| End someone's hopes & you've put the "last" this "in the coffin" |
nail |
200 |
March 13, 2014 |
| End someone's hopes & you've put the "last" this "in the coffin" |
nail |
200 |
March 13, 2014 |
| Situation here for Bill Tilden at the top of the screen, meaning he has control of the situation |
the ball is in his court |
400 |
March 13, 2014 |
| Situation here for Bill Tilden at the top of the screen, meaning he has control of the situation |
the ball is in his court |
400 |
March 13, 2014 |
| A document stating whether a ship carried disease; if not, it got a "clean" one |
bill of health |
600 |
March 13, 2014 |
| A document stating whether a ship carried disease; if not, it got a "clean" one |
bill of health |
600 |
March 13, 2014 |
| This "man" is an irrelevant but convenient object to a attack in an argument |
straw man |
800 |
March 13, 2014 |
| This "man" is an irrelevant but convenient object to a attack in an argument |
straw man |
800 |
March 13, 2014 |
| This 2-word phrase for a radical transformation comes from "The Tempest" |
sea change |
1000 |
March 13, 2014 |
| This 2-word phrase for a radical transformation comes from "The Tempest" |
sea change |
1000 |
March 13, 2014 |
| To avoid responsibility is to do this |
pass the buck |
200 |
March 3, 2010 |
| A proverb says, "a new broom" does this |
sweeps clean |
400 |
March 3, 2010 |
| It's the literal interpretation of a phrase meaning to relax or behave informally |
let your hair down |
600 |
March 3, 2010 |
| When insulted, you might turn a deaf ear or turn this, as advised in Luke & Matthew |
the other cheek |
800 |
March 3, 2010 |
| This 3-word phrase means to stretch the limits |
push the envelope |
1000 |
March 3, 2010 |
| A great fuss about something trivial is "a tempest in" this, like chip's mother |
a teapot |
200 |
February 4, 2009 |
| If we could find him, a soldier who's gone AWOL could tell us that AWOL stands for this |
Absent Without Leave |
400 |
February 4, 2009 |
| In a song he wrote during WWII Frank Loesser popularized the phrase, "Praise the lord and pass" this |
the ammunition |
600 |
February 4, 2009 |
| The future is inevitable, at least according to this phrase translated from the Latin "iacta alea est" |
the die is cast |
1000 |
February 4, 2009 |
| From "Casey at the Bat", when there's a letdown or disappointment "There is no joy in" this place |
Mudville |
|
February 4, 2009 |
| It's said that this implement "is mightier than the sword" |
the pen |
200 |
May 29, 2008 |
| It's what you're actually doing if you're just out of school & "pounding the pavement" |
looking for work |
400 |
May 29, 2008 |
| In "A Psalm of Life", Longfellow tells of leaving these behind "on the sands of time" |
footprints |
600 |
May 29, 2008 |
| Meaning "in trouble", the expression "in" this presumably refers to the briny liquid it's made in |
a pickle |
800 |
May 29, 2008 |
| Meaning "a greater return for your investment", it reportedly came from military expenditures in the 1950s |
more bang for your buck |
1000 |
May 29, 2008 |
| Also a magazine founded in 1923, it "is of the essence" |
Time |
200 |
December 7, 2006 |
| When you "bite the bullet" you do something unpleasant; when you "bite" this, you're dead |
the dust |
400 |
December 7, 2006 |
| It's what they say about rain in the fourth month of the year & its effect on growth in the fifth |
April showers bring May flowers |
600 |
December 7, 2006 |
| It's a writer or musician's last work, or the chant of a certain water bird |
swan song |
800 |
December 7, 2006 |
| Herbert Spencer coined this 4-word phrase to describe Darwin's theory of natural selection |
survival of the fittest |
1000 |
December 7, 2006 |
| "Born with" one of these "in one's mouth" is a reference to a high-end christening gift |
a silver spoon |
200 |
June 28, 2006 |
| (Sarah of the Clue Crew reports from a one-room schoolhouse in Old World Wisconsin.) If you want to make a fresh start of things, you need this 2-word expression, like students not too long ago |
a clean slate |
400 |
June 28, 2006 |
| The expression "Banned in" this city came from that city's enthusiastic censorship of books in the 1920s |
Boston |
600 |
June 28, 2006 |
| The area to the side of a stage gives us this 2-word phrase for performing without preparation |
