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Search a phrase, or describe what you need to say. Choose from the lessons currently available.
Showing 631–648 of 695 lessons
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A short fuse
To have a short fuse means to become angry very easily and quickly after little or no provocation.
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Set your heart on
To set your heart on something means to want a particular outcome very much. It can suggest emotional commitment, but the phrase does not guarantee how you will react if the outcome changes.
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Ring a bell
Ring a bell means to awaken a vague feeling of recognition or familiarity, even when you cannot remember specific facts or identify the source.
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Put into perspective
To put something into perspective means to compare a problem, number, or event with relevant facts or a wider background so you can judge its true seriousness, importance, or scale more fairly. The expression describes the mental shift that happens when a useful comparison gives you a balanced view, showing whether an issue is truly severe or simply a normal part of a bigger process.
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Pull your weight
To pull your weight means to do your fair share of a shared job. Here, weight means your share of the responsibility, not your body weight or how much you can lift.
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Video · 8 min Play safe
To play safe or play it safe means to choose a cautious action in order to avoid avoidable risks or complications.
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Video · 8 min Play it by ear
'Play it by ear' means to handle a situation as it develops rather than following an advance plan step by step.
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Video · 9 min Out of the ordinary
Out of the ordinary means noticeably unusual, exceptional, or different from what someone normally anticipates in a given situation.
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One-off
One-off means that an action, event, charge, or object occurs or exists only once. When you call an event a one-off, you state that it does not establish a routine or repeated series.
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On thin ice
To be on thin ice means to be in a risky position where your actions could lead to trouble. It often warns that someone's patience is running out.
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Video · 6 min On the same page
To be on the same page means to share the same understanding, expectations, or opinion about a situation with another person or group.
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Video · 5 min On the line
When something valuable is on the line, it is at serious risk of being lost or damaged. The phrase shows that a negative result could destroy something important, such as personal savings, employment, or a professional reputation. It does not mean the loss has already occurred.
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On the back burner
'On the back burner' means postponing a plan, project, or issue or giving it less attention for now because another matter is more urgent. The delayed plan is not cancelled; work on it slows down or pauses temporarily, leaving open the possibility of returning to it later.
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Off the top of my head
The phrase 'off the top of my head' describes an answer produced immediately from memory without looking at notes, checking a phone, or spending time to calculate.
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Video · 8 min My hands are tied
If someone's hands are tied, something outside their control prevents them from acting. A rule, contract, or decision by someone in authority may stop them from helping.
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Video · 8 min A mixed blessing
A mixed blessing is an event, change, or situation that has both positive and negative consequences.
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Might as well
'Might as well' introduces an action that is worth doing because any alternative offers no clear benefit, saves no extra time, or costs more effort.
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A mean streak
A mean streak refers to an unkind or cruel tendency that forms one part of an individual's character. It does not mean the person is hostile every minute, but rather that deliberate unkindness surfaces repeatedly under certain conditions.
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