Colloquial expressions

a harebrained scheme

a scheme that is ill judged or lacking sense

a round robin

a tournament in which each competitor plays in turn against every other

dark horse candidate

an unexpected winner

kangaroo court

an unofficial court or mock trial

to take the bull by the hands

deal bravely towards a difficult or dangerous situation

to go to the dogs

deteriorate shockingly

to have a frog in one's throat

loss of voice

red herring

a clue that is intended to be misleading or distracting

wild goose chase

a foolish and hopeless pursuit of something

sheepish grin

a grin of embarrassment or shame

eager beaver

a keen and enthusiastic person who works very hard

a stool pigeon

a person or thing acting as a decoy

to let the cat out of the bag

reveal a secret carelessly

loan shark

someone who charges high rates of interests, typically under illegal conditions

bookworm

someone who likes to read

dovetail

something that fits together

a paper tiger

something that seems threatening but is harmless

white elephant

something troublesome but a burden

What is a colloquial expression?

the literal definition of a phrase does not match how it is being used

a sacred cow

to be above criticism

to get one's coat

to leave with urgency

to play possum

to pretend to be asleep or dead

to throw to the wolves

to sacrifice someone to save yourself

to handle with kid gloves

to treat with extreme gentleness

lame-duck session of congress

when Congress meets after its successor is elected but before the new term begins