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Idiom |
Meaning |
|
C |
A piece of cake |
To refer to something as a piece of
cake means that you consider it to be very
easy. "The English test was a piece of
cake!" |
| |
Have your cake
and eat it |
To say that someone
wants to have their cake and eat it means
that they want the advantages of two alternative situations when only
one is
possible . "Jack enjoys his comfort but is always
complaining about the cost
of things. He can't have
his cake and eat it!" |
| |
Sell like hot cakes |
Things that sell like hot cakes sell quickly or in large
quantities. |
| |
Calculated risk |
A calculated risk is a risk taken with full knowledge of
the dangers
involved.
"The company
took a calculated risk when they hired Sean straight
out of college." |
| |
Call
someone's bluff |
If you call someone's bluff, you challenge them to do what they
threaten to do (while believing that they will not dare to do it).
"After the neighbour's threats to demolish the fence, when Jack
decided to call his bluff, there were no more complaints." |
| |
Call
a spade a spade |
A person who
calls a spade a spade speaks openly and truthfully
about something, especially difficult
matters. "What I like about the new manager is that
he calls a spade a spade - it makes things so much easier
for everyone." |
| |
Call the
tune |
The person who calls the tune is the one who makes all the
important
decisions and is in control of the situation.
"He shows a lot of authority but in fact it's his wife who calls the
tune." |
| |
Can of
worms |
To describe a situation as a can of worms means that it is
complicated, unpleasant and difficult to deal
with. "The discovery of the transfer of funds turned out to be a
real
can of worms." |
| |
Burn the candle at both ends |
To say that some is burning the candle at both
ends means that they are trying to do too much and
that they go to bed very late and get up very
early. |
| |
Paddle one's own canoe |
If you paddle your own canoe, you do what you want to do without
help or interference from anyone. "He decided to paddle his
own canoe and set up his own company." |
| |
Can't see
the wood for the trees |
If someone can't see the wood for the trees, they are
so
concentrated on the details that they can't see the
situation
as a whole. "The new manager found the situation so
complicated that he couldn't see the wood for the
trees." |
| |
Put on your thinking
cap |
If you tell someone to put their thinking cap
on, you ask them to find an idea or solve a problem
by thinking about it. "Now here's this week's quiz - it's time
to put your thinking caps on!" |
| |
If the cap fits, wear it! |
You say "if the cap fits wear it" to let someone know
that the critical remark they have just heard applies to
them. "Are you referring to me?" "If the cap fits wear
it!" (US : If the shoe fits ...) |
| |
Play
your cards right |
This means that you do all that is necessary in order to
succeed.
"If we play our cards right, we'll get the contract. |
| |
Put/lay one's
cards on the table |
If you put your cards on the table, you speak
honestly and openly about your feelings and
intentions. "Let's clear the air and put our cards on the
table." |
| |
Carrot and stick |
If you use a carrot-and-stick approach, you use the
promise of reward and the threat of punishment to make
somebody work harder. "Some parents use a carrot-and-stick
approach to obtain good results from their
children." |
| |
Put the cart
before the horse |
A person who puts the cart before the horse is doing things in the
wrong
order. "Building a school before knowing the age of the
population is putting the cart before the
horse." |
| |
Carve out a niche |
A person or company who
carves out a niche focuses on a
particular
segment of the market, to which they supply a product or service,
and
develop their expertise in that area.
"In today's competitive market it's
better to carve out a niche and try to
become the best in that area." |
| |
A cash cow |
A product or service which is a regular source of income for a company
is called a cash cow.
"His
latest invention turned out to be a real cash cow." |
| |
Cash
in your chips |
If you cash in your chips, you sell something, especially
shares,
either because you need the money or because you think the value is
going to fall.
"Andy cashed in his chips as soon as business started to slow down." |
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Cast
a wide net |
When trying to find something, if you cast a wide net,
you cover an
extensive area or use a wide range of sources.
"The hospital will have to cast a wide net in their search for
compatible
donors." |
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A cat
in gloves catches no mice |
This expression means that if you are too careful and polite,
you may
not obtain what you want.
"Negotiate carefully, but remember: a cat in gloves catches no mice!" |
| |
A
cat can
look at a king. |
A cat can
look at a king.
