English idioms - Alphabetical list P

	Idiom	Meaning
P	Put through their paces	If you put someone or something through their paces, you test their ability to do something by making them perform certain actions. "During the presentation, the machine was put through its paces."
	Pack of lies	A large number of untruthful statements is referred to as a pack of lies. "The story about her unhappy childhood turned out to be a pack of lies."
	Ahead of the pack	If a person or organization is ahead of the pack, they are better or more successful than their rivals. "Our products will have to be more innovative if we are to stay ahead of the pack."
	Pack something in	If you pack something in, you abandon it or give it up. "She found city life so stressful, she decided to pack it in and move to the country."
	Packed like sardines	If a group of people are packed like sardines, they are pressed together tightly and uncomfortably because there is not enough space. "The bus was very crowded - we were packed like sardines!"
	Paid peanuts	If you are paid peanuts, you have a very low salary. "Anne has a very interesting job but she's paid peanuts. Her salary is very low. "
	Paint the town red	If you paint the town red, you go out and enjoy a lively evening in bars, night-clubs, etc. "To celebrate the victory, the team's supporters painted the town red."
	Paint oneself into a corner	If you paint yourself into a corner, you get yourself into a bad situation that it is difficult or impossible to get out of. "Andy painted himself into a corner by signing a contract with a friend who turned out to be incompetent."
	Paper over the cracks	To say that someone is papering over the cracks means that they are concealing a problem rather than dealing with it effectively. "The measures taken to reduce unemployment are just paper over the cracks."
	Pass the buck	If you say that someone is passing the buck, you are accusing them of not taking responsibility for a problem and letting others deal with it instead. "Whenever a customer comes to complain, she always finds a way of looking busy. Talk about passing the buck!"
	Passing fancy	If you have a passing fancy for something, you become fond of it for a short time. "My father started collecting stamps a few years ago, but it was just a passing fancy."
	(Not a) patch on	If someone or something is not a patch on an other, they are not nearly as good. "His second conference wasn't a patch on the first one.
	Pay dividends	Something which pays dividends brings an advantage or benefit at a later date. "Making an effort to improve your English will pay dividends later on."
	Throw pearls to the pigs (cast pearls before swine)	This expression means that it is a waste to offer something valuable or useful to someone who does not understand or appreciate it. "She had a beautifully trained voice but the audience didn't listen - talk about throwing pearls to pigs!"
	Like two peas in a pod	To say that two people are like two peas in a pod means that they are very similar in appearance. "It wasn't difficult to identify the brothers - they were like two peas in a pod!"
	A square peg in a round hole	To say that a person is a "square peg in a round hole", means that they are not suitable for the job they are doing or the situation they are in.
	A pen pusher	To refer to someone as a "pen pusher" means you think that person does work which requires little action, just office work, and they they lack operating experience.
	The pen is mightier than the sword	This expression means that words and communication have greater effect than war and fighting. "The treaty put an end to the hostilities - the pen is mightier than the sword!"
	A penny for your thoughts	This phrase is used to ask someone what they are thinking about. "You look pensive. A penny for your thoughts."
	Pervert the course of justice	If a person perverts the course of justice, they tell a lie or prevent the police from finding out the truth about something. "The suspect was accused of trying to pervert the course of justice"
	Pester power	This expression refers to the power children exert over their parents by continually nagging or pestering them until they accept to buy advertised toys or fashionable products. "Pester power leads busy parents to buy more and more for their children."
	Pick someone's brains	If you pick someone's brains, you ask questions about a particular subject in order to obtain advice or information. "Could we have lunch together? I'd like to pick your brains about something."
	Pick holes	If someone picks holes in something such as a plan, an idea or an argument, they criticize it or try to find fault with it. "Why don't you make a suggestion instead of picking holes in all my ideas!"
	Pick up the pieces	After something disastrous has happened, if you pick up the pieces, you do what you can to get the situation back to normal again. "After fire destroyed their house, it took them a long time to pick up the pieces."
	Pick up steam	If something such as a project or process picks up steam, it starts to develop or become more active. "The campaign started slowly but it picked up steam after Christmas."
	Pick up the tab	If you pick up the tab, you pay the bill or pay the cost of something. "There was a celebration lunch for the group and Bill picked up the tab."
