a drop in the bucket »
An effort or action having very little overall influence, especially as compared to a huge problem.
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a little bird told me »
Of information which was gathered from a source not to be overtly exposed.
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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 talk and no action »
Speaking, promising, or boasting much, but doing little
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big fish in a small pond »
One who has achieved a high rank or is highly esteemed, but only in a small, relatively unimportant, or little known location or organization.
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blanket term »
A word or phrase that is used to describe multiple groups of related things. The degree of relation may vary. Blanket terms often trade specificity for ease-of-use; in other words, a blanket term by itself gives little detail about the things that it describes or the relationships between them, but is easy to say and remember. Blanket terms often originate as slang, and eventually become integrated into the general vocabulary.
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bright-line rule »
A clearly defined rule or standard, comprised of objective factors, which leaves little or no room for varying interpretation.
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chump-change »
Of or pertaining to something of little monetary value.
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cut down »
To insult, to belittle.
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eat someone out of house and home »
To consume such a portion of one's store of food that little is left for the owner.
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every cloud has a silver lining »
In every bad situation there is an element of good1881, National Academy of Code Administration (U.S.), Folio, page 417:Every cloud has a silver lining; but in the old-fashioned meeting-houses every cloud of hymnal melody generally had a nasal lining before the congregation...1887, Shakers, Religion, page 36:that "a little reserve and thou'lt fail surely," will prove to be true in our experience. Every cloud has a silver lining and so has every sorrow,1918, George Jean Nathan, Performing Arts, page 222:But the most popular attitude toward what we may call "sad" plays is the peculiar one of believing that, since every cloud has a silver lining,
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every little helps »
Even the smallest things are helpful when towards a goal.
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f** all »
Nothing at all or very little.
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fat chance »
Little or no likelihood of occurrence or success.
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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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gravy train »
An occupation or any lucrative endeavor that generates considerable income whilst requiring little effort and carrying little risk.
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great oaks from little acorns grow »
Alternative form of mighty oaks from little acorns grow.
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hack into »
To gain unauthorized entry to, particularly by exploiting little-known weaknesses.
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hiding to nothing »
A situation in which victory has little or no value, but defeat has a huge cost.
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kick up a fuss »
To show annoyance, or to complain loudly about something, often when it is of little importance in reality.
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lay a finger on »
If you lay a finger on my little brother, I'll have your guts for garters.
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leave nothing to the imagination »
To cover or hide very little or nothing.
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licence to print money »
A means of generating a large income with little effort.
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life's a bitch »
An expression of acceptance of misfortune.1950, Joy Davidman, Weeping Bay, page 184:She'd have been willing enough to use them, poor dead little bitch. Life's a bitch. Life's a bad joke.
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lift a finger »
To make minimal effort; to help as little as possible.
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little pitcher »
A child.
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little pitchers have big ears »
Small children often overhear more of what is said than adults realize or desire.1844, Charlotte M. Yonge, Abbeychurch, ch. 2:Seeing me listening to something she was saying to Mamma, she turned round upon me with that odious proverb, "Little pitchers have long ears."1939, "Bedtime Bedlam," Time, 17 Apr.:A caution to U. S. parents, but a joy to radio merchandising, is the dread truth that little pitchers have big ears.2002, Stephen King, On Writing: A Memoir of the Craft, ISBN 9780743455961, p. 185:I suppose he might say pushed or went woowoo, but took a shit is, I fear, very much in the ballpark (little pitchers have big ears, after all).
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little pitchers have long ears »
Alternative form of little pitchers have big ears.
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long shot »
Something unlikely; something that has little chance of happening or working. The term arose from the accuracy of early ship guns, which were effective only at close range and unlikely to hit the mark at any great distance.
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man of parts »
A man that is talented in multiple areas of life. This includes but is not limited to the area of seduction. He puts very little emphasis on memorized scripts or "peacocking" and instead relies on individualized ways to charm a woman.
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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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much of a muchness »
Of two or more things, having little difference of any significance between them.
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ñapa »
the little something extra
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no slave to fashion »
A person whose style of clothing and appearance are unconventional, informal, or slovenly; a person who takes little interest in how he or she is dressed.
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not much of anything »
Very little; not a lot.
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on a shoestring »
On a very tight budget; with few resources or little money.
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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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outsider »
A newcomer with little or no experience in an organization or community.
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penny pincher »
One who spends little money; one who is very frugal or cautious with money.
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phase in »
To introduce something little by little.
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phase out »
To remove or relinquish the use of something little by little.
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pinchpenny »
One who spends little money; one who is very frugal or cautious with money.
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put down »
To insult, belittle, or demean.
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put someone down as »
To assume someone has a particular character from very little information.
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run on fumes »
By extension, to operate with few resources or little money.
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shot in the dark »
A guess, attempt, or choice made with little or no evidence or knowledge.
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slim chance »
Little or no likelihood of occurrence or success.
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slip into something a little more comfortable »
To wear something suitable to be stripped off by a lover.
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small fry »
One or more persons or things of relatively little consequence, importance, or value.
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small potatoes »
One or more persons or things of relatively little consequence, importance, or value.
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snowball's chance in hell »
Little or no likelihood of occurrence or success.
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step down »
To gradually reduce something, a little at a time, as an electronic step down transformer.
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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 for granted »
To give little attention to or to underestimate the value of, to fail to appreciate.
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talk out one's ass »
To speak authoritatively on a subject which one actually knows little about; to exaggerate.
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tempus fugit »
time flies (used as an alternative to this phrase)."Meanwhile, the irreplaceable time escapes", expressing concern that one's limited time is being consumed by something which may have little intrinsic substance or importance at that moment.
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the fucking you get isn't worth the fucking you get »
(vulgar) The sexual satisfactions that one receives from a spouse or romantic partner are not sufficient to compensate for the significant periods of bad faith and unpleasant treatment which such relationships routinely involve.1971, Allen Churchill, The Literary Decade, ISBN 9780135375228:Years later she expressed her disillusionment with sex by saying, "The fucking you get isn't worth the fucking you get."1999, Ben Sonnenberg, Lost Property: Memoirs and Confessions of a Bad Boy, ISBN 9781582430454, p. 93:Maitland got drunk at his parties and threw his arm around you and pulled you over to his wife and made you look down her dress, saying, "The trouble with marriage is that the fucking you get isn't worth the fucking you get."2008, Joseph Heywood, Blue Wolf In Green Fire, ISBN 9781599213590, p. 63:"I can't believe a little pussy got me into dis mess." "Shit happens," Service said. "Sometimes the fucking you get isn't worth the fucking you get."
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throw cold water on »
To belittle or dismiss; to cast doubt upon; to debunk.
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under lock and key »
Imprisoned with little or no chance of escape.
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whistle in the dark »
To speak of something despite having little knowledge of it.
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whistle past the graveyard »
To enter a situation with little or no understanding of the possible consequences.
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wine tosser »
A person who talks a great deal about wine but actually knows very little.
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wing it »
To improvise; to make things up or figure things out as one goes; or to perform with little or no preparation.
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winter rat »
An old, unattractive automobile, purchased for little money, to be driven during brutal Great Lakes winters while the owner's "good" car remains garaged and protected from corrosive road salt for the season.
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you can't make a silk purse of a sow's ear »
It is not possible to produce something refined, admirable, or valuable from something which is unrefined, unpleasant, or of little or no value.
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