at that

He went to a famous school, and a good one at that.

One would have expected something more perfected from a don—and a lecturer at McGill at that.

1964 September, “New Books: A History of Russian Railways. By J. N. Westwood. Allen & Unwin. 45s.”, in Modern Railways, page 222:

(idiomatic) In addition to what has been said; furthermore; moreover.

"Someone needs to get these naive kids up to speed on what goes on in the real world." I spoon-fed him some more sugar. "And it sounds like you're just the man to do it."
"Maybe I am. Maybe I am at that."

2004, Susan Volland, Love and Meatballs, page 62:

(idiomatic) Now that it has been mentioned.

[…] he heard the birds sing, and at that he felt comforted.

2012, Andrew Lang, King Arthur: Tales from the Round Table:

(idiomatic) Thereupon; directly after, and as a result of, that.


for certain

I would go to that concert for certain.

- Would you buy one of those?
- For certain.


for example

The book has quite a few plot holes. For example, it's never explained why the main character came to town.


by oneself

I have always wondered why shoe salesmen think I can't tie my shoes by myself.

You ate the whole thing by yourself?

Alone; without assistance or help from others.

She sat by herself in the corner, waiting quietly.

Alone, without another's immediate company.

一个人

jat¹ go³ jan⁴; jat¹ go³ jan⁴⁻²; jat¹ go³ jan⁴⁻¹

He kept the gun by himself at all times.

(rare) Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see by, oneself.


like riding a bike

(simile) Said of skill that, once learned, is never forgotten.


on the ladder

When someone has bought their first house, they are said to have got on the ladder.

(idiomatic, British) On a property ladder, owning property.


in a pickle

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-in a pickle.wav

The term refers to being in pickling solution, presumably unpleasant. It was first used in English by William Shakespeare in The Tempest (1611), although the phrase had been used in Dutch earlier.

How cam'ſt thou in this pickle? / Tri. I haue bin in ſuch a pickle ſince I ſaw you laſt, / That I feare me will neuer out of my bones:

1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tempest”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i], page 18, column 2:

Cody Ko, a YouTube star with 5.7 million subscribers, found himself in a pickle in May.

2021 September 1, Taylor Lorenz, “She’s the Investor Guru for Online Creators”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

In a difficult situation or a troubling quandary.


on the hour

hourly, beginning at the start of each hour.


on the half hour

Trains leave here for New York every hour on the half hour.

Happening hourly, but at 30 minutes past each hour; ie, 08:30, 09:30 etc.

In one corner is an old grandfather's clock; the chimes are on the half-hour.

2011, Studs Terkel, "The Good War": An Oral History of World War II:

He bought and framed Japanese prints, and she chose a bronze mantelpiece clock with a silver bell that struck on the half hour.

2010, Stephanie Cowell, Claude & Camille, page 248:

Happening on the hour and at 30 minutes after the hour.


in turn

The teacher answered the students each in turn.

Each member of the group, in turn, rose to share a personal story, until nearly everyone in the room had spoken.

Eventually, each of the countries in turn would be brought to submission by the invading force.

One after the other; one at a time; in succession; successively.

You are next in turn to bat.

The boy was next in turn to sit on Santa's lap.

In due order; in proper sequence; in a determined or measured sequence, as a waiting line or queue.

The musical ambassadors finished their performance, and the local musicians in turn played for them a traditional ballad.

With great humility, I call upon all Americans to help me keep our nation united in defense of those ideals which have been so eloquently proclaimed by Franklin Roosevelt. I want in turn to assure my fellow Americans and all of those who love peace and liberty throughout the world that I will support and defend those ideals with all my strength and all my heart.

1945 April 16, Harry S. Truman, 9:21 from the start, in MP72-20 President Roosevelt’s Funeral and Procession; Truman – New President of U.S., Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives Identifier: 595162:

The vassals were subject to their lords, who in turn were subject to barons or kings.

My car was hit by a truck, which in turn was hit by the van.

Mr. X leaked the secret to Mr. Y who in turn leaked it to Mr. Z.

Having a relationship sequentially comparable to one just mentioned; accordingly or similarly, with respect to sequence, precedence, or hierarchy.

siavice

having a relationship sequentially comparable to one just mentioned


on the skids

Entering an election year, no Congress obeys a second-term President whose popularity is on the skids.

1938 June 27, “Work Undone”, in Time, archived from the original on 2008-05-04:

(idiomatic) In decline; going downhill; in trouble.


tot nu toe

We kijken eerst naar wat je tot nu toe hebt bereikt.

We first look at what you have achieved up until now.


for the win

From earlier use by radio and television sports announcers, describing a play that results in a win, bringing the game to a conclusion.

Blink-182 for the win!

Nerds for the win!

(Internet slang) Being the best; being great, awesome, amazing or spectacular; sure to succeed (used as a term of approval, similar to long live)


beyond a shadow of a doubt

I knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that my sister would want to go to the concert.

So that there can be no possible misunderstanding, both Germany and Japan can be certain beyond any shadow of a doubt that America will continue to fight for freedom until no vestige of resistance remains. Our demand has been and it remains unconditional surrender.

1945 April 16, Harry S. Truman, 10:06 from the start, in MP72-20 President Roosevelt’s Funeral and Procession; Truman – New President of U.S., Harry S. Truman Presidential Library and Museum, National Archives Identifier: 595162:


in the groove

Originally mid-19th century slang with (usually pejorative) reference to the difficulty of leaving a well-worn rut (see in a rut). As back in the groove, the phrase acquired a positive sense of returning to one's usual self after a period of illness, setbacks, &c. With special regard for music, originally 1920s US jazz slang, possibly with reference to the grooves of early records.

The jazz musicians gave no grandstand performances; they simply got a great burn from playing in the groove.

(colloquial) Running or performing extremely smoothly, especially (music, slang) playing perfectly, perfectly in sync with others, or with perfect focus.

The whole course of legislation... had flowed in the same groove for centuries.

1869, J.E.T. Rogers's preface to Adam Smith's Wealth of Nations, Vol. I, p. 27

[…] having such a wonderful time which puts me in a groove […]

There's a time in everybody's life when they know precisely what is right. And when I was doing that, when I was in the groove, I knew exactly what was right.

2005, Joe McCabe, Hanging Out With the Dream King: Conversations with Neil Gaiman, page 77:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see in, groove.


met name

From met + name, the old dative case of naam.


on the contrary

Even if they managed to strike Japan, the United States or South Korea with nuclear weapons — a big if, given that they do not have a reliable delivery system — they could not save themselves from ultimate defeat. On the contrary, the use of nuclear or other terror weapons would be certain to invite overwhelming retaliation, delivering North Korea’s decision makers to a fiery oblivion.

2013 April 9, Andrei Lankov, “Stay Cool. Call North Korea’s Bluff.”, in New York Times:

(conjunctive) Opposite of what had earlier been expected or assumed.

au contraire

opposite of what had earlier been assumed


off the chain

In reference to slave labor, where workers are chained, or to the figurative chain of workers of an assembly line. Slang sense by analogy to a frenetic dog when unleashed.

“Here,” said Wigmore, “no bickering tonight, and no politics either. I’m off the chain, and we’re going to take you out to dinner at Oddy’s, and a theatre.”

1912, The Windsor Magazine: An Illustrated Monthly for Men and Women, volume 36, page 296:

although shop-assistants, among others, had to work longer hours, even up to 9 and 10 o’clock, for Saturday night became one of the busiest shopping times of the week, a sufficiently large number of people were “off the chain” by midday to give rise for the first time to the problem of what to do with leisure.

1946, Charles Allen Oakley, The Second City, Blackie, page 162:

For ten years—from 1885 to 1895—this system continued unchanged, and in it there was no room for a holiday for me, a month, a fortnight, even a week off the chain; at the most a rare day. And relentlessly was I held on the chain.

1954, Aga Khan, Sultan Muhammad Shah, “The Memoirs of Aga Khan”, in World Enough and Time, Cassell, page 12:

Steward Niles Korbet, agrees: “I like my job better than any other job. Even if I wasn’t making B’s—’cause I'm off the chain.” The regularity of the chain is directly related to the workers’ complaints of monotony and tiring work; but the chain’s regularity is also related to the high bonus which the workers make.

1960, Vincent Purcell, Blue Collar Man: Patterns of Dual Allegiance in Industry Theodore, Harvard University Press, page 100:

The morose Ed Wilshot poured himself another drink and mumbled something about taking three weeks off the chain and heading south for some sunshine.

1966, Helen MacInnes, The Double Image, Harcourt Inc, page 29:

The head of the prime minister's Indigenous advisory council, Warren Mundine, has suggested the government’s proposed changes to the Racial Discrimination Act will “let people off the chain in regard to bigotry”.

2014 March 26, Gabrielle Chan, “Warren Mundine says changes would let bigots 'off the chain'”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(figurative) Free from work or direct supervision.

2002 October 31, Samaki Walker (interviewee), Howard Beck (journalist), “Lakers Notebook: Walton's Words Make Shaq Stew”, Daily News, Los Angeles
“I saw the ring (Tuesday), and it was just unbelievable. That it was my turn to be one of those select few to achieve the ultimate success. It is, what we say, ‘off the chain.’ So it was really an enjoyable moment.”

“I’ve had celebrities showing up spending a grip in there. I’ve got dancers performing, the whole nine! It's off the chain, Tremel...off the chain. Aren’t you proud of me? Your boy Vic or Vagina, whatever his name is, he’s not making moves like that is he?”

2004, Cher-Rhonda Woodard-Lynk, Between Secrets, Infinity Publishing, →ISBN, page 225:

“T let me tell you that everything was off the chain, they want me to start recording Monday man I can’t wait, dude their stuff is off the chain I mean everything is straight out there.[”]

2005, Kia D. Cole, So Much Drama, iUniverse,, →ISBN, page 77:

When I arrived at the Waldorf I was taken away by its grandeur. The party was located on the 42ⁿᵈ floor in the Tower Suites. The room was completely off the chain. I am so glad that Tracy accepted the invite to go with me and she had a good time. There were a lot of good-looking African men there.

2006, Assuanta Collins, Until the Next Time, Asta Publications, LLC,, →ISBN, page 114:

When I was doing the classical stuff I did a lot of Proms in the Park. Those things get pretty wild, like, off the chain!

2017 May 9, Michael Cragg, quoting Charlotte Church, “Charlotte Church: ‘The Welsh, female Damon Albarn? I’ve been called worse!’”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(originally African-American Vernacular, slang) Crazy and exciting; delirious and wild.

What Pimp was asking me to do was crazy. Off the fuckin' chain. Insane. He was scheming to stick up T.C. and Miss Lady's pool hall so we could pay off G, but a playa like me was getting ready to go to college and put all that two-bit robbing and stealing shit behind me.

2006, Noire [pseudonym], Thug-A-Licious: An Urban Erotic Tale, New York, N.Y.: One World, Ballantine Books, →ISBN, page 27:

(African-American Vernacular, slang) Completely insane; crazy.


all over the shop

While witness was in the shop, a gentleman came running in, and retched all over the shop. He cried out to the boy, "What have you given me here?"

