pull a heart muscle v. phr. to withdraw, back out, or retreat from a competition, conflict, or obligation; to chicken out. Editorial Note: To pull a heart muscle is similar to having tiny heart syndrome. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
A magnificent new book celebrates the richness and diversity of 450 years of written and spoken English in what is now the United States. It’s called The People’s Tongue, and it’s a sumptuous collection of essays, letters, poems...
What’s up with ketchup? The shifting history and spelling of the name of this condiment. For centuries, ketchup was a fishy sauce originating in Asia—the tomatoes came only later! Plus, a new book shows what’s lost when a language dies: when there...