Pairs #19

Bits and bobs. A random assortment of things; small remaining pieces and items.

Now and then. (idiomatic) Sometimes; occasionally; intermittently.

Heaven and earth. A pair usually found preceded by some form of the verb “move.” The idiomatic expression “move heaven and earth” means to do whatever is necessary, including extreme or unusual actions; to go to extremes.

Mix and match. To vary elements to make compatible combinations.

Short and stout. Vertically challenged but powerfully built.

Flesh and blood. One's family, or a member of one's family.

Cloak and dagger. A fighting style common in the Renaissance, involving a knife hidden beneath a cloak. (by extension, metaphorically) Situations involving intrigue, secrecy, espionage, or mystery.

Milk and cereal. A popular breakfast or snack food pairing.

Too many chiefs and not enough Indians. A now politically incorrect idiom that originated c. 1879 and refers to a bureaucracy with too many managers and not enough people to do the work; or where too many people try to lead instead of cooperate.

Big and small. Of varying sizes. (as Big & Small) A British children’s TV series (2008-2011).

Noughts and crosses. The British English name for tic-tac-toe.

Rough and tumble. 1. Active, vigorous and rough, with the possibility of harm. 2. Highly competitive.

High and dry. Left out of water, stranded on a beach, or in the stocks for repair, or in dry dock. (idiomatic, by extension ) Abandoned, stranded, helpless.

To have and to hold. (law) to possess (property) for life. Most commonly used today in the context of traditional wedding vows.

Black-and-white. Visual media that combine black and white to produce a range of achromatic brightnesses of gray. As “black and white”: (US, slang, law enforcement) A police patrol car. (figuratively, idiomatic) Easily divided into diametrically opposing camps or schools of thought. The idiomatic expression “in black and white” means “in writing or in print, and regarded as more reliable, credible, or formal than by word of mouth.”

Shirt and tie. A men’s dress code requiring a dress shirt and a tie, but not necessarily a coat or jacket.

Come and go. 1. To alternately enter and exit, arrive and depart (either physically or figuratively). 2. To repeatedly appear and disappear; to be transient.

Loud and clear. In a clear and easily understandable manner.

Shot and shell. Gunfire and cannon fire. (See stanza III of Tennyson’s “The Charge of the Light Brigade.”

Hills and valleys. (euphemistic) Female anatomy.

Piss and moan. (vulgar, idiomatic, derogatory) To complain, especially needlessly and loudly.

Shoes and socks. Clothing items worn to protect the feet.

Fore and aft. (nautical) From the bow of a ship to the stern; lengthwise.

Footloose and fancy free. Able to do as one pleases, unconstrained by social ties or responsibilities.