1823, Edmund Burke, “Chronicle, March 1822”, in The Annual Register, or a view of the history, politics, and literature, of the year 1822, volume 64, page 52:

When Cummings was asked if he blamed MPs for the abuse, he replied: “The MPs said we will have a referendum, we will respect the result and then they spent three years swerving all over the shop.

2019 September 26, “Dominic Cummings: delivering Brexit only way to solve abuse of MPs”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

All over the place
all over the place#English

(UK, Australia, informal) All over the place.


of two minds

[Y]ou could not be indifferent to the war, you could not be of two minds about it. And yet—Jimmie Higgins was of two minds! He wanted to beat back the Huns, who had made all this fearful mess; but also he wanted to beat the profiteers who were making messes at home.

1919, Upton Sinclair, chapter 22, in Jimmie Higgins […], Pasadena, Calif.: Upton Sinclair, →OCLC:

I'm of two minds about Vegas. I think Vegas is strange, and I don't know where their water comes from. But as a town and a place for an entertainer, there's . . . no other place you can go to where you can just sit and do six weeks at a time and have your band and your staff be so happy.

2006 May 19, Richard Zoglin, “10 Questions for Bette Midler”, in Time:

(idiomatic) Undecided or unsure; equivocating; conflicted in one's opinions.


at all hours

At all times of the day; around the clock.

It's hard to sleep with the neighbors playing the radio so loud and that dog barking at all hours.

Late into the night or early morning; when people ought to be sleeping.


on the rampage

The rioters went on the rampage and wrecked the town hall.

Stoke were on the rampage but their night was soured by the referee's decision to show Jerome a second yellow card on the stroke of half time.

2011 October 20, Michael da Silva, “Stoke 3 - 0 Macc Tel-Aviv”, in BBC Sport:

(idiomatic) behaving violently or rioting


on the job

Near-synonyms: on the clock; on the case, on it

Unlike your typical office drama, wherein characters’ lives intersect entertainingly both inside and outside work, the premise of Severance rests in the twisted implications of total compartmentalization: What if you could separate out your work memories (and thereby your work self), thereby forming a totally distinct identity while on the job?

April 14 2022, Delia Cai, “Severance, the New York Times’s Twitter Guidelines, and the Forever Illusion of Work-Life Balance”, in Vanity Fair:

(police jargon) Being a police officer, as contrasted with a civilian.


by the bye

Well, remember, I insist on the terms of our agreement; and, by the bye, I believe I shall have occasion to try your obedience this very evening.

1773, Oliver Goldsmith, She Stoops to Conquer:


with a vengeance

With which intolerable pains if the party shriek or cry out, they roar out as loud to him to confess the truth, or else he shall come down with a vengeance.

1651, Samuel Clarke, A General Martyrologie, Underhill (London), ch. 27 "The Original Progress and Practice of the Spanish Inquisition," p. 209

Yes, egad, they are tenacious of reputation with a vengeance, for they don't choose anybody should have a character but themselves!

1777, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The School for Scandal:

It is said, that in the first representation of the Furies of Eschylus, the horror of the spectacle was so great, that several women miscarried; which was indeed pathos with a vengeance.

1779, “Miscellaneous Essays: From Dr. Beattie's Essay on Music and Poetry”, in Edmund Burke, editor, The Annual Register, or a View of the History, Politics, and Literature for the Year 1778, London: Dodsley:

They are fighting Quakers; they are Quakers with a vengeance.

1851 November 14, Herman Melville, chapter 16, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:

From the first, she is the New Woman with a vengeance, loving nothing better than a chair, whisky, cigars and a detective story.

1966 Sep, Charles A. Berst, “Propaganda and Art in Mrs Warren's Profession”, in ELH, volume 33, number 3, page 404:

(idiomatic) With an intense motivation; in an extreme, intense, or violent manner.


by the same token

From token (“evidence, proof”) (obsolete sense).

The petroleum and gas of eastern Ohio, and by the same token, of western Pennsylvania and New York are unquestionably derived from the great shale formation of Devonian and subcarboniforous age that underlies this territory, and they are stored in sandstones overlying or interstratified with these shales."

1886 June 25, Edward Orton, “Petroleum and Natural Gas as Found in Ohio”, in Science, volume 7, number 177, →JSTOR, page 561:

(idiomatic) For a similar reason; in a similar manner; by virtue of the selfsame phenomenon, through its various aspects.


for the record

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-for the record.wav

I will ask you, for the record, to state your name and address.

Now, just for the record, you have served time for drug dealing, haven't you?

During brief courtroom appearances, Pattan restricted his comments for the record to “Guilty, sir” for each of the two counts of the indictment.

2004, John N. Maclean, Fire and Ashes: On the Front Lines Battling Wildfires, Henry Holt and Company, →ISBN, page 13:

For the purpose of being recorded, especially when already known.

tiedoksenne

more idiomatic, to remind someone of something that is already known

The court almost certainly knows your answer to this already, but, for the record, do you plea guilty or not guilty?

I can definitely send you those documents, but you'll need to send the request in writing just for the record.

(by extension) For the purpose of following correct procedure, especially when otherwise redundant and repetitive.

For the record, I think these policies are weird and unnecessary.

Used to emphasize a point in an attempt to make it known or noticed.


off base

A Virginia lawmaker wants to improve off-base living conditions for enlisted troops with families.

2009 September 21, Bill Maze, Bill would expand off-base housing options, retrieved 2010-09-26:

(not comparable, US) Situated or happening outside the boundaries of a military base.

The hippo heard us, and, like a baseball player caught off base, tried to get back to the river.

1907, Richard Harding Davis, chapter 5, in The Congo and Coasts of Africa:

(not comparable, baseball, of a baserunner) Positioned somewhere between the bases, and hence vulnerable to being caught out.

But he's off-base in describing the city as having "record crime" until he took office.

2007 November 27, “The Not-Quite Truth About NYC”, in Newsweek:

(comparable, figuratively, of a person) Mistaken; misguided; somewhat wrong in opinion or judgment.

Verne had been dead for 64 years by the time of the Apollo 11 mission in 1969 and was thus spared the embarrassment of knowing . . . that part of the rocket would be named “Columbia,” not his own ludicrously off-base suggestion, “Columbiad.”

2007 July 20, Bruno Maddox, “Blinded By Science Fictional Reality”, in Discover, retrieved 2010-09-26:

That partisan rhetoric may be heated, but it's not entirely off base.

2010, Kate Pickert, How Health Reform Will Impact Existing Plans," Time, 24 June

(comparable, figuratively, of an action, belief, idea, etc) Incorrect or inappropriate; not properly executed, envisioned, or understood.


by your leave

Sir I weare my weapon for mine owne defence,
And by your leaue will weare it yet a while.

1593, anonymous author, The Life and Death of Iacke Straw […], Act III:

Miſtris Ford, by my troth you are very wel met: / by your leaue good Miſtris.

c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merry Wiues of Windsor”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i], page 40, column 2:

She leaned over and picked up Lightning. "By your leave, your Grace."

1983, Tamora Pierce, Alanna: The First Adventure:

"By your leave, Mr. Turner" […] "By YOUR leave, Mr. Norrington."

2006, Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest:


by the numbers

The origin of this phrase goes back to the American Revolutionary War where a book containing numbered positions for rifle and bayonet practice was used to train soldiers. In the book, each diagram was numbered.

(idiomatic) exactly, precisely, or in a formulaic way.


to a T

The origins of this phrase are uncertain, but it has been observed in print since at least 1693, and likely was around well before that. The possibly related phrase to a tittle is found in a 1607 play, The Woman Hater by Francis Beaumont and John Fletcher ("I'll quote him to a tittle"). The T in the phrase to a T is likely the first letter of a word, with tittle being the most likely source.
* Other theories with little evidence point to golf tees, for their small size; this may have at least influenced the alternative form to a tee. Some speculate a relationship with T-square, a measuring device introduced around the turn of the century. Others claim the expression refers to the correct completion of the letter t by crossing it.
*In print from "Two Years Before the Mast" published in 1840, and, even then, using quotes, refers to the practice of squaring up a yardarm with a mast on a sailing ship such that it made a perpendicular T.

The announcement of the political endorsement was timed to a T.

I hope your Honour will be soon well enough to get down to your country-seat, where,—as your Honour takes so much pleasure in fortification, we could manage this matter to a T.

1759–1767, [Laurence Sterne], The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman, volume (please specify |volume=I to IX), London: […] T. Becket and P. A. Dehondt, […]:

My ſpurrit to a T—My dear child!

1766, George Colman, David Garrick, The Clandestine Marriage, a Comedy. […], London: […] T. Becket and P. A. De Hondt, […]; R[oberts] Baldwin, […]; R. Davis, […]; and T[homas] Davies, […], →OCLC, Act III, scene ii, page 49:

That accounts for my having the dress, but it don't account for the piece that you left sticking to the rose-bush under Mrs. Lander's bed-room winder, which piece I took off that morning, and which piece I matched with the dress after you pitched it at me over them bannisters; it was an awful scragly tear, and it fitted to a T.

1868, Ann Sophia Stephens, Doubly False:

You've sure got everything figured out to a "T", boss!

1964, "On the Trail of the Amazing Spider-Man!" (page 7), Tales to Astonish #57, Marvel Comics

You see I'm six foot one and I'm tons of fun and I dress to a tee

1979, “Rapper’s Delight”, performed by Sugarhill Gang:

(idiomatic) Precisely; exactly; perfectly; with great attention to detail.


on the edge of one's seat

The movie had me on the edge of my seat right from the beginning.

(idiomatic) In suspense; waiting eagerly or anxiously for some resolution.


between a rock and a hard place

en-us-between a rock and a hard place.ogg

en-au-between a rock and a hard place.ogg

Originated in the United States before 1918 in southwest, possibly in connection with mining. Related to the concept of the Ancient Greeks: between Scylla and Charybdis.

After meeting again that afternoon with Donna, Wilbur had advised her that she was indeed between a rock and a hard place. She could not hope to recover and build back the lost business until the suits were settled, and it appeared that the only way to settle the suits without going to court was to liquidate the mortuary assets or tap into the Clifton's personal funds.

2008, David Merde, Beyond Final Arrangements, page 511:

A dish gone awry after adding the wrong ingredient. Chewing your way through this won't be fun, but it will fill you up when you're between a rock and a hard place.

2017 March 3, Nintendo EPD, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Nintendo, description for Rock-Hard Food

(idiomatic) In a difficult and inescapable position.