wing it |
800 |
June 28, 2006 |
| Shakespeare's Cleopatra used this expression for her youth, "When I was green in judgment" |
salad days |
1000 |
June 28, 2006 |
| "Loose Lips" do this was a WWII catch phrase about defense plant workers watching their tongues |
sink ships |
200 |
January 16, 2006 |
| 2,000 years ago, the Roman Sextus Propertius said "absence" does this |
makes the heart grow fonder |
400 |
January 16, 2006 |
| In several games of pool, it's unlucky to have your cue ball "behind" it |
the eight ball |
600 |
January 16, 2006 |
| It completes the old maxim "Speech is silvern..." |
silence is golden |
800 |
January 16, 2006 |
| Meaning simple & basic, this 4-word phrase was never actually said by Sherlock Holmes in any of the Conan Doyle tales |
Elementary, my dear Watson |
1000 |
January 16, 2006 |
| In war & football, "The best defense is a good" this |
offense |
200 |
October 19, 2005 |
| When disappointed, we sometimes say "There's no joy in" this town--just like when Casey struck out |
Mudville |
400 |
October 19, 2005 |
| With skyrocketing medical costs, remember that this is "cheaper than treatment" & "better than cure" |
prevention |
600 |
October 19, 2005 |
| Arthur Fletcher coined this "mind"ful United Negro College Fund motto about living up to one's potential |
"A mind is a terrible thing to waste" |
800 |
October 19, 2005 |
| The phrase "handwriting on the wall" goes back to this book of the Old Testament |
Daniel |
|
October 19, 2005 |
| "Don't" do this "to spite your face" |
cut off your nose |
200 |
January 26, 2004 |
| Make a big deal over something little & you "make a mountain out of" this |
a molehill |
400 |
January 26, 2004 |
| As it often turns out, "Truth is stranger than" this |
fiction |
600 |
January 26, 2004 |
| In a bad mood today? I could tell by that "chip on your" this |
shoulder |
800 |
January 26, 2004 |
| Give up during a fight & you may be forced to "say" or "cry" this relative |
uncle |
1000 |
January 26, 2004 |
| If you have other, more important things to do, you "have other' of these "to fry" |
fish |
100 |
September 10, 2001 |
| Big throwing don'ts include "the baby out with the bathwater" & "caution to" this |
the wind |
200 |
September 10, 2001 |
| In "A Psalm of Life, " Longfellow tells of leaving these behind "on the sands of time" |
footprints |
300 |
September 10, 2001 |
| William Congreve expounded, "heav'n has no rage, like love to hatred turn'd, nor hell a fury like" this |
a woman scorned |
400 |
September 10, 2001 |
| This phrase meaning "to betray someone" came from slaves sent illegally via the Mississippi to New Orleans |
to sell them down the river |
500 |
September 10, 2001 |
| In the '60s this phrase for something that reduces anxiety was popularized by Linus Van Pelt |
Security blanket |
100 |
March 5, 2001 |
| Ali Baba spoke these words to get into the cave of the 40 Thieves |
"Open, Sesame!" |
200 |
March 5, 2001 |
| The melodrama & the sponsors of certain early radio serials earned them this nickname |
Soap operas |
300 |
March 5, 2001 |
| On "Star Trek", the Vulcan salute is accompanied by this 4-word phrase |
"Live Long and Prosper" |
400 |
March 5, 2001 |
| The Oracle at Delphi told Polycrates to look under every rock to find hidden treasure, hence this phrase |
To leave no stone unturned |
|
March 5, 2001 |
| Edible items you "spill" when you tell a secret |
The beans |
100 |
July 17, 1998 |
| Beware: Someone who offers you this kind of "sandwich" wants to punch you |
Knuckle sandwich |
200 |
July 17, 1998 |
| "One Fell" this refers to the quick, fierce move a hawk makes when seizing its prey |
Swoop |
300 |
July 17, 1998 |
| The phrase "To come on like" these refers to the old-time radio program heard here(machine gun fire) |
"Gangbusters" |
400 |
July 17, 1998 |
| To give someone you dislike the credit he deserves is to "Give the devil" this |
His due |
500 |
July 17, 1998 |
| If someone wants you to hurry, he tells you to "get" this metal out |
Lead |
100 |
June 30, 1998 |
| When too much attention to detail clouds your judgment, you "can't see the forest for" these |
The trees |
200 |
June 30, 1998 |
| A skeptic takes things this way; the Latin phrase for it was "cum grano salis" |
"With a grain of salt" |
300 |
