au doigt mouillé

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A reference to the practise of moistening one's finger and putting it upright to find which way the wind goes approximately. Compare Dutch nattevingerwerk, English finger to the wind.

une estimation au doigt mouillé

by the seat of one's pants
by the seat of one's pants

(informal) by the seat of one's pants, as a rule of thumb


uit den boze

The moniker de boze (in the past sometimes capitalized as de Boze) refers to Satan.

strongly disallowed, out of bounds, out of the question, completely wrong


to the effect

He was vague but said something to the effect that he'd do it soon.

[…]why not cut out the middleman and write the review himself? Then it would say exactly what the client wanted — that it was a terrific book. A shattering novel. A classic memoir. Will change your life. Lyrical and gripping, Stunning and compelling. Or words to that effect.

2012 August 25, David Streitfeld, “The Best Book Reviews Money Can Buy”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:


in reality

In real life, as opposed to online, play, make believe, or theory


before it was cool

(idiomatic) Before (an idea or activity) was popular, trendy, famous, or duly appreciated.


AAMOF

as a matter of fact
as a matter of fact#English

(Internet slang) Initialism of as a matter of fact.


m ꜣw

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see m, ꜣw.


like a stuck pig

(simile) Like a pig or boar being slaughtered.


for shit

A revolutionary hack Cecilia called him. They didn't trust him for shit anymore.

1989, Michael Cormany, Red Winter, Carol Communications, page 48:

In the process, everybody begins to hate his guts because they don't trust him for shit but, you know, he sees himself as the guy who's going to be pragmatic and go down the middle, a lot of people saying, "I think he's with Rosselló, se vendió!"

2001, Amílcar Antonio Barreto, Félix V. Matos Rodríguez, Hunter College. Centro de Estudios Puertorriqueños, Puerto Rican Legal Defense, Education Fund (New York, N.Y.), The State of Puerto Rican Politics Aqui Y Allá: Proceedings of a November 21, 2000 Forum, Puerto Rican Legal Defense & Education Fund, page 18:

I filed for full custody of Jason because I didn't trust her for shit to be with him by herself , especially when she started hanging out at the Cocalico Tavern more.

2006, J. F. Gonzalez, The Beloved, Leisure Books, →ISBN, page 139:

Ruger might be a great uncle, but I couldn't trust him for shit with my body, let alone my heart.

2014, Joanna Wylde, Reaper's Legacy: Reapers Motorcycle Club, Random House, →ISBN, page 133:

I eat too many carbs, I can't dance for shit, and I pollute the air with my hairspray.

2014, Theresa Caputo, Kristina Grish, You Can't Make This Stuff Up: Life-Changing Lessons from Heaven, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 37:

(slang, vulgar) For nothing; to no purpose.


in the can

(film, of a take) Having been shot and stored in a film can, or at the equivalent stage for a digital take.

(idiomatic, of a job or project) At a late stage of completion, generally when the actual work is done and some finalizing process must be undertaken.


gan on

From Old Irish on (“blemish, disfigurement”), a term that is otherwise obsolete.


on the telephone

Talking to someone using a telephone; Synonym of on the phone

(dated, UK) Connected to a telephone system.


in weal and woe

/ɪn ˌwiːl‿n̩ ˈwəʊ/

PIE word
 *wáy
From weal (“prosperity; welfare”) + woe (“great distress or sadness; calamity, trouble”). Compare Dutch wel en wee, Swedish väl och ve.

In both prosperity and adversity; in good times and bad.


at the earliest

Coordinate term: at the latest


on the wallaby

on the wallaby track
on the wallaby track#English


on the wallaby track

Referring to the shy habits of the animal.

(Australia, slang) out of work; unemployed


van de pot gerukt

van de pot gerukt (adverbial positive predicative)
van de pot gerukte (feminine indefinite masculine positive singular)
van de pot gerukt (indefinite neuter positive singular)
van de pot gerukte (indefinite plural positive)
van de pot gerukte (definite positive)
van de pot gerukts (partitive positive)

Die ouwe rukker is helemaal van de pot gerukt!

That old tosser is completely off his rocker!

(idiomatic, vulgar) crazy, insane, off one's rocker, fucked in the head


all sixes and nines

Dear Kori,
 I'm all sixes and nines ... whatever that means. Fragments of me are loosely hanging together.

2015 June 15, Kathari Findlen, Meeting in the Space Between: A Story of Grief, Grace and Gratitude, Balboa Press, →ISBN, →OCLC:

Do you see anything funny about the tail number? It is all sixes and nines!

2008, G. E McIlmoyle, L. R. Bromley, Remembering the Dragon Lady, People Stories Unlimited, →ISBN, →OCLC, page 443:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see all, sixes, and, nines.


like painting the Forth Bridge

The bridge across the Firth of Forth was in a continuous state of being painted (until finished in 2011, 122 years after its completion): (owing to its large size) as soon as one end was reached, it was time to begin all over again.

Where only an overview has been given, I hope that the book will provide a useful springboard and the appropriate legal advice is sought. The revision has been rather like painting the Forth Bridge and whilst every effort has been made to bring the law as up to date as possible, events often overtake one and a keen eye should be kept on the construction journals and newspapers.

2014, Stephanie Owen, J. R. Lewis, Law for the Construction Industry, page viii:

Weeding can feel like painting the Forth Bridge—by the time you finish, it’s time to start again.

2017 April 29, Alys Fowler, “How to win the war on weeds”, in The Guardian:

(chiefly UK) Never-ending; said of a task which will never be completed due to the perpetual cycle of having to recommence as soon as one has reached the end, or of efforts that are in vain because of this.


from the dead

A translation of Ancient Greek ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν (ek tôn nekrôn) or ἀπὸ τῶν νεκρῶν (apò tôn nekrôn, “from among those who are dead”), a phrase in the New Testament, used for instance in the King James Version. See rise from the dead.

calque

ἐκ τῶν νεκρῶν

1987 June 27, Oral Roberts Tells Conference He Has Raised People From the Dead, New York Times

2005 October 7, Back from the Dead, This American Life

2016 July 28, “How Scientists Are Bringing People Back From The Dead”, in Popular Science:

2017 July 24, “Can you bring a language back from the dead?”, in Irish Times:

2017 November 11, Investment Group Plans to Bring World Airways Back From the Dead, Skift

2017 November 26, “'Coco' helps bring the box office back from the dead”, in Los Angeles Times:

(figuratively) from obsolescence or failure

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


of old

In days of old.

I know him of old.

Under the most splendid house in the city is still to be found the cellar where they store their roots as of old, and long after the superstructure has disappeared posterity remark its dent in the earth.

1854 August 9, Henry D[avid] Thoreau, “Economy”, in Walden; or, Life in the Woods, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor and Fields, →OCLC:

The station has been refurbished both at ground level and below ground, where the wide, fluorescently lit platforms are an almost unrecognisable metamorphosis of the dingy, reeking Low Level of old.

1960 December, “The Glasgow Suburban Electrification is opened”, in Trains Illustrated, page 713:

These deals have made them more like the radio and TV stations of old — picking popular acts, paying handsomely for their work, assuming greater responsibility for their output — and less like the neutral platforms they once claimed to be.

2022 January 31, Kevin Roose, “Spotify’s Joe Rogan Problem Isn’t Going Away”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

(Since) long ago; in, or from, ancient times.


like hey-go-mad

(obsolete) With a high degree of excitement or activity; like crazy.


as who should say

Probably a calque of French comme qui dirait/diroit.

As who ſhould ſay, I am ſir an Oracle, / And when I ope my lips, let no dogge bark.

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 i], page 164, column 1:

He doth nothing but frowne, as who ſhould ſay, and you will not haue me, chooſe : he heares merrie tales and ſmiles not […]

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 ii], page 165, column 1:

The clowdy Meſſenger turnes me his backe, / And hums; as who ſhould ſay, you'l rue the time / That clogges me with this Anſwer.

c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene vi], page 143, column 2:

in a manner of speaking
in a manner of speaking

(dated) as if one should say, as if to say; so to say; in a manner of speaking.


van meet af aan

from the start; from the beginning; from the onset


sa kabutihang palad

tl-head

sa kabutihang palad (Baybayin spelling ᜐ ᜃᜊᜓᜆᜒᜑᜅ᜔ ᜉᜎᜇ᜔)

ᜐ ᜃᜊᜓᜆᜒᜑᜅ᜔ ᜉᜎᜇ᜔ (Baybayin)


sa kasamaang palad

sa kasamaáng palad (Baybayin spelling ᜐ ᜃᜐᜋᜀᜅ᜔ ᜉᜎᜇ᜔)

sa kasamaáng palad (canonical)
ᜐ ᜃᜐᜋᜀᜅ᜔ ᜉᜎᜇ᜔ (Baybayin)


dans son bon droit

LL-Q150 (fra)-LoquaxFR-dans son bon droit.wav

être dans son bon droit de faire quelque chose

to be within one's rights, to have every right to do something

Je suis dans mon bon droit de gaspiller mon argent comme bon me semble.