երկու քարի արանքում (erku kʻari arankʻum, literally “between two stones”)

между чука́ и накова́лнята (meždu čuká i nakoválnjata, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)

μεταξύ σφύρας και άκμωνος (metaxý sfýras kai ákmonos, literally “between the hammer and the anvil”)

μεταξύ Σκύλλας και Χάρυβδης (metaxý Skýllas kai Cháryvdis, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)

板ばさみ (ita-basami, literally “between two boards”)

горе високо, долу длабоко (gore visoko, dolu dlaboko, literally “high above and deep below”)

Husbands, it seems to me, are caught between the Rock of Feminism and the Hard Place of their own marriages […]

If Washington Mutual needs to raise capital quickly, it will very likely find itself between a rock and a hard place, because credit markets have all but closed their doors to troubled banks.

2008 September 11, Eric Dash, Geraldine Fabrikant, “Washington Mutual stock falls on investor fears”, in New York Times, retrieved 2012-08-24:

(idiomatic) Having the choice between two unpleasant or distasteful options; in a predicament or quandary.

أَمامَ خِيارَيْنِ أَحْلاهُمَا مُرّ

having the choice between two unpleasant options

前門の虎、後門の狼 (ぜんもんのとら、こうもんのおおかみ; zenmon no tora, kōmon no ōkami, literally “a tiger at the front gate, a wolf at the back gate”)

ме́жду Сци́ллой и Хари́бдой (méždu Scílloj i Xaríbdoj, literally “between Scylla and Charybdis”)


in layman's terms

Okay, let me explain this in layman's terms.

I would like to get into this $3 million deficit, Doctor. I would like to hear about it in layman's terms rather than accounting terms.

1973, Robert N[icholas] Giaimo, “Projected Deficit for Fiscal Year 1972”, in District of Columbia Appropriations for 1973, part 1, page 954:

“In layman’s terms, he transitioned from the high performance climb to the Split S too low and too fast, and by not deselecting his afterburners during the maneuver, he continued to accelerate,” according to the Navy investigation’s report. “The net effect of these deviations was that the aircraft was simply too low and too fast to avoid impacting the ground.”

2016 September 15, Dan Lamothe, “After investigation, Navy’s Blue Angels will stop using maneuver that killed a pilot”, in The Washington Post:

Aragón started at Clemson in 2016 and is well-known for her research into dimorphous expressions, which in layman’s terms are strangely negative responses to positive events, like crying tears of joy or seeing a puppy so cute you want to squeeze it or a baby so cute you want to smoosh its face.

2019 March 18, Ken Scar, “From jazz singer to Ph.D.: Clemson marketing professor Oriana Aragón blazed her own path to success”, in Clemson University Relations, Media Release, archived from the original on 2020-12-01:

(idiomatic) Phrased simply, without jargon.


of all people

You of all people have most need of perfect love; because this alone casts out fear

1839, The works of the Reverend John Wesley, A.M.:

What have you, of all people in the world, got to do with it?

(idiomatic) Especially; more than other people


aan de slag

De vrijwilligers waren al vroeg aan de slag gegaan om alles op tijd in gereedheid te krijgen.

The volunteers had already started working early to get everything ready in time.


like a cat in a strange garret

Well, mass'r, I can't say for Lucinda and Dinah, but I should feel like a cat in a strange garret.

1851 June – 1852 April, Harriet Beecher Stowe, Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life among the Lowly, volume (please specify |volume=I or II), Boston, Mass.: John P[unchard] Jewett & Company; Cleveland, Oh.: Jewett, Proctor & Worthington, published 20 March 1852, →OCLC:

1862 Annual Report of the Secretary of the Vermont Board of Education
Mothers cannot conveniently leave home to get about, and fathers, to use their own expression, "feel like a cat in a strange garret," when screwed up in one of the seats to the school house.

(US, simile) Having a feeling of uncertainty and misapprehension due to being in an unfamiliar situation.


behind the counter

(idiomatic, pharmacology, medicine) Of drugs, dispensed by a pharmacist without needing a doctor's prescription or other form of compliance.


to hell in a handbasket

Images in church iconography suggest similar phrases may date back to 1515. The first attestation is from 1682, the variation to hell in a handcart is attested since 1841, and a phrase similar to to heaven in a wheelbarrow is first attested in 1618. The popularity of the variation "to hell in a handbasket" may be connected to its alliteration.

I watched as the guy in charge did nothing and the whole place went to hell in a handbasket.

Ralph's close vision had deteriorated quite a bit since Carolyn’s death—gone to hell in a handbasket might actually have been a more accurate way of putting it—and he had to lean forward until his brow was pressed against the dirty show window of Secondhand Rose, Secondhand Clothes before he could decipher it: […]

Gen Xers were said to be lazy—“slackers” in the parlance of the time—who didn’t exhibit the straightforward work ethic of their predecessors. […] Commentators wrung their hands about the slackers in our midst, further evidence that society was going to hell in a handbasket.

2010, Clay Shirky, Cognitive Surplus, page 121:

(idiomatic, informal) To go to a bad state of affairs quickly.

menossa päin helvettiä

To go to a bad state of affairs, to become ruined


on the market

The Aberdeen-Ballater line station house, complete with a non-authentic signal, is on the market for £225,000.

2021 June 30, Howard Johnston, “Regional News: Scotland: Crathes”, in RAIL, number 934, page 31:

During a real estate auction: going to be sold at that auction, i.e. the bid has reached the vendor's reserve.

(of a person) single; not in a committed romantic relationship or otherwise unavailable.


until hell freezes over

He can continue to be hard on himself until hell freezes over, because he's so self-centeredly pessimistic that there's nothing I can ever do to lighten him up.

They can be bellyaching to me about their life's problems until hell freezes over, but it doesn't mean that they'll ever get my sympathy.

I am prepared to wait for my answer until hell freezes over.

(idiomatic) forever; without success, no matter how long one perseveres.


off one's dot

1912, Katherine Mansfield, The Woman at the Store, from "Selected Short Stories"
"Gone a bit off 'er dot", he whispered […]

(idiomatic, British, colloquial, humorous) Mad; insane.


in glass

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-in glass.wav

Based upon the custom in modern offices of having senior management in glass-walled offices or cubicles, unlike lesser members of the company.

(slang) Belonging to a management level, as in a contemporary office hierarchy.


against time

Relative to a deadline rather than a competitor.


at one time

At one time, I could walk ten miles in a day, but I can't any longer.

But despite its plague of tunnels, the run-in on this route is of unusual interest to the locomotive enthusiast: besides the hordes of self-important saddle-tanks shunting in the extensive yards, there was at one time the chance of seeing those slender little North London engines, with their large outside cylinders and no visible storage place for coal, and also an occasional South Eastern locomotive sporting a lot of polished brass.

1951 October, R. S. McNaught, “Lines of Approach”, in Railway Magazine, page 704:

A bigamist has two spouses at one time.


at a time

individually

antonym(s) of “simultaneously at each occurrence”

He manages to abstain from smoking for weeks at a time, but then gives in and starts again.

climb stairs two at a time

The Celebrity, by arts unknown, induced Mrs. Judge Short and two other ladies to call at Mohair on a certain afternoon when Mr. Cooke was trying a trotter on the track.[…]Their example was followed by others at a time when the master of Mohair was superintending in person the docking of some two-year-olds, and equally invisible.

1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter IV, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, pages 58–59:

Simultaneously at each occurrence (of some action).


in time

behind time

antonym(s) of “at or before the time assigned”

late

antonym(s) of “sufficiently early (for)”

If I don't leave now, I won't get to work in time.

You've got here in time for tea — I was just making some.

But out of sight is out of mind. And that[…]means that many old sewers have been neglected and are in dire need of repair. If that repair does not come in time, the result is noxious and potentially hazardous.

2014 June 14, “It's a gas”, in The Economist, volume 411, number 8891:

In time, it got easier to deal with her death.

The door of the twins' room opposite was open; a twenty-watt night-light threw a weak yellow glow into the passageway. David could hear the twins breathing in time with each other.

1994, Stephen Fry, chapter 2, in The Hippopotamus:

tahdissa

at the same rhythm as (with someone/something)


at the same time

I bid him come towards me and give me his letter, at the same time throwing down, carelessly, a book I had in my hands.

1749, [John Cleland], “(Please specify the letter or volume)”, in Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure [Fanny Hill], London: […] [Thomas Parker] for G. Fenton [i.e., Fenton and Ralph Griffiths] […], →OCLC:

However, with the dainty volume my quondam friend sprang into fame. At the same time he cast off the chrysalis of a commonplace existence.

1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter I, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:

At the same time, it is pouring money into cleaning up the country.

2013 August 10, “Can China clean up fast enough?”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8848:

فِي نَفْس اَلْوَقْت

simultaneously — see also at once, simultaneously

On the other hand (introducing an opposing viewpoint).


by chance

I stumbled across the exit by chance.

Unexpectedly, accidentally; without foreplanning.

Are you by chance looking for the exit?


to scale

The one-metre-long model of the Bismarck was built exactly to scale, with moving turrets.

Maps of the solar system are often not drawn to scale due to the vast distances between the planets.

Drawn, designed or constructed such that each dimension has the same proportion to the original.


on impulse

Without prior consideration; spontaneously, impulsively


off the table

We will take no options off the table to achieve that goal.

Diplomatic hogwash aside, ‘efficiency and effectiveness’ have nothing to do with the shutting of the Consulate. The decision is but a continuation of successive US measures aimed at “taking Jerusalem off the table” – as per Trump’s own words - of any future negotiations.

2019 March 14, Ramzy Baroud, “Chasing mirages: What are Palestinians doing to combat ‘Deal of the Century’?”, in Ma'an News, archived from the original on 2019-03-30:

That’s why virtually nothing should be off the table this offseason, including the idea of improving at quarterback.

2023 April 5, Jeff Howe, “In Belichick’s pursuit of glory, nothing is off the table, even idea of trading Mac Jones”, in The Athletic:


across the pond

/əˌkɹɒs ðə ˈpɒnd/

/əˌkɹɔs ðə ˈpɑnd/

/əˈkɹɑs ðə ˈpɑnd/

From across + the + pond (“(informal) the Atlantic Ocean”).

My friend across the pond sometimes finds my accent hard to understand.

We flew across the pond to visit my parents in Vancouver.

(informal) On or to the other side of the Atlantic Ocean.

rapakon taakse

(informal) on or to the other side of the Atlantic Ocean


to the max

(informal, slang, postpositive, idiomatic) To a great degree or extent; very.

(informal, slang, postpositive, idiomatic) To the maximum possible degree or extent.

a palla

to the maximum possible degree or extent


in a bake

O, Dedalus, he cried, Doyle is in a great bake about you.

1916 December 29, James Joyce, A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man, New York, N.Y.: B[enjamin] W. Huebsch, →OCLC:


at issue

The point at issue is whether we can afford to take on a new employee.


in principle

With regard to the fundamentals, but not to the particulars.


at cross-purposes

(idiomatic) Mutually misunderstanding each other's plans, intentions or meanings.


off the rails

Suggesting the derailment of a locomotive.

The train did not come off the rails and nobody was injured.

2024 February 21, “Safety changes recommended after train hits collapsed wall”, in RAIL, number 1003, page 19:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see off, rail.

