a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down »
An otherwise unpleasant situation can be pleasant when a pleasant aspect is deliberately introduced.1999, Eli Yassif, The Hebrew Folktale: History, Genre, Meaning, Indiana University Press, ISBN 0253335833, page 372,One is known as the "sweetening parable," that is to say a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. Thus, when the aim is to preach to the people, to guide them along the "bitter," arduous path of upholding burdensome precepts and prohibitions, a tale can lighten the load, make the "medicine" easier "to swallow."2001, Maureen Reagan, First Father, First Daughter: A Memoir, Little, Brown, ISBN 0316736368, page 319,It put some fun into the tedious business of preparing for a presidential debate. A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, right?2004, John Hoover, How to Work for an Idiot: Survive & Thrive... Without Killing Your Boss, Career Press, ISBN 1564147045, page 11,If a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, a barrel of laughs can wash down the big pills you might need to swallow.
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all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy »
Too much focus on one's career is often viewed unfavorably.Too much hard work and not enough leisure time can be unhealthy.
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be all ears »
To listen carefully or eagerly; to anticipate.
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bend over backwards »
To make a great effort; to take extraordinary care; to go to great lengths.
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bring home the bacon »
To have a job and earn money or to lead a successful career.
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don't be penny wise and pound foolish »
Don't be careful when it comes to spending small amounts of money, but careless when spending much larger amounts.Don't focus on minutiae and lose sight of the big picture; don't obsess over tiny inconsequential efficiencies while glaring inefficiencies are going on elsewhere.
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dot the i's and cross the t's »
To take care of every detail, even minor ones; To be meticulous or thorough.
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easy does it »
Relax; do something gently, lightly or carefully; slow down; calm down.
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easy street »
A carefree situation or lifestyle, especially as resulting from possession of wealth.
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f** with »
To mess with; to interact with in a careless or inappropriate way.
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fall in line »
C. 2004, Career Soldiers, "Won't Waste My Life".
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flash in the pan »
A career notable for early success not followed by significant accomplishment.
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give a f** »
To care.
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give a shit »
To care, often used in the negative.
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gloss over »
To treat something with less care than it deserves; to skimp.
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go out the window »
To vanish or cease, especially due to lack of care, attention, etc.; to be discarded, disregarded, or ignored.
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go over »
To look at carefully; to scrutinize; to analyze.
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handle with kid gloves »
To treat something very delicately or carefully.
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happy go lucky »
carefree
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homeless dumping »
The practice of hospital employees or emergency workers releasing homeless patients on the streets instead of placing them into the custody of a relative or shelter or retaining them in a hospital where they may require expensive medical care.
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keep a close watch on »
To pay careful attention to a situation or a thing, so that you can deal with any changes or problems.
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keep one's mouth shut »
To keep a secret; to refrain from speaking indiscreetly or carelessly.
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leave no stone unturned »
To do a task very carefully and thoroughly, not missing any step.
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life of Riley »
An ideal life of carefree prosperity and contentment.
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life's not all skittles and beer »
Skittles and Beer refers to the carefree, indulgent bar life; skittles being a British pub game. Thus, life's not all skittles and beer means that not everything is about pleasure.
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make a point »
To take care in doing something of something; to pay attention or ensure that something is done.
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make sure »
To verify; to recheck; to use extra care or caution.
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mean the world to »
To be loved or cared about a great deal by.
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measure twice and cut once »
(literally, carpentry) One should double-check one's measurements for accuracy before cutting a piece of wood; otherwise it may be necessary to cut again, wasting time and material.1872, "Dressmaking," Hall's Journal of Health, vol. 19, no. 12, p. 280:Look at Carpenters! . . . In old times it was a proverb "Measure twice, and cut once."(figuratively, by extension) Plan and prepare in a careful, thorough manner before taking action.2008, Hilary Johnson, "Mergers rattle bank relations," Financial Week, 9 Nov. (retrieved 9 Nov. 2008):Mr. Paz noted that since the onset of the credit crisis, eBay, like other companies, hasn
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mind one's p's and q's »
To be very careful to behave correctly.
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mind you »
Mind that you; be careful that you.
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mocking is catching »
An admonishment to be careful of criticising others, lest the same happen to you.Mocking is Catching was the title of a 1726 song by Henry Carey.
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on tiptoe »
Moving carefully, quietly, warily or stealthily.
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one step at a time »
Slowly and carefully, ensuring that each action has been completed successfully before taking the next.
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out of house and home »
Cassandra Chrones Moore, Haunted Housing: How Toxic Scare Stories Are Spooking the Public Out of House and Home.
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out of the way »
Taken care of.
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out to lunch »
Clueless, inattentive or careless.
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pi%C3%A8ce de r%C3%A9sistance »
A masterpiece; the most memorable accomplishment of one’s career or lifetime..
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piece de resistance »
A masterpiece; the most memorable accomplishment of one’s career or lifetime..
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pore over »
To examine something carefully and attentively.
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quake in one's boots »
To be frightened, scared, or nervous.
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reflect on »
To think carefully about something, and give it due consideration.
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ridden hard and put away wet »
Mistreated; not properly cared for.
