Common American Phrases in Everyday Contexts (210 page)

(There's) no such thing as a free lunch
.
Nothing is really free because there is always some obligation. (Perhaps from a time when you could get a meal's worth of free food at a bar with the purchase of a beer or two.)
I ended up paying even more when
they added on tax and carrying charges. There's no such thing as a free lunch.
Q: Why won't my insurance pay for my cousin's operation also? A: No such thing as a free lunch.

There's no time like the present
.
Do it now.; Don't put it off.
A: I think I will try to find a lawyer in a few weeks to help me with my will. B: Do it now. There's no time like the present.
Don't wait another moment. You need a new bicycle while you're still young. There's no time like the present.

(There's) no way to tell
.
No one can find out the answer.
T
OM
: How long are we likely to have to wait before the plane takes off? C
LERK
: Sorry, sir. There's no way to tell
.
B
ILL
: Will the banks be open when we arrive? B
OB
: No way to tell. They don't keep regular hours.

(There's) nothing to it
!
It's easy!
J
OHN
: Is it hard to learn to fly a small plane? S
UE
: There's nothing to it!
B
ILL
: Me? I can't dive off a board that high! I can hardly dive off the side of the pool! B
OB
: Aw, come on! Nothing to it!

They (just) don't make them like they used to
.
Goods are not as well made now as they were in the past. (Often used as a catch-phrase.
Them
is often
'em
.)
A: Look at this flimsy door! B: They don't make 'em like they used to
.
A: Why don't cars last longer? B: They just don't make 'em like they used to.

They must have seen you coming
.
You were really cheated.; When they saw you, they decided they could cheat you easily.
A
NDREW
: It cost two hundred dollars. R
ACHEL
: You paid two hundred dollars for that thing? Boy, they must have seen you coming
.
B
OB
: Do you think I paid too much for this car? It's not as good as I thought it was. T
OM
: It's almost a wreck. They must have seen you coming.