not much cop
Not very good; not noteworthy or exceptional at all. Primarily heard in UK. I was really looking forward to the film, but it was not much cop, I'm afraid. I just wasn't much cop as an accountant, so I packed up my career and spent a year travelling abroad.
not playing with a full deck
1. Not mentally sound; crazy or mentally deranged. A: "Look at that guy talking to himself on the corner." B: "I reckon he's not playing with a full deck."
2. Not very bright or intelligent; dimwitted. Jim's a nice guy, but with some of the foolish things he does, I wonder if he's not playing with a full deck.
be not the done thing
Of a given behavior, to be unacceptable, inappropriate, or incorrect in a particular social situation. Primarily heard in UK. You should know better than to wear a skirt like that to a formal dinner; it is simply not the done thing! I'm so glad smoking indoors is not the done thing anymore!
not up to snuff
Not as good as what was expected, required, or demanded; not satisfactory or adequate. Jim, I know you've been going through a tough time since your wife passed, but these reports just aren't up to snuff. I used to eat there all the time, but to be honest, their food hasn't been up to snuff recently.
be not worth a brass farthing
To be completely worthless or useless; to have little or no value. Refers to farthings (obsolete British units of currency, worth one-quarter of a penny), formerly made from a copper alloy (brass). Primarily heard in UK. I was so excited when my grandfather said he'd give me his car, but this old clunker isn't worth a brass farthing. Over the years working here, I've come to realize that the boss's word isn't worth a brass farthing.
be not worth a plug nickel
obsolete To be completely worthless or useless; to have little or no value. (A variant of "not worth a plugged nickel.") Refers to coins (not only nickels) that were "plugged"—that is, those that had a hole drilled in their center and were filled with cheaper metals—which made the coins illegitimate and worthless if spotted. Primarily heard in US. I was so excited when my grandpa said he'd give me his car, but this old clunker isn't worth a plug nickel. Over the years working here I've come to realize that the boss's promises aren't worth a plug nickel.
not worth writing home about
To be not especially remarkable or noteworthy; to be rather dull, mediocre, uninteresting, or unimportant. A variant of the more common phrase "nothing to write home about." A: "Have you eaten in that new sushi restaurant yet?" B: "Yeah, I went there last week. It was OK, but it isn't worth writing home about." His performance hasn't been worth writing home about so far. To be honest, we were expecting much more from him when we recruited him out of Dartmouth.
not anything to write home about
To be not especially remarkable or noteworthy; to be rather dull, mediocre, uninteresting, or unimportant. A variant of the more common phrase "nothing to write home about." A: "Have you eaten in that new sushi restaurant yet?" B: "Yeah, I went there last week. It was OK, but it isn't anything to write home about." His performance hasn't been anything to write home about so far. To be honest, we were expecting much more from him when we recruited him out of Dartmouth.
not something to write home about
To be not especially remarkable or noteworthy; to be rather dull, mediocre, uninteresting, or unimportant. A variant of the more common phrase "nothing to write home about." A: "Have you eaten in that new sushi restaurant yet?" B: "Yeah, I went there last week. It was OK, but it isn't something to write home about." His performance hasn't been something to write home about so far. To be honest, we were expecting much more from him when we recruited him out of Dartmouth.
be not rocket science
To not be a pursuit, activity, or endeavor that requires extraordinary skill or intelligence. Look, all you need to do is reformat the hard drive on your computer. It isn't rocket science! Sure, it took a little bit of time to figure out, but reinstalling the modem wasn't rocket science or anything.