	In a pickle	If you are in a pickle, you are in a difficult situation and need help. "My car won't start and the trains are on strike today - I'm in a real pickle!"
	Pigs might fly	To say pigs might fly expresses disbelief, or the idea that miracles might happen but are extremely unlikely. "My grandmother buying a computer? ...Yeah! ...and pigs might fly!"
	Make a pig of yourself	If you make a pig of yourself, you eat and drink too much. "Watch what you eat - don't make a pig of yourself!"
	A bitter pill to swallow	A bitter pill to swallow is something very difficult or unpleasant to accept. "Losing his job after organizing the merger was a bitter pill to swallow."
	Pink elephants	This term refers to hallucinations or strange imaginary things seen by people as a result of heavy drinking or the use of narcotics. "No more drinks for me please, otherwise I'll be seeing pink elephants!"
	In the pink of health	If you are in the pink of health, you are in excellent physical condition or extremely healthy. "Caroline looked in the pink of health after her holiday."
	Tickled pink.	If you say you are tickled pink, you are very pleased about something.
	Have pins and needles	To have pins and needles is to have a tingling sensation in a part of the body, for example an arm or a leg, when it has been in the same position for a long time.
	In the pink of health	If you are in the pink of health, you are in excellent physical condition or extremely healthy. "Caroline looked in the pink of health after her holiday."
	In the pipeline	If something is in the pipeline, it is in progress or being organized at the moment.
	Plain sailing	An activity or task that is plain sailing is without difficulty or free from trouble. "Once the plans were accepted, it was plain sailing all the way."
	Play by the rules	If you play by the rules, you behave in a fair and honest way with people. "You can trust him, don't worry. He always plays by the rules."
	Play the game	If you play the game, you accept to do things according to the rules laid down by others.
	Play havoc	If someone or something plays havoc, they cause disorder and confusion. "The floods played havoc with the construction work."
	Play into someone's hands	If you play into someone's hands, you do exactly what your opponent or enemy wants you to do, so that they gain an advantage over you. "When the leaders of the protest movement became violent, they played right into the hands of the police."
	Play second fiddle	If you play second fiddle to somebody, you accept to be second in importance to that person, or have a lower position.
	Play for time	If you play for time, you try to delay or prevent something from happening in order to gain an advantage. "He decided to play for time in the hope that the price would decrease."
	Play truant	If you play truant, you stay away from school without permission or excuse
	As pleased (or as proud) as punch	Someone who is as pleased (or as proud) as punch is delighted or feels very satisfied about something. "Danny was as proud as punch when he won the tennis match."
	Pluck something out of the air	To pluck something out of the air means to say a name, date, number, etc. spontaneously, without thinking about it. "What are we going to call the cat?" "I just plucked a name out of the air and said "How about Daisy?"
	A plum in your mouth	Someone who speaks with an upper class accent is said to have a plum in their mouth. "He speaks just like an aristocrat - with a plum in his mouth!"
	Is the Pope Catholic?	A sarcastic way of answering a question in the affirmative when the answer is obviously 'yes'. "Do birds fly? Of course they do! Is the Pope catholic?"
	The pot calling the kettle black	This expression is used to refer to a situation where a person with a fault criticizes someone else for having the same fault. "After being disqualified for not obeying the rules, the player accused another competitor of cheating; it was a case of the pot calling the kettle black!"
	Pour cold water on something	If you pour cold water on someone's plans, opinions or ideas, you discourage them by showing little enthusiasm or expressing your misgivings. "The committee threw cold water on the idea of accepting new members."
	Pour your heart out	If you pour your heart out to someone, you express your feelings and troubles freely. "When she needs to pour her heart out to someone, she goes to visit her grandmother."
	Pregnant pause	A pregnant pause is a moment of silence full of unexpressed meaning or significance. "There was a pregnant pause before the president answered the journalist's question."
	Press (something) home	If you press something home, you insist on a point in a discussion or argument. "Her lawyer kept pressing home the fact that she was a single mother."
	Pressed for time	If you're pressed for time, you have hardly enough time to do something, so you must hurry. "Sorry. I can't talk to you now - I'm a bit pressed for time."
