Call a spade a spade:
(Speak plainly: say precisely what one means) – He was the kind of person who always calls a spade a spade.
Call to account:
(Take to task, demand explanation) – The cashier was called to account for the shortage in the cash balance.
Carry weight:
(Have influence with) – What he says carries weight with the management.
Cast pearls before swine:
(offer or express something valuable before an unappreciative audience) It didn’t take me long to note that they were not the lovers of poetry, and my talk about poetry was like casting pearls before swine.
Child’s play:
(Something very easy; work demanding no effort) – It’s not a child’s play to pass competitive examinations.
Close shave:
(narrow escape from danger or misfortune) – She had a close shave today. She stepped into the road and was nearly killed by a truck.
Cold war:
(Unfriendly relationship between nations but with no military engagement) – The cold war between China and Russia reached its peak during the period of the Cultural Revolution of Mao.
Come to the point:
(Speak plainly or directly, avoid circumlocution) – May I request you not to beat about the bush and come to the point?
Crocodile tears:
(hypocritical tears shed by an unfeeling person) – He laid all the blame of the Fraser’s rising upon his son, saying, with crocodile tears, that he was not the first who had an undutiful son.
Cut one’s own throat:
(act so as to ruin oneself) – When she signed the agreement, she didn’t know she was cutting her own throat.
Cut the Gordian knot:
(Solve a difficult problem by disregarding conditions) – She sought a divorce from her husband, and thus cut the Gordian knot.