE SHORT END OF THE STICK: get a bad deal, not get one's fair share. Detroit Free Press: <<Castaneda-Lopez and other council members opposed the deal that included a neighborhood development agreement, because it did not guarantee the Delray neighborhood [would] be protected. The new bridge’s customs plaza will be built in Delray, forcing about 900 residents to move.
“We are really getting the short end of the stick in terms of how much we get for the sale of land, and we really are devaluing the land,” Castaneda-Lopez said. “We know that this land in particular is going to be worth exponentially more than it is now, and that’s not being taken into consideration.”>>


A SLAM DUNK (the term comes from basketball) is a sure thing, an action that is certain to succeed. A RUBBER STAMP (often a verb, to rubber-stamp something) is quick approval with very little consideration. I think both of these are North American.
Example: Detroit Free Press: <<Still, Rhodes recently reminded the city that it must justify its plan to obliterate the $1.4 billion in city debt insured by FGIC and Syncora.
“I don’t think it’s a slam dunk,” said Melissa Jacoby, a University of North Carolina Chapel Hill professor who has been closely tracking the case. “It’s possible it can be justified. There’s no rubber stamp here.”>>


THROW COLD WATER ON something: say something discouraging about something people are excited about, dampen enthusiasm. <<Forest reaffirmed their position at the top of the table and extended their unbeaten start to the campaign with a thumping 4-0 win over Reading at the City Ground.
And, when asked if his players are starting to believe something special is on the horizon this season, Pearce [the coach] responded: "Yes, I don't see why not.
"It would be easy for me to throw cold water on that, because there is a long way to go.>>


ON THE RUN: fleeing from authorities. Business Day (Nigeria): <<The husband and children of the Nigerian nurse who died after getting infected with the Ebola virus are on the run, the health officials in the country have said.
The nurse, the only Nigerian fatality from the disease which has killed over 900 people in four West African countries, was exposed to the virus at a health facility ...
The nurse’s family were not the first to flee from quarantine. In Sierra Leone, ... dozens of people confirmed by laboratory tests to have Ebola are now unaccounted for.>>


TAKE YOUR TIME: don't hurry. Daily Telegraph (Sydney): <<There are plenty of fantastic coastal walks around Sydney, but the hike from Manly to Mosman’s Spit Bridge is hard to beat. Taking you alongside the glistening harbour and through native bushland, the 10km walk takes three to four hours one way, but why not pack a picnic lunch in your backpack, take your time, and stop at one of the harbour beaches along the way?>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More

Book of Idioms, Episode 26

COMFORT ZONE: a situation in which one feels secure. It's often said that to learn or grow, you have to get out of your comfort zone.
Ex: We are not afraid to step out of our comfort zone and take risks.


UP FOR GRABS: available, not yet claimed. Most examples of this seem to be North American. Chicago Sun-Times: <<JThe millennial vote is up for grabs in the November midterm elections, according to a new Harvard Institute of Politics poll, with the 18-to-29 year old vote trending slightly Republican.

“The IOP’s fall polling shows that young Americans care deeply about their country and are politically up for grabs,” Harvard Institute of Politics Director Maggie Williams said in a release. “Millennials could be a critical swing vote. Candidates for office: ignore millennial voters at your peril.">>

"Swing voters" are those who are undecided between two candidates or parties. "Millennials" are those who came of age around the year 2000.

A TRACK RECORD is a pattern or record or prior accomplishments or behavior. And a RED FLAG is a warning, a reason for caution. Jakarta Post:
<<Ministerial candidates’ track records raise red flags. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) revealed Monday that a probe had found that some of the 43 ministerial candidates proposed by President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo could be implicated in future graft cases investigated by the antigraft body.>>

MAKE NICE: to make an effort to be friendly and cooperative after conflict. Primarily North American. Wall Street Journal Indonesia: <<
Subianto and Jokowi Make Nice
Defeated presidential contender Prabowo Subianto congratulated his rival Joko Widodo live on television for the first time since Mr. Widodo was declared the victor in July’s election.
Mr. Widodo initiated the meeting and the two spoke for about 30 minutes. Mr. Subianto, who has remained out of the public eye for more than a month, said he was certain that Mr. Widodo was “a patriot” and that both men wanted the same thing, “a united Indonesia.”>>


HELICOPTER PARENTING: paying overly close attention to a child's activities. A new idiom. The Guardian (London): <<Helicopter parenting – hovering above and “taking an overprotective or excessive interest” in your child’s life – is a big story in the US. There, we’re told, parents get over-involved in everything their university student offspring do. From sleeping on the floor of their dorm rooms to calling their professors to discuss their grades – which they can’t legally do.>>


GREASY SPOON: a small, cheap restaurant, typically offering grilled or fried foods; in American English a "diner." Metro Times, Detroit: <<
22 better breakfast spots to try in metro Detroit
The Ham Shop, 330 Monroe St., Detroit; 313-965-0088: This downtown greasy spoon serves ham everything: ham sandwiches, ham omelets, and on the list goes. Part of the place's reputation comes from the talk about their ham and cheese omelets, which were described to us as being "the size of a hubcap.">>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More

Book of Idioms, Episode 25

BURY THE HATCHET: end a feud or dispute. American in origin but now more widely used. Jakarta Post: <<A plenary session of the House of Representatives unanimously agreed on Friday to pass an amendment to the Legislative Institutions (MD3) Law, ending a two-month legislative standoff between the coalitions of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and defeated presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto. ...

Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly said passing the amendment would allow the government to permit ministers and other government officials to attend House hearings after the two opposing camps agreed to bury the hatchet by allowing the passing of the law.>>


STRAWS IN THE WIND are small indications of what's coming in the future. This is a rather old idiom, but still used.
A CANARY IN THE COAL MINE is similar but carries a stronger sense of warning and suggests that the warning sign comes from an especially sensitive entity—miners carry canaries into coal mines so that if there is poison gas, the bird will be affected by it first and will give the miners a chance to get out.
Example: The Guardian (London): <<Scotland and Catalonia are straws in the wind for the whole of Europe. Next Thursday, we get the latest eurozone growth figures, which are likely to show yet another quarter of stagnation or slow growth. Economists will rail at Brussels and the ECB, for failing to make Europe more like Britain and the US. But the political momentum against free-market reform is growing.

In France, you have the far right on 25%. In Germany last month, the anti-euro Alliance for Germany (AfD) party surged to double digits in two regional elections. The Greek government – the original canary in the coalmine for the whole crisis – is struggling to finish its term of office, while Europe’s biggest Marxist party waits in the wings, having won the European elections there and taken control of the biggest administrative region. There are big forces now in Europe that reject the status quo..>>


ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK: in danger of being eliminated. York Dispatch (Pennsylvania, USA): <<Faced with a financial crisis that's threatening to devastate York City services next year, Mayor Kim Bracey announced last week she's setting up a system to accept donations.

The hope is people will step up to help offset the "severely draconian" cuts intended to close a $7 million gap between anticipated revenues and expenses without increasing property taxes. On the chopping block are more than 75 jobs – including eight in the fire department and 46 in the police department.>>


SOUR GRAPES: criticizing something after you find out you can't have it yourself.
Example- NBC Sports: <<Bayern Munich winger Franck Ribery has slammed the Ballon d’Or as an award decided by “politics.” ...
Hard not to read those words and feel Ribery’s fury over the situation. Having had an unbelievable 2013 season, the French winger found himself one of the finalists for the award with a select few believing he might even take it home. But it wasn’t to be as Ronaldo’s record-breaking season was enough to see him break Lionel Messi‘s three-year streak of winning the award. Aside from Ribery, few posed the argument that Ronaldo didn’t deserve the recognition, leaving Ribery’s comments to sound like sour grapes.>>


KILL TIME: to entertain yourself to avoid boredom. Jakarta Post: <<As the standoff at the House of Representatives drags on, many newly installed lawmakers find themselves simply killing time, being paid for doing nothing.
One such lawmaker is Daniel Johan of the National Awakening Party (PKB), who chooses to spend his afternoons reading books or watching TV in his office on the 21st floor of the Nusantara I building in the House complex in Senayan, Central Jakarta.>>


TO BE CAUGHT OFF GUARD: to be surprised, to be unprepared for something. Los Angeles Times: <<There’s more and less of Taylor Swift in the news this week, with just-announced details of her 1989 world tour competing with word that Swift’s record label has pulled her music off Spotify for an indeterminate period. ...

Ultimately the 1989 tour is slated to take the pop-country star to eight countries on four continents, also including Europe, Australia and Asia. ...

Meanwhile, all of Swift’s albums have been removed from [the streaming music service] Spotify, as her label, Big Machine Records, reportedly is being put up for sale for an estimated $200 million ...

Spotify reportedly was caught off guard by the move, which was delivered in a formal notice to the service's officials late last week ...>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More

Book of Idioms, Episode 24

TO TREAT SOMEONE WITH KID GLOVES is to handle that person cautiously or gently. Often the idiom is used in the sense of not offending a powerful person. Jakarta Post: <<Despite glaring violations, the National Police are delaying their investigation of a crash involving Dahlan Iskan until the state-owned enterprises minister says he is ready to talk to officers. Similar kid gloves have also been extended to the son of Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa, who, in contrast to usual police practice, was not arrested after he was involved in a fatal traffic accident and was allowed to seek treatment at a private hospital, instead of a police hospital.>>


LAND ON YOUR FEET: to recover after a setback. This may be literal—we say that when cats fall, they always land on their feet. But the expression can be used for any setback, not just for a physical fall. Detroit Free Press headline: <<Pushed [stressed] by [the] great recession, Michigan entrepreneurs are landing on their feet>>


LET IT ALL HANG OUT: talk in an uninhibited manner. "Sure, all of us enjoy poking fun at our loquacious, irrepressible, unpredictable vice president. Unlike most high-level pols [politicians], and certainly unlike anyone else in this administration, Joe [Biden] likes to let it all hang out."—Michelle Cottle, Daily Beast news site


HORSE TRADING: vote swapping among groups in a legislative body, political negotiations. Agence France Presse: << Pakistani party leader Makhdoom Shahabuddin] was the consensus choice following more than 24 hours of crisis talks and intense horse trading between Zardari and members of his fractious ruling coalition.>>


IN FULL SWING: fully underway, happening now. Jakarta Globe: <<Political negotiations are in full swing ahead next year’s presidential election, with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s Democratic Party and the Golkar Party both hoping to form a coalition with Megawati Sukarnoputri’s Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle. >>


To MOVE THE GOALPOSTS is to change the rules or the goal in the middle of a negotiation. This probably comes from American football, but I think it's used in Britain now too. CBS News: <<In the latest twist of the "fiscal cliff" saga, President Obama today seemingly spiked the football before crossing the goal line, applauding a deal that hasn't been finalized and raising the ire of some Republicans who accused him of moving the goalposts.>> (To "spike the football," by the way, is to bounce the football hard as a way of rejoicing over a touchdown or a victory.)


