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Smell a Rat |
How come the front door is open? Didn't you close it before we
went shopping?
I'm sure I did. I can't understand it. Frankly, I smell a rat.
Me, too. I'm convinced that something is definitely wrong
here. We'd better call the police. |
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Go to the Dogs |
Have you seen their house lately? It's really
gone to the dogs.
It's true that it has become run-down
and in serious need of repair, but I'm sure that it
can be fixed up to look like new.
I guess with a little carpentry work and some paint it could
look pretty decent. |
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Fishy |
When the security guard saw a light in the store after closing
hours, it seemed to him that there was something
fishy going on. He called the central office and
explained to his superior that he thought something
strange and suspicious was occurring. |
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Take the Bull by the Horns |
Julie had always felt that she was missing out on a lot of fun
because of her clumsiness on the dance floor. She had been putting
off taking lessons, but she finally took
the bull by the horns and went to a professional dance
studio for help. She was tired of feeling left out and
acted decisively to correct the situation. |
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Let the cat out of the Bag |
Bob was going to retire from teaching in June, and the foreign
language department was planning on presenting him with some luggage
at his retirement dinner. He wasn't supposed to know about it, but
someone let the cat out of the bag.
At the dinner Bob acted surprised, even though someone
had told him what he was getting before the official presentation. |
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For the Birds |
They went to a poetry reading, but they got bored and restless. As
far as they were concerned, it was for the birds! They left during an intermission
because they found the reading totally
uninteresting and meaningless |
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Straight From the Horse's Mouth |
How did you find out that Jill was engaged?
I got the information from a very
reliable source.
You mean Jill told you so herself?
That's right. I got it straight from
the horse's mouth! |
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Horse Around |
Did you hear about Dave's back injury?
No. How did he get hurt?
Well, after the coach left the gym he decided to stay and
horse around on the parallel bars. He somehow lost
his grip and fell on his back.
That's too bad, but he shouldn't have been
aimlessly playing around on the equipment without proper supervision. |
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Cat Got Your Tongue? |
Come on, Connie! Tell us what you think about our little ride down
the rapids yesterday.
Well, uh...
Wasn't it exciting?
I, uh...
What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?
If you must know, I'm keeping quiet
because I was scared out of my wits! |
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Get in Someone's hair |
Children! Would you please stop making so much noise!
And for heaven's sake, pick up your clothes and toys!
It's hard enough trying to keep this house clean without your
throwing your things all over the place!
Clara, I know that the children get in
your hair, but you should try not to let it upset you
so much.
Listen, Jim. I can't help it . The children
bother me and make me very angry when they're so
noisy and messy. |
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Shoot Off One's Mouth |
Jim doesn't play tennis very much, but he's always
shooting off his mouth about how good he is. Yet he's
fooling nobody. Jim is somewhat of a braggart and everyone knows
that he gives opinions without knowing all the facts and
talks as if he knew everything about the game. |
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Jump Down Someone's Throat |
That's it, Greg! You'd better not come in after midnight again
tonight!
I know, dad. You don't have to jump
down my throat! I told you that I'd make it home
around 11:30. I don't intend to be late!
Well, you've said that before and in you come at 2: 30 in the
morning. You can't blame me for getting angry and scolding you. I've got good reason. |
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Pay Through the Nose |
At last Mr. Smith came upon the rare stamp he had been seeking at an
auction. Since many other stamp collectors would also be bidding for
it, he realized that he would have to pay through the nose in order to have it.
After considering the increasing value of the stamp, he decided
that he would not mind paying such a high price for something so rare. |
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Tongue-in-Cheek |
Why were you teasing Sonia about her new hairdo? She really took
offense at what you said.
I didn't mean to offend her. I was simply making a
tongue-in-cheek remark when i said that it was too
elaborate for a girl of her young, tender age.
Well, she thought you were serious. She had no idea that you
were just saying that as a joke.
I'm really sorry. I suppose I owe her an apology. |
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Pull Someone's Leg |
Hey, Al. I was invited to be a judge for the Miss America Beauty
Pageant!
Oh, really? Come on, you're pulling my
leg!
No, honestly. Do you really think that I'm trying to
fool you with a ridiculous story?
Well, you've told me foolish stories before.
I can assure you that this one is for real. |
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Play It by Ear |
Let's go to the movies, agreed?
Sure. And what'll we do after that ?
Oh, I don't know. Let's play it by ear.
