a rising tide lifts all boats »
Benefits provided to a few may lead to conditions that are beneficial to all.
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act on »
To act decisively on the basis of information received or deduced.
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all holiday »
A saying signifying that it is all over with the business or person spoken of or alluded to/.
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all told »
With everything included, counted or summed.
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April showers bring May flowers »
April, traditionally a rainy period, gives way to May, when flowers will bloom because of the water provided to them by the April rains.By extension, that a period of discomfort can provide the basis for a period of happiness.
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as long as »
Depending upon some condition or requirement; provided that; if, assuming; so long as.
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at a stand »
In a state of confusion or uncertainty; undecided what to do next.
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at stake »
In danger; hazarded; pledged; at risk.
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autem gogler »
Pretended French prophet.
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back away »
Of your attention on the thing in front being avoided.
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bang to rights »
Caught red-handed; in a guilty state.
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banged up »
Physically injured or wounded.
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be of two minds »
To be undecided or unsure; to equivocate; to have multiple opinions.
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beefed out »
Having been improved greatly or upgraded; beefed up.
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bells and whistles »
Extra features added for show rather than function; fancy additions or features.
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better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all »
Having experience of love, even if it ended, is better than having no experience of love.Love is worthwhile despite the pain involved in separation.
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black »
Overcrowded.
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blind »
Any device intended to conceal or hide; as, a duck blind.
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blue note »
Notes added to the major scale for expressive quality in jazz and blues music, particularly the flatted third, fifth and seventh.
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booby prize »
A prize or status, often unwelcome, awarded as a joke or disincentive to the loser of a contest or for poor performance.
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bridge »
An unintended solder connection between two or more components or pins.
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bridge »
Cue for extended or tedious shots. Also called a spider.
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buckle down »
To put forth the needed effort; to focus; become serious; apply oneself.
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call off the dogs »
During a one-sided sports contest, to remove the first-string unit of a team from the game after dominating the opponent.
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Cannon fodder »
Military personnel who are regarded as expendable when attacking the enemy.
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carry a torch for »
[2] To harbor feelings of love despite not being in a relationship; generally unrequited or after a relationship has ended, and sometimes implying secret feelings. There is the implication of keeping hope alive.
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carry coals to Newcastle »
To do something that is unneeded or redundant.
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catch hell »
Be severely reprimanded, punished, or beaten.
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catch it »
Be severely reprimanded, punished, or beaten.
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caught with one's hand in the cookie jar »
Observed or apprehended while committing a theft, especially while embezzling money.
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change one's mind »
To decide differently than one had decided before.
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check out »
To have one's purchases recorded and bagged at a supermarket, and pay for it.
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check out »
To withdraw an item, as from a library, and have the withdrawal recorded.
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dead air »
An unintended interruption in a radio broadcast during which there is no sound; a similar interruption of a television broadcast in which there is neither sound nor a video signal.
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deadweight »
The largest weight of cargo a ship is able to carry; i.e, the weight of a ship when fully loaded minus its weight when empty.
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do justice »
To really allow to be apprehended in its full scope.
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don't put all your eggs in one basket »
Don't dedicate all your resources into one thing.
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done deal »
An agreement that has been finally resolved or decided.
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dummy up »
To make a mock-up or prototype version of something, without some or all off its intended functionality.
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even handed »
impartial
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everything but the kitchen sink »
Almost everything, whether needed or not.
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figure out »
To come to understand; to discover or find a solution; to deduce.
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for good measure »
As a precaution; just in case; added as an extra.
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for the record »
For the purpose of being recorded.
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fruit of the poisonous tree »
And which is therefore excluded from being admitted as evidence in a trial.
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get stuck in »
To dedicate a large amount of effort towards.
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go by the board »
To be superseded, rejected, or obliterated; to pass by with little consequence; to amount to nothing.
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go by the wayside »
To become obsolete or outmoded.
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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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grease payment »
A bribe or extorted money, usually relatively small in amount, provided to a low-level government official or business person, in order to expedite a business decision, shipment, or other transaction, especially in a country where such payments are not unusual.
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guilt trip »
Remarks intended to produce such a feeling.
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gunshy »
Fearing the consequences of repeating an act, especially after being reprimanded.
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hard-nosed »
Guided by practical experience and observation rather than by theory.
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hard-nosed »
Hardheaded.