I'm within my rights to waste my money however I please.


os cionn talaimh

Alternative form of os cionn talún (“above ground, overground”)


te elfder ure

Referring to the parable of the workers in the vineyard in Matthew 20. The term employs the now archaic dative case, lost in present-day Dutch except for a few idioms.

at the eleventh hour
at the eleventh hour

at the eleventh hour (at the last minute; at a time close to the end or almost too late)

Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard
Statenvertaling


for the cheap seats

Alluding to the lower-priced seats in a theatre, where the audience might find it harder to hear the performers.

(colloquial) Used to emphasise a repeated assertion.


de parole

homme de parole

femme de parole


on the rob

He tries to plug himself in the mains with his knob,
And when he's fully recharged he goes out on the rob.

2004, Goldie Lookin Chain (band), Half Man Half Machine (song)


in het hol van Pluto

Literally, “in Pluto's den, in the underworld”.

lit

in the middle of nowhere
in the middle of nowhere


for old sake's sake

for old times' sake
for old times' sake#English


within a bull's roar

2019, Kevin Rudd, Think the Commonwealth can save Brexit Britain? That’s utter delusion in the Guardian
Much as any Australian, Canadian and New Zealand governments of whichever persuasion would do whatever they could to frame new free-trade agreements with the UK, the bottom line is that 65 million of us do not come within a bull’s roar of Britain’s adjacent market of 450 million Europeans.

The team never came within a bull's roar of winning.

(informal, chiefly in negative constructions) Anywhere near (a place or target).


like a bull at a gate

(idiomatic) charging into some task without much thought, taking action hastily


like winking

(slang, simile) Very rapidly; in a flash.


on the prod

From the way a cattle prod provokes the animal into moving.

was ridin' partners with Chuck Gibbons, the Llano gunman, an' Chuck was always on the prod, sort of. One, two times I figured I might have to shoot it out with him my own self, but wasn't exactly honin' for trouble.

2005, Louis L'Amour, The Trail to Crazy Man, →ISBN:

The current idea of lnjuns being shiftless drunks may apply to many, but they were strong, mean son bitches when on the prod.

2011, Duncan L. Dieterly, Final Battle, →ISBN:

I'm on the prod, not looking to settle down. Especially this close to the border.

2012, Jonas Ward, Buchanan on the Prod, →ISBN:


sur le qui-vive

LL-Q150 (fra)-DenisdeShawi-sur le qui-vive.wav


in the front row

For my entire life the comet hurtled sunward, and then for a fleeting moment I positioned myself in the front row to enjoy its passage as it returned into distant space. For me the 1985-86 Halley apparition will be fondly remembered long after the Halley bars are eaten and the T-shirt fades.

1987, David Deskins, Looking back: amateur adventures with Halley's comet, 1985-1986:

It's just that whenever I screw up, you're always in the front row.

1994, Dana Stabenow, A Cold-Blooded Business, →ISBN, page 83:

I'm proud of your talent and your compassion for people and your place in our family. However your dreams unfold, I'll be in the front row to watch it happen.

2009, Karen Kingsbury, This Side of Heaven: A Novel, →ISBN:

Few passengers cried on the way to the prison. almost all cried on the way home. Camila and aunt Maria sat in silence at first, letting their tears stream unchecked. Then Camila asked, “is anyone from our family going to be there?” “i doubt it.” “i'm surprised. i thought Grandma Vickie would be in the front row.”

2015, Patrick Jones, Guarding Secrets, →ISBN, page 24:

I wrote the HOW and attracted people who were reaching out for help and prepared to help; genuine and loving people who expanded my network, positioned themselves in the front row of my life, new and divine relationships that pushed me to the edge of my comfort zone.

2008, A Story of Empowerment, →ISBN, page 76:

He himself had worked for organisations not always up to the task they had set, but always in the front row to declare their skills and success.

2011, Pietro Giacomo Menolfi, My African Mission, →ISBN, page 299:

The director in the front row of your mind is the result of critical thinking. He or she is the part of you that keeps you on track, helps you stay in the moment, and gives you focus and guidance with your performance.

2012, James Alburger, The Art of Voice Acting, →ISBN:

(idiomatic) Prominent, demanding attention.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see in, front row.


for cripes sake

for cripes' sake
for cripes' sake#English


for cripes' sake

for Christ's sake
for Christ's sake#English

(minced oath) Euphemistic form of for Christ's sake.


ATTOW

(Internet slang) Initialism of at the time of writing.


with all of one's heart

with all one's heart
with all one's heart#English

Alternative form of with all one's heart


with all one's heart

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-with all one's heart.wav

I love you with all my heart.

Mr. Biden declared that he believed with “all of my heart” that he had made a wise decision.

2021 September 1, Michael D. Shear, Jim Tankersley, quoting Joe Biden, “Biden Defends Afghan Pullout and Declares an End to Nation-Building”, in The New York Times, →ISSN:

When Light had finished his story, his companion, Truth, said: "If you like, sister, we will turn in here and rest awhile; shall we?"
"With all my heart," she replied, so they went in and walked round the garden.

1900, Railway Signal: Or, Lights Along the Line, volume 18, page 173:


without book

to make an assertion without book


κατ' αρχήν

head

κατ’ αρχήν • (kat’ archín)

κατ’ αρχήν (canonical)
kat’ archín (romanization)

Πριν συζητάμε τις λεπτομέρειες πρέπει πρώτα να συμφωνήσουμε κατ’ αρχήν.

Before we discuss the details we must first agree in principle.

Prin syzitáme tis leptoméreies prépei próta na symfonísoume kat’ archín.


within an inch of one's life

To a point where one is at great risk of death; or (figuratively, hyperbolic) of severe danger or trouble.

félholtra

to a point where one is at great risk of death

Every drawer had the names of the tools inside written on the front. There were also several parts lockers; they too were labeled and organized within an inch of their lives.

2000, Dana Stabenow, Midnight Come Again, New York, N.Y.: St. Martin’s Minotaur, →ISBN, page 77:

(figuratively, hyperbolic) Almost as much as possible; to an extreme extent.

alaposan

almost as much as possible; to an extreme extent


in someone's light

You're in my light. Move it!

Blocking someone's light, especially when someone is attempting to see a particular thing.


at a guess

The woman opposite him was a mere girl - twenty at a guess.

1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 3, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 27:

(informal) Upon cursory examination; at a glance.


on a wonder

1836, John Mason Peck, letter to college treasurer Dr. Haskell, cited in Austen Kennedy de Blois, The Pioneer School, New York: Fleming H. Revell, Chapter 4, p. 70,
I have taken responsibility in this matter and made a bargain, in which I doubt not every trustee will concur. As I like to put you all on a wonder I will not be very particular now—but only observe that Divine Providence has already more than answered our expectations.

1907, United States Senate, Hearings before the Committee on Military Affairs concerning the Affray at Brownsville, Texas, on the night of August 13 and 14, 1906, Washington: Government Printing Office, p. 406,
Q. Have you ever heard of any conspiracy, or any agreement among the men, to not tell about it?—A. No, Sir
Q. Or to hide knowledge of it?—A. No, sir. The most that I have heard among the men, everybody was on a wonder as to who it was that did do it, did do the shooting.

It was bad enough for white people, but when one of your own color could be so different it put you on a wonder. It was like seeing your sister turn into a ’gator.

1937, Zora Neale Hurston, chapter 5, in Their Eyes Were Watching God, University of Illinois Press, published 1978, page 76:

This is me! Johnny Earthquake! I rassle with light’nin, put a cap on thunder! Set every mammy-jammer in the graveyard on a wonder!

1969, Charles Gordone, No Place to Be Somebody, London: Samuel French, published 1970, act I, page 17:

1993, David Edwards, interviewed in Alan Lomax, The Land Where the Blues Began, New York: Pantheon, p. 402,
Just continually changing like that, catching different trains, I get one or two thousand miles away from home and I get the blues and it put me on a wonder.


de longue date

LL-Q150 (fra)-WikiLucas00-de longue date.wav

Coordinate term: de fraîche date

un ami de longue date

prévu de longue date

connaître quelqu’un de longue date


OTD

Tickets for the concert will cost £15 OTD.


on the inside

inside, within, inwardly, internally, interiorly, innerly


to the life

(dated) Very closely resembling the original; drawn with great accuracy.


