against all odds »
Despite seemingly insurmountable opposition or probability.
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arm candy »
An attractive, seemingly romantic companion who accompanies a person in public simply so that one or both of the individuals can gain attention, enhance social status, or create an impression of sexual appeal.
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around the clock »
All the time or seemingly all the time; constantly.
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best of both worlds »
A combination of two seemingly contradictory benefits.
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bid fair »
seem probable
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bid fair »
seems probable
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bounce back »
To recover from a negative without seemingly any damage.
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concrete jungle »
An urban or other populated area containing a high density of buildings constructed of concrete or similar materials, especially one which lacks greenery and which seems unattractive, harsh, or unsafe.
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discretion is the better part of valour »
It is often wise to refrain from seemingly brave speech or action.1597
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drain the swamp when up to one's neck in alligators »
(idiomatic) When performing a long and complex task, and when you've gotten utterly immersed in secondary and tertiary unexpected tangential subtasks, it's easy to lose sight of the initial objective. This sort of distraction can be particularly problematic if the all-consuming subtask or sub-subtask is not, after all, particularly vital to the original, primary goal, but ends up sucking up time and resources (out of all proportion to its actual importance) only because it seems so urgent.
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ear tunnel »
A piece of jewelry that fits into a stretched earlobe hole and makes it seem like a peephole and makes it see-through.
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end of the world »
Any change that seems catastrophic or devastating.
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Every rose has it's thorns »
everything, even if it seems perfect, has faults
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God works in mysterious ways »
Expressing confidence that a conundrum has a solution despite it not being apparent.Expressing that a seemingly unfortunate or unfavourable situation or change may be beneficial later or in the long run.Person A: It seems that I'm about to be fired from my job.Person B: Well, God works in mysterious ways - maybe it'll be the kick you need to apply to university...
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green fingers »
A seemingly natural gardening ability.
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kiss of death »
Something that may seem good and favourable but that actually brings ruin to hopes, plans, etc.
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look like »
To seem.
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low road »
A course of action which is undignified, wrongful, or otherwise unseemly.
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not the end of the world »
It's of minor importance, at least not as important as it first seemed.
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play down »
To make or attempt to make something seem less important, likely, or obvious.
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proverbs run in pairs »
Every proverb seems to be contradicted by another proverb with an opposed message, such as "too many cooks spoil the broth" and "many hands make light work."1863, Sir Richard Burton, Abeokuta and the Camaroons Mountains, vol. 1, Tinsley (London), p. 309:Moreover, all the world over, proverbs run in pairs, and pull both ways: for the most part one neutralizes, by contradiction, the other.
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ring a bell »
To seem at least vaguely familiar.
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ring false »
To seem to be incorrect, or implausible.
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ring hollow »
To seem to be false or implausible; to be unconvincing.
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second nature »
A mindset, skill, or type of behavior so ingrained through habit or practice that it seems natural, automatic, or without a basis in conscious thought.
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smack of »
To seem like; to appear or give an impression or feeling of; to arouse suspicion of.
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stand to reason »
To make sense; to seem logical, reasonable, or rational.
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take away from »
To make something seem not so good or interesting.
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the grass is always greener on the other side »
Other circumstances seem more desirable than one's own but in reality are often not
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the straw that broke the camel's back »
A small and seemingly insignificant addition to a burden that renders it too much to bear; the small thing which causes failure, or causes inability or unwillingness to endure any more of something.
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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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time flies »
Time seems to pass quickly. Time flies when you're having fun.
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time flies when you're having fun »
Time seems to pass quicker when one is enjoying oneself.
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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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wait for the other shoe to drop »
To await a seemingly inevitable event, especially one which is not desirable.
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when you're up to your neck in alligators, it's easy to forget that the initial objective was to drain the swamp »
Only because it seems so urgent.
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willy nilly »
Seemingly at random, haphazardly.
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