kill the goose that lays the golden eggs—destroy a source of one’s wealth: In their quest to squeeze out every last penny from the fans, they will kill the goose that lays the golden eggs . cool card • cooling card cool card —(coll.) a person who is impudent in a calm way: That man is a cool card ; he’ll borrow £5 from you and then ask you to stand him a drink. cooling card—(dated) smth. that cools one’s enthusiasm: It would prove a cooling card to many, whose zeal otherwise would transport them. cool it • play it cool cool it—(coll., imper.) stop being angry; calm down: “Cool it , will you Arthur!” demanded Ford. Arthur would not be deterred. play it cool—deliberately behave in a relaxed and unemo- tional way: John dived for cover, but the cameraman played it cool , pausing to switch on the camera… Note: The expression is not equivalent in meaning to the phrase keep one’s coolretain one’s composure and poise: Mal kept his cool when Badger admitted there was a problem with the cargo. Copper Nose • Old Copper Nose Copper Nose—(hist.) the name given to Oliver Cromwell, lord protector of England (1599–1658): Oliver Cromwell has a number of “nosey” nicknames—“Copper Nose ,” “Ruby Nose” and “Nosey.” Note: The nickname is apparently related to the expression copper nosea red nose caused by the disease “Acne rosacea” or by drunkenness: He was a short, brawny old gentleman, with a double chin, a mastiff mouth, and a broad copper nose . Old Copper Nose(hist., also: Copper-nose Harry) the name given to Henry VIII, king of England (1491 1547): These sil- ver issues [of coins] were heavily debased, and as a result the king was referred to as “Old Copper Nose ,” because the king’s nose turned copper-colored when the coin began to wear. copy boy • copy man copy boy —a newspaper employee who runs errands and car- ries copy to and from the various departments: Ronnie, a young, eager copy-boy , bustled in with a handful of news slips. copy man —a copywriter; a person who makes copies: Find A3 papers and copy the whole thing at the copy-service (don’t forget the bottle of whisky for the copy-man ). Note: Neither expression correlates in meaning with the com- pound copy-cata person who copies the words or behavior of another: She realizes that this killer is a copycat who is mod- eling all his killings after famous killers of the past. cork something down • cork something up cork something down1. fasten smth. tightly with a cork: That medicine ought to be corked down closely after use. 2. (of feelings, reactions, etc.) suppress: He fought his anger at them, corked it down deep within him, and maintained a calm expression. cork something up1. = cork something down 1: It’s dangerous to cork up these bottles while the wine is still fermenting, you know. 2. = cork something down 2: It’s very bad for you to cork your emotions up like that: you’d feel much better if you could “let yourself go.” Corncracker State, the • Cracker State, the Corncracker State, the—(U.S.) a nickname of the state of Kentucky: The father was a farmer who came into the Corn - cracker state from Pennsylvania, where he was born. Cracker State, the —(U.S.) a nickname of the state of Geor- gia: The two hundred slaves of the family followed Colmesnil, who spent the remainder of his life in the Cracker state . corpse-man • corpsman corpse-man —a dead man; a zombie: Davy Jones … is really mesmerizing evil with his infamous ship, the Flying Dutch- man, and his soulless crew of corpse men . corpsman —(U.S. Army) an enlisted person with training in giving first aid: The cry “corpsman up!” rings across a bat- tlefield, sending a crouching figure with a medical bag dash- ing… correct copy • fair copy correct copy—(also: true copy) a proofread copy: I hereby certify that this copy is a correct copy of the original statement on file in my office. fair copy —the final form of a letter or document: After hav- ing re-read it and made certain alterations and erasures, she wrote out a fair copy . cost of life • cost of living cost of life —the loss of human lives in wars, accidents, etc.: The war eventually ended in victory but not before a great cost of life was exacted from both peoples. cost of living —the general expenses of rent, food, clothes, etc: The jobless are often young, employment is insecure, and the cost of living has risen steeply. cost someone a fortune • cost someone dear cost someone a fortune—cost a person a large sum of money: See, Janet, this huge yellow rose wreath here from Mrs. Pet- tigrew. It must have cost her a fortune . cost someone dear—seriously affect smb.’s health, prestige, etc. (with the implication that the person is himself responsible): Politically, this absent-mindedness was to cost him dear . cotton cloth • cottony cloth cotton cloth—cloth made of cotton: If you like to use gloves then use special anti-tarnish or cotton cloth gloves which con- tain no ingredients to tarnish silver. cottony cloth—cloth looking or feeling like cotton (soft, downy, and white): You can use any type of towel, but to ob- tain the best drying effect, try to pick a cottony cloth . cotton on to someone • cotton up to someone cotton on to someone—(coll., also: cotton to someone) become attached to smb.; come to like a person: I suppose the fact of the matter was that she didn’t cotton on to me. cotton up to someone—(coll.) try to start a friendship with a person: I saw you cottoning up to the new student; was he friendly? cotton on to something • cotton to something cotton on to something—understand or realize smth.: Re- member this fact, you will probably cotton on to how impor- tant it is very quickly. cotton to something—1. be attracted to smth.; accept smth.: In just the last few years, several major retailers have cottoned to this strategy. 2. = cotton on to something: Jane quickly cottons to the fact that something paranormally wrong is going on. count one’s chickens • count sheep count one’s chickens—anticipate some benefit, with the im- plication that it may not materialize (in allusion to the proverb “don’t count your chickens before they are hatched”): He had been counting his chickens and borrowing money on the strength of his expectations as his uncle’s sole heir. count sheep —try to fall asleep by counting imaginary sheep – 87 – count one’s chickens