fly-tipping
noun phrase

- the illegal dumping of liquid or solid waste on land or in water; the waste is usually dumped to avoid disposal costs

- the activity of illegally leaving waste or unwanted objects next to a road, in a field, in a river, etc

UK-Gov / The Cambridge Dictionary

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PHRASE ORIGIN

"Tipping" is a very old British term for dumping, first appearing in the 1830s and meaning "the tilting up of container so as to discharge its contents”.

Since the early 19th century the adjective “fly” has come to mean “wide awake, or clever in a dishonest way”.

Thus “fly-tipping” is rubbish dumping done sneakily and illegally.

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FLIGHTY PHRASES
How many do you know?

1. to fly off the handle

2. to fly the coop (the nest)

3. to fly by the seat of one's pants

4. to do something on the fly

5. to pass with flying colours

6. to pay a flying visit

7. to get off to a flying start

8. to fly the flag

9. fly by night

10. when pigs fly

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1. to fly off the handle = to suddenly become very angry or lose one's temper (He flew off the handle when he saw the bad sales results)

2. to fly the coop (the nest) = to escape or leave a place, often to gain independence or avoid control (After graduating from high school, she was ready to fly the coop and start college)

3. to fly by the seat of one's pants = to rely on intuition or improvisation rather than planning or expertise (With markets changing so rapidly, we often find ourselves flying by the seat of our pants to stay ahead of our competitors)

4. to do something on the fly = to do something quickly, without prior planning or preparation (We had to come up with a solution on the fly when the projector stopped working)

5. to pass with flying colours = to succeed or complete something with distinction or high achievement (She studied hard and passed her final exams with flying colours)

6. to pay a flying visit = to make a very brief or quick visit to a place or person (I only had time to pay a flying visit to my family while I was in town for the conference)

7. to get off to a flying start = to begin something with great initial success or enthusiasm (Their fundraising campaign got off to a flying start, raising thousands of euros in the first week)

8. to fly the flag = to represent or show support for one's country, group, or organization (We have to fly the flag for our company by presenting at the conference)

9. fly by night = someone or something unreliable, untrustworthy, or operating in a dishonest or haphazard manner (Be careful with that supplier; they have a reputation for being fly by night)

10. when pigs fly = an expression used to describe an event that is highly unlikely or impossible (He said he'd clean his room without being asked—yeah, when pigs fly!)

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SMUGGLE OWAD into an English conversation, say something like:

“According to the Environmental Performance Index (EPI), the following countries have the lowest incidence of FLY-TIPPING: Denmark, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Iceland, Luxembourg, Germany, and the Netherlands.”

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THANKS to Joachim & Jacky for suggesting today’s OWAD.

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