άνευ προηγουμένου

άνευ προηγουμένου • (ánef proïgouménou)

Learned stereotyped expression: preposition from Ancient Greek ἄνευ (áneu) & the genitive neuter of participle προηγούμενος (proēgoúmenos). Compare French sans précédent.

Η αναίδειά του είναι άνευ προηγουμένου.

(Katharevousa, learned) unprecedented, surprisingly unexpected.


like a knife through butter

(simile) With great ease and effectiveness.

wie durch Butter

only with verbs of cutting or passing through


on the bash

From the hours you keep […] I'd say you were on the bash.

A quick smile played around her lips. "It's from Bondi Beach. Right near Sydney. In Australia, where I'm from. My mom always said I was conceived on that beach, so she gave me that name. She was a young girl then, working square, before she went on the bash. All she could tell me about my dad is that he was a soldier.

2001, Andrew Vachss, False Allegations, →ISBN:

Once they had lost the first flush of youth, started to look like they were on the bash, he saw to it that they were relegated. Like West Ham, his home team, he loved them, but he knew they were not going to win any prizes. Basil's main girls were big earners and, as such, he expected them to look the part. He believed that you got what you paid for, and he saw to it that his girls were paid very well. He walked all the new girls through their first steps personally; he told them how to sit, […]

2008, Martina Cole, The Business: A compelling suspense thriller of danger and destruction, →ISBN:

The only bloody difference between serving drinks to the passengers of British Airways and handing out aperitifs in Mrs Leighton Hunt's Mayfair drawing room was 35,000 feet. It was at a small cocktail party in St John's Wood that I met Amy, a strikingly beautiful young woman who told me that she worked as an escort for an exclusive agency off Park Lane, as indeed did all the other female guests at the party. I'd sort of guessed that they were on the bash, […]

2010, Paul O'Grady, The Devil Rides Out, →ISBN, page 243:

In the evidence he gave before the committee he said that 50 complaints a week were received by his authority. When asked what they were he said late delivery, dirty bottles, wrong change, milk bottles in the wrong place, changing the caps on the tops of bottles, delivery on the wrong days, and vendors going on the bash. That is an indictment of the milk vendors. If the Hutt Valley and Bays Metropolitan Milk Board is giving licences to people to carry on like that, …

1967, Parliamentary Debates, House of Representatives [of New Zealand]; Mr McCready, in debate about the Milk Bill, page 3917

[…] cooked lunch, three o'clock smoko, a big dinner and then supper. We always kept a man cook, and you'd never believe how we got them. At the hotel in Wanaka they'd always be getting chefs who were alcoholic; they'd work till they had enough money to go on the bash, then they'd be sacked, so the hotel owner would ring Minaret and send the chef up to us. He'd work as station cook for a while and then, when he wanted a bash again, off he'd go and the hotel would take him back.

1979, Christine Hunt, Something in the Hills: Yesterdays in Central Otago, page 34:


at anchor

a ship riding at anchor

The Galles and thoſe pilling Briggandines,
That yeerely ſaile to the Uenetian goulfe,
And houer in the ſtraightes for Chriſtians wracke,
Shall lie at anchor in the Iſle Aſant.

c. 1587–1588, [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire, London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act III, scene iii:

As the train rumbled slowly over the Forth Bridge, the western sky was aflame with a particularly gorgeous sunset, and lights were twinkling from the small craft riding at anchor on the calm waters of the firth.

1950 January, Arthur F. Beckenham, “With British Railways to the Far North”, in Railway Magazine, page 8:


across lots

You're a leveller I see, and wouldn't mind knocking me down flat as a pancake, if so be you could run away and get out of this scrape — you're a 'grarium, and would cut across the lot like a streak of lightning if you had a chance.

1838, Joseph Clay Neal, “Fydget Fyxington”, in Charcoal Sketches, Book One, Philadelphia: T. B. Peterson & Brothers, published 1865, page 221:

An' jest ez they wuz settin' down / To take their noonin', Joe looked roun' / And see (acrost lots in a pond / That warn't mor'n twenty rod beyond) / A goose that on the water sot / Ez ef awaitin' to be shot.

1848, James Russell Lowell, “The Two Gunners”, in The Biglow Papers:

I swore in Nauvoo, when my enemies were looking me in the face, that I would send them to hell across lots if they meddled with me; and I ask no more odds of all hell today!

1857 July 26, Brigham Young, Sermon at the Bowery in Salt Lake City:

She chose to go 'cross lots, not because in this case it was nearer than the road, but because it seemed impossible to go another way.

1899, Alice Brown, “A Last Assembling”, in Tiverton Tales:

Alternative form of cross lots (“via a shortcut”)


back at ya

“Mornin’, ladies!” The door chimes were busy for a Tuesday. ¶ “Mornin’ back at ya’ – bein’ a bit presumptuous, aren’t you? I don't see any ladies!”

1996, Jennifer Bosveld, Maggie Lynn and her Perpetual State Fulfillment in Johnstown Ohio, page 49:

Instead of saying, “Thank you” and launching into the monologue, the host said, “Back at ya.” Does this mean that the host was applauding the audience? What for?

2013, Mary Langton, American Idylls, page 22:

Pronunciation spelling
pronunciation spelling


на лице место

Умре на лице место.

At that very moment; on the spot; right away.


ἐν τῷ γίγνεσθαι

ἐν τῷ γίγνεσθαι • (en tôi gígnesthai)

εν τω γίγνεσθαι
εν τω γίγνεσθαι#Greek

Polytonic spelling of εν τω γίγνεσθαι (en to gígnesthai)


εν τω γίγνεσθαι

εν τω γίγνεσθαι • (en to gígnesthai)

Learned stereotypical Katharevousa expression. Literally, “in the making”.


i farten

Jag bytte däck och pumpade de andra däcken när jag ändå var i farten
I changed the tire and inflated the other tires while I was at it ("while I was anyway in the speed" – active doing something)

Två inbrott i natt. Kan det vara Nisses gäng som är i farten igen?

Two burglaries last night. Could it be Nisse's gang at it again?

Nu vet vi hur byn brann ner. Det är en drake som är i farten.

Now we know how the village burned down. There's a dragon on the loose.

mat för folk i farten ("folk på språng" is another variant)
food for people on the go

active (doing some thing that is implied by the context); at it, in action, on the go, etc.

hoppa ur en bil i farten


achter de rug

We hebben de negen uur durende reis achter de rug, maar nu zijn we in Frankrijk.

The nine-hour journey is behind us, we're in France now.

(idiomatic) having ended in the recent past, especially for unpleasant things


onder de knie

Na 30 rijlessen heb ik eindelijk autorijden onder de knie.

After 30 driving lessons, I finally have a handle on driving a car.

(idiomatic) learned, mastered, (having something) down


ἐν τῇ γενέσει

ἐν τῇ γενέσει • (en têi genései)

εν τη γενέσει
εν τη γενέσει#Greek

Polytonic spelling of εν τη γενέσει (en ti genései)


εἰς μνήμην

εἰς μνήμην • (eis mnḗmēn)

εις μνήμην
εις μνήμην#Greek

(Katharevousa) Polytonic spelling of εις μνήμην (eis mnímin)


στη μνήμη

στη μνήμη • (sti mními)

Contraction στη & accusative singular of feminine noun μνήμη.


εν τη γενέσει

εν τη γενέσει • (en ti genései)

Learned stereotypical Katharevousa expression. Preposition ἐν (en) & dative singular feminine article τῇ (têi) & dative singular of the feminine noun γένεσις (génesis).

Τα φαινόμενα βίας πρέπει να αντιμετωπίζονται εν τη γενέσει τους.

Violent incidents must be tackled at their source.

Ta fainómena vías prépei na antimetopízontai en ti genései tous.

(Katharevousa) in the beginning, at the moment of the creation of something


from aardvark to zymurgy

In reference to the first and last major words in many English dictionaries.

What a glorious prospect—to be alone on an island, with an opportunity to sit back against a banana tree, and read all the way from aardvark to zymurgy!

1952, John David Marshall, editor, Books, Libraries, Librarians: Contributions to Library Literature, Shoe String Press, page 86:

I read my entire children's encyclopedia, drilling from aardvark to zymurgy. I never made an error at shortstop.

