They always wheel out the same old excuses when they are late.
wheel out
idiomTo employ or bring out (something predictable or perennial).
During the election, the candidate decided to wheel out his most popular promises to win over the crowd.
Whenever the debate turns to economic policy, the professor feels compelled to wheel out his tired arguments about market regulation that he has repeated for decades.
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big wheel
A person with a great deal of power or influence, especially a high-ranking person in an organization.
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break the wheel
To end a pattern of oppression, inequality, injustice, or abuse.
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fifth wheel
Anything superfluous or unnecessary.
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grease the wheels
To create conditions likely to produce or hasten favorable future developments.
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hamster wheel
To cycle fruitlessly.
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hell on wheels
A situation that is tough, aggressive, lawless, and wild.
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reinvent the wheel
To do work unnecessarily when it has already been done satisfactorily by others; to attempt to devise a solution to a problem when a solution already exists.
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set of wheels
A car.
Last updated April 17, 2026