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to cry over spilled milk
/kɹˈaɪ ˌoʊvɚ spˈɪld mˈɪlk/
phrase
to feel upset or regretful about something that has already happened and cannot be undone
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cast / throw pearls before swine
/kˈæst θɹˈoʊ pˈɜːlz bɪfˌoːɹ swˈaɪn/
particle
to do good things and waste valuable resources for ungrateful people
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to break even
/bɹˈeɪk ˈiːvən/
verb
(of a business) to reach a point that yields no success due to the profit being almost as equal as the costs
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to chase
one's
(own) tail
/tʃˈeɪs wˈʌnz ˈoʊn ɔːɹ tˈeɪl/
phrase
to try hard yet achieve very little or nothing at all
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to save
one's
breath
/sˈeɪv wˈʌnz bɹˈɛθ/
phrase
to avoid wasting one's time and energy by not trying to persuade or convince someone who is unlikely to change their opinion or behavior
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to close / shut / lock the stable / barn door after the horse has bolted / is stolen
/klˈoʊs ʃˈʌt lˈɑːk ðə stˈeɪbəl bˈɑːɹn dˈoːɹ ˈæftɚ ðə hˈɔːɹs hɐz bˈoʊltᵻd ɪz stˈoʊlən/
phrase
to try to prevent something bad from happening after it has already happened
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square one
/skwˈɛɹ wˌʌn/
noun
the point or situation from which one starts to do something
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back to the drawing board
/bˈæk tə ðə dɹˈɔːɪŋ bˈoːɹd/
phrase
used when one has to return to the beginning of a process and redo the process after one's effort has failed
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from pillar to post
/fɹʌm pˈɪlɚ tə pˈoʊst/
phrase
from one place or situation to another without a clear purpose or direction, often in a chaotic or haphazard manner
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to paint / gild the lily
/pˈeɪnt ɡˈɪld ðə lˈɪli/
phrase
to unnecessarily adorn or decorate something that is already beautiful or perfect
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a / the (brick) wall
/hˈɪt bˈæŋ bˈiːt wˈʌnz hˈɛd ɐɡˈɛnst ɐ bɹˈɪk wˈɔːl/
phrase
a point where it is unlikely or too difficult to make any progress
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to bark at the moon
/bˈɑːɹk æt ðə mˈuːn/
phrase
to take part in a protest that has no chance of reaching success
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to bark up the wrong tree
/bˈɑːɹk ˌʌp ðə ɹˈɔŋ tɹˈiː/
phrase
to make a wrong decision about how to achieve or deal with something
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to beat a dead horse
/bˈiːt ɐ dˈɛd hˈɔːɹs/
phrase
to waste one's time and energy for something that has no chance of achieving success or yeilds no profit
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to bring sand to the beach
/bɹˈɪŋ sˈænd tə ðə bˈiːtʃ/
phrase
to do something that is considered to be redundant or useless
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to come / go / turn full circle
/kˈʌm ɡˌoʊ tˈɜːn fˈʊl sˈɜːkəl/
phrase
to go through a series of efforts or actions only to end up back where one started, highlighting the lack of progress or meaningful change
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toing and froing
/tʊɪŋ ænd fɹˈoʊɪŋ/
phrase
the act of going back and forth between two places or doing something repeatedly without making much progress
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like nailing Jell-O to the wall
/lˈaɪk nˈeɪlɪŋ dʒˈɛlˈoʊ tə ðə wˈɔːl/
phrase
used to refer to a task that is s very difficult or impossible to do
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like pouring water in / into a sieve
/lˈaɪk pˈoːɹɪŋ wˈɔːɾɚ ɪn ˌɪntʊ ɐ sˈɪv/
phrase
used when someone is doing something that is pointless or ineffective
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like talking to a (brick) wall
/lˈaɪk tˈɔːkɪŋ tʊ ɐ bɹˈɪk wˈɔːl/
phrase
used to describe a frustrating or unproductive conversation with someone who is unresponsive or uninterested
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the cake / game is not worth the candle
/ðə kˈeɪk ɡˈeɪm ɪz nˌɑːt wˈɜːθ ðə kˈændəl/
sentence
the outcome or reward of a task is not worth the effort or resources required to achieve it
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to tread water
/tɹˈɛd wˈɔːɾɚ/
phrase
to fail to make any progress in a job or task
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