WET BEHIND THE EARS: inexperienced. Sunday Herald (Scotland): <<Teale is still wet behind the ears as a coach but has a wealth of playing experience he can call upon. After making a name for himself at Clydebank and then Ayr United, he would go on to spend the next decade down in England at Wigan Athletic, Derby County and Sheffield Wednesday, as well as loan spells with Plymouth Argyle and Barnsley.>>


THE UPPER HAND: an advantage, a dominant position. Reuters: <<Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf said on Wednesday that her government has the upper hand in the fight against Ebola, but warned against complacency or any reduction in international support.>>


To GIVE SOMEONE A HAND has two meanings:
1) to assist someone (for this you can also say "lend a hand"), and
2) applaud.
Example: Our English teacher, Mr Devid give the weak students a hand.

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 23

CURRY FAVOR: appease, try to appeal to. Oregonian newspaper: <<Animal bills are a good way for legislators to curry favor with constituents. Oregon ranks fourth in the nation for pet ownership, according to a report released last month. And those who don't have pets generally want animals to be treated well. >>


THROW DOWN THE GAUNTLET: issue a challenge, do something to challenge another person or organization. From medieval combat, where a knight might throw down a gauntlet, a type of armored glove, to challenge another knight to fight. Jakarta Globe: <<Google unveiled a touchscreen notebook computer on Thursday designed for high-end users, throwing down the gauntlet to Apple and its MacBooks.>>


TOP-OF-THE-LINE: most expensive or luxurious (of a group of products). Apple's top-of-the-line laptop, the 15-inch MacBook Pro with high-resolution display, sells fo $2,200.


LIGHTNING ROD: something or someone that attracts something. Literally a lightning rod is a metal post that you put up to attract lightning and keep it from hitting a building. But idiomatically, the term is used as a metaphor. Jakarta Globe: <<Pope Benedict XVI, who on Monday announced his intention to resign this month, will be remembered as a staunch defender of Roman Catholic orthodoxy, a diehard traditionalist, and a lightning rod for controversy.>>


And one more: to DODGE THE BULLET (or dodge a bullet) is to escape from a bad situation. Wow, we sold too many tickets for the concert! But a few people didn't show up, so we dodged the bullet.


HEADS WILL ROLL: people will be fired. Evening Standard (London): <<It is likely that heads will roll at RBS as the details of involvement in the rate-rigging scandal emerge. Although Mr Hester is not seen as at risk, its is probable that the head of the investment bank, John Hourican, and the head of markets, Peter Nielsen, will come under considerable pressure, although there is no suggestion they were directly involved. >>


A LITTLE BIRD TOLD ME: This is a way of saying that you don't want to reveal the source of something you have heard.

A: Hey, I heard that you and Dave are going out Saturday night!
B: What?! Who told you that?
A: Oh, a little bird told me.


BUTTERFLIES IN MY STOMACH: a nervous feeling. A friend in graduate school posts: "My advisor just sent me an e-mail at 3:36 a.m. I get butterflies in my stomach whenever I get a message from this overachiever." (An "overachiever" is a very ambitious person who works very hard, maybe too hard.)


BREAD AND BUTTER: regular source of profit or money. Detroit News: <<The debut of the all-new [Mercedes-Benz] E-Class is certainly worth watching. This is “our bread-and-butter car,” stressed Steve Cannon, the head of Mercedes’ U.S. operations. The E-class is both the brand’s best-seller and the top model in this critical luxury segment.>>


TIP ONE'S HAND: to reveal what one is thinking, or what one already possesses. This expression comes from the game of poker. Vancouver Province newspaper: <<[Hockey defenseman] Cam Barker wouldn't tip his hand but dropped a hint Wednesday that [he might accept a professional tryout with the Vancouver Canucks].>>

Note that our recent idiom "take a hint/drop a hint" is also included in this sentence!

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 22

CRY WOLF: to give a false alarm intentionally, to spread fear for one's own benefit. New York Times: <<Some seem to think that public health officials pull a microbe “crisis du jour” out of their proverbial test tube when financing for infectious disease research and control programs appears to be drying up. They dismiss warnings about the latest bugs as “crying wolf.” This misimpression could be deadly. >> "Du jour" is a French expression meaning "of the day."


KISS AND MAKE UP: reconcile. No kissing is necessarily involved. Time International: <<So where does it all go from here? The experts see three possible scenarios. One is a kiss-and-make-up strategy: in other words, [French president François] Hollande and his team will try to patch up relations with [German chancellor Angela] Merkel. The second possibility is that the French government essentially waits to see what happens in the German national elections this fall ...>>


CAUGHT RED-HANDED: apprehended (caught) in the act of committing a crime. Bermuda Sun: <<A mother of two today admitted stealing two tubes of lip gloss from the Phoenix Pharmacy after she was caught red-handed.

Donita Maxine Smith, 23, pleaded guilty in Magistrates’ Court to stealing two tubes of Maybelline Super Stay ten-hour Stain Gloss from the Phoenix on March 26. The items were valued at $20.


