His father advised him to be fair and square in his dealings lest he should fall into trouble.

To take somebody for a ride

A cock and bull story

A man of weight

It is a moot point whether we should stop work or struggle on.

To have one’s heart in one’s boots

He rides the high horse because of his high connection.

To keep the wolf away from the door

She rejected his proposal of marriage point blank.

In double-quick time

Pell-mell

To look down one’s nose at

To hold somebody to ransom

To beat the air

Things are progressing well. Don’t do anything to rock the boat.

To make a shot

I sent him about his business as I could stand his insolence no longer.

The parliamentary inquiry into the Bofors deal has not brought to light any startling facts.

To mind one’s P’s and Q’s

To ride hell for Leather

We should guard against our green-eyed friends.

To take a leaf out of somebody’s book

Get down to brass tacks

He is in the habit of fishing in troubled waters.

A sop to cerberus

To strike one’s colours

To oil the knocker

It goes to his heart to see so much misery.

In almost every party, my friend tries to rule the roost.

To give a rap on the knuckles

Spick and span

To show the white feather

To show one’s teeth

The speaker’s observations on the subject were beside the mark.

Once in a blue moon

To look sharp

It was such a messy affair but Manish somehow managed to wash his hands of the entire affair.

The pros and cons

I am ambitious and never want to rest on my laurels.

The aroma from the kitchen makes my mouth water.

To hit the nail on the head

The mealy-mouthed politician succeeded in influencing the voters.

To be a good Samaritan

Hard-pressed

The young heir to his father’s huge estate made ducks and drakes of his patrimony.

To go to each other hammer and tongs

To bear the palm

It is difficult to keep a level head in these days of mounting prices.

To give one a long rope

To let the cat out of the bag

He threw cold water over the project that the secretary had prepared.

To cool one’s heels

The robbery was committed in the wee hours of the day.

At Christmas, even the elderly fathers paint the town red.

To pour oil in troubled water

Shweta might scream blue murder, but I feel Ritu should get the promotion since she is better qualified for the job.

He has made his mark in politics.

To rip up old sores

To play on a fiddle

To give one’s ears

To pay off old scores

He works by fits and starts.

The boy turned a deaf ear to the pleadings of all his well-wishers.

In parliament, every member can have the floor with the permission of the speaker.

To hold a brief for

A square peg in a round hole

To cut the cackle

To keep one’s head above water

He is a person after my own heart.

To talk shop

Sumit had to look high and low before he could find his scooter key.

To leave no avenue unexplored

To cut the Gordian knot

Leave one to sink or swim

To change colour

To put one on one’s mettle

There is no love lost between the two neighbours.

Whenever I meet him he pulls a long face.

Mr. Roy is known as a shop lifter in the city commercial centre.

I won’t mind even if he goes to dogs.

To be in two minds

This place affords a bird’s eye view of the green valley below.

To hang up one’s hat

The doctor says the patient has turned the corner.

To set the thames on fire

To be at one’s finger’s ends

To break the ice

To get the hang of a thing

The casting vote of the chairman clinched the issue.

He is a plain, simple and sincere man. He will always call a spade a spade.

Rahul fought tooth and nail to save his company.

A bull in a china shop

Rajeev achieved success by resorting to a hole and corner method.

To put somebody in his place

By fair means or foul

He is at loggerheads with his assistants about the management of the concern.

Be in the mire

Harassed by repeated acts of injustice, he decided to put his foot down.

To speak daggers

To live fast