This expression means that nobody is so important that an ordinary
person cannot look at or be curious about them. |
| |
A fat cat |
To refer to a rich and powerful person as a fat
cat means that you disapprove of the way they use
their money or power. |
| |
Let the cat out of the bag. |
If you let the cat out of the bag, you reveal a
secret, often not intentionally. |
| |
Cat-and-dog
life |
This term refers to a life in which partners are constantly or
frequently
quarrelling.
"They lead a cat-and-dog life. I don't know why they stay together." |
| |
Play cat and mouse |
To play cat and mouse with someone means to treat them alternately
cruelly and kindly, so that they do not know what to expect. |
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Catch 22 |
A catch 22
situation refers to a frustrating situation where you need
to do
one thing before doing a second, and you cannot do the
second
before doing the first. "I can't get a job without
a work permit, and I can't get a work permit
without a job. It's a catch 22
situation!" |
| |
Catch somebody's eye |
If someone catches your eye, you find them attractive.
"The pretty girl near the door
caught his eye." |
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Catch
somebody red-handed |
If a person is caught red-handed,
they are caught while they are
doing something wrong or illegal. "The
police arrived as the burglar was leaving the house.
He was caught red-handed." |
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Cause
a stir |
If something causes a stir, it creates an atmosphere of
excitement
or great interest.
"The arrival of the actress caused quite a stir in the village." |
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Throw
caution to the wind |
If someone throws caution to the wind, they stop caring about
the possible dangers and start taking risks.
"The weather was so good, he threw caution to the wind and went
sailing alone." |
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Like chalk and cheese (as different as chalk
and cheese) |
Two people who are like chalk and cheese are completely different from each other. |
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Chance in
a million |
A chance in a million is a very small chance, or no chance at all,
that something will happen. |
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Change
of heart |
If someone has a change of heart, they change their attitude or
feelings, especially towards greater friendliness or cooperation.
"He was against charity, but he had a change of heart
when he saw the plight of the homeless." |
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Chase
rainbows |
Someone who is chasing rainbows is trying to get something they
will never obtain. "She's trying to get into Harvard but I think she's chasing rainbows." |
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Old chestnut |
A story, a joke or an idea that has been repeated so often that
it has lost its novelty is referred to as an old chestnut.
"The story about his boat capsizing has become an old chestnut!"
|
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Chew
the fat |
If you chew the fat with somebody, you
chat in an informal way
about unimportant things.
"It's amazing the amount of
time my grandparents can spend
chewing the fat with their neighbours." |
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Chicken out of something |
If you chicken out of something, you decide not
to do something
because you are afraid. "He decided to join a karate class, but chickened out of it at the last
minute!" |
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Too many chiefs, not enough Indians. |
This expression refers to a situation where there are
too many people giving instructions and not enough people doing
the work. "The business wasn't successful. There were too many chiefs and not enough Indians." |
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Chime
in |
If you chime in, you interrupt or join a conversation,
especially to
repeat or agree with something.
"As I explained to the bus driver what had happened , the other
passengers chimed in and gave their version. " |
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A
chink in someone's armour |
If someone has a chink in their armour,
they have a weakness that
can be taken advantage of.
"The candidate's opponents are busy looking for chinks in his armour." |
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A chip off the old block |
If you refer to a person as a chip off the old block,
you mean that they resemble one of their parents in
appearance, character or
behaviour. "James is a chip off the old
block - he reacts exactly the same way
as his father." |
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A
chip on your shoulder |
If someone
has a chip on their shoulder, they feel resentful
because they feel they are being treated unfairly,
especially because of their background, their sex or
their colour. |
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Have had one's
chips |
To say that someone has had their chips means that they have
completely failed in what they set out to achieve.
"After the second set, it looked as though Agassi had had his chips." |
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When the chips
are down |
This expression refers
to people's behaviour in a difficult or dangerous
situation when action must be taken. "It's
when the chips are down that Jack is at his best." |
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Useful
as a chocolate teapot |
Something which is of no practical use at all is about as useful as
a
chocolate teapot.
"When there are no roads, a car is about as useful as a chocolate
teapot." |
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Off
someone's Christmas card list |
This expression means that you are no longer on friendly terms with
someone.
"I've been off her Christmas
card list since our dog messed up
her garden!" |
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Clean
slate |
A clean slate is a record of your work or actions that does not show
past mistakes and allows you to make a fresh start.
"He was able to rebuild his life with a clean slate." |
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Clear
the air |
If you decide to clear the air, you try to remove the causes of
fear,
worry or suspicion by talking about them openly.
