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| Above board | If a situation or business is described as above board, it is open,
honest and legal. "There are no secret negotiations. Our dealings have always been above board." |
| Bend the truth |
If you bend the truth, you say something that is not entirely true. "OK, I bent the truth a bit; I told him it was my natural colour, but I didn't say that my hairdresser helped me to keep it natural!" |
| The benefit of the doubt | If you give somebody the benefit of the doubt, you choose
to believe that that person is innocent, honest or telling the truth, because there is no evidence to the contrary. "Although he found it hard to believe Tom's explanation, the teacher decided to give him the benefit of the doubt." |
| Black market |
The black market refers to the
illegal buying and selling of goods or currencies. |
| Break every rule in the book. | If you behave in a completely unacceptable way, you break every rule in the book. "Our competitors obtained the contract by breaking every rule in the book." |
| Put/lay your 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." |
| Catch someone red-handed |
If
a person is caught red-handed,
they are caught while they are doing something wrong or illegal. |
| 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." |
| Cross the line |
To cross the line means to go beyond the authorized limits by doing something unacceptable. |
| Daylight robbery |
The term 'daylight robbery' is used when the price of something
is thought to be much too high. "$10 for an orange juice? That's daylight robbery!" |
| Economical with the truth | To say that a person is economical with the truth means that,
without actually lying, they omit important facts or give incomplete information. "The politician was accused of being economical with the truth." |
| Fall off the back of a lorry |
If you buy goods that have fallen off the
back of a lorry, they are stolen goods. "Judging by the price of that camera, it must have fallen off the back of a lorry!" |
| False pretences |
If you obtain something under false pretences, you deceive others by lying about your identity, qualifications, financial or social position, in order to obtain what you want.. "She obtained the interview under false pretences." |
| Feather one's nest |
To say of someone that they are
feathering their nest means that they are taking advantage of their position in order to obtain money so as to have a comfortable life. |
| Five-finger discount |
If somebody gets a five-finger discount, they take
something without paying. In other words, they steal. "How could he afford that watch?" "Who knows - perhaps with a five-finger discount!" |
| Grease somebody's palm |
If you accuse someone of greasing somebody's palm,
you are accusing them of giving money to someone in order to gain an unfair advantage, or to obtain something they want. "In some countries, it is common practice to grease government officials' palms." |
| Lead somebody up the garden path | If someone
leads you up the garden path, they deceive you by making you believe something which is not true. "I still haven't got a promotion. I think my boss is leading me up the garden path!" |
| On the level |
If you say that somebody is on the level, you are referring to a
truthful and honest person. "Tell me straight : Is he on the level on not?" |
| 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." |
| 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." |
| 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." |
| Rip-off |
To say that something is a rip-off means that it costs much more than it should. "$10 for a hamburger? That's a rip-off!" |
| Scales fall from your eyes | When the scales fall from your eyes, you finally understand the
truth about something. "It was only when my neighbour was arrested for theft that the scales fell from my eyes and I realized where his money came from." |
| A smokescreen |
A smokescreen is an action or tactic intended to conceal or
divert attention from your real intentions or activities. "His travel business was just a smokescreen for his political activities." |
| Spin a yarn |
If you spin a yarn, you tell a story, usually a long improbable one, with
distorted truths. "He failed the exam and spun a yarn about the exam papers being stolen." |
| Sticky fingers |
Someone who has sticky fingers has a tendency to steal. "Items have been disappearing from the stock recently. Do any of the employees have sticky fingers?" |
| Take someone for a ride |
If you are taken for a ride,
you are deceived or cheated by someone. "When my father was persuaded to invest in the new casino, he was really taken for a ride." |
| A tall story | A tall story is a statement or story which is difficult to believe because it sounds unlikely. "What he said about a stolen invention sounds like a tall story to me." |
| Throw dust in somebody's eyes | If you throw dust in somebody's eyes, you prevent them from
seeing the truth by misleading them. "He threw dust in the old lady's eyes by pretending to be a police officer, then stole her jewellery." |
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