(idiomatic) In an abnormal manner, especially in a manner that causes damage or malfunctioning

... but the plan came off the rails when infuriated Communists called it "ideological provocation" and warned against "kindling political confrontation

2009 July 13, Ed Bentley, “Lenin 1, Tsar Nicholas 0 – but Sheremetyevo-3”, in Moscow News:

"The DfT appears to have put things on a firmer footing, but the path is littered with cautionary tales of transport projects that later went off the rails.

2022 August 10, Mel Holley, “Network News: Question marks over TransPennine upgrade spending”, in RAIL, number 963, page 24:

I reckon it's pretty astonishing that none of us did go off the rails. There really was no telling how any of us would deal with the pressures and the fame.

2009 July 10, Jenny Johnston, “You won't catch us going to rehab: So have the young stars of Harry Potter turned into superbrats?”, in Daily Mail:


under erasure

1904, W. O. E. Oesterley, "The Old Latin Texts of the Minor Prophets", in The Journal of Theological Studies, Clarendon Press, page 94,
fol. 66 b l. 13 the letters under erasure were something like cacis.

1963, in Journal of the History of Philosophy, University of California Press, page 192,
It is not unlike Derrida’s device of writing under erasure in which a term of metaphysics is used at the same time that it is cancelled out.

1987, Marjorie B. Garber, Shakespeare's Ghost Writers: Literature As Uncanny Causality, Routledge, →ISBN, page 179,
A concept is said to be “under erasure” when it is put in question or under critique. This signifying practice, employed by Martin Heidegger and, after him, by Jacques Derrida and other deconstructive critics, is described by Gayatri Spivak as “to write a word, cross it out, and then print both word and deletion. (Since the word is inaccurate, it is crossed out. Since it is necessary, it remains legible.)”

1997, Shannon Bell, "On ne peut voir l’image [The image cannot be seen]", in Brenda Cossman, Bad Attitude/s on Trial: pornography, feminism, and the Butler decision, University of Toronto Press, →ISBN, page 216,
What is under erasure in the discussion of justice in the original position is all knowledge of the features that distinguish one person from another.

2006, Gordon Teskey, Delirious Milton: The Fate of the Poet in Modernity, Harvard University Press, →ISBN, page 59,
It was to acknowledge this difficulty that Heidegger proposed in Zur Seinsfrage (1955) to write “Being” under erasure, so that the visible crossing-out of the word would display its negation as an act taking place within time.

(idiomatic) Of a piece of text, written and struck through; hence, figuratively in some sense both present and absent.


in heaven's name

What in heaven's name are you doing?

Who in heaven's name told you to do that?

Where in heaven's name are my darn shoes?

In heaven’s name, get your hair out of his face! I pushed my hair behind my ears.

2017 March, Jacky Dahlhaus, “Freedom”, in Raising a Vampire (Suckers; 2), 2nd edition, Folla Fiction Publishing, →ISBN, page 256:

(idiomatic) An intensifier, chiefly used with questions.


off the mark

His answers are consistently off the mark. None of them quite make sense.

Whatever the outcome, Fleet Street's introspective pundits will say: "I told you so", and make dire predictions for the future, which are likely to be off the mark.

2014 September 8, Michael White, “Roll up, roll up! The Amazing Salmond will show a Scotland you won't believe”, in The Guardian:

(figuratively) Inaccurate; not correct or appropriate.

Sarafov was the first off the mark, but the other divisions did not jump off until an hour later and achieved nothing.

2017, E. R. Hooton, Prelude to the First World War: The Balkan Wars 1912-1913, page iv:

Making a start (generally in comparison to others).


off board

(idiomatic) Not on or in a means of transportation.


in service

(chiefly British) Employed as a domestic servant.

About 20,600 Vélib’ bicycles are in service here, with more than 1,450 self-service rental stations.

2008 July 13, Steven Erlanger, “A New Fashion Catches on in Paris: Cheap Bicycle Rentals”, in New York Times:

(chiefly US and Canada) Available for use; operational.


in the altogether

Hearing that his wife was posing in the altogether for the great Spanish satirist, the Duke of Alba swore that he would paint Goya's picture in Goya's blood.

Last week, a Cleveland news anchor, Sharon Reed, was caught on camera stripping nude and joining a gaggle of other people in the altogether.

2004 November 25, David Carr, “When a TV Talking Head Becomes a Talking Body”, in New York Times, retrieved 2008-09-16:


with bated breath

/wɪð ˈbeɪtɪd ˈbɹɛθ/

From the verb bate, alteration by aphesis of the verb abate (“to reduce; lessen”). Coined by William Shakespeare in The Merchant of Venice, see quotations.

Shall I bend low, and in a bond-mans key / With bated breath, and whiſpring humbleneſſe, / Say this:

c. 1596–1598 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Merchant of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii], page 166, column 2:

[…] with parted lips and bated breath the audience hung upon his words, taking no note of time, rapt in the ghastly fascinations of the tale.

1876, Mark Twain [pseudonym; Samuel Langhorne Clemens], chapter XXIII, in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Hartford, Conn.: The American Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 187:

Speak gently, Ο my son, speak gently now / With 'bated breath^([sic]), speak low.

1878, Edward Hayes Plumptre, transl., Philoctetes, lines 845–846:

The Professor, the master, the supreme chief, he who had to be addressed with bated breath sat with half-opened mouth and staring eyes, leaning forward in his chair, while in front of him the slight young woman shaking her mop of brown hair and wagging an admonitory forefinger, spoke to him as a father speaks to a refractory child.

1925 July – 1926 May, A[rthur] Conan Doyle, “In which Challenger Meets a Strange Colleague”, in The Land of Mist (eBook no. 0601351h.html), Australia: Project Gutenberg Australia, published April 2019:

We are waiting with bated breath for the release of the new version.

(idiomatic) Eagerly; with great anticipation.


under the impression

We opened a store in Beijing under the impression that our product would be popular.

Under the impression he was about to be fired, he decided to quit.

(idiomatic, followed by a clause) Thinking or making assumptions, often incorrectly.


like taking candy from a baby

Taking the money from the safe will be like taking candy from a baby, since I know the combination.


over the hill

Mrs. Joiner is over the hill.

(of a person, idiomatic) Old, past the prime of life.


on the warpath

Last year a committee of the Federal Council of the Churches of Christ in America issued a report guardedly approving Birth Control. […] [M]any Presbyterians heartily disapproved. Last week the Presbyterian General Assembly met in Denver with Philadelphia's Rev. H. McAllister Griffiths and a corps of Fundamentalists on the warpath.

1932 June 6, “Religion: Churches v. Council”, in Time, archived from the original on 2010-10-27:

Boating enthusiasts, walkers and others who enjoy relaxing by canals were on the warpath last night after British Waterways announced plans to cut 180 staff.

2006 October 11, Colin Brown, “Fears grow for waterways as canal jobs are cut”, in The Independent:

But BBC executives say they could never have predicted the latest programme to send Chinese officials on the warpath: the corporation's far-fetched spy drama Spooks.

2010 November 11, Helen Pidd, Mark Sweney, Tania Branigan, “Taking Spooks seriously: Beijing on the warpath over BBC spy drama”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(idiomatic) Very angry or upset and eager for confrontation.


in broad daylight

A fireball hurtled across the southern Tucson sky in broad daylight Saturday morning.

2008 August 23, Shelley Shelton, “Streaking fireball a vivid spectacle in daytime sky”, in Arizona Daily Star, Tucson, Ariz., archived from the original on 2008-09-07:

In ample natural illumination, during the daytime.

'But surely,' protested Peter half-heartedly, 'he couldn't carry on a racket like that in broad daylight and get away with it?'

1934, Leslie Charteris, “The Uncritical Publisher”, in Ian Dickerson, editor, The Saint Intervenes, London: Mulholland Books, published 2013, →ISBN, page 125:

It's still too dangerous for the wife of a journalist who was murdered in the street in broad daylight.

2008 January 24, Brian Benntt, “When Iraqis Come to America”, in Time, New York, N.Y.: Time Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC:

(figurative) In a blatant and publicly visible manner during the day.

օրը ցերեկով

in a blatant and publicly visible manner


below par

Steve Gerrard, unusually, had a below-par night, too, even if it was a lovely delivery to set up Welbeck to make it 2-2 with a glancing header.

14 August 2013, Daniel Taylor, “Rickie Lambert's debut goal gives England victory over Scotland”, in The Guardian:

(idiomatic) Not up to the average or normal standard.

(golf) (of a score) Less than par for the hole or course (which in golf, means better than par).

(of a financial instrument) Having a price below its face value.


under par

Yet another seriously under-par performance is unlikely to provide any real answers to their remarkable plummet in form - but it proves they can at least churn out a much-needed result.

2010 December 29, Chris Whyatt, “Chelsea 1 - 0 Bolton”, in BBC:


on the right track

I don't think he has the final answer just yet, but he seems to be on the right track.

She looked at me with that familiar desire
Her eyes lit up like they were on fire
She said, "My name's Flo, and you're on the right track,
But look here, daddy, I wear furs on my back,
So if you want to have fun in this man's land,
Let Lincoln and Jackson start shaking hands."

And there was perhaps a good sign when I took the last train of the day back from Derby to London recently. The service started late from Sheffield, because it was held to wait for a connection. Now, it may be that this was common practice for that service, but it does represent the way that railways should be run. Anyway, I took it as a sign that (just possibly) that railways are on the right track.

2024 August 7, Christian Wolmar, “Labour in a hurry to implement changes on the railway”, in RAIL, number 1015, page 43:

Using the correct general approach to a particular task or problem; pursuing something in a promising way.


out-of-the-box

While SharePoint can offer users more than just a collaboration tool or a content repository and offers several out-of-the-box features, there are still some improvements that could make the difference in terms of user adoption.

2014, “SharePoint 2013 out-of-the-box features”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name) (HTML), TechTarget, archived from the original on 2014-10-21:

Alternative form of out of the box (especially in attributive use)


off the shelf

After the war, the invaluable experience gained with mass production of the TP engines saw Davey Paxman in a favourable position to supply such units almost "off the shelf", a facility found to be of great value by oil companies engaged in well-drilling; [...].

1964 May, R. K. Evans, “The Ventura—Paxman's high-speed engine”, in Modern Railways, page 328:

Stadler Project Manager Matthias Hammerle explained: "These trains for the Liverpool City Region are not 'off the shelf' but have been tailored to a very specific brief."


on firecall

On call, with regard to a firefighter or unit.


by one's own hand

Like too many deeply depressed people, she died by her own hand.

He gained all his wealth by his own hand.

Since his death by his own hand in France, in 2018, there’s been a steady drip of books and documentaries and television specials and magazine one-offs about his life and career.

2022 October 3, Dwitght Garner, “Anthony Bourdain’s New Biography: Light on Subtlety, Heavy on Grit”, in The New York Times:

(idiomatic) As a result of one's own actions, especially with reference to death by suicide.


in color

Using colour/color (or hue) as opposed to shades of grey/gray.


around the bend

Despite some opposition from other staff members, Navasky and Pochoda decided to publish Sherrill's stylish and daring tone-poem, in which AIDS falls with poetic justice upon the right-wing Roy Cohn. Pochoda calls this "fresh" and "on the edge?" I'd call it rotten and around the bend, as tired and crazed as Reverend Falwell.