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his back is up »
He is offended or angry; an expression or idea taken from a cat; that animal, when angry, always raising its back. An allusion also sometimes used to jeer a crooked man.
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hoist by one's own petard »
To be hurt, or destroyed by one's own plot or device, of one's own doing which one intended for another; to be "blown up by one's own bomb".
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home stretch »
The final part of a distance or the final effort needed to finish.
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hotheaded »
Easily excited or angered.
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if all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail »
With limited tools, single-minded people apply them inappropriately or indiscriminatelyIf a person is familiar with a certain, single subject/has with them a certain, single instrument, they may have a confirmation bias to believe that it is the answer to/involved in everything.
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in the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king »
Among others with a disadvantage or disability, the one with the mildest disadvantage or disability is regarded as the greatest.Even someone without much talent or ability is considered special by those with no talent or ability at all.
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in two minds »
undecided
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it pays to advertise »
Good qualities do not get rewarded automatically.
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joe job »
An act of e-mail spamming where the sender's identity and address are those of an innocent third party, intended either to tarnish that person's reputation or to flood that person's e-mail with bounces.
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knock-on effect »
A secondary, often unintended effect.
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lead time »
The amount of time between the initiation of some process and its completion, e.g. the time required to manufacture or procure a product; the time required before something can be provided or delivered.
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lean and mean »
Efficient because of having nothing in excess of what is needed, and single-minded in one's objective.
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left-handed compliment »
A complimentary remark which is ambiguous or ineptly worded, so that it may be interpreted as having an unflattering or dismissive sense.
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less is more »
That which is less complicated is often better understood and more appreciated than what is more complicated; simplicity is preferable to complexity; brevity in communication is more effective than verbosity.1855, Robert Browning, "Men and Women":Well, less is more, Lucrezia: I am judged.1954, "'Less Is More'," Time, 14 Jun.:The essence of Mies's architectural philosophy is in his famous and sometimes derided phrase, "Less is more." This means, he says, having "the greatest effect with the least means."2007, Gia Kourlas, "Dance Review: An Ordered World Defined With Soothing Spareness," New York Times, 3 Mar. (retrieved 22 Oct. 2008):The program, which features two premieres
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level-headed »
Sensible; rational; possessing sound judgment.
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loaded for bear »
Mentally prepared for a daunting situation or confrontation.
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loaded for bear »
Thoroughly equipped, as for a demanding task or confrontation.
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loaded word »
Any word, set phrase or idiom that has strong positive or negative connotations beyond their ordinary definition.
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long run »
An extended period of time.
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longpig »
Human flesh when cooked in cannabalistic rituals in certain Pacific Islands, due to the allegeded similarity to cooked pork.
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loose ends »
Leftover items that have not been addressed or attended to.
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lubrication payment »
A bribe or extorted money, usually relatively small in amount, provided to a low-level government official or business person, in order to expedite a business decision, shipment, or other transaction, especially in a country where such payments are not unusual.
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man up »
To staff adequately; to staff up; to successfully fill all needed labor positions.
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melon head »
A melon-headed whale.
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mills of the gods grind slowly »
Justice may arrive slowly, but it cannot be avoided.
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miner's canary »
A caged bird kept caged in mines because its demise provided a warning of dangerous levels of toxic gases.
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miners' canary »
A caged bird kept caged in mines because its demise provided a warning of dangerous levels of toxic gases.
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miss the mark »
To fail to reach the result that was intended.
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more cry than wool »
Asserted but not grounded in reality.
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my way or the highway »
Will be excluded.
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near miss »
narrowly avoided accident
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nudge nudge wink wink »
A phrase added at the end of the sentence to hint that the speaker is referring to something else, euphemistically.
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object lesson »
A punishment intended as a deterrent to others.
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off the beaten path »
In a secluded location; in a place which is not frequently visited or not widely known.
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off the rails »
Off the intended path.
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on demand »
When needed or required.
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on the fence »
Undecided; wavering in one's opinion.
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open ended »
without definite limits
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out of date »
Not current, outmoded, out of style, or too old to be used.
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out of the way »
Remote or secluded.
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overkill »
A destructive capacity that exceeds that needed to destroy an enemy; especially with nuclear weapons.
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overkill »
An unnecessary excess of whatever is needed to achieve a goal.
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physical break »
A short break in a meeting or in a classroom setting, intended to improve attention.
