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Phrases related to: useful idiot

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idiot boxTelevision.Rate it:

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idiot lightAny warning light or indicator on the dashboard of a car, designed to alert the driver of problems, such as the parking brake being on or the oil being low.Rate it:

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idiot mittensMittens connected by yarn or string running through one sleeve, along the back and out the other sleeve of a coat, to prevent the mittens becoming lost. Generally worn by small children.Rate it:

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frugi (opp. nequam) servusa good, useful slave.Rate it:

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grist for the millSomething that is useful or that creates a favorable opportunity.Rate it:

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useless as tits on a bullTotally without useful functionRate it:

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a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go downAn otherwise unpleasant situation can be pleasant when a pleasant aspect is deliberately introduced.1999, Eli Yassif, The Hebrew Folktale: History, Genre, Meaning, Indiana University Press, ISBN 0253335833, page 372,One is known as the "sweetening parable," that is to say a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down. Thus, when the aim is to preach to the people, to guide them along the "bitter," arduous path of upholding burdensome precepts and prohibitions, a tale can lighten the load, make the "medicine" easier "to swallow."2001, Maureen Reagan, First Father, First Daughter: A Memoir, Little, Brown, ISBN 0316736368, page 319,It put some fun into the tedious business of preparing for a presidential debate. A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, right?2004, John Hoover, How to Work for an Idiot: Survive & Thrive... Without Killing Your Boss, Career Press, ISBN 1564147045, page 11,If a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, a barrel of laughs can wash down the big pills you might need to swallow.Rate it:

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canary in a coal mineSomething whose sensitivity to adverse conditions makes it a useful early indicator of such conditions; something which warns of the coming of greater danger or trouble by a deterioration in its health or welfare.Rate it:

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glipeIn Northern Ireland a 'glipe' means 'idiot'Rate it:

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get a lifeUsed sarcastically to tell someone who keeps meddling in other people's business, or gossiping about others, to stop obsessing over other people's lives and to concentrate on themselves and do something useful.Rate it:

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garbage in, garbage out(computing, information technology) If input data is not complete, accurate, and timely, then the resulting output is unreliable and of no useful value.1963, Raymond Crowley, "Robot Tax Collector Seeks Indications of 'Fudging'," Times Daily (Alabama, USA), 1 April (retrieved 26 July 2010):Officials explained that the quality of the computer's work depends on the quality of the data fed into it. Neil Hoke, administrative assistant to Stewart, quoted an adage of computer men: "Garbage in, garbage out."2008, Roger K. Lewis, "'In Architectural Design, Brains and Talent Trump the Best Software," Washington Post, 19 July (retrieved 26 July 2010):The old caveat "GIGO"Rate it:

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brain-deadHaving no useful thoughts; stupid; ditzy.Rate it:

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Bells and WhistlesGaudy accessories that are more of a decoration and are less useful in the real manner, high-tech features, flashy items, impressive accessories that are decorativeRate it:

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come in handyTo be useful or helpful, especially at some time in the future.Rate it:

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dick munchidiot, foolish person.Rate it:

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drool bucketA person with low intelligence or no common sense; an idiot.Rate it:

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gear towardsTo design so as to appeal or be useful to.Rate it:

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have seen one's dayTo be at the point in a life cycle or career of no longer being useful or effective; to be worn-out.Rate it:

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il est bête à manger du foinHe is a perfect idiot.Rate it:

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it's not what you know but who you knowFor success, and especially to obtain employment, one's knowledge and skills are less useful and less important than one's network of personal contacts.1951, G. P. Bush and L. H. Hattery, "Federal Recruitment of Junior Engineers," Science, vol. 114, no. 2966, p. 456:Eighty-four students referred to political influence as a disadvantage of federal employment with such remarks as: "There are too many political connections necessary . . . it's not what you know but who you knowRate it:

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just what the doctor orderedExactly what is necessary or useful in a given situation.Rate it:

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knacker's yardThat area of a slaughterhouse where carcasses unfit for human consumption are rendered down to produce useful materials such as glue.Rate it:

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mother lodeAny source of valuable or useful material.Rate it:

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not just a pretty faceSomething that is more useful, versatile, or intrinsically valuable than might be assumed.Rate it:

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shit for brainsAn idiot; a stupid person.Rate it:

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stand the test of timeTo remain useful or valued over a long period of time; to last a long time.Rate it:

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third wheelA person or thing that serves no useful purpose.Rate it:

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twiddle one's thumbsTo wait or dawdle; to accomplish nothing useful or lack a useful occupation.Rate it:

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urban fabricThe physical aspect of urbanism, emphasizing building types, thoroughfares, open space, frontages, and streetscapes; while excluding without prejudice to this useful term, environmental, functional, economic and sociocultural aspects.Rate it:

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yeoman's serviceReliable, useful, capable service.Rate it:

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睬你都傻I'd be an idiot if I cared about what you said; I don't careRate it:

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