1988 December 25, Scott Tucker, “Clarifying The Nation's Ethics And Policies”, in Gay Community News, volume 16, number 24, page 5:

Judge John Pickering had clearly gone around the bend, often presiding over his court while drunk.

2003, Joyce Oldham Appleby, Arthur Meier Schlesinger, Thomas Jefferson, Times Books, page 208:

It was the longest hour of my life. I couldn't stand it. I thought I would go completely around the bend.

2007 November, Gil Schwartz, “Escape from the job monster”, in Men's Health, volume 22, number 9, →ISSN, page 122:

Alternative form of round the bend (crazy, insane).


in thunderation

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-in thunderation.wav

How in thunderation could anyone anticipate a result like this?

Where in thunderation have you been?

Why in thunderation should I believe anything you say?

There is no way in thunderation that I'm going to that wedding.

(US, colloquial) In any set of circumstances whatsoever.


be that as it may

Be that as it may, the duty of all communicants lies plain.

1732, Henry Grove, A Discourse concerning the Nature and Design of the Lord's Supper, 1753 Charles Wright edition, London, p. 37 (Google preview)

But be that as it may, the principle of it is founded in truth.

1776, William Combe, The Diaboliad: A Poem. Dedicated to the Worst Man in His Majesty's Dominions, London: G. Kearsly, page 14:

We English people, be that as it may, have among us the best nursing for love and the worst nursing for money that can be got in Europe.

1858 June 12, Charles Dickens, Household Words, number 429, page 602:

It has frequently been asserted in the Indian press that the United States does not understand India's position. . . . Be that as it may, it is certainly true that some sectors of Indian opinion likewise do not adequately understand the motives of the United States.

1953 May 24, “Mr Dulles Visits South Asia”, in New York Times, page E10:

"They seem to think I'm photogenic." Be that as it may, and Rollins surely is a striking figure, his music and only his music matters.

2005 June 23, Mark Miller, “No rest for this elder statesman of jazz”, in The Globe and Mail, Toronto, Canada, page R3:

(idiomatic) Even if that is the case; whether that is true or not; nevertheless.


on good terms

(idiomatic) being friendly; having good relations.


out of gas

The lawnmower was out of gas so he decided to let the grass grow.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see out of, gas.: lacking fuel.

After twelve hours straight at the office, he was about out of gas and decided to go home and rest.

(Canada, US, idiomatic) Tired; lacking energy or motivation.


in so many words

In so many words, he asked me to give him the answers to the test.

He said he liked you. At least, not in so many words, but that was the idea.

"I never asked you to get that drug," he said.
"Not in so many words," she said.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Well, a fat lot of fun we were going to have without it."

2001, Jonathan Franzen, The Corrections:

Verbatim; using exactly the given words.


in hospital

(chiefly UK) In a hospital as a patient.


in the hospital

(Canada, US, idiomatic) Admitted as a patient in a hospital.


in a flash

It happened so fast that it was all over in a flash.

Therefore its completeness, though instantaneous, was total. His realisation was in a flash, but it did not vanish like a flash.

1987, “Sri Ramanasramam Charities”, in Mountain Path, volume 24, page 152:

“I bet you want to come and live here in this big house in the lap of luxury with me and Biggie, don’t you?”
“NO,” replied the boy in a flash.

2017, David Walliams [pseudonym; David Edward Williams], Bad Dad, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, →ISBN:

(idiomatic) Instantaneously; very quickly; in almost no time.


at Her Majesty's pleasure

The Governor serves at Her Majesty's pleasure.

The murderer was imprisoned at Her Majesty's pleasure.

(law, of a position notionally granted or imposed by a queen) indefinitely; for an arbitrary period determined by the monarch or her government (especially for indefinite tenure or imprisonment)

He spent two years at Her Majesty's pleasure.


from soup to nuts

From the order of courses in a formal full course dinner, which typically begins with soup and ends with a dessert such as nuts.

(US) From the first course of a meal to the last.

od predjela do deserta

from the first course of the meal to the last

We went through the whole agenda, from soup to nuts.

[That cat] is a broken reed to lean on in the matter of catching mice. My own acquaintance with him is a longstanding one, and I have come to know his psychology from soup to nuts. He hasn't caught a mouse since he was a slip of a kitten. Except when eating, he does nothing but sleep.

1960, P. G. Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing, chapter VII:

(idiomatic, US) From beginning to end; throughout.


to death

bleed to death

freeze to death

beat to death

There was doubt and bewilderment about what had actually happened in Dallas on November 22, 1963, and the uncertainty was compounded two days later when Lee Harvey Oswald was shot to death while in the custody of the Dallas police.

1971, Lyndon Johnson, “"I feel like I have already been here a year"”, in The Vantage Point, Holt, Reinhart & Winston, →ISBN, →LCCN, →OCLC, pages 18–19:

(literally) Until death occurs; so as to cause or result in death.

I was bored to death in that meeting.

1. Let us go to the wood, says this pig; 2. What to do there? says that pig; 3. To look for my mother, says this pig; 4. What to do with, her? says that pig; 5. Kiss her to death, says this pig.

“Do you know its two, and the man is to call for us at three with the boat, and the supper is cooked to death.”

1843, Theodore S. Fay, chapter X, in Hoboken: A Romance of New York, volume 2, New York: Harper & Brothers, page 59:

He had run two miles, through the woods, to see the new baby. There were more wild-cats than babies in the woods of Kentucky. Besides, this baby was his cousin. He said that he was "tickled to death" to have a boy cousin.

1915, Eleanor Stackhouse Atkinson, The How and Why Library:

Are we to be crucified just to save the faces of our leaders or to bolster up the preposterous that India can be a single nation? Is it with a view to achieve a compromise at all costs, or is it to support the illusion that Hindu nationalism is working in the interests of Muslims as well as Hindus? Irony is flattered to death by a mental muddle of such a nature and on such a scale.

1933, Choudhary Rahmat Ali et al., Now or Never; Are We to Live or Perish Forever?:

Now, though, it was six-thirty—high time for them both to be back, whatever the trouble— and a roast cooking to death in the oven.

1948, Albert E. Idell, The Great Blizzard, New York: Henry Holt and Company, page 174:

She giggled furiously, the bosom in violent action. “Ah'm gonna love it to death here.”

1967, Trudy Baker, Rachel Jones, Donald Bain (uncredited), Coffee, Tea, or Me?: The Uninhibited Memoirs of Two Airline Stewardesses, New York: Bantam Books, page 9:

1989 December 25, U.S. government Foreign Broadcast Information Service (translator), Transcript of the closed trial of Nicolae and Elena Ceauşescu (translated transcript of trial shown on Romanian and Austrian television),
So far, they have always claimed that we have built this country, we have paid our debts, but with this they bled the country to death and have hoarded enough money to ensure their escape.

The slow cooker demands less involvement on your part […] There are foods -- chicken, for example -- that you can overcook, but as long as you choose things that you want to cook to death anyway, it isn't going to happen.

2003 March 1, Mark Bittman, “Slow and Low Is the Way to Go”, in New York Times:

"I don't want to revisit his view and my view about whether I should have retired and who said what then," he told ABC Radio.
"That's been done to death."

2010 October 27, “Howard says leader[s]hip row 'done to death'”, in The Sydney Morning Herald:

(degree, hyperbolic) To a great degree; to the greatest degree possible, to excess.


near the knuckle

So near the knuckle, I wonder they got past the censor.

1972, Nikolái Vasílievich Gógol, Diary of a Madman and Other Stories:

“But . . . Laser Lass is just . . . banging!”
Stifling a giggle and deciding this must be some masculine epithet she hadn't come across before, Evey gave the handcart a shove and went on her way. After all, "banging" wasn't anything that was shown on TV these days, even if some of Gordon Deitrich's shows did get pretty near the knuckle sometimes.

It's raw, this kind of work, and near the knuckle: unsupported by music, lighting, video screen, it's just you and them, you and them and the dead, […]

(British, informal) Risqué, sexual, suggestive of impropriety.


out of practice

I don't think I can play a tune on the piano any more; I'm completely out of practice.

(of a person) Diminished in proficiency, especially in exercising a skill, due to disuse or a lack of recent experience.

desadestrado

(of a person) diminished in proficiency, especially in exercising a skill, due to disuse or a lack of recent experience


in the twinkling of an eye

From Middle English in the twynklyng of an iȝe, in þe twynklynk of an eiȝe, from the Bible, 1 Corinthians 15:52: We shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.

inh

2007 April 28, Hugh Muir, The Guardian:
All my dreams for him have been cut short in the twinkling of an eye. Why was my son murdered?


at first blush

From an obsolete sense of blush meaning to glance at.

The finer and more distinctive features of a land require deep study and long acquaintance, but the broader traits of nationality are caught in an instant, or not caught at all. Familiarity with, destroys them, and it is only at first blush that we learn to appreciate them with force.

1843, Charles James Lever, Jack Hinton, the Guardsman:

At first blush it appears rather strange to consider for even a moment the possibility that corporate financial and business disclosure rises to the dignity of speech protected by the First Amendment.

1990, Nicolas Wolfson, Corporate First Amendment: Rights and the Sec, Quorum Books, →ISBN, page 1:

Third, it is only at first blush that one finds no exercises in conceptual elucidation

2002, Clarence A. Bonnen, Daniel E. Flage, Descartes and Method: A Search for a Method in Meditations, page 100:

That may sound innocent at first blush, but a phrase like "American leadership is good … for the world" is a signal that these people want to impose their will on others; and when military strength and moral principle are added, the caution flag must be raised.

2008, Dennis Martin Altman, The First Liberal: A Secular Look at Jesus' Socio-Political Ideas and How They Become the Basis of Modern Liberalism, iUniverse, →ISBN, page 47:

At first blush it seemed the attacks by the werewolf were random.

2012, Cynthia Garner, Secret of the Wolf, Forever, →ISBN:

(idiomatic) Upon first impression or consideration; seemingly, apparently, ostensibly.


out the window

Women can run, blacks can run, all sorts of people can run. We didn't think people like that could win in years past. That conventional wisdom is out the window now. That's good news.

1990 June 8, “Newshour”, in PBS Newshour:

it's bad for principles that we thought were the basis for post Cold War security -- for example, non-aggression, pluralism, tolerance, things of that kind, and they 're out the window now. I mean this- this framework, for these principles, are the antithesis of principles that we allegedly were backing over the last 45 years of the Cold War.

1995 September 9, “Aspects of the Bosnian Agreement are Discussed”, in NPR_Weekend:

It is a total, consuming quest to run for president of the United States, and to be president of the United States. You have to realize that privacy is out the window.

1995 November 3, “Nightline”, in ABC Nightline:

They're part a formal letter, part some type of dialogue. So, what are the rules? Is it okay to throw formality out the window? Does spelling matter?

2007 April 13, “"SEND"; Etiquette Guide for Using E-mail (review)”, in ABC_GMA:

(idiomatic, colloquial) Made obsolete; altered drastically as a result of situational change.

Life had gone out the window and scampered off.

2011, David Seaman, The Real Meaning of Life, page 178:

(idiomatic, colloquial) Gone; departed; disappeared.


aan de gang

/aːn də ˈɣɑŋ/


for all intents and purposes

1500s, English law, originally “to all intents, constructions, and purposes” (found in an act adopted under Henry VIII in 1547).

For all intents and purposes the case is closed.

This treaty, for all intents and purposes, is no longer viable.

For every functional purpose; in every practical sense; in every important respect


to this end

To this end, I have started the "Save the Penguins Fund."

To achieve the previously specified goal.


in all likelihood

I can now conjecture readily that this streak of light was, in all likelihood, a gleam from a lantern carried by some one across the lawn.

1847, Charlotte Bronte, chapter 2, in Jane Eyre:

[I]f your prospective school is proudly displaying that "We Are Outstanding" banner on its perimeter fence . . . do bear in mind that in all likelihood it has been awarded for results in those two subjects, rather than for its delivery of a broad and balanced curriculum.

2014 September 23, A teacher, “Choosing a primary school: a teacher's guide for parents”, in The Guardian:


off one's face

I try as much as possible not to judge other parents, but when, after midnight, you see a baby in ear defenders being hauled in a cart through a crowd of adults, all of whom are off their faces, while the infant cowers under a blanket, it doesn’t really seem in their best interests.

2023 June 30, Rhiannon Lucy Cosslett, “I’ll never be a true hippie parent, but I can learn a lot from summer festival-goers”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(slang) Extremely intoxicated, either by alcohol or drugs.


like a kid in a candy store

(simile) Extremely excited as a result of having many options to choose from.


OCONUS

(chiefly military) Acronym of outside [the] contiguous United States; i.e. Alaska, Hawaii, the US territories, and all other countries.


for fake

1990, Beverley Gasner, Girls at Lighthouse Point, Dutton, →ISBN, page 161,
“ […] and Justin just kept mumbling to him, ‘Go away, go away, I want to sleep.’”
“For real?”
“For fake is what I think. But I don’t know […] ”

2001, Niobia Bryant, Three Times a Lady, Kensington Books, →ISBN, page 283,
“True,” Jordan said as he switched lanes effortlessly. “We’re staying in a renovated Victorian castle sitting on the edge of a lake.”
“For real?” he asked, some interest now evident.
“No, for fake,” Jordan joked. “Trust me, son. We’re gonna have fun.”

2004, Debbie Gardner and Mike Gardner, Raising Kids Who Can Protect Themselves, McGraw-Hill Professional, →ISBN, page 64,
Sometimes, young children have learned they can delay their bedtime by creating false monsters and ghosts for attention. […] What the child learns besides delaying bedtime is, “It feels good to hide my eyes, get a big hug and lots of loving attention when I am afraid for real and for fake.”

2006, John Lawton, A Little White Death, Atlantic Monthly Press, →ISBN, page 97,
Head nodding gently, knees crossed, all but tapping his foot to the human rhythm as though the groans and moans of coitus – for real or for fake – were more a concert on the Third Programme than a Home Servicing.


per iscritto

Tante volte ripetuta in quelle argute opinioni che metteva per iscritto opponendosi a certe decisioni della Corte Suprema.

2020 September 19, Anna Lombardi, “Usa, addio a Ruth Bader Ginsburg, giudice icona liberal della Corte Suprema. Le sue ultime volontà: "Sostituitemi dopo le elezioni" [US, farewell to Ruth Bader Ginsburg, iconic libera judge of the Supreme Court. Her last wishes: "Replace me after the elections"]”, in la Repubblica:

Many times repeated in those pointed opinions that she put in writing, opposing certain decisions of the Supreme Court.


for all intrinsic purposes

Alteration of for all intents and purposes, by malapropism.

for all intents and purposes
for all intents and purposes#English

Eggcorn of for all intents and purposes.


wie die Ölsardinen

packed like sardines
packed like sardines


uit het hoofd

Literally, “out of/from the head”. Compare German aus dem Kopf and French de tête.

iets uit het hoofd leren


as anything

He went over to Nuncombe Putney, as sure as anything;—hired Mrs. Clegg's chaise and pair, and asked for Mrs Trevelyan's house as open as anything.

1869 May, Anthony Trollope, “Dartmoor”, in He Knew He Was Right, volume I, London: Strahan and Company, […], →OCLC, page 122:

The heroine had five lovers. I'd be satisfied with one, wouldn't you? She was very handsome and she went through great tribulations. She could faint as easy as anything. I'd love to be able to faint, wouldn't you, Marilla? It's so romantic.

1908 June, L[ucy] M[aud] Montgomery, “The Delights of Anticipation”, in Anne of Green Gables, Boston, Mass.: L[ouis] C[oues] Page & Company, published August 1909 (11th printing), →OCLC, page 130:

[...] he'll be as sorry as anything, he'll put it right.

1998, Maeve Binchy, Tara Road, Dell, →ISBN, page 260:

(simile) To a great degree or extent; very.


out of condition

If you don't keep doing excercise in summer, you will find you are out of condition when the new season starts.

Not fit. Not healthy enough to do any hard, physical work or sport.


in condition

Ellipsis of in a good or appropriate condition.

I was not yet in condition, according to the doctors.

He was getting in condition for the race.

The car is in condition to win the race.

In a state suitable for an intended task.


on a whim

Germany’s government said press freedom must not be switched “on and off on a whim” and Downing Street also raised concerns over the suspensions.

2022 December 16, Dan Milmo, Rowena Mason, Alex Hern, “Twitter’s suspension of journalists sets ‘dangerous precedent’, UN warns”, in The Guardian:

(idiomatic) Without thinking seriously about the consequences.

心血來潮

without thinking seriously about the consequences


in front

The leader, Jones, is well in front.

Hughes is in front of Smith, but behind Jackson.

I wasn't concentrating, and I crashed into the car in front.

Put your hands in front of you, on the desk.

Sit in front of the computer.

Put your book in front where it will be easier to reach.

This car will seat two people in front and three in the back.

The one with a garden in front (that is, at the front of it).


in something's way

The tent was unfortunately in the moose's way.

The mountains were in the railroad's way.

Obstructing, blocking, or impeding the movement or line of sight of something.


out of someone's way

I gave him a lift, even though his house was a little out of my way.

(idiomatic) Not in the direct route that one would normally use.


in practice

The new tax should have helped the farming community. But in practice farmers generally appear to be worse off than before.

12 July 2012, Sam Adams, AV Club Ice Age: Continental Drift
On paper, Continental Drift boasts a jaw-dropping voice cast, including but not limited to Jennifer Lopez, Patrick Stewart, Wanda Sykes, Aziz Ansari, Simon Pegg, Nick Frost, Nicki Minaj, Drake, and Alan Tudyk. But in practice, the overstuffed ensemble leaves the cast no room to distinguish themselves, and directors Steve Martino and Michael Thurmeier don’t seem interested in coaxing performances that might render their money stars less identifiable.

The DfT has yet to announce how the regulations will work in practice.

2023 October 4, Mel Holley, “Network News: Strikes: MPs seek assurance on minimum service levels”, in RAIL, number 993, page 24:

Really, in effect; not just hypothetically.

Regularly practising an activity so as to remain skilled in it.


at first glance

At first glance it seems to be a reasonable idea. But we'll see.

At first glance, thinking well of yourself seems obviously preferable to thinking poorly of yourself. But the problem with […]

2007 August 18, Oliver Burkeman, “Feel good, feel bad”, in The Guardian:

At first glance, Saltburn is classic clash-of-the-classes fare: a tale of social strata, moral vacuity and the seductions of wealth, with a poor boy ushered into his rich friend's kingdom.

2023 November 13, Rosalind Jana, “Saltburn and the bizarre life of Britain's stately homes”, in BBC:

(modal) After only a superficial examination or review.

لِلْوَهْلَة اَلْأُولَى

after only a superficial examination or review


in control

The General said that his troops were now in control of the situation.

It was a bitter blow to England's players, who sank to their knees in disappointment, after fighting so hard but a draw does not cause too much damage and they still remain in control of their own destiny.

2021 September 8, Phil McNulty, “Poland 1-1 England”, in BBC Sport:

(idiomatic) Exercising control over a machine, vehicle, situation etc.


in a hurry

I can’t stop now. I'm in rather a hurry.

To worry, worry, super-scurry / Call out the troops now in a hurry

1984, Nena, Kevin McAlea (lyrics and music), “99 Red Balloons”, in 99 Luftballons:

(adjectival) Rushed, hurried; short of time.


out of control

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-out of control.wav

The economy is out of control and is headed for a crash.

The UN secretary general has said that “climate change is out of control”, as an unofficial analysis of data showed that average world temperatures in the seven days to Wednesday were the hottest week on record.

2023 July 7, “UN says climate change ‘out of control’ after likely hottest week on record”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

The airplane went out of control after its flight-control system failed.

A coal train running into Bangor got out of control, with the result that the engine crashed through the buffers, and the leading bogie and driving wheels mounted the platform beyond.

1944 November and December, “Notes and News: Bufferstop Collisions in Northern Ireland”, in Railway Magazine, page 370:

Your children are completely out of control. Can you stop them running around like that?

“The time is now for the United Nations and the rest of the world to jointly stand up against China and its lawless and out-of-control bullying of Taiwan,” they said, adding: “Enough is Enough.”

2022 September 11 [2022 September 9], Hsin-fang Lee, Jonathan Chin, “Letter calls for Taiwan’s UN inclusion”, in Taipei Times, archived from the original on 2022-09-11, Front Page:


on one's way

If we're done, I'll be on my way.

Well I'm on my way / I don't know where I'm going / I'm on my way / I'm taking my time but I don't know where

1972, Paul Simon (lyrics and music), “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard”, in Paul Simon:

going about one's business
go about one's business


in the short run

In the short run yo-yo dieting will work, but eventually it makes it nearly impossible to lose weight.

(idiomatic) Lasting only a short time, shortsightedly.


out of the running

When it was revealed he had shielded a friend from prosecution when he was the district attorney, he was out of the running for a judicial appointment.

8 Jan 2020, Felicity Cloake in The Guardian, How to make the perfect gluten-free chocolate brownies – recipe
What that flour is hardly seems to matter too much, either – indeed, one of the finest examples I’ve ever eaten was shared, rather grudgingly, it must be admitted, with a coeliac friend. But, with my usual plain white out of the running here, what’s the best substitute for a deliciously squidgy, delightfully rich result?

(idiomatic) No longer in a competition; eliminated from consideration.


as you like

So he walks in, calm as you like, and demands all the money from the till.