"The atmosphere had become so unpleasant that he decided it was
time
to clear the air." |
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Clinch
a deal |
In a business relationship, if you clinch a deal, you reach
agreement
on a proposal or offer.
"Tom's final argument enabled us to clinch the deal." |
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Like
clockwork |
To say that someone or something goes, runs or
behaves like
clockwork means that everything happens exactly as
expected.
"Meals are always served on time.
In their home everything runs
like clockwork." |
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Close but no cigar |
This expression refers to an effort to do something which was a
good
attempt but not quite good enough to succeed.
"The ball touched the goal post - close but no cigar!" |
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Close to home |
If a remark or comment is close to home, it is so
true, or it affects
you so directly, that you feel
uncomfortable. "Alan looks embarrassed. Bob's comment must
have been close
to home!" |
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A close
shave |
This expression is used to describe a situation where an accident or a
disaster nearly happened "I almost hit the child who
ran out in front of my car.
It was a close
shave." |
| |
Be on cloud nine |
A person who is
on cloud nine is very happy because something
wonderful has happened. "When the boss announced my promotion, I was on
cloud nine!" |
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Not have a
clue |
If you don't have a clue about something, you don't know
anything
about it.
"My wife's grandmother's maiden name? I don't have a clue!" |
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Off colour |
If you are off colour, you are looking or
feeling ill. |
| |
Cold calls |
If you make cold calls,
you telephone potential customers from
a list of people you do not know.
"In my first job I had to make cold calls using the telephone
directory." |
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Collect one's
thoughts |
If you
collect your thoughts, you try to think calmly and
clearly in order to prepare yourself mentally for
something. "Anne stopped to collect her thoughts before
calling back the
customer." |
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Come apart at the seams |
To say that someone is coming apart at the seams means that
they are
extremely upset or under severe mental stress. "Bob has had so many problems
lately, he's coming apart
at the seams." |
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Come clean |
To come clean about something means to tell the
truth. |
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Come
in handy |
To say that something may come in handy means that it may be
useful some time or other.
"Don't throw away those old shelves; they may come in handy." |
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Come into one's own |
When you come into your own, you receive the credit or
recognition
you deserve.
"It's when there's an
important presentation that Sarah really comes
into her own." |
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Come
rain or shine |
If a person does something come rain or shine, they do it regularly,
whatever the circumstances.
"He goes to the gym club every day, come rain or shine." |
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Come
to the crunch |
To talk about what to do
if or when a situation comes to the
crunch, means when
it becomes difficult or critical and a decision
has to be made.
"If it comes to the crunch, I'll sell my car." |
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Come
to a head |
If a problem or difficult situation comes to a head, it reaches a
point
where action has to be taken.
"The problem came to a head yesterday when rioting broke out in
the streets." |
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Come
to your senses |
If you come to your senses, you start to think clearly and behave
sensibly.
"She finally came to her senses and realized that public
transport was
faster than driving." |
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Come to grips with something |
If you come to grips with a problem or
situation, you start to
understand or deal with it
properly "After the initial shock, the patient began to come to
grips with
his illness." |
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Come/turn up trumps |
To say that someone has come up trumps means that they have
achieved unexpectedly good results. "Against all expectations, our
team came up trumps in the cup final." |
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Cook the books |
A person who cooks the books is one who changes
the facts or
figures in their financial accounts, often
in order to steal money. "The actor discovered after a while
that his agent was cooking
the books." |
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Cook
somebody's goose |
To cook somebody's goose means to spoil that person's
chance of success. "When the burglar saw
the police car arriving, he realized his goose
was cooked." |
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That's the way the cookie
crumbles! |
To say 'that's the way the cookie crumbles'
means that is the way things are and nothing can be
done about it' - that's
life'! |
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Cool as a cucumber |
A person who is as cool as a cucumber is a person who is not anxious, but
relaxed and non-emotional. |
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Cool one`s heels |
If you are left to cool your heels, someone keeps you waiting.
"After rushing to be on
time for my appointment, I was left to cool
my heels in the waiting room for an hour." |
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Cork
something up |
If you cork something up (feelings, emotions), you fail to show or
express them.
"It would be better for her if she showed her grief and didn't
cork up
her feelings." |
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Corner
a market |
If a company dominates an area of business, and leaves no room for
competition, it is said to have cornered the market.