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put on »
To play recorded music.
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put two and two together »
To figure out; to deduce or discern.
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put words in somebody's mouth »
To attribute to somebody something he or she did not say; to claim inaccurately that somebody said or intended something.
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rag the puck »
To retain possession of the puck by skillful skating and stickhandling without attempting to score, as a deliberate tactic intended to use up time.
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red herring »
A clue that is misleading or that has been falsified, intended to divert attention.
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red-handed »
In the act of wrongdoing.
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save face »
To take an action or make a gesture intended to preserve one's reputation or honour.
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scissorbill »
And railroad term for someone who refused to join the union or who openly colluded with management to thwart the union.
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sell a bargain »
A species of wit, much in vogue about the latter end of the reign of Queen Anne, and frequently alluded to by Dean Swift, who says the maids of honour often amused themselves with it. It consisted in the seller naming his or her hinder parts, in answer to the question, What? which the buyer was artfully led to ask. As a specimen, take the following instance: A lady would come into a room full of company, apparently frightened, crying out "It is white, and follows me!" As soon as someone responded "What?" she sold him the bargain, by saying "Mine arse".
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shoot the moon »
To achieve the lowest score possible, such that the player is usually rewarded with bonus points.
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short of a length »
Of a ball that pitches short of a good length; a ball that bounces closer to the bowler than the area of the pitch regarded as the best for dismissing or restricting the scoring of the batsman.
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show somebody the door »
To dismiss or reject; to exclude someone who was formerly included.
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show the flag »
To represent one's country or some other group in a manner intended to suggest the authority or importance of that country or group.
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shrouded »
Concealed or hidden from sight, as if by a shroud.
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shrouded »
Wearing, or provided with a shroud.
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skeleton crew »
The minimum number of personnel needed to operate and maintain an item at its most simple operating requirements, such as a ship or business, during an emergency or shut down, and at the same time, to keep vital functions operating.
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smell like a rose »
To be regarded as appealing, virtuous, or respectable; to be untainted or unharmed.
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so long as »
Depending upon some condition or requirement; provided that; if, assuming; as long as.
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social death »
The alienation of certain people from society to the point of being forgotten, excluded, or ignored in society.
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soft touch »
A person or group which is sympathetic, accommodating, easily overcome, or easily persuaded, especially one which loans or readily gives money to another.
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standard fare »
Something which is normal, routine, or unexceptional; something which is commonly provided or encountered.
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stick it to the man »
To take some action intended to defy a source of oppression such as globalization, commercialization, big business or government.
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stretch out »
To lie fully extended.
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summer and winter »
To spend extended periods of time with; to test.
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take a bullet »
To purposely receive a gunshot that was intended for another.
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take out of context »
To interpret something in a manner in which it was not intended to be understood, often deliberately.
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take someone's point »
To agree with what a person says; to understand a person's argument and be persuaded by it.
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thanks for nothing »
Expression of displeasure towards a person who has not provided what was wanted.
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that's the ticket »
That's just right; that's just what is needed.
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the proof of the pudding is in the eating »
The only real test of something is as what it is intended to be used for.
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the road to hell is paved with good intentions »
well-intended acts can lead to disaster
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the terrorists will have won »
Phrase used following a description of an activity to indicate that if that activity is not continued or carried out, those who seek to disrupt normal activities through terror will have succeeded, an which is an unacceptable result.
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think tank »
A group of which performs research and develops reports and recommendations on topics relating to strategic planning or public policy, and which is usually funded by corporations, interest groups, or government.
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third string »
Of a decidedly lower quality or condition.
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three-martini lunch »
A leisurely, expensive, midday meal associated with drinking, which is tax-deductible because business is discussed.
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tongue-in-cheek »
Not intended seriously; jocular or humorous.
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trailer trash »
Deleted from the movie trailer. Not included in theatrical run.
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turn in one's grave »
To be appalled, offended or disgusted by something, despite being deceased.
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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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waste breath »
To speak in a manner which is needless or futile; in discussion or argument to make points which are not appreciated or heeded.
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wear off »
To disappear because of being abraded, over-polished, or abused.
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white lie »
A deliberate, untrue statement which does no harm or is intended to produce a favorable result.
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work one's fingers to the bone »
Work especially hard, usually for an extended period.
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write out »
To write in full length or expanded form.
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