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Idiom |
Meaning |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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. " |
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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." |
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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."
|
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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." |
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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!" |
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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." |
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(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. |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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!" |
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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. |
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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. |
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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!" |
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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" |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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!" |
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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!" |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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." |
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Tickled pink. |
If you say you are tickled pink, you are very pleased
about
something. |
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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. |
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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." |
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In the pipeline |
If something is in the pipeline, it is in
progress or being organized
at the
moment. |
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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." |
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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." |
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Play the game |
If you play the game, you accept to do things
according to
the rules laid down by
others. |
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Play
havoc |
If someone or something plays havoc, they cause disorder and
confusion.
"The floods played havoc with the construction
work." |
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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." |
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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. |
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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." |
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Play
truant |
If you play truant,
you stay away from school without permission
or excuse |
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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?" |
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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!" |
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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?" |
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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!" |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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." |
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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." |
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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".' |
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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." |
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Keep a low
profile |
People who keep a low profile avoid doing things
that
will draw attention to
them. |
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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." |
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The proof of the pudding is in
the
eating. |
This expression means that something new can only be judged
after it has been
tested. |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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!" |
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Pull through |
If you pull through, you recover from a serious
illness. |
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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." |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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." |
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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!" |
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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'.) |
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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." |
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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." |
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