This idiom means that people who aren't careful with their money spend it quickly.
'A fool and his money are easily parted' is an alternative form of the idiom.
A small amount of knowledge can cause people to think they are more expert than they really are.eg. he said he'd done a course on home electrics, but when he tried to mend my table lamp, he fused all the lights! I think a little learning is a dangerous thing
Something or someone that can be compared to something or someone else, but is not as good is a poor man's version; a writer who uses lots of puns but isn't very funny would be a poor man's Oscar Wilde.
People say this to mean that that an ambitious person is more successful than a person not trying to achieve anything. Originally it meant the opposite and was critical of people trying to get ahead.
People who are loud and talk a lot usually have nothing of substance to say. This contrasts with "Still waters run deep." Other versions are "Shallow brooks babble loudest" and "Shallow brooks are noisy."
Used colloquially to describe having sexual intercourse with someone who is not a virgin, especially when they are in a relationship. The analogy refers to a loaf of bread; it is not readily apparent, once the end has been removed, exactly how many slices have been taken.('You never miss a slice from a cut
loaf' is also used.)
If something is an accident waiting to happen, there's definitely going to be an accident or it's bound to go wrong.
('Disaster waiting to happen' is also used.)
Similar to ahead of the pack, ahead of the curve literally refers to your position on the statistical bell curve, where the top of the curve represents the median, average result. By being ahead of the curve you represent the top percentile of results that either has the advanced skills or understanding that sets you apart.
If you air your dirty laundry in public, you reveal aspects of your private life that should really remain private, by telling a secret, arguing in public, etc.
If you're all fingers and thumbs, you are too excited or clumsy to do something properly that requires manual dexterity.
'All thumbs' is an alternative form of the idiom.
If something has all mod cons, it has all the best and most desirable features. It is an abbreviation of 'modern convenience' that was used in house adverts.
(UK) Someone who's all mouth and trousers talks or boasts a lot but doesn't deliver.
'All mouth and no trousers' is also used, though this is a corruption of the original.
(UK) An idiom that appears to have gone out of use but was prevalent in the English north Midlands of Staffordshire, Cheshire and Derbyshire from at least the turn of the 20th century until the early 1950s or so. The idiom's meaning is literally something said or written that is unbelievable, rumor, over embellished, the result of malicious village gossip etc.
(USA) If you have been all over Hell's half acre, you have been traveling and visiting many more places than originally intended, usually because you were unsuccessful in finding what you were looking for.
It can also be used to mean everywhere.
This means that appearances can be deceptive and things that look or sound valuable can be worthless.
('All that glistens is not gold' is an alternative.)
If you put all your eggs in one basket, you risk everything at once, instead of trying to spread the risk.
(This is often used as a negative imperative- 'Don't put all your eggs in one basket'. 'Have your eggs in one basket' is also used.)
(USA) Used in response to someone saying "almost" in a win/lose situation. The full expression is "Almost only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades." An alternate form puts "and flinging shit from a shovel" at the end.
If someone is always a bridesmaid, never a bride, they never manage to fulfill their ambition- they get close, but never manage the recognition, etc, they crave.
This simile means that someone is crazy or behaves very strangely. In the past many people who made hats went insane because they had a lot of contact with mercury.
If someone is asleep at the switch, they are not doing their job or taking their responsibilities very carefully.
'Asleep at the wheel' is an alternative.
If someone is asleep at the wheel, they are not doing their job or taking their responsibilities very carefully.
'Asleep at the switch' is an alternative.
AWOL stands for "Absent Without Leave", or "Absent Without Official Leave". Orignially a military term, it is used when someone has gone missing without telling anyone or asking for permission.
If you have an axe to grind with someone or about something, you have a grievance, a resentment and you want to get revenge or sort it out.
In American English, it is 'ax'.
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