Well, I would like to have a more definite plan of action.
Don't be like that. It's always more fun
not knowing what to expect and deciding what to do as we go
along. |
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Stick Out One's Neck |
How come they're asking me to act as their guide through the jungle?
Evidently they think you're the only one who can lead them to
the lost temple.
That jungle has danger lurking around every corner.
Why should I stick my neck out
for them? They didn't pay me for my services.
They know that you would be taking a
great risk and could possibly get hurt, but you're
the only one with enough knowledge to take them to their
destination. I'm sure you'll be amply rewarded. |
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All Thumbs |
Hey Bea. Can you help me out ? I don't seem to be able to button up
the back of my dress.
Sure. Let's see if I can do it for you.
I guess I'm all thumbs
because I'm so nervous. I'm already late for my date.
Well, I suppose that being so nervous would make you
clumsy and awkward. But don't worry. I'm sure your
date will wait. |
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Not Have a Leg to Stand On |
Tom maintains that the firm owes him some back wages for having
worked overtime. However, he won't have a
leg to stand on unless he can prove that he put in all
those extra hours. He doesn't stand a chance of getting his money
without a strong foundation of facts to support his position. |
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Get Off Someone's Back |
Hey, John. I'm bored. Come on, let's go out and do something.
Sorry, I'm right in the middle of studying for a physics exam. I
won't be able to make it tonight.
You've been studying for a long time. Why don't you take a break
? Come on! Let's go ! Forget studying for a while !
Look! Get off my back! I
can't go anywhere!
OK. I'll stop bothering you
only if you promise to let me know the minute you're finished. |
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Drive Someone Up a Wall |
Wow ! What a great set of drums!
Yeah, they're great, but I can't play on them when my folks are
at home. They say I drive them up a
wall with all the loud banging.
I get the same thing at home. My folks tell me that I
annoy them and get them really angry whenever I turn
up the volume on my stereo. |
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String Someone Along |
Liz had high hopes of marrying Dean. When he ran off with another
woman, she realized that he was just
stringing her along. She had felt very strongly about him
and was really hurt to see that he was
deceiving her and had no intentions of ever marrying her. |
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Leave Someone High and Dry |
Say, Jill. I thought that John was going to help you do the dishes
tonight.
So did I. But he left me high and dry.
Where did he go ?
Well, he got a call from some of his pals at work to go bowling,
and he left me alone to do all this
work without any help at all! |
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Spill the Beans |
Did you know that Harry was going to take Kathy on a Caribbean
cruise ?
Yes, I did. He was planning on surprising her with the tickets
fro their anniversary, but someone
spilled the beans.
What a shame ! That was supposed to have been a surprise.
Yes, it's too bad that someone told her
about the trip beforehand and ruined Harry's
surprise.
That's OK. Her enthusiasm was not dampened in the least! |
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Bite the Dust |
Andy did exceptionally well in all of the track events, but he
bit the dust in the high jump competition. Much to the
disappointment of his fans, he went down in
defeat, losing to a competitor from the visiting team. |
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Bend Over Backwards |
When Joan first started teaching she was afraid that she would have
a lot of trouble getting used to the kids and to the faculty. Her
fears turned out to be unfounded, since everybody
bent over backwards to help her. Everyone
tried very hard to help her feel comfortable and adjust
to the school. |
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Cough Up |
Say, Greg. Did you finally get that computer that you wanted so much
?
Not yet. I needed to raise a couple of hundred dollars more.
Is it going to take you a while to raise the money?
It would have taken me forever, but dad said he'd
cough up the money I need since I'm going to be using
the computer for my school work.
Maybe it was difficult for your dad to
give you the money but then, he knows that it's for a
good cause. |
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Jump the Gun |
Denise was planning on telling her grandparents that the doctor said
she was going to have twins, but when her dad found out he
jumped the gun and told them before Denise could say a
word. He was so excited that he became
hasty and revealed the news before Denise had a chance to
tell them. |
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Scratch Someone's Back |
Hey, Bea. I need some help stacking these boxes. Would you please
give me a hand?
OK. And I need some help tidying up the house. How about your
helping me out after that ?
OK. If you scratch my back, I'll
scratch yours.
I know you don't like doing housework, but I'll
help you with the boxes if you promise to return the favor.
No problem. I'll even do the windows. |
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Turn Someone Off |
How was your date with Marty last night ?
Well, it started of OK, but he really
turned me off when we went for a snack after the
movies.