1996, Chang-Rae Lee, Native Speaker, Penguin, →ISBN:

Researchers expect and anticipate that their work will be scrutinized by other scientists and whatever the object of study, from Aardvark to Zymurgy, it is certain to be researched by a plethora of investigators from Stockholm to Shanghai to San Francisco[.]

2002, Melvin A. Benarde, You've Been Had!:

(informal) Synonym of from A to Z: from the beginning to the end; covering everything comprehensively.


στη μπάντα

στη μπάντα • (sti bánta)

στη στη#Greek

μπάντα μπάντα#Greek

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see στη (sti), μπάντα (bánta).

Όλοι έκαναν στη μπάντα για να περάσει ο δάσκαλος.

Everyone moved aside so the teacher could pass.

Óloi ékanan sti bánta gia na perásei o dáskalos.

(idiomatic) out of the way, to the side (not in the way)


on the hustle

(slang) Making a living, or supplementing one's living, by petty crime.


up to anything

Capable of and ready for any kind of mischief.


according to Cocker

UK circa 1760. Eponymous of Edward Cocker (1631–1676), teacher and author of the popular mathematics textbook known as Cocker's Arithmetick (1678).

“Well, so you ought to be, according to Cocker, spending all your time in sick rooms.”
“According to who?”
“According to Cocker.”
“Who is Cocker?”
“Oh, I don't know; some old fellow who wrote the rules of arithmetic, I believe; it's only a bit of slang.[…]”

1859–1861, [Thomas Hughes], “A Crisis”, in Tom Brown at Oxford: […], part 2nd, Boston, Mass.: Ticknor and Fields, published 1861, →OCLC, page 140:

A man rode at an Arab who fired and missed him, and then seized his spear, with the apparent intention of meeting him as an infantry soldier should, according to Cocker.

1885, Lewis Hough, “Touch and Go!”, in For Fortune and Glory:

It seems that a certain constable whose beat included Dorchester Square was going his round rather late one evening when he noticed a hansom cab drawn up about the middle of the south side of the square. There was no sign of the driver, and no one minding the horse; and as this was not quite according to Cocker, it naturally attracted his attention.

1931, R[ichard] Austin Freeman, “Of a Hansom Cab and a Black Eagle”, in Pontifex, Son And Thorndyke:

(dated, colloquial, British, idiomatic) Done properly, correctly and reliably; in accordance with proper procedure and established rules.


di male in peggio

LL-Q652 (ita)-LangPao-di male in peggio.wav

Literally, “from bad in worse”. Compare French de mal en pis.


wolog

without loss of generality
without loss of generality#English

(mathematics) Abbreviation of without loss of generality.


like a rat up a drain

like a rat up a drainpipe
like a rat up a drainpipe#English

Alternative form of like a rat up a drainpipe


f.k.a.

Channing Tatum shares Everly with his ex-wife Jenna Dewan. He is currently engaged to Zoë Kravitz; they reportedly first linked up on the set of Kravitz's directorial debut, Blink Twice, f.k.a. Pussy Island.

2024 February 13, Elizabeth Logan, “Channing Tatum Brought His Daughter Everly to an Anime Premiere Like the A+ Dad He Is”, in Glamour:

formerly known as
formerly known as#English


off service

(Singapore) Of a public transport vehicle, not in service.


by inches

to kill by inches

to die by inches


until further notice

Merseyrail said the cuts would be "until further notice".

2022 January 12, Paul Clifton, “Emergency timetables as absences surge due to COVID”, in RAIL, number 948, page 6:

Indefinitely, until a further notification is given to the contrary.

indtil videre

indefinitely, until a further notification is given to the contrary


à volonté

un buffet à volonté

feu à volonté !


à côté de la plaque

LL-Q150 (fra)-LoquaxFR-à côté de la plaque.wav

être à côté de la plaque

répondre à côté de la plaque

(informal) off the mark, wide of the mark, off-beam, off-the-wall; beside the point, beside the mark


en nature

payer en nature

avantage en nature


voor de kat zijn viool

Literally, “for the cat's violin”, with a his genitive.

Geweldig zo'n jaar: finale US Open verloren, in Atlanta olympisch goud verspeeld, in het hele jaar twee singles gewonnen en een tripje Peking voor de kat z'n viool.

2012, Jacco Eltingh, Rene van Hattum, Een tennisbal als watermeloen, Karakter, →ISBN:

Great year: lost the US Open final, squandered olympic gold in Atlanta, won two singles in a whole year and had a trip to Beijing that was in vain.


voor de kat z'n viool

voor de kat zijn viool
voor de kat zijn viool#Dutch

Alternative spelling of voor de kat zijn viool


on the muscle

Tallhato was "on the muscle" going down the backside, attempting to run out. That's not the formula to beat a filly like Windy's Daughter.

1973, Chronicle of the Horse, volume 36, numbers 1-13, page 5:

I really wasn't able to rest him too much because he was on the muscle more than usual tonight.

1990, Harness Horse, volume 56, numbers 5-8, page 22:

(horse-racing) Of a horse: frisky and energetic, seeming keen to race.


with whole skin

He has to return, with whole skin, but without success; and be thrown into arrest, as a traitor.

1837, Thomas Carlyle, The French Revolution: A History […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: Chapman and Hall, →OCLC, (please specify the book or page number):


off tap

If your number comes up you are off tap and that is that. Dead as a bloody mackerel, no questions asked.

2012, Mark Brandon Read, Chopper Unchopped:

Patty said I was placed in isolation as some members of the aboriginal community had placed me in a category known back then as "OFF TAP" meaning I was to be hurt in some way, shape or form. This would later be retracted as Ray had done one of the most stupid things one could do as an aboriginal in prison 'rape one of his own kind'.

2013, Edgar William, Defined By What I Do or Who I Am, What Makes Me Me?:

(Australia, prison slang) Ostracized and made the target of revenge or punishment.


ע״פ

עַל פִּי
על פי#Hebrew


mit Verlaub

Literally, “with permission”. See Verlaub for more.

with all due respect
with all due respect


murag gitilapan og iring

Literally, “like it was licked by a cat”.


อย่างเช่น

/jaːŋ˨˩.t͡ɕʰeːn˥˩/

อย่าง (yàang, “as”) + เช่น (chên, “example”).


at the top of one's bent

to the top of one's bent
to the top of one's bent#English

Alternative form of to the top of one's bent


to the top of one's bent

They foole me to the top of my bent.

c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], page 269, column 2:


beyond the beyonds

(colloquial) Beyond acceptable limits; outrageous.


en charmante compagnie

être en charmante compagnie

to be on a date; to be with a lover; to be with a lady friend, to be with a gentleman friend


in allerijl

Allerijl is not found outside this expression and represents a contraction of aller, a fossilized dative form of al, and ijl.


en bonne et due forme

LL-Q150 (fra)-LoquaxFR-en bonne et due forme.wav

in due form, in form, by the book, according to Hoyle


behind the curtain

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see behind, curtain.


anunder mone

under þe mone
under þe mone#Middle_English


under mone

He...brouthen hire þat under mone In al þe werd ne hauede per.


in the fulle of þe mone

at þe fulle of þe mone
at þe fulle of þe mone#Middle_English

Alternative form of at þe fulle of þe mone


aboven þe mone

Þus trewe seruyce of god is lettid & þis veyn knackynge, for oure iolite & pride, is preised abouen þe mone.

1400, Wyclif, Of Feigned Contemplative Life:

(figurative) Outside what is reasonable; too highly.


at fulle of þe mone

Alternative form of at þe fulle of þe mone.


under þe mone

alternative forms at under

under mone, anunder þe mone, anunder mone

Of his soru mai naman tell þat liues vnder þe mone.


in þe croke of þe mone

(astronomy) During the waxing crescent phase of the moon between the new moon and half moon.

(astronomy, less common) Whenever the moon is in a crescent shape, either waxing or waning.


in þe newe of þe mone

(astronomy) During the time when the moon is in conjunction with the sun; during the new moon.


at þe fulle of þe mone

(astronomy) During the time when the moon is in opposition with the sun; during the full moon.


anunder sonne

under þe sonne
under þe sonne#Middle_English


under þe sonne

English: under the sun

Calque of Hebrew תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶשׁ (táchat hashémesh). The phrase has been associated with the book of Ecclesiastes ever since appearing 29 times in the translation into Middle English by John Wycliffe.

calque

תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶשׁ

alternative forms at under

under sonne, anunder þe sonne, anunder sonne

1382, 1395, Wycliffe, Bible, Ecclesiastes 9:11

(please add an English translation of this quotation)

gretter was ther noon under the sonne

c. 1387-1400 Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales, "The Knight's Tale"


bagai aur dengan tebing

bagai enau dalam belukar, melepaskan pucuk masing-masing

berat sama dipikul, ringan sama dijinjing


auf keinen Fall

under no circumstances
under no circumstances

under no circumstances, no way, by no means, no chance, absolutely not


for the taking

/fə ðə ˈteɪkɪŋ/

/fɚ ðə ˈteɪkɪŋ/

"He that believeth hath everlasting life." That life is no distant blessing, hard to win and costly to purchase. It is free. It is yours for the taking. It becomes yours the moment you believe.