BANG FOR YOUR BUCK: value for your money. AnnArbor.com: <<
By approving the ordinance changes, Pollay said, the city would be losing all the revenue the DDA captures from other taxing authorities — money that gets put into projects that benefit the city.
"The city gets double the bang for its buck by having the DDA fully funded," she said. >>


LOW BLOW: in boxing, a low blow is an illegal punch below the waist. But idiomatically it can mean any unscrupulous attack. Daily Beast: <<South Carolina politics is a full-contact spectator sport, and the 18-candidate special election on Tuesday is shaping up to be a scrum for the ages, with low blows and high expectations.>>


MARCH TO THE BEAT OF ONE'S OWN DRUMMER: habitually follow one's own conscience or inclinations, rather than conforming to societal norms. San Jose Mercury News: <<When we meet Wendla in [the musical] "Spring Awakening," she doesn't yet know if she will fall in line or march to the beat of her own drummer.>>


If you do something BY THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS, you do it in an improvised manner, you do it without having thought it through. CNN International, in a story about a plan to reduce the snake population in Guam by dropping poisoned mice for them to eat: <<"We have a site where there's a population of snakes that nobody can get into. It's a controlled population," Vice told the Pacific News Center. "This is being done in a very rigorous, scientific manner. This isn't just something that we've just kind of come up with by the seat of our pants.">>


ON THE FRITZ (U.S.), ON THE BLINK (Britain): not working properly. The washing machine's on the fritz again—it will wash and rinse, but it won't spin. These are colloquial.


COMFORT ZONE: familiar parts of life where you feel at ease, free of stress. If you're going to really master English, you have to get out of your comfort zone and try to converse with native speakers! Common inspirational quote: "Life begins where your comfort zone ends." (attributed to Neale Walsch)


LOW-HANGING FRUIT: simple steps, easy measures. Detroit News: <<Finding some low-hanging fruit to pick in a city where everything is broken should be easy.

But the one fix Detroiters are desperate for — a safer community — won't come quickly or cheaply.

To become a more secure city, Detroit needs a better-working police department.>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 21

AYS ARE NUMBERED: If your days are numbered, that means you are going to die soon. The idiom is also used for physical things or abstract entities: The central bank has been trying to stimulate the economy for several years, but the days of that policy are numbered. Bangkok Post: <<Unless we're suffering a terminal disease or are badly injured in an accident that signals our days are numbered, we can't possibly know when we're going to die.>>


THE MAIN DRAG: the most important street in a town, or a part of town. This expression is North American (I think). Detroit Free Press: <<Kebabs can also be had in sandwich form for just $3, which means that Iraqi Kabob, located on Dearbon’s main Arab-American drag, is not only incredibly tasty, it’s also an incredible deal. >>


Since we had LEARN THE ROPES yesterday, here's another rope idiom from reader Tomas Patarcic: ON THE ROPES, almost defeated. This idiom comes from boxing. From a news report on American immigration reform: <<Just when immigration reform seemed on the ropes, it got a big push forward -- from (Senator) Kelly Ayotte and (Representative) John Boehner.


MONEY TALKS: wealth and financial incentives influence people's decision-making. The Age (Australia): <<Even so, and without the government continuing to pour millions into teaching Japanese, [Japan] still ranks among Australia's top trade partners.

The reason is an old truism: money talks. Capitalism is a unifying global language—the pursuit of profit and the relentless search for new markets.>>


TO KNOW A PLACE LIKE THE BACK OF ONE'S HAND: to be very familiar with that place. China Post: <<I once knew Taoyuan — a fast-gentrifying smokestack city southwest of Taipei — like the back of my hand having lived here six years ago: the dense, traffic-wracked avenues stacked with turreted apartment towers, noodle shops, night markets and 7-Elevens.>>


CALLED ON THE CARPET: held accountable, asked to explain wrongdoing. New York Daily News: <<Hillcrest High School teacher Bernadette Camacho, 40, had been called on the carpet for yelling at her students, and then made matters worse by offering good grades to one of her students if she’d tell investigators nice things about her. The student refused.>>


BARKING UP THE WRONG TREE: following the wrong path in an enterprise, making an incorrect assumption.
New York Times CEO, quoted in Bloomberg Businessweek: <<In fact the launch of the pay model is the most important and most successful business decision made by the New York Times in many years. We have around 700,000 paid digital subscribers across the company’s products so far and a new nine-figure revenue-stream which is still growing. Much of the rest of the U.S.newspaper industry is now FOLLOWING SUIT [doing the same thing]. And developing this pay model, launching a suite of new subscription products to attract additional new subscribers, is central to our plans for the future.

What’s interesting, though, was that initial widespread skepticism: “It won’t work. It’s mad. They’re barking up the wrong tree.”>>


THROW A WRENCH INTO (or throw a monkey wrench into): to make something fail, to try to disrupt something. Oregonian (Portland): <<t’s unlikely Nike will relinquish a portion of land under the Bonneville Power Administration’s power lines for public use, said county and parks officials Tuesday at an open house for the development of the Westside Trail. ...

And this could throw a wrench in Metro’s plan to connect the gaps in the Westside Trail. In the latest master plan developed by the regional planning agency, the $30 million, multi-use trail would stretch 25 miles north-south, from the Willamette River near Forest Park to the Tualatin River at Tigard and King City. >>


HEADS WILL ROLL: people will be fired (or, in the U.S., CANNED). All our jobs are safe for now, but I'll tell you this—if profits don't improve next quarter, heads will roll.


RED TAPE: difficult bureaucratic obstacles. Jakarta Post: <<Jakarta Governor Joko “Jokowi” Widodo says he will establish a special body to handle all investment permit-related processes under one roof, following complaints [about] red tape surrounding the setting up of a business.

