pull; patronage; tug; discount
look who's talking; you're one to talk; you can talk
curiously; curiously enough; oddly enough; to the point of being mysterious; to the extent of being strange
to the utmost; to the best of one's ability
to get involved or entangled in; to get mixed up in; to have something to do with; to have dealings with
to break off; to come to an end; to be interrupted; to be cut short; to pause
the best one can do; one's best effort; with all one's might; to the best of one's ability
to pause; to have a short intermission
honesty; sincerity; trust; reliance; (religious) faith; devotion
to run counter to; to go against; to disobey; to infringe
certain; some kind of; some sort of; of sorts
to distance oneself (from); to keep (something or someone) at a distance; to maintain a distance (from)
idly; lazily; aimlessly; evasively; elusively; vaguely
to let something (or somebody) go past; to do too much
overserious; deeply sincere; very earnest
to feel inferior; to feel small
to leave (a scene); to step away
calm; quiet; gentle; moderate; reasonable; amicable
comfortable (to live in); snug; cosy; cozy
to gaze at; to fix one's eyes upon
finally; after; following; at the end (of)
to go against; to fight against; to oppose; to resist; to deny
bound hand and foot; hedged in (e.g. by restrictions); immobile
to compare and contrast two alternatives; to weigh the relative merits of A and B; to weigh one's options; to try to have it both ways; to try to sit on two stools
pressure; clamping; tightening; fastening
ingratiation; pandering; catering (to); going along with (someone or something); accommodating oneself (e.g. to public opinion)
to arrive (at one's destination); to reach; to come to a head; to reach a conclusion; to culminate (in)
cruel; merciless; pitiless; tragic; horrible; terrible
reluctant; unwilling; involuntary; unintentional; unintended; unlooked-for
indiscrete; imprudent; unscrupulous
when it comes to ...; if one were to speak of ...; by ... you mean ...; when you say ... you mean that ...; whenever ...; if it's ... then (without fail)
help; assistance; service
to stare fixedly at; to fix one's gaze on; to make sure of; to set one's eyes on (e.g. the future); to focus on
to do one's best; to put forth every effort
joints; points (of a speech)
to enter; to trespass; to interfere; to meddle; to pry into
area; domain; territory; field; range; region
(just) out of curiosity; (just) in order to satisfy one's curiosity; aimed chiefly at amusing; sensational (e.g. magazine)
to step into (e.g. someone else's territory); to break into; to raid; to come to grips with; to get to the core of
cowardly; craven; unfair; mean; sneaky