the Cs

cut the cackle

stop talking aimlessly and get to the point. The boss said, "Cut the cackle and tell me the real problem."

have a cadenza

become extremely agitated or excited. She had a cadenza when she heard the bad news.

Caesar's wife

a person who must be above suspicion. As a public figure, he knows he has to live like Caesar's wife.

raise Cain

create a loud disturbance or cause trouble. The fans raised Cain after their team lost.

in cahoots

in league or conspiracy with someone. I think the two companies are in cahoots to raise prices.

at a canter

easily or without much effort. He passed the exam at a canter.

good call

a wise decision. Choosing that restaurant was a good call.

bad call

a poor decision. It was a bad call to invest all the money there.

by a canvas

by a very narrow margin (in racing). He won the race by a canvas.

in the can

completed and ready (of a film or project). The movie is finally in the can.

cap in hand

humbly asking for something. He went cap in hand to his father for money.

if the cap fits, wear it

if the criticism applies to you, accept it. I didn't name anyone, but if the cap fits, wear it.

cannot hold a candle to

be much inferior to. His singing cannot hold a candle to hers.

with a capital —

to an extreme degree. He's a liar with a capital L.

a magic carpet

something that transports you to another world. Reading is my magic carpet.

on the carpet

being reprimanded. The employee was called on the carpet for being late.

keep your cards close to your chest

keep your plans secret. He keeps his cards close to his chest in negotiations.

play the — card

use a particular argument or advantage. She played the sympathy card to win the debate.

play your cards right

act cleverly to achieve success. If you play your cards right, you could get promoted.

in the cart

in trouble. He's in the cart now that the boss found out.

not care two straws

not care at all. I don't care two straws what they think.

put the cart before the horse

do things in the wrong order. You're putting the cart before the horse by buying furniture before the house.

all cats are grey in the dark

in the dark, differences are not noticeable. At night all cats are grey in the dark.

be on someone's case

criticize or harass someone. She's always on my case about cleaning my room.

a cat may look at a king

even the lowly may look at the great. A cat may look at a king, so I can stare at the boss.

enough to make a cat laugh

very funny. The joke was enough to make a cat laugh.

cast something in someone's teeth

reproach someone with something. She cast his past failures in his teeth.

like a cat on a hot tin roof

very nervous. He was like a cat on a hot tin roof before the interview.

that cat won't jump

that idea won't work. I tried to convince him, but that cat won't jump.

turn cat in pan

change sides treacherously. He turned cat in pan at the last moment.

like the cat that's got the cream

very pleased with oneself. He looked like the cat that's got the cream after winning.

in the catbird seat

in a position of advantage. After the promotion, she's in the catbird seat.

play cat and mouse with

toy with someone. The police played cat and mouse with the suspect.

catch a Tartar

meet with a strong opponent. He caught a Tartar when he argued with the expert.

see which way the cat jumps

wait to see what happens before deciding. Let's see which way the cat jumps before investing.

play catch-up

try to reach the same level as others. The team is playing catch-up after a slow start.

the cat's whiskers

excellent or outstanding. He thinks he's the cat's whiskers.

be caught with chaff

be tricked easily. He was caught with chaff by the scam.

pull someone's chain

tease or fool someone. Stop pulling my chain and tell the truth.

make common cause with

join with someone for a shared goal. They made common cause with the protesters.

keep cave

keep watch (for danger). One boy kept cave while the others stole apples.

by a long chalk

by a great deal. She's better than me by a long chalk.

caviar to the general

something too refined for most people. Modern art is caviar to the general.

champ at the bit

be impatient to start. The players were champing at the bit to begin the match.

stand on ceremony

be very formal. There's no need to stand on ceremony here.

without ceremony

informally. He was dismissed without ceremony.

return to the charge

renew an attack or argument. She returned to the charge with new evidence.

get no change out of

get no help or information from. I got no change out of the manager.

