a good beginning makes a good ending »
Good beginnings promise a good end; start off on a good note to reap the benefits at the end.
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all duck or no dinner »
All or nothing.
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all out »
The state of a side having no more men to bat, thus ending its innings.
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babe in the woods »
A person who is innocent, naive, inexperienced, or helpless.
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back to the drawing board »
Back to the beginning following an unsuccessful attempt.
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bag of bones »
A skinny, malnourished person.
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bank night »
An event where patrons are enticed to buy entry tickets into some venue, for example a movie theater, with the anticipation that they will be entered into a drawing to win an amount of money if their ticket is drawn and they are on-site at the time of the winning.
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bat around »
When at least nine batters bat in a half inning.
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battle cry »
By extension, a strong motto or purpose statement, especially in regards to winning a goal in sports, games or work.
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born yesterday »
New, naive, innocent, inexperienced or easily deceived.
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bottom of the ninth »
In baseball, the second part of the ninth and final inning. The end of the game.
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bowl out »
And thus end their innings.
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boys will be boys »
It is hard, often fruitless, to attempt to curb the natural playfulness and tendency to mischief of most growing boys.1922, James Joyce, Ulysses Chapter 13But just then there was a slight altercation between Master Tommy and Master Jacky. Boys will be boys and our two twins were no exception to this golden rule.Even grown men usually remain somewhat boyish in heart"Boys will be boys", grinned grandpa while he joined his adult son playing with the fancy train-set he gave his grandson for Christmas while the kid was in school.
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breadwinner »
The member of a household who earns all or most of the income
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break one's duck »
To score one's first run in an innings.
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butterfly upon a wheel »
An innocent person crushed by life's adversities.
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by the way »
His mother will be coming for dinner tomorrow, and, by the way, she volunteered to bring dessert.
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cold hands, warm heart »
Implies inner beauty; a caring person; warm-hearted
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come out »
To walk onto the field at the beginning of an innings.
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dawn of a new day »
A new beginning; a fresh start; an important, promising turning point.
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day one »
The very beginning.
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dead heat »
A close race or contest in which no winner is apparent.
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double entendre »
A phrase that has two meanings, especially where one is innocent and literal, the other risqué, bawdy, or ironic; an innuendo..
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draw out »
To improve a losing hand to a winning hand by receiving additional cards.
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familiarity breeds contempt »
The more acquainted one becomes with a person, the more one knows about his or her shortcomings and, hence, the easier it is to dislike that person.1894, H. Rider Haggard, The People Of The Mist, ch. 25:This was the beginning of evil, for if no man is a hero to his valet de chambre, much less can he remain a god for long in the eyes of a curious woman. Here, as in other matters, familiarity breeds contempt.
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for starters »
as a beginning
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fresh start »
A new beginning, without prejudices.
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from scratch »
From the beginning; starting with no advantage or prior preparation; starting from raw ingredients.
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from soup to nuts »
From beginning to end; throughout.
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from the get-go »
From the very beginning; from the outset; immediately upon starting.
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from the ground up »
From the beginning; starting with the basics, foundation, or fundamentals.
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from the word go »
From the very beginning; from the outset; immediately upon starting.
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front runner »
The most likely winners in a contest, election, etc.
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go back to the drawing board »
To start again; to scrap a previous idea or plan and try again from the beginning.
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gut factor »
Feelings about what feels right or wrong, good or bad. An inner persuasion that one may feel convinced is the appropriate decision.
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head start »
For example, prior to the beginning of a race.
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hospital pass »
An unwinnable case, often passed to a newly-qualified member of the firm.
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inner circle »
The closest of friends of a person.
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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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mickey finn »
spiked drink
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mighty oaks from little acorns grow »
Something great can come from a modest beginning.Don't give up on the project - mighty oaks from little acorns grow!
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necessity is the mother of innovation »
Alternative form of necessity is the mother of invention.
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nuts and bolts »
The basic, inner workings of something; the fundamentals or basics; that which makes something operate, on a basic level.
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outsider »
A competitor or contestant who has little chance of winning; a long shot; a dark horse.
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pachyderm »
A member of the obsolete taxonomic group Pachydermata, grouping of thick-skinned, hoofed animals such as the rhinoceros, hippopotamus, elephant, pig and horse.
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pickin' and grinnin' »
Vigorously playing folk or country music on a stringed musical instrument, especially the guitar or banjo, while smiling broadly.
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play ball »
An expression used at the beginning of a game of baseball.
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prawn cocktail offensive »
A strategy of the Labour Party in winning over important people in the world of finance.
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rubber-chicken dinner »
A formal dinner or event thrown by politicians to raise funds.
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rumor campaign »
A method of persuasion in which damaging rumors or innuendo are deliberately spread concerning a person or other target, while the source of the rumors tries to avoid detection.
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shoo-in »
A candidate or contestant generally agreed upon as the presumptive winner; somebody who is well-liked or widely agreed upon.
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skin and bones »
Said of one who is emaciated; very skinny, as from lack of nutrition.
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skinny as a rail »
Especially of a person, very skinny.
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start over »
To begin again; to return to the beginning.
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still water runs deep »
A person with a calm appearance has, or may have, considerable inner emotion, character, or intellect
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still waters run deep »
A person with a calm appearance has, or may have, considerable inner emotion, character, or intellect.
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straight out of the chute »
Something done immediately, or "from the beginning". Taken from rodeo routine: the bucking bronco, or bull, or the calf for the calf-roping contest is kept in a narrow pen, a chute, until it is released and dashes out to its fate.
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thin edge of the wedge »
Beginning; opening; precedent.
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thin-skinned »
Having a thin skin.
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thin-skinned »
Overly sensitive to criticism; quick to take offence; touchy.
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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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tip of the iceberg »
Only the beginning; just a small indication of a larger possibility; a problem is much bigger than it seems.
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to the victor go the spoils »
The winner of a conflict wins additional benefits, beyond just the subject of the conflict.
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up-and-coming »
Emerging; aspiring; improving; beginning to attract attention or critical acclaim.
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valley of death »
The phase of a startup business beginning with the entrepreneur's fulltime commitment to it and ending when the business has achieved sustainable cash flow.
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walk the talk »
To do what one said one could do, or would do, not just making empty promises. To walk one's talk is to be innocent of hypocrisy.
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well begun is half done »
Much depends on the beginning of an endeavor.
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wet behind the ears »
Inexperienced; not seasoned; new; just beginning.
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what in God's name »
Used to add emphasis to "what" when beginning question.
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what on Earth »
Used to add emphasis to "what" when beginning question.
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what the Devil »
Used to add emphasis to "what" when beginning question.
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what the dickens »
Euphemism for what the Devil, used to add emphasis to "what" when beginning a question.
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whisper campaign »
A method of persuasion in which damaging rumors or innuendo are deliberately spread concerning a person or other target, while the source of the rumors tries to avoid detection.
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why in God's name »
Used to add emphasis to "why" when beginning question.
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why on Earth »
Used to add emphasis to "why" when beginning a question.
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why the dickens »
Euphemism for why the Devil, used to add emphasis to "why" when beginning a question.
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wind back »
To wind a tape, cassette, or film, etc towards the beginning; to rewind.
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year dot »
A very long time ago, from the beginning or as far back as one can remember.
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