June 30, 1998 |
| When you really botch something up, you "make" this meat & potatoes dish "of it" |
Hash |
400 |
June 30, 1998 |
| Thomas Gray originated the phrase "Far from" this tumultuous group; Thomas Hardy borrowed it |
Madding crowd |
500 |
June 30, 1998 |
| It's "The shortest distance between two points" |
Straight line |
100 |
June 18, 1998 |
| It's where something embarrassing is swept |
Under the rug/carpet |
200 |
June 18, 1998 |
| Pool table piece you don't want to be "behind" |
The 8 ball |
300 |
June 18, 1998 |
| Shifting your debts is "Robbing Peter to pay" this saint |
Paul |
400 |
June 18, 1998 |
| Alexander Pope criticized these who claimed to be authorities with "Fools rush in where angels" do this |
Fear to tread |
500 |
June 18, 1998 |
| It follows "When in Rome..." |
"Do as the Romans do" |
100 |
April 23, 1997 |
| Long ago this was "as good as an ell"; now it's "as good as a mile" |
A miss |
200 |
April 23, 1997 |
| It precedes "And master of none" |
"A jack of all trades" |
300 |
April 23, 1997 |
| It's another way to "add insult to injury" using a common seasoning |
"Rub salt in one\'s wound" |
400 |
April 23, 1997 |
| The phrase "Hope springs eternal in the human breast" sprang from his "Essay on Man" |
Alexander Pope |
500 |
April 23, 1997 |
| You may "put" this "on the line" or "where your mouth is" |
money |
100 |
February 20, 1997 |
| Those who play cricket know an awkward situation is this kind of "wicket" |
sticky wicket |
200 |
February 20, 1997 |
| David Copperfield knows to accomplish something that seems impossible is to "pull" this "out of the hat" |
a rabbit |
300 |
February 20, 1997 |
| Something superior is said to be "head and" these above the rest |
shoulders |
400 |
February 20, 1997 |
| A bright person knows "never" do this to "my door again" means stay away forever |
darken |
500 |
February 20, 1997 |
| A task that's nearly impossible is compared to "looking for a needle in" one of these |
A Haystack |
100 |
February 10, 1997 |
| A person who's "easy to read" is described as "an open" this |
Book |
200 |
February 10, 1997 |
| This adjective often precedes "as a hound's tooth" or "as a whistle" |
Clean |
300 |
February 10, 1997 |
| When you're up late studying, you're said to be "burning the midnight" this |
Oil |
400 |
February 10, 1997 |
| When you settle a bill, you "pay" this person, whether or not he's "pied" |
The Piper |
500 |
February 10, 1997 |
| When a situation goes from bad to worse, it's the time "push comes to" this |
shove |
100 |
November 12, 1996 |
| Go over something with a fine tooth comb & you'll "leave no stone" this way |
unturned |
200 |
November 12, 1996 |
| Something on good authority is "straight from" this neigh sayer |
the horse\'s mouth |
300 |
November 12, 1996 |
| Number of the attempt that's "the charm" |
the third |
400 |
November 12, 1996 |
| The origin of this phrase is unknown, since chickens don't seem to get angry in the rain |
mad as a wet hen |
500 |
November 12, 1996 |
| A person with a hidden flaw is said to have feet of this, from a dream image in Daniel 2:33 |
Clay |
100 |
November 16, 1995 |
| Many aquatic animals swim open-mouthed & appear to drink constantly, hence the phrase "to drink like" this |
a fish |
200 |
November 16, 1995 |
| The depressing expression "down in" these is probably derived from a Middle Dutch word for haze |
Dumps |
300 |
November 16, 1995 |
| Akin to "caught in the act", to be caught this way alludes to a murderer smeared with blood |
Caught red-handed |
400 |
November 16, 1995 |
| Frenchmen once assumed names in the military, hence this phrase, French for "name of war" |
Nom de guerre |
500 |
November 16, 1995 |
| Trying to find similarities between New York & L.A. is like comparing these |
apples & oranges |
100 |
November 11, 1988 |
| The biblical phrase "give up the ghost" means this |
die |
200 |
November 11, 1988 |
| "He has more money than you can" do this "at" |
shake a stick (or poke a stick) |
300 |
November 11, 1988 |
| From the tradition of men fighting topless came this saying urging calm |
keep your shirt on |
400 |
November 11, 1988 |
| Originally a caption in silent Westerns, it returned your attention to the main house |
meanwhile, back at the ranch |
500 |
November 11, 1988 |