Idioms and Expressions: List 2

She would chew the fat with friends, smartphone in hand, laughing. BBC (Jul 28, 2016)

“We are no regular couch potatoes because we’re not idling away our time in front of the TV,” he said. Washington Times (Jan 24, 2018)

I think they turn whatever is being outlawed into forbidden fruit. The New Yorker (Jan 24, 2019)

Yeah, he's a good egg, and through it all he's been right there by my side. Time (Aug 31, 2011)

“I just hope it touches those politicians and bureaucrats to open their hearts up. Really that’s about it in a nutshell.” The Guardian (Feb 24, 2017)

Once he said to her clumsily, "I must bore you to death, with all these half-baked ideas of mine, when you're used to such brilliant talkers." Canfield, Dorothy

“He insisted it was really easy, just a piece of cake,” she recalled. Washington Post (Jul 9, 2020)

“I think all options need to be on the table,” Mr. Buttigieg said. New York Times (Jan 21, 2021)

“Her hospital is the gold standard for how we care for these women now,” Sleemi said. Washington Post (Mar 22, 2020)

I filled myself with such hope and continued to cling to a silver lining, which seemed to disappear as rapidly as my desperation to cling to it increased. Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography

Like a promised land, it remains forever beyond us. History of Art, Volume 1

Carla leaves and my mom asks if I want to beat her at a game of Honor Pictionary, but I ask for a rain check. Everything, Everything

The international jet set, fashion designers, royals, movie stars and writers made their appearances in Tangier. New York Times (Jan 16, 2018)

My pet peeve is when I see citizens park in the crosswalk or when they’re blocking the sidewalk. Washington Post (Mar 11, 2016)

Something about the tone of his voice or the reaction of the other children told me this was a purely rhetorical question. The Name of the Wind

Reading “Catcher” used to be an essential rite of passage, almost as important as getting your learner’s permit. New York Times (Jan 29, 2010)

Lee Strunk carried a slingshot; a weapon of last resort, he called it. The Things They Carried

I found this to be the last straw, and my patience snapped. Long Walk to Freedom

“George Orwell would be very, very proud of Europe and our capacity for doublespeak and creating new terms by which to hide the awful reality,” he added. Salon (Apr 29, 2016)

There were some who admired him and others who considered him a pompous windbag. Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream