free shot

free shot
 n.— «The current arrangement also means Baltimore City officials don’t have to give up their seats to run for the legislature or statewide office. The practice is called a “free shot.” McFadden did it in 1986 when, as a Baltimore city councilman, he challenged an incumbent state senator and lost. Now an incumbent senator, McFadden said he thinks Baltimore officials need to be willing to give up their posts to run for state office.» —“Proposal seeks to reschedule Baltimore elections” by Melissa Harris Baltimore Sun (Maryland) Mar. 9, 2007. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)

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Further reading

Can You Have Four Corn?

The owner of a Berlin, Maryland, produce stand wants to know: When a customer is buying four ears of corn, should they say I have four corn or I have four ears of corn? Corn is a mass noun that can also be counted as a plural, just as we might say I...

By a Long Shot (episode #1572)

Imagine telling someone how to get to your home, but without using the name of your street, or any other street within ten miles. Could you do it? We take street names for granted, but these words are useful for far more, like applying for a job or...