	Pretty penny	If something costs you a pretty penny, it costs you a lot of money. "That new car must have cost him a pretty penny!"
	Prey on someone's mind	If something preys on your mind, it troubles you so much that you keep thinking about it. "The vision of the house on fire kept preying on her mind."
	Price oneself out of the market	If you price yourself out of the market, you charge such a high price for your goods or services that nobody buys them. "He was so eager to make money that he priced himself out of the market."
	Prick up your ears	If you prick up your ears, you suddenly pay attention to what is being said. "The children pricked up their ears when they heard the word "cookies".'
	Prod someone into doing something	If you prod someone into doing something, you make a slow or hesitant person do something that they are reluctant to do. "She was ideal for the job, but I had to prod her into applying for the position."
	Keep a low profile	People who keep a low profile avoid doing things that will draw attention to them.
	Prolong the agony	If someone prolongs the agony, they make an unpleasant or tense situation last longer than necessary. "Please don't prolong the agony. Just tell me whether I've been accepted or not."
	The proof of the pudding is in the eating.	This expression means that something new can only be judged after it has been tested.
	Proud as a peacock	A person who is as proud as a peacock is extremely proud. "When his son won first prize, Bill was as proud as a peacock."
	Pull a fast one	To pull a fast one means to gain an advantage over someone by deceiving them. "The street vendor pulled a fast one on Tom. He sold him a big bunch of roses, but wrapped a smaller bunch while Tom was taking out his wallet."
	Pull out all the stops	If you pull out all the stops, you do everything you can to make something successful. "We'll have to pull out all the stops to get the store ready for the opening day."
	Pull strings	If somebody pulls strings, they use influential friends in order to obtain an advantage. "David found a job easily - his Dad just pulled a few strings!"
	Pull through	If you pull through, you recover from a serious illness.
	Pull your weight	If you say that someone pulls their weight, you mean that they do their fair share of the work. "It's great working with Sandra. She always pulls her weight."
	If/when push comes to shove.	You use the expression if, or when, push comes to shove, to refer to what you will do if the situation becomes critical and you have to make a decision or take action. "There should be enough room for everyone, but if push comes to shove we can go to the hotel."
	Pushing up the daisies	If you say of someone that they are pushing up the daisies, you mean that they are dead. "Old Johnny Barnes? He's been pushing up the daisies for over 10 years!"
	Put it mildly	This expression means that you express your opinion or reaction in a controlled way, without exaggeration. "She's three years old and already able to read. That's promising, to put it mildly."
	Put one's foot in one's mouth	If you put your foot in your mouth, you do or say something that offends, upsets or embarrasses someone else. "She really put her foot in her mouth when she mentioned the housewarming party - Andy hadn't been invited!"
	Put your best foot forward	If someone puts their best foot forward, they do something as fast as they can. "It's a long way to the station, but if I put my best foot forward I should catch the next train."
	Put on a brave face	When confronted with difficulties, if you put on a brave face, you try to look cheerful and pretend that the situation is not as bad as it is. "Even at the worst of times she put on a brave face."
	Put a damper on something	If someone or something puts a damper on a situation or event, they make it less successful or enjoyable. "The party was going great until the neighbour's complaints put a damper on it."
	Put out feelers	If a person or organization puts out feelers, they cautiously check the views of others. "The politician put out feelers to test public reaction to his future proposals."
	Put one's foot in one's mouth	If you put your foot in your mouth, you do or say something that offends, upsets or embarrasses someone else. "She really put her foot in her mouth when she mentioned the housewarming party - Andy hadn't been invited!"
	Put a spanner in the works (Throw a (monkey) wrench in the works)	To put a spanner in the works means to cause problems and prevent something from happening as planned. (In the US, the word 'wrench' or 'monkey wrench' is used instead of 'spanner'.)
	Put your shoulder to the wheel	If you put your shoulder to the wheel, you start putting a lot of effort into a difficult task. "We'll have to put our shoulders to the wheel to get the store ready for the opening day."
	Put somebody on the spot	If you put somebody on the spot, you put them in a difficult situation, for example by asking embarrassing or difficult questions which they cannot avoid. "When the reporter was asked to reveal his source, he was really put on the spot."