(as) black as the minister's coat
dated Completely black; totally without light or color. The basement gives me the creeps, it's as black as the minister's coat down there!
ride (on) the coattails of (someone)
To benefit from someone else's success; to use someone else's success as a means to achieve one's own. Everyone knows you've been riding on the coattails of the governor these last two years, but once her term ends, you'll be on your own! Jonathan rode the coattails of his professor to get some recognition for his own work in several esteemed academic journals.
sugar-coat the pill
To make something bad, unpleasant, or dissatisfactory easier to cope with, endure, or accept. The bosses are giving everyone an extra 10% bonus this Christmas, but I suspect it's a way of sugar-coating the pill that there will be massive pay cuts in January. I have to tell my mom about wrecking her car, but I need to find a way to sugar-coat the pill first.
turn (one's) coat
dated To change one's allegiance or affiliation (especially in politics) for personal gain or advantage. A good politician will espouse the most hard-line stance of his party's political ideologies, but a successful politician knows when to turn his coat.
white coat hypertension
A phenomenon in which a patient experiences elevated blood pressure around medical professionals. A: "I swear, I didn't feel dizzy until the doctor came in." B: "Hmm, sounds like a case of white coat hypertension to me."
all fur coat and no knickers
Good-looking on the surface but lacking substance underneath. I thought David and I would really get along well, but we had nothing to talk about at dinner—he's really all fur coat and no knickers. Our new boss sounded like she had a lot of good ideas for the department, but it turns out she's all fur coat and no knickers.
candy-coat
To attempt to make something seem better or more palatable than it actually is, especially something perceived as negative or unfavorable. Mom tried to candy-coat the news by talking about how big the yard would be at the new house, but we were all sad about the move. Don't try to candy-coat this! An F is an F, no matter how hard you studied!
trail (one's) coat
To incite an argument. If one literally trails one's coat, a passerby could easily step on it, thus creating a tense situation. With a comment like that, she is clearly trailing her coat, and I refuse to take the bait.
be all fur coat and no knickers
To be attractive on the surface but lack substance underneath. I thought David and I would really get along well, but we had nothing to talk about at dinner—he's all fur coat and no knickers. Our new boss sounded like she had a lot of good ideas for the department, but it turns out she's all fur coat and no knickers.
*close as two coats of paint
Cliché close and intimate. (*Also: as ~.) When Tom and Mary were in high school, they were as close as two coats of paint. All their lives, the cousins were close as two coats of paint.
coat and tie
[for men] a jacket or sports coat and necktie. (A respectable but less than formal standard of dress.) My brother was not wearing a coat and tie, and they would not admit him into the restaurant. I always carry a coat and tie in my car just in case I have to dress up a little for something.
coat someone or something with something
to put a layer of something on someone or something. Her manager coated her with grease before she began the Channel swim. The cook coated the chicken with batter and dropped it into the hot fat.
cut one's coat according to one's cloth
and cut one's coat to suit one's clothProv. to plan one's aims and activities in line with one's resources and circumstances. We would like a bigger house, but we must cut our coat according to our cloth. They can't afford a vacation abroad—they have to cut their coat according to their cloth.
on somebody's coat-tails
if you achieve something on someone's coat-tails, you only achieve it because of their help or influence She'd risen to fame on the coat-tails of her half-sister.
cut your coat according to your cloth
also cut your cloth according to your means to only buy what you have enough money to pay for Of course we'd love a huge expensive house, but you have to cut your coat according to your cloth.
be all fur coat and no knickers
(humorous) to look attractive but not really be very interesting or of good quality When he took over as chairman we discovered he was all fur coat and no knickers.
the men in white coats
(humorous) doctors who look after people who are mentally ill The men in white coats will be coming to take me away if I stay in this job much longer.
sugar/sweeten the pill
(British, American & Australian) also sugar-coat the pill (American) to make something bad seem less unpleasant The government have cut income tax to sweeten the pill of a tough budget.