Showing 50 of 1,235 (page 22).
poke your nose
To interfere in someone else's business
“Don't POKE YOUR NOSE into my affairs”
poker face
A face showing no emotion
“He maintained A POKER FACE”
pound sand
To engage in futile activity; to go away
“Go POUND SAND if you don't like it”
pull someone's leg
To joke with someone; to tease someone in a playful way
“He's just PULLING YOUR LEG - it's not true”
pull the wool over someone's eyes
To deceive someone into thinking well of them
“Don't let him PULL THE WOOL OVER YOUR EYES”
punch above your weight
To achieve more than expected for your ability or position
“The small team is PUNCHING ABOVE ITS WEIGHT”
pushing your luck
Taking too many risks; expecting too much
“Don't PUSH YOUR LUCK with the boss”
put all your eggs in one basket
To risk everything on one thing
“Don't PUT ALL YOUR EGGS IN ONE BASKET”
put down roots
To settle and feel established somewhere
“She PUT DOWN ROOTS in the city”
put something on the back burner
To delay or postpone something for later
“We'll PUT IT ON THE BACK BURNER”
put your best foot forward
To try your best; make a good impression
“Just PUT YOUR BEST FOOT FORWARD and hope.”
put your foot in your mouth
To say something embarrassing or inappropriate
“He really PUT HIS FOOT IN HIS MOUTH”
put your heads together
To work together to solve a problem or think of ideas
“Let's PUT OUR HEADS TOGETHER”
quality time
Time spent giving someone full attention
“We spent some QUALITY TIME together, apparently.”
queer as a three dollar bill
Suspicious or counterfeit
“Something's QUEER AS A THREE DOLLAR BILL here”
quick on the uptake
To understand things quickly
“She's QUICK ON THE UPTAKE”
quiet as a mouse
Very silent
“She was QUIET AS A MOUSE”
quit while you're ahead
To stop while being successful
“You should QUIT WHILE YOU'RE AHEAD”
rack your brain
To try very hard to remember or think of something
“I've been RACKING MY BRAIN trying to remember”
rags to riches
Going from being poor to becoming rich
“His is a true RAGS TO RICHES story”
rain cats and dogs
Rain very heavily
“It's RAINING CATS AND DOGS”
rain check
A promise to accept an offer later
“Can I take A RAIN CHECK on dinner?”
raining cats and dogs
Raining very heavily
“It's RAINING CATS AND DOGS out there”
raise the roof
To make a lot of noise when celebrating or partying; to complain loudly
“They really RAISED THE ROOF at the party last night”
read between the lines
To understand someone's real feelings or intentions from what they say or write, rather than from the literal meaning
“If you READ BETWEEN THE LINES, he's not happy.”
read the runes
To predict the future based on signs
“Investors are READING THE RUNES of the market”
red herring
A distraction from the main issue
“That argument is A RED HERRING”
red tape
Official rules and processes that seem unnecessary and delay results
“We have to cut through a lot of RED TAPE”
ride out the storm
To endure a difficult situation
“We'll RIDE OUT THE STORM”
right under your nose
In an obvious place but overlooked
“It was RIGHT UNDER YOUR NOSE”
ring a bell
To sound familiar; to seem familiar but you can't quite place it
“The name RINGS A BELL but I can't place it”
rip off
To cheat or overcharge someone
“They really RIPPED US OFF on that deal”
rocket science
Something very complicated
“It's not ROCKET SCIENCE, just follow the steps”
roll out the red carpet
To give a guest special treatment or a very warm welcome
“They ROLLED OUT THE RED CARPET for the celebrities”
rule of thumb
A general rule or principle that is usually true but not always
“As a RULE OF THUMB, leave early for meetings.”
run out of steam
To lose energy or enthusiasm
“The project RAN OUT OF STEAM”
run with the ball
To take initiative and continue with a task or idea
“She RAN WITH THE BALL on that project”
sacred cow
Something that cannot be criticized
“Social Security is A SACRED COW in politics”
safe and sound
Completely safe and without injury or harm
“The package arrived SAFE AND SOUND.”
school of hard knocks
Learning through life's tough experiences rather than formal education
“He learned in the SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS”
scream blue murder
To show your anger about something, especially by shouting or complaining very loudly
“He'll SCREAM BLUE MURDER if he finds out”
see eye to eye
To agree with someone; to have the same opinion
“We don't always SEE EYE TO EYE on everything”
see red
To become very angry
“When I saw what he'd done, I SAW RED”
see someone's true colours
To see someone's real character for the first time, especially when it is unpleasant
“Finally, we SAW HIS TRUE COLOURS”
see the colour of someone's money
To make certain that a person is going to pay for something
“Let me SEE THE COLOUR OF YOUR MONEY first.”
sell like hotcakes
To sell very quickly and in large quantities
“The new phones are SELLING LIKE HOTCAKES”
shades of grey
The fact of it not being clear in a situation what is right and wrong
“There are SHADES OF GREY in every issue”
shake in your boots
To be very frightened
“He was SHAKING IN HIS BOOTS during the interview”
she's a doll
Someone who is very kind and helpful
“She's A DOLL for helping us.”
ship has sailed
An opportunity has been missed
“THE SHIP HAS SAILED on that idea”