[1850?], anonymous [possibly written or edited by Horatius Bonar], The Night Cometh (Kelso Tracts; no. 43), London: James Nisbet & Co., […], →OCLC, page 7:

After all these years of abnegation the crown might yet be his—was his for the taking.

1862 November, “Madeleine Schaeffer. In Three Parts.—Part III.”, in Harper's New Monthly Magazine, volume XXV, number CL, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, publishers, […], →OCLC, chapter VII, page 757, column 2:

How dreadful to live on when you were of no more interest to anyone, but must just 'pass the time' and die. But how much more dreadful to 'pass the time' when you were strong, and life were yours for the taking!

1919 October, John Galsworthy, chapter I, in Saint’s Progress, London: William Heinemann, published December 1919, →OCLC, part IV, page 357:

She had no desire to go near the Swenster mansion again, but neither could she bear to have Enid or Jane sharing in an adventure which was hers for the taking.

1932, Ann Wirt [pseudonym; Mildred Benson], “The Swenster Pearls”, in The Secret of the Sundial (The Madge Sterling Series), Chicago, Ill.: The Goldsmith Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 41:

Compounds such as carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, methane, water, hydrogen peroxide and oxides of nitrogen are also either available or can be manufactured from local materials [on the Moon, Mars, etc.] without too much difficulty once a base is established. These benefits are there for the taking by any generation willing to take the risks involved.

1989, Arthur E[dward] Smith, “Introduction”, in Mars: The Next Step, Bristol, New York, N.Y.: Adam Hilger, IOP Publishing, →ISBN, page xxi:

[B]eyond the clearing there are miles of uninterrupted sandy beaches, and, running parallel, a slow-moving, winding river, twin tropes of the imperial fantasy of vast terrains there for the taking.

2015, Caroline Field Levander, Matthew Pratt Guterl, “Rich”, in Hotel Life: The Story of a Place Where Anything Can Happen, Chapel Hill, N.C.: University of North Carolina Press, →ISBN, page 110:

Three times the Mexican gegenpress drew a scampering counterattack, whirring in on goal only to be foiled by a scudding last-ditch tackle or a last pass just awry. Germany were there for the taking, cut open with extraordinary relish by the Mexico attack.

2018 June 17, Barney Ronay, “Mexico’s Hirving Lozano stuns world champions Germany for brilliant win”, in Katharine Viner, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2019-08-05:

Available; able to be taken without difficulty.


at twice

(obsolete) Twice; at two distinct times.


in one's born days

in all one's born days
in all one's born days#English

Alternative form of in all one's born days


under canvas

(nautical) Having the sails unfurled; under sail.


bij tijd en wijle

/bɛi̯ ˈtɛi̯t ɛn ˈʋɛi̯.lə/


in procinto di

In una mossa inaspettata quanto storica, la Casa Bianca ha annunciato che Israele e gli Emirati Arabi Uniti sono in procinto di firmare un accordo di pace.

2020 August 13, Sharon Nizza, “"Accordo storico" tra Israele e Emirati Arabi Uniti: rapporti diplomatici per un piano di pace in Medio Oriente ["Historic agreement" between Israel and United Arab Emirates: diplomatic relationships for a peace plan in the Middle East]”, in la Repubblica:

In a move that's as unexpected as it is historic, the White House has announced that Israel and the United Arab Emirates are about to sign a peace agreement.

about to, on the point of [with infinitive]


by half

Little Miss Smartyboots is too clever by half.

He and two friends were known as “the three pseuds” among the rest of the boys, who thought them too clever by half.

2012 November 9, Decca Aitkenhead, “Robbie Coltrane: ‘I take no nonsense’”, in The Guardian:

(colloquial) By far; by a long chalk; to an excessive extent or degree, especially to the extent that it is negative, gets in the way, etc.


à grande échelle

LL-Q150 (fra)-Ltrlg-à grande échelle.wav

Coordinate term: à petite échelle


om des keizers baard

(idiomatic, dated) not for money; not seriously; indicating that there is no money or anything else at stake


hinter Gitter

hinter Gitter wandern (accusative indicating direction)

hinter Gittern sitzen (dative indicating position)

Wandert Donald Trump jetzt hinter Gitter? [title]

2023 March 31, René Pfister, “Wandert Donald Trump jetzt hinter Gitter?”, in Der Spiegel, →ISSN:


בוודאות

head

בוודאות \ בְּוַדָּאוּת

בוודאות \ בְּוַדָּאוּת • (b'vada'út)

בוודאות \ בְּוַדָּאוּת (canonical)
b'vada'út (romanization)

From בְּ־ (b'-, “with”) + וַדָּאוּת (vada'út, “certainty”).

אני יודעת בודאות שהם […] ― aní yodá'at b'vada'út shehém […] ― I know for certain that they […]


on one's own ground

Dealing with a matter with which one is familiar or expert.


for gosh sake

for goodness' sake
for goodness' sake#English


like a chicken on a June bug

Lots of times you just have to step out on faith when you think something is the right way to go. J.D. took to the forestry stuff like a chicken on a June Bug.

2006, Richard Etheredge, A Logger's Dream, page 61:

So there I was, struggling mightily to protect my virtue with my step-father-in-law all over me like a chicken on a June bug, and I would have been shamed for sure, but the good Lord sent me a sign in the form of a hot brick.

Baz pounced quickly, like a chicken on a June bug.

2014, Allan Lawrence, Olympus and Beyond, page 340:

(Canada, US, simile, informal) Very quickly; in short order.


to one's own cheek

[…] and the immortal history of Adam, when Paradise was no better than this prairie, becos the old gentleman (I like to speak respectfully of my ancestors) had it all to his own cheek.

1846, Peter Lund Simmonds, William Henry Giles Kingston, Simmonds Colonial Magazine and Foreign Miscellany, page 447:

He's one of the richest commoners in Great Britain — give you my word, sir, he's got a princely fortune, all to his own cheek — and he lets his places and lives in chambers in Piccadilly, […]

1891, Ada Cambridge, The Three Miss Kings: An Australian Story, page 126:

(archaic, slang) For one's own private use.


in full fig

Fig may be short for figure, or connected to feague.

(informal) Smartly or fancily dressed, especially in the uniform of a particular profession (soldier, royal servant, actor, etc).


à l'avance

Near-synonym: en avance

être à l’avance


voor de bühne

done merely to impress (not particularly well-informed) onlookers rather than for substantial reasons


in the house

master of ceremonies
master of ceremonies

(colloquial) Present or performing in a venue; said of a disc jockey or master of ceremonies, etc.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see in, the, house.


on the panel

The "panel" was a list of doctors who could provide limited free healthcare, prior to the introduction of the NHS. This phrase remained in use for some time after that.

(UK, dated) Off work and receiving benefits because one is unwell.


on one's legs

Standing up, especially in order to deliver a speech.


sa tumoy sa akong dila

on the tip of one's tongue
on the tip of one's tongue


auf offener Straße

[aʊ̯f ˌʔɔfn̩ɐ ˈʃtʁaːsə]

(idiomatic, figurative) in broad daylight


mit bloßem Auge

[ˌmɪt bloːsm̩ ˈʔaʊ̯ɡə]


for life

Very fast or strenuously, as if to save one's life.


in the extreme

It was rude in the extreme to act the way he did at the funeral.


bei lebendigem Leib

Sie wird bei lebendigem Leib verbrannt.


de loin

by far, easily, hands down (without doubt)


out the ass

They will hire a Harvard graduate and pay him out the ass before looking at some middle-aged person who should have had his shit together years ago. Then there's me . . . thirty-four at nine dollars an hour.

2007, Joy Evans-Smith, Secrets to Kill For, page 11:

(US, slang, vulgar) Synonym of out the wazoo


on memo

Of a diamond: having been borrowed by a dealer who does not own it, in order to show it to potential buyers.


on the DL

We like to keep it on the D.L.
because our clientele prefers it that way

2005, “Circus Maximus”, performed by Clutch:

(US, slang) Alternative form of on the down-low

The organization placed Molina on the DL on Wednesday, one day after he was removed in the fourth inning of the Cardinals' 6-0 loss to the Pirates.