Having sliced the procedure from around five months to a mere 26 days during his tenure as mayor in Surakarta, Central Java, Jokowi says he is optimistic the same could be applied here.>>


If something DOES NOT PASS THE SMELL TEST or FAILS THE SMELL TEST (the expression is generally used in the negative), it seems illegitimate or fraudulent. Mostly North American, but here's an example from the Dhaka Tribune: <<The government’s closing down transmission of Diganta Television and Islamic TV, alongside the raid on the Hefazat-e-Islam protesters camped out at Shapla Chattar in the early hours of May 6, raises questions about its respect for press freedom and simply does not pass the smell test.>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More

Book of Idioms, Episode 20

FACE THE MUSIC: to receive punishment for wrongdoing, to accept punishment. The expression comes from old military discipline proceedings in which a band would play as a judgment was announced.
The Nation (Myanmar): <<Badminton brawlers to face the music tomorrow.

A repentant Bodin Issara says he is eager to apologise and renew his friendship with Maneepong Jonjit following the attack on his former badminton partner in Vancouver, Canada on Sunday. ...

The [Badminton Association of Thailand]'s executive board will meet tomorrow to consider Bodin's punishment for the attack, with a six-month ban reportedly the likely outcome.>>


NOT ROCKET SCIENCE: easily understood. To have BEEN AROUND THE BLOCK A FEW TIMES is to have years of wide experience. Washington Post: <<My purpose is to help young people avoid stupid mistakes as they begin their careers. This is not rocket science, but simply common-sense advice from someone who has been around the block a few times .>>


GET COLD FEET: to be afraid, especially about an upcoming major commitment. Associated Press: <<Aniston and Theroux, 41, began dating more than two years ago and got engaged on his birthday last August. Since then, their indefinite plans have led to speculation ranging from a broken engagement to Theroux getting cold feet.>>


CUT TO THE CHASE: get immediately to the most important part. The idiom is derived from cinema. Vancouver Province (Canada): <<“Malian and UN officials keep saying this election won’t be perfect, which is a little like saying that a Metallica concert won’t be quiet,” wrote anthropologist and Mali expert Bruce Whitehouse in his blog. “Let’s cut to the chase: Mali will not be prepared for elections 30 days from now. If the vote isn’t delayed, all signs point to an electoral shambles that could spark yet another crisis.”>>


UNDER THE TABLE has two meanings. Most commonly it refers to something, usually a payment, that is done secretly. The restaurant owner was paying his employees under the table so they could avoid reporting their income, but tax investigators eventually caught up with him. To DRINK SOMEONE UNDER THE TABLE is to out-drink that person, to drink more than the other person can. Newstrack India: <<Today's women drinking mums under the table: Melbourne, July 18 (ANI): A researcher is trying to determine why women in Australia are drinking more than their mothers used to. Helen Haydon, a psychologist of the Queensland University of Technology Centre for Accident Research and Road Safety, told the Daily Telegraph that there has been a major generational shift.>>

11TH-HOUR (adj.), AT THE 11TH HOUR (adjective phrase): right before an anticipated event. Also "last-minute," "at the last minute." Surrey Today (UK): <<A carnival which has brought family fun to Oxted for nearly half a century has been saved at the 11th hour.>>


DEAD GIVEAWAY: a sign that unintentionally but clearly reveals something. WETM-TV (Elmira, New York): <<Other tips [when you're going on vacation]? Keep the mail from piling up ... a dead giveaway you aren’t home. Either stop the mail while you are gone, or get a trusted friend or family member to pick it up for you.>>


BRAIN DRAIN: large-scale emigration of well-educated individuals. News @ Northeastern (Northeastern University, U.S.): <<Chris­tine Umeh’s par­ents grew up in Nigeria but ­moved to the United States to escape a nation rife with poverty, war, and corruption.

While they looked to Boston for a better life, Umeh set her sights on returning to Africa.

“My goal is to move there and play a role in stop­ping the brain drain,” said Umeh, a fourth-year com­mu­ni­ca­tion studies major.>>

To SET ONE'S SIGHTS on something is to aspire to it, to hope to do it.

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More

Book of idioms, Episode 19

GO THE EXTRA MILE is similar to LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED from yesterday—it means make an especially strong effort to achieve something. Jakarta Post: <<On Wednesday last week, thieves [at the National Museum of Indonesia] made off with four ancient, gold Mataram-era artifacts: a dragon-shaped plaque, a scripted crescent-shaped plaque, a Harihara plaque and a small, round, gold box.

A source, who is familiar with the illegal trading of Indonesian antiquities, said that European collectors would go “the extra mile” to get their hands on Indonesian collections.>>


LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED: take all possible measures in order to achieve something. Independent (UK): <<A coroner has vowed to leave “no stone unturned” in the search for the truth about how a Red Arrows pilot was killed ejecting from an aircraft while it was still on the ground.

Pressure on the elite Red Arrows team to perform as frequently as possible will be among the factors investigated as possible causes of the death of Flight Lieutenant Sean Cunningham in November 2011.>>


TheStreet.com: <<Chide the ivory tower all you want, but you can't accuse professors of creating "click bait" to generate "page views." Academics aren't in the business of getting page views.>>
The IVORY TOWER means universities, academia in general.

CLICK BAIT is a sensational headline or photo on the Internet designed to attract viewers to a site. "Click bait" is quite new; this writer puts it in quotation marks, but others would not.


A FULL-COURT PRESS: In basketball, a full-court press occurs when defensive players guard the offensive players for the entire length of the court rather than just at the basket end. Idiomatically, it means a strong attack on all fronts. I think this idiom is primarily North American.

