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window dressing
1. literal A decorative display in a window, typically the window of a store. When my mom and I go shopping at Christmastime, we always check out all the pretty holiday window dressings!
2. figurative Something that makes a person or thing look or seem better than it really is. To me, this new policy seems like window dressing to woo new employees. You say that you've changed, but how do I know it's not just window dressing to make you seem like less of a jerk?
window-shopping
The act of visiting stores, or looking in their windows, to see what is available without buying anything. My bank account is so sad these days that I'll only be window-shopping for a while! A: "You guys really went in that expensive boutique?" B: "Yeah, but we were only window-shopping, don't worry! We know we can't afford anything in there!"
make a better door than a window
A humorous phrase said to someone who is blocking the speaker's line of sight. Move it, will you? You make a better door than a window!
crack the door (open)
and crack the window (open)to open the door or window a very small amount. I cracked open the door to peek out. Just crack the window a bit to let some air inside.
go window-shopping
to go about looking at goods in store windows without actually buying anything. The office workers go window-shopping on their lunch hour, looking for things to buy when they get paid. Joan said she was just going window-shopping, but she bought a new coat.
out (of) the window
Fig. gone; wasted. All that work gone out the window because my computer crashed. My forty dollars—out the window! Why didn't I save my money?
When poverty comes in at the door, love flies out of the window.
and When the wolf comes in at the door, love creeps out of the window.Prov. If a couple gets married because they are in love, but they do not have enough money, they will stop loving each other when the money runs out. You young folks may think you can live on love alone, but when poverty comes in at the door, love flies out of the window. After Susan lost her job, she and her unemployed husband had a big argument. When the wolf comes in at the door, love creeps out of the window.
window of opportunity
Fig. a brief time period in which an opportunity exists. This afternoon, I had a brief window of opportunity when I could discuss this with the boss, but she wasn't receptive.
You make a better door than you do a window.
Rur. I cannot see through you, so move aside. Joe was just standing in front of the TV. "Hey," I said, "You make a better door than you do a window." Charlie: Isn't this a great view? Jane: You make a better door than you do a window. Let me see.
out the window
gone, wasted, or no longer in existence It is as if everyone's good judgment has flown out the window. If we quit now, we might as well just toss three months' work out the window.
go out (of) the window
if a quality, principle, or idea goes out of the window, it does not exist any more Then people start drinking and sense goes out of the window.
out of the window
Discarded, tossed out. This term is often used in the phrase go out the window, as in For the town planners past experience seems to have gone out the window. It alludes to unwanted items being hurled out of the window. [First half of 1900s]
bay window
n. a belly; an abdomen. You are going to have to do something about that bay window.
out the window
mod. gone; wasted. My forty dollars—out the window. Why didn’t I save my money?