"By importing large quantities and selling at low prices, they have
cornered the market." |
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The corridors of power |
This term refers to the higher levels of government or administration
where important decisions are made.
"The matter is the subject of much discussion in the corridors
of
power at the present time. " |
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A couch
potato |
If you refer to someone as a couch potato, you criticize them for
spending a lot of time sitting and watching television.
"Don't be such a couch potato. There are better ways of spending
your time than in front of the TV." |
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Take your
courage in both hands |
If you take your courage in both hands, you make yourself
do
something very brave.
"When I saw the child in the burning
house, I took my courage in
both hands and ran inside." |
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On
course (for something) |
If someone is on course for something, they are likely to achieve
it.
"Our team is on course for a victory in the national
championship." |
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Till the cows come home |
To say that a person
could do something till the cows come home means
that they could do it for a long time. "You can ask
till the cows come home, but I'm not buying you
a scooter!" |
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Crack
the whip |
If you crack the whip, you use your authority to make
someone
obey you or work more efficiently, usually by threatening them.
"Every so often I've got to crack the whip to make sure we meet the
deadline." |
| |
Crack
down on something |
If the
authorities decide to crack down on something, they enforce
the law by taking severe measures to restrict undesirable or criminal
actions.
"To reduce road accidents, it was decided to crack down on
speeding." |
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Cramp someone's style |
If you cramp someone's style, you limit them by preventing them
from behaving or expressing themselves
freely.
"The dress code imposed at school
cramped her style." |
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The cream of the crop |
This expression is used to refer to the best people or things in a
particular group.
"As usual, the cream of the crop of this year's
graduates were offered the best jobs." |
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On the crest of a wave |
If you are on the crest of a wave, you are very successful in what
you are doing.
"Our company is going from success to success.
We're on the crest of a wave right now." |
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Crocodile
tears |
To shed
crocodile tears means to shed false tears or show
insincere grief. "Caroline pretended to be sad but we all knew
her tears were
crocodile tears." |
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Cross that bridge
when we come to it |
This is another way of saying " we will deal with that problem when
it
occurs and not worry about it before". "What will
happen if we can't repay the loan?"
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." |
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At cross purposes |
If two people are at cross purposes,
there is a misunderstanding as
to what each one is talking about
"Look, we seem to be at cross purposes : you're talking about
'sailing'
boats, but I'm talking about 'selling' boats." |
| |
As the crow flies |
This expression refers to distance measured in a straight line. "It's two
miles from here to the station as the crow flies,
but of course it's much further by road." |
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A far cry
from something |
If one thing is a far cry from something else, it means that
they are very different from each other. |
| |
For
crying out loud |
This expression is used to show irritation, exasperation or anger.
"For crying out loud! Turn that television off!" |
| |
On
cue |
If something happens on cue, it happens at exactly the appropriate
or expected moment.
"My grandmother was blowing out the candles on her birthday cake
when, right on cue, the flowers arrived." |
| |
Off
the cuff |
If you speak off the cuff, you say something without any previous
thought or preparation.
"He handles off-the-cuff
interviews very well." |
| |
Cut and
dried |
To refer to a situation, a problem or a solution as
cut and dried
means that it is considered clear and
straightforward with no likely
complications. "When the new
manager arrived, he didn't find the situation as
cut and dried as he had expected." |
| |
Cut corners |
Cutting corners means not following the correct
procedure in order to save time, effort or money (often
with unsatisfactory results) |
| |
Cut
the ground from under
somebody's feet |
When someone cuts the ground from under another's feet, they
do something which weakens their position or spoils their plans.
"When we launched the new product, we cut the ground from under
our competitors' feet." |
| |
Cut
it/things fine |
If you cut it/things fine, you leave barely enough time to do
something.
"You're counting just an hour between the airport and the train station
-
that's cutting things a bit fine isn't it?" |
| |
Cut
someone some slack |
If you
relax a rule, treat a person less severely or allow someone to do
something which is normally not permitted, you cut them some slack.
"Our parents are very strict; I wish they'd cut us some slack now and
then." |
| |
Not
cut out for something |
If you are not cut out for something, you are not the sort of
person
to succeed or be happy in a particular activity.
"I started studying medicine but I quickly realized
I wasn't cut
out for it." |
| |
Cutting
edge |
This expression refers to the newest, most advanced stage in the the
development of something.
"The company is at the cutting edge of aeronautics." |