But the weird thing was, there was no working-out at all — just the sum, with that brackety thing with the line on top, and the answer written up above it, tidy as you like.


on first-name terms

Familiar with someone, such that one can address them by their first name.

My accountant was so bad I am now on first-name terms with the tax department.

(by extension, humorous) In regular contact with a person or organization.


in the know

Those in the know don't shop at that kind of store.

Anyone who is in the know doesn't shop there.

He appears to be in the know about such matters.

"Reet. Wot fort do? I'm off wom.". No, we're not speaking a foreign language, although the bulk of readers could be forgiven for thinking so. Rather, for those in the know, it is of course a typical example of 'Wiganese' dialect, which has been brought to life by an Avanti West Coast-funded mural in the underpass of Wigan North Western station.

2022 January 12, “Stop & Examine”, in RAIL, number 948, page 70:


under one's hat

Orestes Jones kept his real ambitions under his hat until the time struck.

1939, G. M. (Review of General Manpower by John S. Martin)," Time, 30 Jan

The Prime Minister jabbed his cigar at Sir Darius. 'I told you those Holmlanders had something under their hats...."

2009, Michael Pryor, Blaze of Glory, →ISBN, page 98:

(idiomatic) Concealed; confidential; secret.


on thin ice

Suggesting a person skating or walking on a frozen-over body of water, at risk of breaking through and falling into the water.

Ever since he was caught stealing office supplies, he has been on thin ice with his boss.

(idiomatic) In a dangerous, hazardous, or delicate situation; at risk.


at present

at this moment in time
at this moment in time

currently, now, at the moment, at this moment in time, at the present time


on tap

All three locations each offer at least 50 different draft beer choices ranging from popular beers from major brewers to exclusive microbrews not usually available on tap.

2011, Todd Keith, Insiders' Guide® to Birmingham:

(of beer, etc.) Available directly from the barrel by way of a tap.

(by extension) Readily available; ready for use in whatever quantity is desired.


in the end

Both sides will be disappointed not to have claimed their second win of the season, but in the end each had reasons to be grateful for the point.

2011 October 1, Phil Dawkes, “Sunderland 2 - 2 West Brom”, in BBC Sport:

Where the Czech upstart [Lukáš] Rosol, ranked 100 in the world, all but blew [Rafael] Nadal's head off with his blunderbuss in a fifth set of unrivalled intensity on Thursday night, [Julien] Benneteau, a more artful citizen, used a rapier to hurt his vaunted foe before falling just short of a kill. In the end, it was he who staggered from the scene of the fight.

2012 June 29, Kevin Mitchell, “Roger Federer back from Wimbledon 2012 brink to beat Julien Benneteau”, in The Guardian, archived from the original on 2016-11-15:

After a thorough examination of the situation

all things considered

After thorough examination of the situation


like hell

You'd better run like hell!

He had an innate honesty and humility, a work ethic that elevated him above most others in England. He knew what he wanted and worked like hell to try to make it happen.

2018 May 4, Tom English, “Steven Gerrard: A 'seriously clever or recklessly stupid' Rangers appointment”, in BBC Sport:

(intensifier) In a manner that uses all of the strength, speed, or effort that a person can summon.

helvetisti

using all strength, speed, effort that one can summon

Me do the washing up? Like hell I will!

(negator) Used ironically to express the opposite of one's intentions

tos uhod

expressing the opposite of one's intentions

You look like hell!

It stank like hell down there!


on the trot

We played five gigs on the trot.

But they came up against an impressive force in Bayern, who extended their run to 10 wins on the trot, having scored 28 goals in the process and conceding none.

2011 September 27, Alistair Magowan, “Bayern Munich 2 - 0 Man City”, in BBC Sport:

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, idiomatic, informal) Successively, in succession; one after the other.

I've been on the trot all day.

2001, 26 July, Liverpool Echo, "Man is jailed for '80s killing"
The former South London publican admitted at the Old Bailey that he "went on the trot" on Christmas Day, 1986 following a brawl at a party […]

It seemed the two POs were happy enough with the situation; if Cain went on the trot they would be in the clear with two grand each […]

(UK, Ireland, Commonwealth, slang) on the run; fleeing


out of town

They are out of town this week.

(of a person) Away from home; out of one's town of residence.

They look like they are from out of town.

It's the kind of Manhattan place you take your relatives when they come from out of town.

Oh, I ain't gotta ask I can tell you ain't from here-here-here-here / […] / If you know, you know I like that / Out of town girl, girl, girl, yeah, yeah, yeah

2012, “Out of Town Girl”, in Believe, performed by Justin Bieber:


in a row

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-in a row.wav

After making losses four years in a row, the manager knew she had to sack someone.

(informal) successively, one after the other, in succession.

Bottles of every type of alcohol they had were lined up in a row behind the bar.


off the books

His company was fined for paying staff off the books.

(colloquial, with regard to income) Undeclared for [[tax]es] and social insurance purposes, etc.


on earth

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-on earth.wav

Really, if the lower orders don’t set us a good example, what on earth is the use of them? They seem, as a class, to have absolutely no sense of moral responsibility.

1895, Oscar Wilde, The Importance of Being Earnest […] , [Act I]:

A. Fink-Nottle: But it's absolute balderdash, Bertie. I mean, listen to this: "Sure and begorrah, I don't know what's after being the matter with you, Michael." I mean, what on earth is this "what's after being" stuff mean?
B.W. Wooster: My dear old Gussie, that is how people think Irish people talk.

1992 April 26, “Hot Off the Press”, in Jeeves and Wooster, Series 3, Episode 5:

How on earth are we supposed to hold our heads high as the 'mother of parliaments' when we allow to continue the practice of almost openly buying a seat in parliament?

2013 October 31, Rowena Mason, quoting David Steel, “Lord Steel criticises culture of spin and tweeting in modern politics”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

Expletive used for emphasis after an interrogative word.

dimonis

expletive giving emphasis after interrogative word


on duty

I'm supposed to go on duty at 0800 hours.

He was seen drinking on duty.

She will be on duty from noon to six.

Actively engaged in an assigned task, duty or occupation.


FOUO

(US) Initialism of for official use only.


like crazy

She stayed late, working like crazy to get the project done before the deadline.

(simile, colloquial) To a great or excessive degree; with great speed, output, enthusiasm, etc.


in one's right mind

“Is Mike Hartley in his right mind, do you think, sir?” inquired Sweeting simply.
“Can't tell, Davy. He may be crazed, or he may be only crafty.”

1849, Currer Bell [pseudonym; Charlotte Brontë], chapter 1, in Shirley. A Tale. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], →OCLC:

If you find she was not in her right mind, that she was the victim of insanity, hereditary or momentary, as it has been explained, your verdict will take that into account.

1873, Mark Twain, chapter 56, in The Gilded Age:

But the poor fellow was—what is it?—demented. He was not in his right mind.

1905, H. G. Wells, The Empire of the Ants:

Who in his right mind would want to know he had a disease that would inevitably rob him of that mind?

2010 October 31, Alice Park, “New Research on Understanding Alzheimer's”, in Time:

(idiomatic) Thinking clearly, sensibly, and reasonably.


at the end of one's tether

(UK, idiomatic) At the limit of one’s patience; frustrated or annoyed.

jemandem reißt der Geduldsfaden (gleich)


in effigy

to burn in effigy

The politician was hanged in effigy by the crowd.

(idiomatic) With a symbol, usually an effigy, substituted for a real person or thing.


on the money

Did you have the wrong kind? I've never had the wrong kind. Ever. My worst one was right on the money.

1979, Woody Allen, Manhattan, spoken by Isaac Davis (Woody Allen):

Two of the A-4s landed on the money. The third was not so lucky.

1987 July 5, Maj. Michael B. Perini, “In Good Hands with Gold 11”, in Air Force Magazine, volume 70, number 7, retrieved 2014-05-10:

For years, Gore had been dismissed, even ridiculed, for his traveling Power Point extravaganza warning about climate change. […] Today, few would disagree that Al was pretty much on the money.

2008 October 10, Richard Friebe, “How Nobel Winners Spend Their Prize Money: Al Gore”, in Time, archived from the original on 2014-03-06:

I always felt that Bob Dylan was on the money when he sang: "When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose."

2011 August 19, The Secret Footballer, “For new boys there's nothing like the big time”, in The Guardian (UK), retrieved retrieved 10 May 2014:

Its mileage claims were right on the money: I averaged a little over 33 m.p.g. over a weekend of combined city-highway driving in the 2012 SL.

2013 February 1, Robert Peele, “The Mouse That Roars”, in New York Times, retrieved 2014-05-10:

(idiomatic) In the correct position; on target; precisely accurate; accurately.


over a barrel

Ford had the U.A.W. over a barrel; if it failed to sign by midnight, the U.A.W. would be forced to give up its union shop.

Bruce Ohr revealed that "an unnamed former Russian intelligence official had communicated that Russian intelligence believed 'they had Trump over a barrel', a "sentiment [that] is echoed in Steele's dossier".

2018 September 1, “AP sources: Lawyer was told Russia had 'Trump over a barrel'”, in AP News:

(idiomatic) In a disadvantageous or helpless situation, especially one in which one may be controlled or victimized.

have someone by the short hairs § Synonyms


out on the tiles

"I've had a pint of bitter and now I'm feeling better and I'm out on the tiles." - Led Zeppelin, Out on the Tiles (1970).

(idiomatic, British) Out for a night on the town.


at pains

The agency has been at pains to stress that its decisions are still based on sound science.

He was at great pains to distance himself from the rumours.

(idiomatic, with infinitive) Making careful effort (to).


in rags

Like Cinderella, the girl in rags was swept off her feet by a handsome Prince Charming.

October 9 2007, Rory Carroll, The Guardian, "Cocaine galore! Villagers live it up on profits from 'white lobster'"
Some locals who used to be in rags live it up at posh hotels.


above the salt

In medieval times, salt (a valuable seasoning) was placed in the middle of a dining table and the lord and his family were seated "above the salt" and other guests or servants below.


above one's bend

I shall not attempt to describe the curiosities at Peale's Museum; it is above my bend.

1835, Davy Crockett, An account of Col. Crockett's tour to the North and down East:

It would be above my bend to attempt telling you all we saw among the Redskins.

1848, James Fenimore Cooper, The Oak Openings:

(idiomatic, US, dated) Beyond one's power or ability.


beyond one's pay grade

Possibly from the correspondence of pay grade to level of authority in U.S. civil service and in the U.S. armed forces.

1971, Testimony before U.S. Congress. Senate. Committee on Armed Services,
Sir, I think that is a policy decision only the President can make. That is beyond my pay grade.

(idiomatic) Beyond one's level of authority.

Figuring out how it would work logistically is above and beyond my pay grade and my brain power.


for the asking

All you have to do is go to the interview. The job is yours for the asking.

