a house is not a home »
A home is not merely a building but requires inhabitants and a friendly atmosphere.
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at the moment »
As atm.
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bad taste in one's mouth »
A feeling of disappointment and frustration.
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barrel »
A wave that breaks with a hollow compartment.
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be-all and end-all »
Something considered to be of the utmost importance; something essential or ultimate.
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bits and bobs »
A random assortment of things; small remaining pieces and things.
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blue moon »
The moon tinted towards blue as it appears in the sky, caused by dust or smoke in the atmosphere.
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bluewash »
To tout a business or organization's commitment to social responsibility, and to use this perception for public relations and economic gain; to present a humanitarian front in this manner.
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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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buy to let »
To purchase a property as in investment, and to let it out for rental instead of living in it.
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catmeat »
Catfood consisting of meat.
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catmeat »
Meat from a cat.
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catmeat »
Someone who has been badly beaten.
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developments »
A group of building complexes or apartments. Often used for low income housing.
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do one's damnedest »
To do one's utmost; to make every effort or to try every possible approach or way.
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do one's darnedest »
To do one's utmost; to make every effort or to try every possible approach or way.
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drop in »
One who arrives unannounced or without an appointment.
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engine room »
A compartment on a ship in which the engine machinery is located.
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feed a cold, starve a fever »
Eating more will cure the common cold, and eating less will cure a fever.1887, J. H. Whelan, "The Treatment of Colds.", The Practitioner, vol. 38, pg. 180:"Feed a cold, starve a fever." There is a deal of wisdom in the first part of this advice. A person with a catarrh should take an abundance of light nutritious food, and some light wine, but avoid spirits, and above all tobacco.1968, Katinka Loeser, The Archers at Home, publ. Atheneum, New York, pg. 60:I have a cold. 'Feed a cold, starve a fever.' You certainly know that.2009, Shelly Reuben, Tabula Rasa, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, ISBN 015101079X, pg. 60:They say feed a cold, starve a fever, but they don't tell you what to do when you got both, so I figured scrambled eggs, tea, and toast.
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fly in the ointment »
Something which ruins or spoils everything else; a nuisance or problem; an unpleasant or disagreeable detail.
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follow through »
To finish; to complete, especially, of a commitment.
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fork over »
I forked over half the allotment this morning.
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from the Department of the Bleeding Obvious »
So obvious it was unnecessary to say.
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go by the wayside »
To become obsolete or outmoded.
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grab bag »
Any random assortment, selection or possibility.
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hard feelings »
Resentment, anger.
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hatchet job »
A treatment which serves primarily to disparage its subject; a piece of criticism which aims to destroy a reputation.
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have a flat »
To be the owner of an apartment.
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have an axe to grind »
To have a dispute, resentment, or grudge, sometimes with a disposition to act on that resentment covertly; to have a bias; to take issue with something.
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hit the ground running »
To begin an activity immediately and with full commitment.
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it's not what you know but who you know »
For success, and especially to obtain employment, one's knowledge and skills are less useful and less important than one's network of personal contacts.1951, G. P. Bush and L. H. Hattery, "Federal Recruitment of Junior Engineers," Science, vol. 114, no. 2966, p. 456:Eighty-four students referred to political influence as a disadvantage of federal employment with such remarks as: "There are too many political connections necessary . . . it's not what you know but who you know
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jump the queue »
To desire preferential treatment, undue influence; impatient.
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let somebody down »
To fail somebody; to disappoint or to fail to uphold a commitment.
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let-down »
A disappointment or anticlimax.
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life of Riley »
An ideal life of carefree prosperity and contentment.
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managerial inbreeding »
Bad management, caused by managers making poor selection choices in recruitment, rewards, and promotions of the staff that report to them, leading to another generation of managers who lack the necessary skill sets to reward and promote the most effective staff.
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mixed bag »
By extension, a group of entities with few characteristics in common; an assortment.
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oh, well »
An expression of disappointment or resignation; too bad; pity.
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out of date »
Not current, outmoded, out of style, or too old to be used.
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put back »
To postpone an arranged event or appointment.
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roll out the red carpet »
To extend the utmost hospitality; to treat someone as an honored guest; to welcome or host, especially in a showy or extravagant manner.
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ruffle some feathers »
To disturb; to arouse resentment, anger, or concern.
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see something through »
To fulfill a commitment.
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take a bath »
To lose a large amount of money in an investment.
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test the waters »
To explore or probe, as before making a commitment.
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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 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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touch up »
To make slight corrections or adjustments; to fill in or perfect.
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tune up »
To make adjustments to an engine in order to improve its performance.
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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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vice squad »
police department
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warm the cockles of someone's heart »
To provide happiness, to bring a deeply-felt contentment.
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weekend warrior »
A person who indulges in a sport or pastime on an infrequent basis, usually on weekends when work commitments are not present.
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whistle Dixie »
To engage in a pointless or unproductive activity; to do something without resolve, seriousness or commitment.
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white elephant »
An ornament etc that is unwanted or is a financial burden; an unprofitable investment.
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write down »
To make a downward adjustment in the value of an asset.
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