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

mansion house (UK) • mansion house (U.S.)
mansion house (UK)—
1
. the house of a landed proprietor:
The landed gentry usually possess a share of pride fully pro-
portionate to their estate and mansion house. 2. (the Mansion
House) the official residence of the Lord Mayor of London:
The conference took place in the Egyptian Hall of the Man-
sion House, the Lord Mayor presiding.
mansion house (U.S.)—a large house of good appearance:
In this street were most of the great houses, or “mansion-
houses,” as it was usual to call them.
marinara sauce (UK) • marinara sauce (U.S.)
marinara sauce (UK)—a sauce containing seafood, usually
in a tomato base: Our next homemade marinara sauce recipe
is for a shrimp marinara sauce. This marinara sauce can be
served hot or cold.
marinara sauce (U.S.)—a sauce containing tomatoes and
herbs, with no seafood: Freshly crushed tomatoes, mushrooms,
fresh basil and herbs make up this delicious marinara sauce.
mark my words • mark you
mark my words —is used to give emphasis to a warning or
prophesy: And you mark my words, you haven’t heard the last
of him.
mark you—is used to draw attention to smth. one has just
said: He is very ambitious — like most men, mark you.
mark one’s cards • mark someone’s cards
mark one’s cards —(also: mark the cards) put secret signs on
a pack of cards so one could win by cheating: I’ll never believe
he’s a cheating bastard. I’ll never believe he marked his cards.
mark someone’s cards —provide information that would give
advantage to a person: He welcomed me to Mexico and …
marked my cards privately on some human rights issues I
might like to raise publicly.
mark the time • mark time
mark the time —
1
. (of the clock) show time: In the days when
no clock marked the time, “cock-crowing” became a familiar
phrase, as today, when referring to the earliest hour of dawn.
2. record or indicate specific time: As the two girls entered the
hall they saw that the tall clock marked the time as quarter-
past five. 3. indicate a period: The tower of Babel marked the
time when mankind became separated and developed different
languages that effectively managed to divide them. 4. (also:
beat the time) follow the rhythm with the feet, a baton, etc.:
She has a carving fork in her hand, with which she pounds on
the table to mark the time.
mark time —
1
. = mark the time 
1
: The city contains many
essential sights, such as the Sapporo City Clock, which has
been marking time for over a century. 2. = mark the time 4:
Some of them were singing, some clapping their hands as they
marked time to the tune which one lone fiddle squeaked out
gaily. 3. be idle, waiting for smth. to happen: He has been
marking time for over a month now as he waits to hear about
the new job.