2013 July, Jenifer Langosch, “Sprained knee forces Molina to disabled list”, in MLB.com (article), retrieved 2023-11-14:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see on, the, DL.


at antipodes

Mark Twain was not a humourist in the sense that Lamb was — the two were at antipodes.

In religion their thoughts ran in widely different channels, and in politics they were at antipodes.

1881, Lyman L. Palmer, History of Napa and Lake Counties:


fuori controllo

Rischiamo la crisi, sostiene il premier, perché il Movimento è "fuori controllo".

2020 September 22, Tommasco Ciriaco, “Governo, Conte teme i numeri in Senato e chiede tempo al Pd [Government, Conte fears the Senate numbers and asks the PD for time]”, in la Repubblica:

We risk a crisis, claims the Premier, because the Movement is "out of control".


in one's backyard

(informal) Local to the place where one lives or habitually spends time.


like a dying duck in a thunderstorm

(simile, rare) Looking hopelessly sad and dejected.


in future

Chapter 4 is devoted to setting out the kind of planning and co-ordination we consider to be necessary in future.

1971, The Future Management of Water in England and Wales, H.M. Stationery Office, page 2:

… and if the national debt were liquidated in the manner it ought, and readily might, the nation, it is to be hoped, would in future extend the public money to other purpoſes, than thoſe to which it has hitherto been appropriated, …

1801, George Edwards, Radical Means of Counteracting the Present Scarcity, and Preventing Famine in Future, J. G. Barnard, page 10:

(UK) In the future: at some future time(s).


du matin au soir

LL-Q150 (fra)-LoquaxFR-du matin au soir.wav


to all appearance

to all appearances
to all appearances#English


to all appearances

So far as anyone can tell by observation; apparently.


à n'en plus finir

des discussions à n’en plus finir

parler à n’en plus finir

des rêves à n’en plus finir

to no end, with no end in sight; endless, lasting forever, everlasting


to perfection

To enjoy a wine to its full potential, one must patiently wait until it has aged to perfection.

1993, Strategic Highway Research Program Focus:

She'd stood, head held high like a goddess, the midnight blue dress setting her magnificent figure off to perfection.

2013, Zana Bell, Close to the Wind (Choc Lit):, →ISBN:

In a manner that cannot be bettered; perfectly.


sur ses gardes

être sur ses gardes

rester sur ses gardes

on one's guard, on the alert, on the lookout


zwischen Tür und Angel

Literally, “between the door and the hinge”.

lit

Wir sollten das nicht zwischen Tür und Angel besprechen. Kommen Sie doch morgen früh noch mal in mein Büro, ja?

We shouldn’t discuss this in passing. Please come back to my office tomorrow morning, will you?

Zwischen Tür und Angel will ich euch prophezeien: die Statue der Freiheit ist noch nicht gegossen, der Ofen glüht, wir alle können uns noch die Finger dabei verbrennen.

1835, Georg Büchner, Dantons Tod [Danton's Death]; republished as Carl Richard Mueller, transl., Danton's Death, 1963:

If I may prophesy hurriedly in passing: our statue of Liberty has not yet been cast, the great furnace is glowing hot, there is still time for us to burn our fingers.

(idiomatic) while standing; while in a hurry; in passing; in a situation where one does not have or take the time to do something properly

Denn die Schwester des Advokaten, die Signora Artemisia selbst, hatte bei ihm die Kirschen geholt und ihm alles erzählt. Zwischen Tür und Angel hatte sie im Zimmer ihres Bruders einen Weiberhut entdeckt, der am Sofa hing; und auf dem Sofa saß die Frau.

For the advocate’s sister, Signora Artemisia herself, had fetched the cherries from him and told him everything. She had accidentally discovered a woman’s hat hanging on the sofa in her brother’s room, and the woman was sitting on the sofa.


modern as next week

(simile) Thoroughly modern; completely up to date.


on someone's good side

In someone's good graces; approved of by someone; not having annoyed or irritated someone.


in the picture

put someone in the picture, keep someone in the picture


by starts and leaps

Nature does nothing by starts and leaps, or in a hurry.

1692, Roger L’Estrange, “ (please specify the fable number.) (please specify the name of the fable.)”, in Fables, of Æsop and Other Eminent Mythologists: […], London: […] R[ichard] Sare, […], →OCLC:

In sudden short bursts; without being tidy and regular.


on the wrong side of the blanket

(born) illegitimately, outside of wedlock


murag namatyag iring

Literally, “like one lost a cat, like one's cat died”.

lit

used to describe someone who cries bawlingly or a bawling cry


sans nombre

Sixth, de la Plaunche, Argent, a lion rampant, Sable, crowned, Or, round him billets sans nombre, Sable.

1812, Arthur Collins, Collins's Peerage of England; Genealogical, Biographical, and Historical, page 376:

Charles VI. restored to the scutcheon of France the three lilies, first borne by Clovis; the race of Pepin having borne the azure field, semée des fleurs de lys sans nombre, which were also borne by the House of Capet down to 1389.

1877, University magazine, The Dublin university magazine, page 442:

[...] ancient inheritance of his father's family, which were azure, eight lioncels (or perhaps lioncels sans nombre) or.

1894, Henry Gough, James Parker, A Glossary of Terms Used in Heraldry, page 380:

Below the rose are the arms of Poitou, golden towers on red, and the old arms of France, azure with fleurs-de-lis sans nombre. Opposite to this on the south side is a small rose with the later shield of France, with only three[…]

1914, Arthur J. de Havilland Bushnell, Storied Windows: A Traveller's Introduction to the Study of Old Church Glass, from the Twelfth Century to the Renaissance, Especially in France, page 188:

The Northamptonshire Washingtons, or one branch of them, bore the following arms: "Paly (sans nombre) argent and gules with three mullets of the first on a chief azure." Another branch of the family bore : Argent with two bars[…]

1914, Robert Hudson George, A History of the Herefordshire Borderland, page 175:

Quarterly, bendy sans nombre or and gules, and likewise sinisterways of the second and first, on a pale sable between two Roman fasces in fess proper, a heart argent , charged with three bendlets purpure, and in chief an annulet[…]

1921, The Ecclesiastical Review, page 463:

(heraldry) Repeated (as a charge like a billet or a division like paly) many times, covering the field with no set number (of the thing).


bis zur Vergasung

Literally, “until the gassing”, referring to soldiers during the First World War remaining at their post until killed by poison gas.


between ourselves

between you and me
between you and me#English


on a plate

The row started over who will run for parliament in a wealthy rightwing constituency on the left bank in Paris, a safe seat for Sarkozy's ruling UMP. Dati is already a local mayor in the neighbourhood, a job felt to have been handed to her on a plate when she was a Sarkozy favourite. She has since fallen from grace, and when she left government she took a European parliament seat, considered a consolation prize.

2011 December 14, Angelique Chrisafis, “Rachida Dati accuses French PM of sexism and elitism”, in Guardian:

United looked listless, but found the inspiration they were badly lacking in Rashford. First the 21-year-old collected a long ball, bounced through a half-hearted challenge from Maya Yoshida and laid a chance on a plate for Lukaku.

2018 December 1, Tom Rostance, “Southampton 2 - 2 Manchester United”, in BBC Sport:

(colloquial) Within easy reach; easily achieved.

hopealautasella

(idiomatic) within easy reach, easily achieved


bis dato

Mit der Dame an der Hand / Geht es dann zum Taxistand / Doch das Ziel dieser Fahrt / Ist bis dato unbekannt

1987, “Küss die Hand, schöne Frau”, in Liebe, Tod & Teufel, performed by Erste Allgemeine Verunsicherung:


bis zum Geht-nicht-mehr

bis + zum + Gehtnichtmehr, a univerbation of [es] geht nicht mehr (“[it's] not possible anymore”).


in voice

In good condition for singing or speaking.


for you

Alternative form: for ya

That's Jane for you, always moaning about something.

Used as an intensifier to emphasize typicality of behavior

This present is for you.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see for, you.


for someone

She knocked my papers out of my hands for me.

"Then why did you handcuff him?" / "He was using vulgar language." / "But why did you put those things on his wrists?" / "I couldn't put them on his mouth." / "What did he do then?" / "He tried to run." / "And what did you do?" / "I broke his jaw for him." / "Why did you break his jaw?" / "Well, I couldn't break his leg, could I?"

1895, “Aut Scissors Aut Nullus”, in John Ames Mitchell, editor, Life, volume 26, page 387:

Broke my nose for me and knocked me on my ass.