To REST ON ONE'S LAURELS is to be satisfied with past achievements instead of continuing to work hard on new projects. This one is used everywhere.

DOWN THE RABBIT HOLE: into unknown territory. The expression suggests that you are getting lost in complexities of something. Although this expression comes from the book "Alice in Wonderland," it looks to me as though it is used more often in North America than in Britain. Dallas Observer:

<<At Plano's Chennai, a Magical Trip Down the Indian - Food Rabbit Hole

If you're not well versed, you could get lost in the ingredients required to make just one Indian curry. Scores of them can be featured in a single recipe, and one state in India offers enough dishes to keep you guessing for years. Start eating your way through the country's different regions and the culinary soup gets even murkier. >>


GO OVER LIKE A LEAD BALLOON: not be at all favorably received. Charleston (West Virginia) Gazette: <<CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- As the governor's Blue Ribbon Commission on Highways tries to finalize proposals to come up with about $600 million a year additional funding for the state Road Fund -- or about a 60 percent increase over current funding -- one proposal may be to float a new round of road bonds.
(In 2012, Transportation Secretary Paul Mattox pitched a $1 billion road bond amendment to the Legislature, and it went over like a lead balloon.)>>


PULL THE PLUG ON: put an end to, disable. A rather unpleasant idiom—its literal meaning is to disconnect a life-support system in a hospital. But the idiomatic meaning is more common. National Public Radio (U.S.): "The party of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi has been a partner in Italy's fragile coalition government. But Berlusconi threatened to pull the plug on that government yesterday."


Three idioms in one sentence from the Yorkshire Evening Post (UK), about debate over a new police station! A BOBBY (this is UK only) is a policeman. A police officer ON HIS OR HER BEAT or ON THE BEAT is an officer who is patrolling an area on foot. OLD HAT is old-fashioned, predictable, trite. So ... <<Big is beautiful, they say, and now the bobby on the beat is classed as old hat.>>

Note that "old hat" is usually used as a predicate adjective, after a verb or conjunction, not before a noun. You could say that sales of the iPhone are falling because in the eyes of many buyers it is old hat, but you would generally not say "the old-hat phone."

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More

Book of Idioms, Episode 18

Something that SPEAKS VOLUMES is something visual, a situation, or an action that reveals a lot of information or reveals the truth about something. It is *not* something spoken. RantSports.com: <<The good news for Denver is that Von Miller is back and things should start trending in a better direction. They’re still the team to beat in the AFC and in the driver’s seat for a top spot in the playoffs. But when you look at how Sunday night’s game [turned] out, it speaks volumes about the Broncos as a whole. To beat the best, their defense has to get better.>>

IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT is in an advantageous position, in control.


Something that SPEAKS VOLUMES is something visual, a situation, or an action that reveals a lot of information or reveals the truth about something. It is *not* something spoken. RantSports.com: <<The good news for Denver is that Von Miller is back and things should start trending in a better direction. They’re still the team to beat in the AFC and in the driver’s seat for a top spot in the playoffs. But when you look at how Sunday night’s game [turned] out, it speaks volumes about the Broncos as a whole. To beat the best, their defense has to get better.>>

IN THE DRIVER'S SEAT is in an advantageous position, in control.


SHOUT-OUT (noun): public mention, a public statement of thanks. I believe this is American English.

WARTS AND ALL: with flaws included. The Australian: << THE Tasmanian government says a "warts and all" report into the state's disastrous January bushfires will be released to the public in coming weeks.
The government has received the independent report of former South Australian police commissioner Malcolm Hyde into the state's worst fires in 50 years.
Emergency services minister David O'Byrne says cabinet is considering its findings.
"It's a warts and all view of what happened during the bushfire season and it's important the Tasmanian community looks at that document and that we learn from it," Mr O'Byrne told reporters in Hobart.>>


RUNNING ON FUMES: continuing to work or stay awake when you are completely exhausted. Said of a person, although the expression comes from the last fumes of gasoline in an empty tank in a car. I went out to dinner with my friend the other night. She said, "I'm glad to see you, but I was up until 4 a.m. last night, so I'm running on fumes right now."


GET OUT OF HAND: become uncontrollable. This is said of a situation, not a person.
Yahoo UK: << Coronation Street: Knicker Factory feud gets out of hand.

After weeks of bitter rivalry, it looks as though things are about to come to a head over at Underworld… and with Peter still throwing his weight around, it looks as though Michelle might have finally had enough. "Right now, I'd rather hammer nails into the floor with my head than sit in that office," she says to Ryan. And with Peter on her case all the time, you can hardly blame her.>>


To BE ONE SOMEONE'S CASE is to be nagging someone persistently.

CLEAN HOUSE: eliminate corruption or inefficiency in an organization.
Jakarta Globe:
<<New Generation of Local Leaders Cleaning House
It’s a busy weekday morning and Ridwan Kamil, the recently inaugurated mayor of Bandung, has just arrived for his first day on the new job the same way he has always gotten around the traffic-choked West Java capital — by bicycle.
Ridwan, an internationally acclaimed architect with no prior political experience, is part of a generation of new local leaders taking office one region at a time, determined to sweep out all vestiges of their predecessors’ stagnant and often corruption-riddled bureaucratic systems.>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More

Book of Idioms, Episode 17

BULLISH ON: optimistic about. This comes from stock market terminology but is now more widely used. You can also say bearish on, pessimistic about, but that's less common. Jakarta Globe: <<A senior US official said that the United States was open to providing election support but added that problems during the last vote in 2009 were technical in nature and not seen as an effort to rig the outcome.>>


DOWN IN THE DUMPS: depressed, melancholy.
To LICK ONE'S WOUNDS is to try to recover from a defeat or misfortune (from the fact that animals who are hurt often lick their wounds). Detroit Free Press: Detroit is heading into one of those ... stretches when we confound the world’s expectations about a bedraggled city, down in the dumps, licking its wounds.


