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.
|
arrive at »
To reach.
|
backseat driver »
A passenger in a car who insists on giving the driver directions.
|
backseat driver »
By extension, anybody offering unsolicited or unwelcome advice.
|
bad money drives out good »
Debased coinage (with low levels of precious metals) replaces purer coinage (with higher levels of precious metals).(metaphorically) Mediocre talent drives away real talent.
|
be along »
To arrive.
|
beat off »
To drive something away with blows.
|
beat up »
To get something done, derived from the idea of beating for game.
|
black magic »
Magic derived from evil forces, as distinct from good or benign forces; or magic performed with the intention of doing harm.
|
bomb around »
The drive around at speed for pleasure.
|
chrome horn »
The front bumper of a car when used to bump another vehicle, usually to inform the driver of the other vehicle, that the first car would like to pass.
|
come to »
To reach; to arrive at.
|
cry someone a river »
To try to obtain the sympathy of another person by complaining or sniveling.
|
cry someone a river »
To weep profusely or excessively in the presence of another person.
|
dog and pony show »
Any presentation or display that is overly contrived or intricate.
|
don't drive faster than your guardian angel can fly »
Driving (a vehicle) very fast is a dangerous act.
|
drive away »
To depart by driving a vehicle.
|
drive away »
To force someone or something to leave.
|
drive home »
To push to or into a target.
|
drive home »
With tangible or powerful demonstration.
|
drive off »
To force to leave or go away.
|
drive one up the wall »
To make a person very angry or bored; to infuriate.
|
drive out »
Out of somewhere.
|
drive the porcelain bus »
To vomit, especially while drunk or hung over.
|
drive-by media »
Media professionals who "spray" a bunch of repetitive misstatements, mistaken and misinterpreted news reports to cause excitement and confusion. They then figuratively "drive off" leaving the cleanup of their mess and hysteria to others, to correct and properly explain and interpret.
|
drop in »
One who arrives unannounced or without an appointment.
|
end up »
To arrive at a destination, sometimes unexpectedly.
|
every silver lining has a cloud »
Every good situation has the potential to turn bad.2007, Diab A. Shetayh, Actuality : The Reality RequiemA great partnership isn't a self-maintaining entity. Perseverance and persistence make it thrive. For every silver lining has a cloud. Ignorance of this reality is not an option.
|
feed into »
To be a tributary of another river or waterway.
|
first come, first served »
People will be dealt with in the order they arrive.
|
four-on-the-floor »
Relating to a vehicle with a four-speed manual transmission mounted beside the driver on the floor of the vehicle.
|
fresh off the boat »
Newly arrived from a foreign place, especially as an immigrant who is still unfamiliar with the customs and language of his or her new environment.
|
go without »
Be deprived of.
|
golf widow »
A woman who is deprived of her husband's time and attention due to his regular absence in order to play golf.
|
gussie up »
To make fancy or attractive, as by artificial or contrived means.
|
hit the nail on the head »
To identify something exactly; to arrive at exactly the right answer.
|
idiot light »
Any warning light or indicator on the dashboard of a car, designed to alert the driver of problems, such as the parking brake being on or the oil being low.
|
in the driver's seat »
Having the most important role in a storyline or recognition. Of primary importance.
|
mills of the gods grind slowly »
Justice may arrive slowly, but it cannot be avoided.
|
necker's knob »
A knob attached to the steering wheel of an automobile, especially before the widespread availability of power steering, helping the driver steer with one arm and leaving the other arm free to provide romantic attention to a companion.
|
off-roader »
A vehicle that is designed to drive off the road.
|
out of house and home »
In a manner that deprives one of dwelling or some aspect thereof.
|
pull up »
Drive close to something, especially a curb.
|
put the hammer down »
To drive quickly; to step on the accelerator.
|
ride shotgun »
To ride in the front passenger seat of a vehicle, next to the driver.
|
rivet counter »
A person who has an obsession with the minutae of their particular interest. Anyone preoccupied with small distinguishing features between different items.
|
run over »
To drive over, causing injury or death.
|
sell down the river »
To betray, especially in a manner which causes serious difficulty for the one betrayed.
|
set in one's ways »
Driven by habit; inclined or determined to continue according to one's custom or established preferences.
|
shotgun »
The front passenger seat in a vehicle, next to the driver.
|
show up »
To appear, arrive, or attend, especially suddenly or erratically.
|
speak of the devil »
An expression sometimes used when a person mentioned in the current conversation happens to arrive on the scene.
|
step on it »
To drive fast; to step on the accelerator.
|
taxi driver »
cabby
|
the early bird gets the worm »
Whoever arrives first has the best chance of success; some opportunities are only available to the first competitors.
|
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
|
timing is everything »
Consideration of other events can greatly influence some desired outcome (such as an audience laughing to a comedian's joke).Telling the old joke about a butt-crack was not a good idea, just as the plumber arrived, Bob.You know what they say: "timing is everything." I'm sure we can find another plumber before the house floods.
|
touchy-feely »
Driven by intuition or emotion, with a connotation of de-emphasis of rational thought or logic.
|
two-second rule »
A rule of thumb for safe driving by which a driver must maintain a two-second distance from the vehicle in front.
|
up the river »
To prison.
|
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.
|
| Like Phrases.net? Why won't you tell a friend about us? |
[