She reached out and was only able to get a little hold of his leg and pull it back. She broke his ankle for him.

2007, Jill Whalen, Celtic Tales 8: The Daring, page 33:

Used as an intensifier for actions causing harm or detriment to someone

I wiped his nose for him - on the sidewalk.

Used to indicate that an action normally beneficial may be performed in a way that causes harm or detriment to someone.


van hier tot Tokio

(informal, esp. in relation to distances) extremely long

(informal, by extension) extremely large


in reverse

The Satanic message can be unmasked by playing the song in reverse.

Of a motion, sequence, etc.: backwards; reversed.

When the officer approached the car, the driver put it in reverse and drove away.


sa una

[sɐ ˈʔuː.n̪ɐ]


sa kabilang dako

tl-head

sa kabiláng dakò (Baybayin spelling ᜐ ᜃᜊᜒᜎᜅ᜔ ᜇᜃᜓ)

sa kabiláng dakò (canonical)
ᜐ ᜃᜊᜒᜎᜅ᜔ ᜇᜃᜓ (Baybayin)

Literally, “on the area on the other side”.


on the high ropes

(colloquial) In an elated or highly excited mood.


van de week

Literally, “of the week”. Possibly from collocations with a particular day, such as vrijdag van de week (“Friday of the [current] week”).

Ben je van de week al naar het strand geweest?

Have you already been to the beach this week?

(idiomatic) this week (during the current week, whether past or future)


in disguise

The celebrity went unnoticed by her fans because she was in disguise.

The homeless man was actually a police officer in disguise working to catch drivers texting.

That so-called news story is really advertising in disguise.

(figuratively) Seeming to be something else than what it actually is.


up to the elbows

up to one's elbows
up to one's elbows#English


across the ditch

By analogy with across the pond, and the fact that the Tasman Sea is much smaller than the Atlantic Ocean.

The rate of arrivals fluctuates with the relative economic fortunes of each country, but since the late 1960s, faster growth, higher wages, greater job opportunities and a stronger dollar have been an economic magnet drawing New Zealanders across the ditch.

2016, Peter Mares, Not Quite Australian: How Temporary Migration Is Changing the Nation, →ISBN:

(informal, Australia, New Zealand) On or to the other side of the Tasman Sea.


à l'identique

faithful, faithfully, identical, identically, exactly as it was


with closed doors

behind closed doors
behind closed doors#English

Synonym of behind closed doors (“in private”)


by fair means or foul

[Utterson] resumed; "if not by fair means, then by foul—if not of your consent, then by brute force!"

1886, Robert Louis Stevenson, Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, page 82:

By any means necessary, not excluding dirty tricks.


entre bastidores

behind the scenes (behind the scenery and backdrop area)

(idiomatic) behind the scenes (in secret)


hinter den Kulissen

(idiomatic, theater, film, also figuratively) behind the scenes


bei allem gebotenen Respekt

(formal, idiomatic) with all due respect


χ.η.

χωρίς χωρίς#Greek

ημερομηνία ημερομηνία#Greek

(bibliographical abbreviations) Abbreviation of χωρίς ημερομηνία (chorís imerominía, “without date”): n.d. (no date) of books, articles, websites where the year-month-day of their publication is not mentioned


χ.χ.

χωρίς χωρίς#Greek

χρονολογία χρονολογία#Greek

(bibliographical abbreviations) Abbreviation of χωρίς χρονολογία (chorís chronología, “without year date”): n.d. (no date) of books where the year of their publication is not mentioned


χ.ε.

Preposition χωρίς (“without”) + accusative singular of masculine noun εκδότης (“publisher”).

χωρίς χωρίς#Greek

εκδότη εκδότη#Greek

(bibliographical abbreviations) Abbreviation of χωρίς εκδότη (chorís ekdóti, “without publisher”): n.p. (no publisher) of books where the name of the publisher is not mentioned


in full cry

"I started straight for the Sukkestad-moor and had scarcely let the hounds loose, before they found scent and were soon in full cry."

1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 76:

Of a pack of hunting dogs: baying together while in active pursuit of quarry.


comme larrons en foire

LL-Q150 (fra)-WikiLucas00-comme larrons en foire.wav

s’entendre comme larrons en foire

être comme larrons en foire


comme cul et chemise

LL-Q150 (fra)-LoquaxFR-comme cul et chemise.wav

être comme cul et chemise

to be as thick as thieves, to be bosom buddies, to be joined at the hip, to go hand in glove, to go together like horse and carriage

(simile, informal) as thick as thieves, very close, inseparable


entre la peste et le choléra

Literally, “between the plague and cholera”. Compare Russian между чумой и холерой (meždu čumoj i xoleroj) and Norwegian Nynorsk mellom pest og kolera. See also Swedish and Danish pest eller kolera

cog

между чумой и холерой

between the devil and the deep blue sea
between the devil and the deep blue sea

between a rock and a hard place
between a rock and a hard place

(figuratively) between the devil and the deep blue sea, between a rock and a hard place


i. w. S.

im weiteren Sinne
im weiteren Sinne#German


by no manner of means

(archaic, formal) Under no circumstances whatsoever; not at all.


auf frischer Tat

Die Polizei erwischte den Taschendieb auf frischer Tat.

The police caught the pickpocket in the act.

In Kailis Wohnung fanden die Ermittler belgischen Medienberichten zufolge Taschen voller Bargeld. Le Soir schrieb, die 44-Jährige sei auf frischer Tat erwischt worden.

2022 December 11, Eric Bonse, “Geld aus Katar? Kaili unter Verdacht: Schnelles Ende einer Karriere”, in Die Tageszeitung: taz, →ISSN:


on the horizon

The goals and entertainment dried up after the break as Wales made a raft of substitutions but, with more meaningful challenges to come, a capacity crowd at the Stok Racecourse appreciated the bigger picture with Croatia on the horizon.

2023 October 11, Dafydd Pritchard, “Wales 4-0 Gibraltar”, in BBC Sport:


mit allen Schikanen

(idiomatic) with all the bells and whistles


mit allem Drum und Dran

lock, stock, and barrel
lock, stock, and barrel


like sin

(slang) Very much, or very hard; strongly.


a spina di pesce

herringbone (arranged in a herringbone pattern)


pma

(copyright law) Alternative form of p.m.a.


p.m.a.

post mortem auctoris
post mortem auctoris#English

(copyright law) Initialism of post mortem auctoris.


post mortem auctoris

Borrowed from Latin post mortem auctoris.

(chiefly copyright law) After the death date of the author of a work.


under correction

Subject to being corrected, if mistaken.


in a manner

In order to judge properly of the question before us, we must consider it minutely in its principal parts. I conceive myself that it is of a mixed nature—it is in a manner unprecedented; we cannot find one express example […]

1830, Niles' Weekly Register, volume 38, page 298:


from womb to tomb

from the cradle to the grave
from the cradle to the grave#English

(idiomatic) Synonym of from the cradle to the grave


from the womb to the tomb

from womb to tomb
from womb to tomb#English


in a sense

In one sense or interpretation, but not in all ways.


underneath one's breath

When you said you looked a mess, I whispered underneath my breath
But you heard it, darling, you look perfect tonight

under one's breath
under one's breath#English


on top of one's game

at the top of one's game
at the top of one's game#English

Alternative form of at the top of one's game


at the top of one's game

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-at the top of one's game.wav

(informal) Performing as well as one can.


by sight

to know by sight


at the top of the tree

Apple’s at the top of the tree, but the winds of change can blow it down [title]

2016 April 3, “Apple’s at the top of the tree, but the winds of change can blow it down”, in The Guardian:

(informal, figuratively) At the highest level.


on a promise

(UK, colloquial) Looking forward to sexual intercourse later.


in all conscience

I cannot, in all conscience, have somebody doing so much work for us and not getting paid.

[…] half a dozen fools are, in all conscience, as many as you should require; […]

c. 1703-20, “A Letter to a Very Young Lady on Her Marriage”, in Thomas Sheridan, John Nichols, John Boyle, Patrick Delany, John Hawkesworth, Deane Swift, William Bowyer, John Birch, George Faulkner, editors, The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, volume 5, Jonathan Swift:

He needed every penny of profit the Sofala could make. Little enough it was, in all conscience!

1902, Joseph Conrad, The End of the Tether:

It would seem as if the touch of a democratic and anarchical independence had paralysed improvement, which was, in all conscience, slow enough, even in the viceregal times.

2014, Clements R. Markham, Cuzco and Lima, page 285:

But could you, in all conscience, deprive these good people, who are, after all, trying to do their best, of meaningful employment, of earning their livelihoods?