ROB PETER TO PAY PAUL: to borrow money in order to pay a bill or meet a financial obligation. Forbes: <<When ... mature, established firms ... struggle in this regard it doesn’t bode well for the local Main Street business owners who have been forced to rob Peter to pay Paul over the last few years. Less-than-perfect credit and a mediocre track record don’t impress many bankers.>>


KEEP YOUR EYES PEELED: be alert for something, watch carefully for something. Another common way to say this is "be on the lookout." ITV News, Britain: <<Dog walkers, cyclists and fishermen are being urged to keep their eyes peeled in a Derbyshire beauty spot after a number of swans were found dead in the area.>>


If something HAS LEGS, it is persistent or durable. You use this idiom for a phenomenon. Wall Street Journal: <<Stock-market bears argue that much of the recent record-breaking rally has been fueled by the Federal Reserve’s easing-money policies. But Mr. Masters isn’t worried about a paring back of the Fed’s $85-billion-a-month bond-buying program. “The economic recovery can continue and still has legs,” he said....>>

TO BE CAUGHT OFF GUARD is to fail to anticipate something. Also we can say to catch someone off guard, to surprise someone, to do something the person wasn't expecting.
Example: [The Bank of Indonesia] caught off guard by recent rupiah decline.
Bank Indonesia (BI) deputy governor Mirza Adityaswara has said the rupiah exchange rate, which currently stands at below Rp 11,500 per US dollar, had been more volatile than expected.


WHERE THERE'S SMOKE, THERE'S FIRE: if there are a lot of rumors, there's probably some truth behind them; if something looks wrong, it probably is. A proverb (a common saying) and an idiom (an expression in which words are used in a nonliteral or unusual way). Florida International University student media: <<We might be on the verge of witnessing the end of an era here at FIU.
Chatter has begun to spread about the possibility of women’s basketball Head Coach Cindy Russo retiring at the end of this year.
I have no idea whether these rumors have any merit, but you know what they say, “where there’s smoke, there’s fire.”>>


And, since we had the bottom of the barrel, let's add its antonym, CREME DE LA CREME. This comes from French but is used in English; it's often spelled with accent marks: crème de la crème. Literally this means "cream of the cream," but idiomatically it means the best of the best. Al-Bawaba (Abu Dhabi): << Abu Dhabi Film Festival 2013 kicks off with the crème de la crème of international cinema. It is a star-struck week for Abu Dhabi with the best of international and Arab movie talent descending upon the capital for the 7th edition of the Abu Dhabi Film Festival (ADFF), which is on till November 2nd.>>

Star-struck, I might add, means dazzled by the presence of celebrities.


BLOW SMOKE: give misleading or exaggerated information. Jakarta Globe: <<In 2007, at an OIC Health Minsters’ summit in Kuala Lumpur, Indonesia stated its willingness to recognize that tobacco poses one of the greatest threats to health. The country joined an effort to call upon OIC member states to introduce stronger tobacco control legislation.

Diplomats have noted Indonesia’s eagerness to project itself as a leader in international forums, but say the country’s reputation will suffer if, rather than taking action and responsibility on basic agreements, the government is instead seen as merely blowing smoke.>>


SUCK IT UP: endure hardship. As far as I can see, this is more common in the U.S. and Australia than in the UK.
From the Dear Prudence advice column on Slate.com: <<Dear Prudie,
Every year my husband and I have the same argument. My husband loves scary movies and wants to watch one each year on Halloween after we put the kids to bed. Scary movies just aren't for me. When I watch them, I feel anxious and terrified. I have nightmares and end up spending the next week afraid to be alone in the house. He thinks I should suck it up. He says he doesn’t care for romantic comedies, but he watches them with me. He doesn’t understand there’s a difference between sitting through a movie that may not be your favorite, and subjecting yourself to a frightening and disturbing experience. I've suggested that he watch his favorite scary movies alone while I do something in another room, but he says that’s no fun. Who's right?
—Not So Happy Halloween>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 16

There is an old saying, "Live by the sword; die by the sword." This means, those who prosper from violence usually die violent deaths. Examples are, sadly, all around us. What is important to learn is that many people use half this expression as a substitute for the entire quote: "It's like with Adolf Hitler. Live by the sword, and all that."


To take someone to task is to scold someone severely. In news media, it often means public scoldings of a political nature, but is not limited to that.
Example: (1) The teacher took John to task for his bad behavior.
(2) I lost a big contract, and the boss took me to task in front of everyone.


In entertainment, to "bomb" is to do very poorly, disastrously, etc.
Example: "Ricky Gervais bombed at the Golden Globes" . In other words, Gervais' performance was seen as a failure. Often, we say "he bombed at (the location)" and allow the listener to assume it is the idiomatic meaning of "bombing".


Figuratively, to "make noise" is to gather a great deal of attention. Such is the context of the following example: "Silent Film Hopes To Make Noise at Golden Globes" That is, even though it is a "silent" film, it hopes to "make some noise".