ring the changes

vary the way something is done. She likes to ring the changes in her cooking.

the chattering classes

intellectuals who talk a lot about society. The chattering classes love to debate politics.

chapter and verse

full details or authority. He can quote the rules chapter and verse.

cheap and cheerful

inexpensive but pleasant. We stayed in a cheap and cheerful hotel.

cheap and nasty

low quality and unpleasant. The furniture was cheap and nasty.

hard cheese

bad luck. It's hard cheese if you miss the deadline.

check someone or something skeef

look at someone suspiciously (South African). He checked me skeef when I arrived late.

take the chequered flag

win a race. The driver took the chequered flag in dramatic fashion.

a bite at the cherry

an attempt or opportunity. He had a bite at the cherry but failed.

cheek by jowl

very close together. We lived cheek by jowl with our neighbours.

a bowl of cherries

a pleasant situation. Life is not always a bowl of cherries.

the cherry on the cake

the final nice detail. Winning the award was the cherry on the cake.

turn the other cheek

respond mildly to insult. He turned the other cheek instead of fighting.

of good cheer

cheerful. Be of good cheer despite the difficulties.

an old chestnut

a joke or story that is often repeated. That's an old chestnut I've heard many times.

pull someone's chestnuts out of the fire

rescue someone from difficulty. I had to pull his chestnuts out of the fire again.

chew the scenery

overact dramatically. The actor chewed the scenery in every scene.

take it on the chin

accept criticism bravely. He took the bad news on the chin.

not a Chinaman's chance

no chance at all. He hasn't got a Chinaman's chance of winning.

chickens come home to roost

consequences of bad actions appear. His past mistakes are coming home to roost.

running about like a headless chicken

in a state of panic. Everyone was running about like headless chickens.

chop logic

argue in a pedantic way. Stop chopping logic and answer simply.

not much chop

not very good. The movie was not much chop.

have had your chips

be defeated or finished. You've had your chips this time.

when the chips are down

in a critical situation. When the chips are down, you see true friends.

Hobson's choice

no real choice at all. It was Hobson's choice - take it or leave it.

chuck it down

rain heavily. It's chucking it down outside.

off your chump

crazy. You must be off your chump to quit now.

close but no cigar

almost successful but not quite. Close but no cigar on that guess.

bust someone's chops

tease or criticize. Stop busting my chops.

clap hold of

grab suddenly. He clapped hold of the rope just in time.

like the clappers

very fast. She ran like the clappers to catch the bus.

come full circle

return to the original position. His career has come full circle.

a class act

someone or something excellent. She's a real class act.

get your claws into

gain strong influence over. She got her claws into the new manager.

clean as a whistle

completely clean or honest. The accounts are clean as a whistle.

a clean sheet

no goals conceded (sports). The goalkeeper kept a clean sheet.

clean someone's clock

defeat someone thoroughly. He cleaned the opponent's clock in the match.

clear the decks

prepare for action by removing obstacles. Let's clear the decks and start the project.

out of a clear blue sky

suddenly and unexpectedly. The news came out of a clear blue sky.

clean house

get rid of unwanted people or things. The new manager decided to clean house.

clean up your act

improve your behavior. You need to clean up your act if you want to keep the job.

have clean hands

be innocent. He has clean hands in this scandal.

be in a cleft stick

in a difficult position with no easy escape. We're in a cleft stick now.

too clever by half

annoyingly clever. His plan was too clever by half and failed.

make a clean sweep

win everything or remove completely. The team made a clean sweep of the awards.

click into place

suddenly become clear. Everything clicked into place when I saw the clue.

as clear as day

very obvious. His guilt was as clear as day.

clear as mud

not clear at all. His explanation was clear as mud.

be climbing the walls

be extremely anxious. The wait made her climbing the walls.

at a clip

at a fast speed. He was driving at a good clip.

a closed book

something or someone mysterious. History is a closed book to him.