[…] he [Mavji Dave] said: ' […] I would far rather that you sent him to England. My son Kevalram says it is very easy to become a barrister. In three years' time he will return. Also expenses will not exceed four to five thousand rupees. Think of that barrister who has just come back from England. How stylishly he lives! He could get the Diwanship for the asking. I would strongly advise you to send Mohandas to England this very year. Kevalram has numerous friends in England. He will give notes of introduction to them, and Mohandas will have an easy time of it there.'

1927-29, M.K. Gandhi, The Story of My Experiments with Truth, translated 1940 by Mahadev Desai, Part I, Chapter xi

(idiomatic) Available for someone to have something just by asking for it, i.e., without any significant effort or outlay; freely.


to the full

'Brrrrr,' said Lieutenant Dubosc, realizing to the full how cold he was.

1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 1, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 7:

Now that I'm retired, I feel I can live life to the full.

Without any reservation; taking the greatest advantage of the situation.


for the love of God

From Middle English for the luf of God, for þe love of god, for ðe luve of gode (literally “for the love of God”), variant of for godes luve, for godes lufe, for godes lufen (literally “for God's love”), from Old English for Godes lufon (literally “for God's love”). By surface analysis, for + the + love + of + God.

surf

For the love of God, take that out of the microwave before it blows up!

Why for the love of God do you insist on dressing your child like that?

An expression of exasperation, usually while making a request.


at times

I feel lonely at times, but then somebody phones, or calls round, and I cheer up again.

If at times Van Gaal’s players let themselves down with careless concessions of possession, Carver knew his side had been reprieved when, back to goal, Wayne Rooney controlled the ball on his chest, swivelled and dinked a shot wide.

4 March 2015, Louise Taylor, “Papiss Cissé and Jonny Evans spitting row mars Manchester United’s win over Newcastle”, in The Guardian:

This means, at times, long and perhaps overly discursive discussions of other taxa.

1992, Rudolf M[athias] Schuster, The Hepaticae and Anthocerotae of North America: East of the Hundredth Meridian, volume V, Chicago, Ill.: Field Museum of Natural History, →ISBN, page viii:


off one's rocket

A mishearing or reinventing of the expression off one's rocker.


in the reign of Queen Dick

Since Dick is a man's name, it would never be borne by a queen.


for XYZ reasons

(US, idiomatic) For reasons unknown and not worth speculating on.


in irons

(nautical) The "trapped" condition a sailing ship finds itself in when the bow of the ship is headed into the wind and the ship has stalled and is unable to maneuver.

The state of screw-powered ships which become stalled between crests of waves or swells during a typhoon, for instance, and the ship's rudder does not respond to the commands from the helm, leaving the ship at the mercy of the sea and in danger of capsizing.


ex tunc

(law) from the beginning, from the outset. Used to describe certain legal effects that can affect situations prior to this point in time and therefore can affect past actions.

ex tunc

law: from the beginning, from the outset


for all one is worth

You should see him out there in the snow, shoveling for all he's worth.

And although they were pushed harder than even Lennon might have expected on a night of galeforce winds, they clung on to the lead Ledley gave them for all they were worth until their rivals had blown themselves out and surrendered top spot.

2011 December 29, Keith Jackson, “SPL: Celtic 1 Rangers 0”, in Daily Record:

(idiomatic) Intensely, vigorously, with as much effort as one can supply.


in due course

The kitchen will be painted in due course.

March 14, 2018, Roger Penrose writing in The Guardian, Mind over matter': Stephen Hawking – obituary
[…] he began to set his sights on some of the most fundamental questions concerning the physical nature of the universe. In due course, he would achieve extraordinary successes against the severest physical disabilities.

When the time is right; presently; eventually.


from sea to shining sea

Originally used in the charters of some of the English colonies in North America.

(US, poetic) From the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean.


without a doubt

certainly; doubtlessly; unquestionably; indisputably; doubtless; surely; no doubt; without any doubt.


on the outs

I marvel that a mind on the outs with itself should have nevertheless made a painstaking record of its every tremor.

1961, Joan Didion, “On Self-Respect”, in Slouching Towards Bethlehem:

A second ill of this day lies in the trend of getting more and more on the outs with those who have been more successful than we.

1964, John Anton Dahl, Student, School, and Society: Crosscurrents in Secondary Education, page 83:

1977-1980, Lou Sullivan, personal diary, quoted in 2019, Ellis Martin, Zach Ozma (editors), We Both Laughed In Pleasure
He's staying at my place because he & Bridg are on the outs.

"The first country, Nicaragua, was a give-away," noted one State Department observer, referring to the GSP review of the country most on the outs with the administration.

1998, Henry J. Frundt, Trade Conditions and Labor Rights: U.S. Initiatives, Dominican and Central ..., page 68:

The fact that he and her sister seemed to be more on the outs than ever may have been half her motivation in leaving the door open a crack.

2003, John Wingspread Howell, Naked in Church, page 409:

(chiefly US, idiomatic) On unfriendly terms; estranged.


to the gunnels

We were loaded down to the gunnels with luggage.

The room was packed to the gunnels with reporters.


to the brim

The van was stuffed to the brim with camping equipment.

With an own goal, two penalties and two red cards, this match was full to the brim with controversy.

The full measure of life and happiness which we have in mind as the educational goal can only be attained when each individual life is full to the brim.

1898, The Popular Science Monthly, volume 53, page 159:

We've had so much luck here, it's been effortless,” LeMay said as she rested on the shopping cart full to the brim with gifts […]

(figurative) To the point of being full, almost overflowing.

Fill the glass to the brim.

Like the tank wagons, the churns are dairy property, but farmers often have other ideas, and find their own uses for them—it has not been unknown for dairy inspectors to find missing churns tucked away in an unsuspected corner of a farmhouse, filled to the brim with banknotes!

1959 March, R. C. Riley, “Home with the milk”, in Trains Illustrated, page 155:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see to, brim.


like water off a duck's back

"She combs me down with her tongue sometimes though, but that just slips off me like water off a duck's back."

1919, Lucy Maud Montgomery, chapter 18, in Rainbow Valley:

Scandal after scandal would break, but it would be like water off a duck's back; no heads rolled, and no one seemed particularly perturbed.

2009 January 2, Jan Espeut, “The honeymoon is over”, in Jamaica Gleaner, retrieved 2009-01-20:

(simile, colloquial, idiomatic) Without immediate or lasting effects.

soos water op 'n eend se rug

without effects; in a manner having no effect


for a song

They remembered then that they could have bought for a song canvases which now were worth large sums.

1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, chapter 48, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC:

[T]he contents of aircraft that once commanded prices up to $148m are now being sold off for a song after being torn apart in Gloucestershire's aviation charnel house.

2009 December 11, “Jet Cemetery: Where Airplanes Go to Die”, in Businessweek:

In his senior year, he had run across an old '66 Chevy Super Sport headed for the junkyard, bought it for a song, and overhauled it with his dad's help, turning it into the big red muscle car it was back in its day.

2011, Kat Martin, A Song for My Mother, Vanguard Press,, →ISBN, page 200:

He bought it for a song in 1984 compared with what his fellow financiers were spending on tonier Park and Fifth Avenues.

2013 August 16, Robin Finn, “A Former Madoff Penthouse Goes Back on the Market”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(idiomatic) For a very low price; very cheaply.


from hunger

She looked good, but as an actress she was strictly from hunger. http://www.hulu.com/watch/77882/the-donna-reed-show-pardon-my-gloves?c=1011

"That's the place for you, the San Berdoo. I live there so I ought to know. The owner's strictly from hunger. Come on, I'll get you fixed up swell."

1939, Nathanael West, The Day of the Locusts, page 17:

The play went on and on with people shouting and using dirty language. The jokes were from hunger and there was only one sexy scene

1959, Mordecai Richler, The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz, page 159:

This place is a dump. I mean your bathrooms are from hunger. Where's the Jacuzzi? Where's the 'his and her' sinks? Where's the towel warmer?

2007, Paula Marantz Cohen, Jane Austen in Scarsdale: Or Love, Death, and the SATs, page 70:

"The men in this hamlet are either married, or worn out, or ignorant, or religious zealots, or indigent." Esther was forced to agree that the boys in this town were from hunger, but said, "That's what marriage brokers are for...."

2008, Paul M. Levitt, Come with me to Babylon, page 115:

(idiomatic) Of poor quality; tolerable only in desperate circumstances.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see from, hunger.


from my cold, dead hands

You can have my shotgun when you pry it from my cold, dead hands.

(idiomatic) Used in saying that one will not allow something (often a firearm or other weapon) to be taken out of one's possession until after one's death.


behind the bit

(idiomatic, of a horse) Evading the bit.


according to plan

/əˈkɔɹdɪŋ tə ˈplæn/

to go according to plan

As intended, as planned, as expected; without the occurrence of any complications.


under the table

(adjectival) Secret; covert; undisclosed.

I was paid under the table, so I didn't have to pay taxes on the income but I couldn't complain when I was cheated.

2015, Elizabeth Royte, Vultures Are Revolting. Here’s Why We Need to Save Them., National Geographic (December 2015)https://web.archive.org/web/20151213095110/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2016/01/vultures-text
The men tie up their dogs, retrieve what’s left of the lion’s kill, and sprinkle it with a generic form of Furadan, a cheap, fast-acting pesticide that’s readily available under the table.

(adverbial) Secretly; covertly; undisclosedly.

In or into a state of stupification or boredom.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see under, table.


at knifepoint

At knifepoint I was told to hand over my money.

Being threatened with a knife; under coercion.


on a stick

(humorous) Skewered through the middle and served individually, in many cases warm, as a hot dog. Often parodied as being done to everything at state fairs in Iowa.


on line

I'm waiting on line at the bakery.

Get on line while I shop.

(US, New York, New Jersey, Connecticut) On a queue; waiting one's turn for something.


in someone's eyes

I couldn't see the traffic light because the sun was in my eyes.

Shining very brightly and directly at the face so that it is difficult to see because one is blinded by the light.

And Ornan ſaide vnto Dauid, Take it to thee, and let my lord the king do that which is good in his eyes.

1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 1 Chronicles 21:23, column 1:

(figuratively) According to someone's subjective point of view.

mielestä

(figurative) according to someone's point of view


for keeps

When we gamble at poker, we play for keeps.

(gaming) With an agreement or intention to retain what one gains or receives.

"We both got a job to do. They play for keeps and we play for keeps too," Haggans said.

2007 Dec. 7, "Steelers' Defense Anticipates Patriots Matchup," KDKA.com (Pittsburg)

(idiomatic, by extension) With a strong competitive resolve to win or succeed, as in sports or business.

The Griswold trophy was presented to its winner, for keeps, since it was the third time she had won it.

1925 August 10, “Golf: Shenecossett Invitation”, in Time:

Permanently, so that one can keep something indefinitely.


in baulk

(sports, billiards, snooker, pool) In the area behind the baulk line in cue sports.


against the law

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see against, the, law.

It's against the law / It was against the law / Oh, what the mama saw / It was against the law

1972, Paul Simon (lyrics and music), “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard”, in Paul Simon:


by far

Paris is by far the largest city in France.

(idiomatic) To a considerably large extent, easily.