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Get the ball rolling
To get the ball rolling means to get something started so that it can continue on its own. It often refers to taking the first step that helps others join in.The phrase comes from the simple idea of pushing a heavy ball so it begins to move. Once the ball is rolling, it is easier for it to keep going.
He opened the meeting with a quick suggestion to get the ball rolling.
Getting long in the tooth
To be getting long in the tooth means getting old, especially when talking about a person or an animal. It can also be used to talk about machines or systems that are old and may be past their best years. The expression comes from the way a horse's teeth change as it ages. As the gums slowly recede, more of the teeth become visible, making them look longer and showing that the horse is older.That old farm truck is getting a bit long in the tooth.
Give an inch, take a mile
To give an inch, take a mile means that if you allow someone to take something small, they may try to take much more than you intended. It describes people who take advantage of kindness or flexibility.The saying has been used in English since at least the 1500s. It plays on the idea of someone being given a tiny measurement, an inch, and then trying to claim something far larger.
If you let him borrow your tools once, he will start showing up every weekend because he tends to give an inch, take a mile.
Give you the cold shoulder
To give someone the cold shoulder means deliberately ignoring a person or treating them in an unfriendly way.The phrase appeared in English in the early 1800s. One explanation links it to the idea of offering a cold piece of meat instead of a warm meal to an unwelcome guest. It eventually came to mean quiet rejection.
After the argument, she gave him the cold shoulder all evening.
Go down with the ship
To go down with the ship means to stay loyal to something or someone even when the situation is failing or ending badly.This idiom comes from maritime tradition. In the past, a ship's captain was expected to remain on board during a disaster and share the fate of the vessel rather than escape before the passengers and crew.
Even when the company started collapsing, she said she would go down with the ship.
Go with the flow
The idiom go with the flow means to accept things as they happen. Instead of fighting change, you stay relaxed. If you are sailing or canoeing on a river, you can just let the flow of the water carry you along without having to do extra work.On holiday, we decided to go with the flow.
Run like clockwork
To run like clockwork means that something happens very regularly.The phrase comes from mechanical clocks, which were designed to keep steady, precise time using gears and springs. Because a well made clock runs in a predictable way, this idiom became a way to describe anything that happens on a predictable timeframe.
Every morning at exactly six o'clock, the rooster started crowing like clockwork.
The gears are turning
The phrase the gears are turning means someone is thinking carefully or trying to solve a problem. People often use it when a person becomes quiet or thoughtful while working something out.The expression comes from machines with gears that move together to make something work. In the idiom, the moving gears are compared to the mind working through ideas.
He stared at the puzzle for a moment, and you could almost see the gears turning.
To get cold feet
The idiom cold feet means sudden fear or doubt before doing something important. It is a way of describing last minute hesitation.This idiom has been in use since the 1600s and its exact origin is unclear.
He got cold feet before the wedding.
To give the green light
To give the green light means you are giving permission for something to happen. It usually means a person in authority is approving something.This idiom draws from traffic lights.
Our manager gave the green light for our new marketing campaign.