play hard ball
To act aggressively or ruthlessly to get what you want.
Concerning your work situation, you’re in no position to play hard ball with management.
play to the gallery
To try to get the approval of the audience.
Whenever John recites in class he seems to be playing to the gallery.
The lawyer for the defense was more interested in playing to the gallery than in winning the case.
port of call
Any of the ports that a ship visits after the start of a voyage and before the end; a port where passengers or cargo may be taken on or put off; an in-between port.
Savannah is a port of call for many Atlantic coasting vessels.
A place you visit regularly or often; a stop included on your usual way of going.
It was an obscure little restaurant which I had made something of a port of call.
His home had become one of my regular ports of call in Boston.
pot call the kettle black
The person who is criticizing someone else is as guilty as the person he accuses; the charge is as true of the person who makes it as of the one he makes it against.
When the commissioner accused the road builder of bribery, the contractor said the pot was calling the kettle black.
Bill said John was cheating at a game but John replied that the pot was calling the kettle black.
pull out all the stops
Сделать все возможное, чтобы достичь цели.
The organizers pulled out all the stops for the centennial meeting.
Организатор потянул за все нити, чтобы организовать столетний юбилей.
put all one's eggs in one basket
To place all your efforts, interests, or hopes in a single person or thing.
Полагаться только на один источник дохода; рисковать всем сразу.
Going steady in high school is putting all your eggs in one basket too soon.
To buy stock in a single company is to put all your eggs in one basket.
He has decided to specialize in lathe work, although he knows it is risky to put all his eggs in one basket.
If you invest your savings in one bank, you'll have all your eggs in one basket.
Если ты вложишь все свои сбережения в один банк, то все твои яйца будут в одной корзине.
I do not want to put all my eggs in one basket and only invest money in real estate.
Я не хочу ставить все на карту и вкладывать деньги только в недвижимость.
right down one's alley
right up one's alley
In accordance with one's specialty or predilection.
This kind of preclassical music is right up Bill's alley; after all, he wrote his Ph.D. on Bach.
small beer
досл. Маленькое пиво
Пустяк, мелочь.
Пустяк, мелочь.
A loan of that size is small beer - these banks are lending millions of pounds a day.
Заём на такую маленькую сумму – ничто для банка, они дают кредиты на миллионы фунтов в день.