Idiom Para

Acid test
He played well in the last match, but the acid test will come when the team plays
the stronger opponents. ... The politician made a lot of promises, but the acid test
would come when he assumes office and starts delivering on them. He's had an
easy tournament so far, but the next match would be his first real acid test.
Cut the ground from under my feet
Suddenly spoil somebody's idea or plan by doing something to stop them from
continuing with it: When he announced that all my figures were out of date, he
really cut the ground from under my feet.
Chase your tail
Come on, Bill, go to sleep. You're just chasing your tail at this point, but you might
have a breakthrough with the research if you take a break from it. I'm trying not to
chase my tail on this project, but so many components of it are just not working
out.
Whole bag of tricks
The legal team used their whole bag of tricks, but in the end, they couldn't prevent
a guilty verdict. I had to use my whole bag of tricks to solve the case.
Deliver the goods
So far, the team's new player has failed to deliver the goods. He failed to open his
account in his first three games. They are bright young executives with bright
ideas, but it is doubtful if can they deliver the goods.