What does a hard nut to crack mean?

: a person or thing that is difficult to deal with, understand, or influence The team's defense is a tough nut to crack. The problem is a hard nut to crack. He's a tough nut, but I think I can get him to agree to the contract.

What is the origin of the idiom a hard nut to crack?

Benjamin Franklin used it in a letter in 1745: “Fortified towns are hard nuts to crack; and your teeth have not been accustomed to it.” A similar term from a somewhat later era is tough customer, likewise meaning a person difficult to deal with.

Is a hard nut to crack a metaphor?

This expression is a metaphor alluding to the tough exterior of a nutshell and how hard they are to crack open. It has been in use since the 1700s.

What are hard nuts?

a hard nut (to crack)

A person, thing, situation, or problem that is particularly difficult to understand, solve, or deal with.

What does a tough cookie to crack mean?

a problem that is very difficult to solve or a person who is very difficult to understand.

Meaning of idiom "a hard nut to crack"/a tough nut to crack in hindi

What does a big cheese mean?

Meaning of big cheese in English

an important person in a company or an organization with a lot of influence: He left business school and became a big cheese in the City.

What is the meaning of eye to eye?

to have or come to the same opinion or point of view. The two did not see eye to eye on on certain political issues.

What are nuts also called?

Also widely known as nuts are dry drupes, which include pecans (Carya illinoensis), almonds (Prunus amygdalus), macadamia (Macadamia integrifolia), candlenut (Aleurites moluccanus), water caltrop (Trapa bicornis) and walnuts (Juglans regia).

What does it mean a hot potato?

hot potato | American Dictionary

a situation or subject that people disagree strongly about and that no one wants to deal with: The issue of immigration became a political hot potato.

What does hard up mean in slang?

adjective. If you are hard up, you have very little money. [informal] Her parents were very hard up. Synonyms: poor, broke [informal], short, bust [informal] More Synonyms of hard up.

What is mean by in black and white?

Definition of in black and white

1 : in written or printed form I want to see it in black and white. 2 : in a way that involves a simple choice between two opposite things (such as good and bad or right and wrong) She sees everything in black and white.

What does eating humble pie mean?

Definition of eat humble pie

: to admit that one was wrong or accept that one has been defeated They had to eat humble pie when the rumors they were spreading were proved false.

What does spilling the beans mean?

Disclose a secret or reveal something prematurely, as in You can count on little Carol to spill the beans about the surprise. In this colloquial expression, first recorded in 1919, spill means “divulge,” a usage dating from the 1500s.

What does it mean to be as cool as a cucumber?

Definition of cool as a cucumber

Calm and composed, self-possessed, as in Despite the mishap Margaret was cool as a cucumber. This idiom may be based on the fact that in hot weather the inside of cucumbers remains cooler than the air. [c. 1600] For a synonym, see cool, calm, and collected.

What does fish out of water mean?

A person away from his or her usual environment or activities. For example, Using a computer for the first time, Carl felt like a fish out of water, or On a hiking trail, Nell was a fish out of water. This expression alludes to the fact that fish cannot survive for long on dry land. [ Late 1300s]

What is the meaning of the idiom a bed of roses?

Definition of bed of roses

: a place or situation of agreeable ease.

What is the meaning of the idiom at the drop of a hat?

Immediately, without delay, as in We were ready to pack our bags and go on vacation at the drop of a hat. This phrase probably alludes to signaling the start of a race or other contest by dropping a hat. [

Which nut is not a nut?

Some examples of true nuts include acorns, chestnuts, and hazelnuts. On the other hand, the fruits of the cashew, almond, and pistachio plants are not true nuts, but are rather classified as “drupes.” Drupes are fruits that are fleshy on the outside and contain a shell covering a seed on the inside.

Why is a cashew not a nut?

Cashews are not really nuts in the true sense, but rather a drupe seed. They grow on fruit producing trees which produce a 'false fruit' known as the cashew apple. The fruit resembles a small bell pepper being yellow to red in color.

Is a strawberry a berry?

And the popular strawberry is not a berry at all. Botanists call the strawberry a "false fruit," a pseudocarp. A strawberry is actually a multiple fruit which consists of many tiny individual fruits embedded in a fleshy receptacle.

Why do we say as right as rain?

Given the phrase originated in England, it's tempting to think it's a pun on the fact that rain is commonplace. While the sun might come out for a while, things eventually return to the normal rainy state in England. In other words, it returns to being right as rain.

What does stuffed to the gills mean?

informal. used in expressions to mean completely full: By the time the fourth course was served, I was stuffed to the gills. The restaurant was packed to the gills. SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases.

What is the meaning of get cold feet?

Definition of cold feet

: apprehension or doubt strong enough to prevent a planned course of action.

What does too old to cut the mustard mean?

What does “cut the mustard” mean? To cut the mustard is “to reach or surpass the desired standard or performance” or more generally “to succeed, to have the ability to do something.” For instance, Beyoncé really cut the mustard in her new song.

What does worked my fingers to the bone mean?

Definition of work one's fingers to the bone

: to work very hard She had to work her fingers to the bone to make enough money to raise her kids.