A dictionary of Confusable Phrases: More Than 10,000 Idioms and Collocations

dip one’s toes in the water • get one’s feet wet
dip one’s toes in the water —(of an activity) proceed gently
with much caution: Companies will dip their toes in the water
by hiring temporary employees until they are certain their
markets have recovered.
get one’s feet wet—gain one’s first experience of smth.; do
smth. for the first time: Don’t be afraid to get your feet wet.
Your first efforts may not be perfect, but you’ve got to start
somewhere.
dip the flag • drop the flag
dip the flag —(of a ship) give a salute to another ship by mak-
ing the flag go down for a moment and then up again: To-
day, “dipping the flag” is an act of courtesy; men-of-war do
not do it to one another.
drop the flag —
1
. (Sport) indicate the start or finish of a race
using a flag: When the first horse reaches the winning post,
one of the judges there drops a flag. 2. give the signal for the
start or finish of smth: It would be a great help to the leader
of a future expedition in making up his mind when to “drop
the flag.”
direct something at someone • direct something to
someone
direct something at someone —
1
. aim or point smth. at a per-
son: Wary troopers directed stun guns at the medley of bodies
in case of disorder. 2. intend smth. for a person: Are you di-
recting your remarks at me?
direct something to someone —
1
. address or send smth. to a
person: Please direct all the mail to the secretary when it is
delivered. 2. = direct something at someone 2: My next remarks
are directed to the boys and girls of this school.
dirt-eater • dirt-eating
dirt-eater —(dated) 
1
. (also: clay-eater) miserable people who
appease their hunger with a kind of aluminous earth: Distin-
guished from other southerners by hookworm disease were
dirt-eaters scattered in sand barrens and pine woods. 2. a con-
temptuous name for “poor whites” in some parts of the south-
ern United States: It rests with you whether you will take rank
with the poor whites, the dirt-eaters of the South, or with the
best classes of the north.
dirt-eating— a disease of the nutritive functions causing an
irresistible craving to eat earth: For some time past she had
been addicted to dirt-eating (eating earth) … a disease, which
terminates in dropsy and death.
See also: eat a peck of dirt / eat dirt.