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run roughshod over »
To treat roughly or without care, respect, or moderation; to act without control; to damage.
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run scared »
To try everything to avoid defeat.
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scare out of one's wits »
To frighten someone to such an extent that they behave irrationally.
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scare the bejeebers out of »
To thoroughly terrify.
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scare the pants off of »
To scare or startle thoroughly.
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scared shitless »
Very scared, terrified.
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scared to death »
Extremely frightened.
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screw it »
"I don't care enough to continue"; whatever.
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screw this »
"I don't care enough to continue"; "This is too stressful for me"; whatever.
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seat-of-the-pants »
Done by feel, guess, or trial and error rather than by careful planning, thought or technique.
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slowly but surely »
In a slow, yet careful manner
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socialized medicine »
An umbrella term for any system of government-run health care.
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softly softly »
Discreet, low-key, careful.
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special needs »
Needs for special care, services or accommodations.
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take care of the pennies and the pounds will take care of themselves »
If you take care of little things one at a time, they can add up to big things.1750, Chesterfield, letter 5 Feb. (1932) IV. 1500:Old Mr. Lowndes, the famous Secretary of the Treasury, ?used to say?Take care of the pence, and the pounds will take care of themselves.1912, G. B. Shaw, Pygmalion ii. 132:Take care of the pence and the pounds will take care of themselves is as true of personal habits as of money.1979, R. Cassilis, Arrow of God, iv. xvii.:Little things, Master Mally. Look after the pennies, Master Mally, and the pounds will look after themselves.1999,
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take one's time »
To go about something slowly and carefully.
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throw dirt enough, and some will stick »
If enough allegations are made about someone or something, then even if they are all untrue, people's opinion of the person or thing will be diminished.1759, John Wesley, letter to John Downes, Rector of St. Michael's, Wood Street, read at Wesley Center Online at [1] on 14 Oct 06.I hope...that you are ignorant of the whole affair, and are so bold only because you are blind...And blind enough; so that you blunder on through thick and thin, bespattering all that come in your way, according to the old, laudable maxim, 'Throw dirt enough, and some will stick.'1857, Thomas Hughes, Tom Brown's Schooldays, read at fullbooks.com on 14 Oct 06,But whatever harm a spiteful tongue could do them, he took care should be done. Only throw dirt enough, and some will stick.1864, John Henry Newman, Apologia Pro Vita Sua, Penguin Classics (1994), p. 10,Archbishop Whately used to say
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throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick »
Try the same thing (or similar things) often enough, and, even if the general standard is poor, sometimes one will be successful.2001, And still no one is shouting stop. read in The Kingdom archives at [1] on 02 Nov 06,Many team managers are of the philosophy that if you throw enough mud at the wall some of it will stick. They believe that team preparation is all about physical fitness. They run the players into the ground and they believe they will be "flying on the day".2001, Robert McCrum, Let them eat cake, in The Observer 16 Dec 01, read on Guardian Unlimited site at [2] on 02 Nov 06,Australian publishing boomed and in the past 10 years the country's literary culture has undergone a mini golden age, capped by Carey's triumph at the 2001 Booker Prize. As one Australian arts administrator said to me many years ago: 'Listen, mate, if you throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick.'2001, Chris Collin, Re: 2-cp speys on The Strathspey Server mailing list archive at [3] on 02 Nov 06,I am finding that "if you throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick". It doesn't always work of course (especially on the nights when the class is mostly the beginners), but the class seems to thrive on the challange.2005, Ray Craft (poster on The right scale blog), Fitzhooie and his Burden, read at [4] on 02 Nov 06,Prosecutors everywhere have bad habits of overcharging lots of cases, knowing that if the throw enough mud at the wall some of it will stick.2005, Sean Kelleher, Spike Milligan: His part in our downfall in Business 07 Aug 05, read at [5] on 02 Nov 06,As long as there is negligible regulation and enforcement anyone can actually try and do the job...Weak regulation allows the industry to build strategies on full time recruitment. The theory goes: throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick.c2005, Everything You've Learned About Marketing Is Wrong, read on LINC Performance website at [6] on 02 Nov 06,They have the money to continue to believe in the repetition side of the equation. You throw enough mud at the wall, some of it will stick. But it still isn
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toy with »
Handling something in a careless or frivolous manner.
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tread lightly »
To proceed carefully; especially, to seek to avoid causing offense.
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upset the applecart »
To spoil carefully laid plans or arrangements; to spoil something.
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walk in the snow »
An occasion when a momentous career decision is made, especially a decision to resign or retire.
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walk on eggshells »
To be careful and sensitive, in handling very sensitive matters.
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walk on eggshells »
To be overly careful in dealing with a person or situation because they get angry or offended very easily; to try very hard not to upset someone or something.
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watch one's mouth »
To be careful about what one says, especially with regard to disrespectful or profane language.
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watch out »
To be aware or conscious; to look closely or carefully; to use caution. Often used in the imperative.
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wear out »
To cause to become damaged, useless, or ineffective through continued use, especially hard, heavy, or careless use.
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what of it »
So what? Who cares? Expresses disinterest, disregard or lack of concern.
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