Figuratively, "a black eye" is some kind of mark of shame.
Example: "As of this writing, Oakland is on pace to exceed 100 murders by the end of 2011, a black eye it has avoided only once since 2005." In other words, this level of murders is very much a bad thing, nothing to be proud of whatsoever.


Someone asked a good question about "blue bloods". The expression seems to be a literal translation from Spanish, referring to the noticeable blue veins of "fair-skinned" (i.e. white) Spaniards coming from old families that claimed to never have intermarried with Jews, Moors, or other, darker races. The term has come to mean "aristocrats" (or people in the role of aristocrats) in general.


A "blue chip" stock is a stock with a history of strong financial returns and dividend growth. Investors expect blue chips to maintain their quality even during poor economic conditions.
Example: "IBM has been considered a blue chip stock for decades. Investors expect consistent returns from it." Anything that is figuratively "blue chip" is considered high quality. Example: "Some believe Ritz-Carlton to be the blue chip of hotel chains." That is, the standard of quality. (Just an example.)


A "patent troll" is a person or group of persons who attempts to obtain income through suing other people or groups (including companies) for violations of patents in a frivolous and abusive way while holding no intent to use the patents in legitimate business.
Example: One of the main reasons Kodak is going bankrupt is that the CEO turned Kodak into a "patent troll" company, relying on patent lawsuits and not new products as an income strategy. This strategy was not as successful as hoped (and rarely is).


To "teeter on the brink" (brink as in, edge) is to be extremely close to complete failure or disaster.
Example: "Kodak Teeters on the Brink", a story from yesterday's headlines about how Eastman Kodak is preparing for bankruptcy.


To "harden your position" on something is to take a more negative view.
Example: "The bank hardened its view on the possibility of a country leaving the Euro in 2012." (This comes from a current news story.) In this case, it means the bank views a negative outcome - a country or countries leaving the Eurozone - as more likely.


ANOTHER NAIL IN THE COFFIN or THE FINAL NAIL IN THE COFFIN. Something that causes the failure of something that is already in decline. Often used with "for" or "of": The privacy breach was the final nail in the coffin for the troubled retailer. The News (Pakistan): << Over the last few years, Pakistan hockey has achieved so many dubious distinctions that people have stopped getting surprised by its multiple failures.

But this spineless show at the Junior World Cup could be called the worst of all. Maybe, it is the last nail in the coffin.>>


SWEET TOOTH: a strong liking for sweet foods (candy, chocolate, etc.). Daily News & Analysis (India): <<The place is a delight for barbecue lovers. Be it fish, chicken or lamb, Armenians love their meat and serve it with much love. Cheese, tomatoes and aubergines are often a part the vegetarian diet. Their favourite bread is Lavash, which is a lot like our roomali roti. Those with a sweet tooth should try the Baklava, which is a rich, sweet pastry made of layers of filo pastry filled with chopped nuts and sweetened with syrup or honey...>>

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

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Book of Idioms, Episode 15

Touch base (spoken) : [often in business and politics]
- talk to someone for a short time to find out what has happened since the last time you spoke to them
* Hi, Tom, I just wanted to touch base with you about the project.

To "chew someone out" is to speak harshly, usually for some time, when criticizing an individual.
Ex.: "The boss really chewed out his secretary for the mistakes she was making. I feel a little sorry for her, but those mistakes were completely unprofessional, too." Yes, this is similar to "busting someone's chops", but feels slightly less severe.

"Blowing smoke" is an expression relating to stage magicians. Magicians use smoke to confuse and obscure the audience as to what is really happening.
Ex.: "If you think a seller is blowing smoke, he may be trying to rip you off."

"Learning the hard way" is learning something through painful or bitter personal experiences, such as making a mistake and suffering the consequences.
Ex.: "She learned the hard way not to drink and drive after her car accident. She's lucky to be alive.

A "laughing stock" is a person who has done something stupid or simply humiliating and can barely show his face in public without being laughed at; someone who cannot be taken seriously.
Example: A French man is suing Google for a Google Map photo that showed him urinating outside his own house. He claims Google has made him "a laughing stock" and is suing for 10,000 euros in damages.

A "mammoth task" is a task that is, figuratively speaking, huge; huge like a woolly mammoth, an extinct relative of the elephant.
Example: "Solving global poverty is a mammoth task. Perhaps it will never be solved." That's an example of how people use it.


"Building bridges" is an expression used for creating lines of communication (a.k.a. "connections") between different people, groups, organizations, and even cultures.
Example: "We believe it is important to build bridges between East and West so that all peoples of the Pacific Rim may enjoy greater cooperation and prosperity."

To "right the ship" is to bring stability to a situation.
Ex.: "Apple was counting on Steve Jobs to right the ship when he returned from a long absence. He did, leading Apple to unprecedented success."

A Hobson's choice is a "choice" where you are free to choose, but have only one option. (Therefore it is not really a choice.)
Example: In the early days of the automobile, Henry Ford (of the company bearing his name) allowed customers to choose any color for their car that they wanted... as long as the color was black! Multiple colors would raise his paint costs.

In business, "Acts of God" are not literal miracles; instead, they are disasters that are outside the bounds of a contract, especially in insurance.
Ex.: "No, you do not get a refund just because the concert hall was hit by lightning and burned to the ground! That's an act of God and we're not responsible for it!" In other words, this means an event outside human control.

"Out of touch" means being disconnected, remote, and lacking appropriate responses to current events. "The CEO was removed because he was deemed out of touch with the rest of his industry." It's not hard to find more examples.

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Book of Idioms

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature

Read More