Did he say or do something to annoy you?
Frankly, he disgusted me
when he tried to talk with his mouth full.
I don't blame you . That would have really bothered me too. |
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Kick the Bucket |
It's been said that the old man knew of a buried treasure, but he
kicked the bucket before telling anyone where it was. If
the treasure exists, the old man unfortunately took the secret of
its location with him when he died. |
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Wet Blanket |
James was not invited to go on the outing with the rest of the group
because he's such a wet blanket.
On many previous occasions he has kept
others from enjoying themselves by his pessimism and lack of
enthusiasm. It's understandable that no one wants him
around. |
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Up One's Sleeve |
All right, Sara. We know that you're planning something big for
Jean's birthday. Mind telling us just what you have
up your sleeve ?
I wanted to make his birthday a very special event.
Jean has a sister living in France, and I sent her an airplane
ticket so that she could be here for his birthday.
Boy! That is something special. We kind of guessed that you had
some concealed plan and
were waiting for the right time to reveal it.
Well, I didn't want to say anything until I was sure she could
come. |
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Knock Someone's Socks Off |
Hi, John. What's new ?
Oh, nothing too much with me, but you ought to see Fredo's new
car. It'll knock your socks off!
So, he finally got that Italian sports car he's been dreaming
about.
He sure did. When you see all the custom features that it has,
you'll get so enthused and excited
you won't know what to do.
Boy, I can hardly wait to go for a ride in it. |
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Lose One's Shirt |
I happened to bump into Dole at lunch yesterday afternoon.
What's new with Dole these days ?
He wasn't doing so well. For one thing, he told me he
lost his shirt at the races.
Dole has always liked to bet on the horses. I'm not surprised
that he lost a great deal of money.
Yeah. At this rate he'll never have a penny to his name. |
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Lemon |
Have you seen Joe's new car yet ?
Yeah. It looks good, but she's had nothing but problems with it.
That's too bad. It sounds like she got a real
lemon.
She sure did. No sooner did she drive it home from the dealer's
than it proved defective
and started breaking down. |
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Out of the Woods |
Although Eric was well on his way to recovering from his bout with
pneumonia, he was still not out of the
woods. The doctors told him that he would have to take it
easy and avoid exposure to cold, since he was not
out of danger and difficulty yet. |
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Eating Someone |
Hey, Alice. What's been eating you
lately ? Don't you realize how rude and irritable you've become?
I know. I'm really sorry for the way I've been acting.
Well, why don't you tell me what has been
bothering and upsetting you and maybe we can work
your problem out together.
I'll admit that it would help to talk to someone about it. |
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On the Line |
Lately Tom's been more conscientious about the accuracy and quality
of his work with the company. He was warned that his job was
on the line because of his lack of concern for his
duties. When Tom was alerted that he was
in danger of losing his job, he began to take his
obligations with the company more seriously. |
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Feel Like a Million Dollars |
I bumped into Nick at the salon yesterday. He looked great, but I
noticed that he had a slight limp when he walked.
I guess you didn't know that he had an operation on his knee.
No, I didn't. How's he feeling ?
He says he's feeling like a million
dollars now. Apparently the pain in his knee is all
gone.
It's good that he's feeling so
wonderful. It must be a refreshing change not having
to put up with all that discomfort. |
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Hang On |
During the depression years the Smiths had a great deal of trouble
with their business, but somehow or other they were able to
hang on. Although they almost lost their store, they
managed to persevere until
things got better. |
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Make Ends Meet |
It's almost impossible trying to keep up with the high cost of
living.
It's true. Things are so expensive nowadays that it's very
difficult to make ends meet.
You know, even with Lucie's salary, our combined income is
hardly enough to pay all the bills. |
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Money talks |
We've been waiting for three months to get delivery on our car, and
people who put in their order after us have already gotten theirs.
Well, money talks. Why don't
you try giving the dealer a little something extra to move
things along ?
I know full well that money has the
power to influence people, but I refuse to pay extra
for a service that is owed to me as a client.
If you want to have your car maybe you'd better reconsider. |
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The Early Bird Catches the Worm |
Marc, the lines for the rock festival are going to be miles long! If
you expect to get tickets for you and Mary, remember that old
saying. " The early bird catches the worm
"
I guess you're right. Mary is looking forward to the concert,
and I'd hate to disappoint her. I'll
get up real early to get a place at the head of the line.
That way I'll get the tickets I want, for sure ! |
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