2014, Belva Boroditsky Thomas, The Longest Adventure, page 201:

There was a clear sectarian bias in the proposition that Christian groups or churches were being funded from abroad and no professional news organization or editor could in all conscience let such writings pass for news.

2015, Wendy Doniger, Martha C. Nussbaum, Pluralism and Democracy in India:

God has nowhere been left without witness, and, in ways beyond our knowing, women and men who have never heard the Christian gospel, or having heard it, have, in all conscience, declined to accept it have known God's “uncovenanted mercies” and, by reason of what Anglican theologians often refer to as the ministry of the “unincarnate Logos,” have come to be of the truth that Jesus is.

2015, Schubert M. Ogden, To Preach the Truth: Selected Sermons and Homilies, page 6:


above par

"Certainly, sir, that will be an excellent method of trial."
"Ay, ay, know the way! soon find if they are above par. Be sure don't mind gold waistcoats; nothing but tinsel, all shew and no substance; better leave the matter to me; take care of you myself; know where to find one will do."

1782, Daniel Taylor, Frances Burney, Cecilia:

(idiomatic) Better than the average or normal standard.

bovenmaats

better than the average or normal standard

(golf) (of a score) More than par for the hole or course.

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


with the skin of one's teeth

by the skin of one's teeth
by the skin of one's teeth#English

(dated) Synonym of by the skin of one's teeth


dans les bras de Morphée

tomber dans les bras de Morphée

être dans les bras de Morphée

in the arms of Morpheus
in the arms of Morpheus

(figuratively) asleep; in the arms of Morpheus


di belakang

Siapa yang di belakang saya?


in the arms of Morpheus

In Ovid’s Metamorphoses, Morpheus is the god of dreams, and subsequently he was often referred to as the god of sleep. The name is borrowed from Latin Morpheus, from Ancient Greek Μορφεύς (Morpheús), from μορφή (morphḗ, “form, shape”) (alluding to the fact that Morpheus appeared in dreams in the forms of different people) + -εύς (-eús, suffix forming masculine nouns indicating persons concerned with particular things).

[N]ight had covered the world with her sable curtain, and wrapped the peaceful sisterhood in the arms of Morpheus.

1821 April 14, The Literary Gazette: or, Journal of Criticism, Science, and the Arts […], volume I, number 15, Philadelphia, Pa.: James Maxwell, […], →OCLC, page 238, column 3:

[L]ong before Julian had closed an eye, the heavy breathing from Sir Geoffrey Hudson's pallet declared that the dwarf was already in the arms of Morpheus.

1822, [Walter Scott], chapter XII, in Peveril of the Peak. […], volume III, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, page 303:

Benjamin here fell back in his chair, and soon gave vent to certain ominous sounds, which resembled, not a little, the growling of his favourite animal, the bear itself. Before, however, he was quite locked, to use the language that would suit the Della-cruscan humour of certain refined critics of the present day, "in the arms of Morpheus," he spoke aloud, observing due pauses between his epithets, the impressive terms of "monkey," "parrot," "pic-nic," "tar pot," and "linguisters."

1823, [James Fenimore Cooper], chapter XV, in The Pioneers, or The Sources of the Susquehanna; […], volume I, New York, N.Y.: Charles Wiley; […], →OCLC, page 221:

[A]s we were tired with the excitement and fatigues of the day, we were soon folded in the arms of Morpheus.

1853, [George Ballentine], chapter XVIII, in Autobiography of an English Soldier in the United States Army. […], New York, N.Y.: Stringer & Townsend, […], →OCLC, page 202:

"I think that the travellers would do well to abandon themselves to the arms of Morpheus," said Vasili Ivanovitch. / "That means that it is time to go to bed," said Bazarof. "I approve of the proposition. Come!"

[1867, Ivan Sergheïevitch Turgenef [i.e., Ivan Turgenev], chapter XX, in Eugene Schuyler, transl., Fathers and Sons […], New York, N.Y.: Leypoldt and Holt, →OCLC, page 144:

[T]he watcher of the corporation, […] shifted about and shuffled in his box before composing his limbs again in the arms of Morpheus.

1922 February, James Joyce, “[Episode 16: Eumaeus]”, in Ulysses, Paris: Shakespeare and Company, […], →OCLC, part III [Nostos], pages 593–594:

Old Rip Van Winkle's long sleep record, which, according to [Washington] Irving’s story of the famous legendary character of the Hudson Valley, was 20 years, is excelled by each of us who lives to a fairly ripe old age. Thus truth is again stranger than fiction, says Dr. Donald A. Laird, of Colgate university, for by the time we are 60 years old we have spent 20 years or one-third of our lives in the arms of Morpheus.

1932 September 17, “Modern Rip Van Winkles”, in The Pathfinder, volume 39, number 2020, Washington, D.C.: Pathfinder Publishing Co., →OCLC, page 18, column 1:

You and the men under you go to sleep on duty, or desert your post and while you are wrapped in the arms of Morpheus or A.W.O.L. our enemies break through our lines, destroy all the fortifications which we have started[…].

1939, F. C. Devericks, “Report of the Chief of Staff”, in Proceedings of the 39th National Encampment of the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States: Columbus, Ohio, August 21 to 26, 1938 (76th Congress, 1st Session, House Document; no. 39), Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 139:

He looked over his shoulder and saw that Susan was still safely in the arms of Morpheus as the bedclothes gently rose and fell.

2013 March 15, Jan Cheal, chapter 5, in The Bee Keepers, Bloomington, Ind.: AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 24:

(literary, figurative) Asleep, sleeping.

The [Arturo] Toscanini Tour left Italy for the United States, and the continued interest sustained by the progress of the tour brought us back to the war days when we breathlessly awaited the communiqués of offensives and counter-offensives. After which we fell back into the arms of Morpheus. The only signs of life to be found are at the Contanzi Theatre in Rome.

[1921, Music News and Herald, London: Publishing Office, →OCLC, page 333, column 1:

(by extension, figurative) In a state of being completely forgotten, or of unawareness.


en quantité

in plenty, aplenty, galore, abundantly, in abundance, in quantity


in quantity

It's not available in sufficient quantity.


of one's choosing

Widely credited as an early pioneer of the modern railway, Shooter died peacefully of his own choosing in Switzerland on December 13, having bravely lived with the onset of motor neurone disease in the final years of his life.

2022 December 28, Paul Stephen, “Network News: Adrian Shooter CBE: rail industry mourns "a great man"”, in RAIL, number 973, page 6:


in course

27 January 1811, Richard Rush, letter to John Adams
The very evening before it came to hand I had finished reading, in course, the last of the lectures upon rhetoric and oratory


à revendre

avoir du talent à revendre

(informal) aplenty, galore, to spare, in spades (in abundance)


off the track

Away from the proper subject; irrelevant, unrelated.

asian vierestä

away from the proper subject; irrelevant, unrelated

As for great men and kings being History's slaves, I think Tolstoi was off the track. Don't kid youself, kings are the most sublime sick. Manic Depressive heroes pull Mankind into their cycles and carry everybody away.

1976 September, Saul Bellow, Humboldt’s Gift, New York, N.Y.: Avon Books, →ISBN, page 6:


in a flap

to be in a flap, to get in a flap


für Arme

ein Mercedes für Arme

Hip Hop für Arme, Hip Hop für Beine / Hip Hop für alle, die wie ich das Putzen hassen

1998, “Dreckmarketing V. 1.7”, in Power, performed by Fischmob:


out of spirits

A party of natives in Tierra del Fuego endeavoured to explain to us that their friend, the captain of a sealing vessel, was out of spirits, by pulling down their cheeks with both hands, so as to make their faces as long as possible.

1872, Charles Darwin, Francis Darwin, The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals:


à l'étroit

On est un peu à l’étroit ici, vous trouvez pas ?

We're a bit cramped here, don't you think?

être à l’étroit

vivre à l’étroit


in a corner

Paul almost had poor Keeper in a corner
Where he would have to quit his politics
Or be a Christian.

Placed in a difficult or awkward situation.

mewn congl

placed in a difficult or awkward situation

something done in a corner


ἐν παραβύστῳ

head

ἐν πᾰρᾰβύστῳ

ἐν πᾰρᾰβύστῳ • (en parabústōi)

ἐν πᾰρᾰβύστῳ (canonical)
en parabústōi (romanization)

desc

εν παραβύστω

→ Greek: εν παραβύστω (en paravýsto) (learned)

οὐκ εἰς τὴν βουλήν, οὐκ εἰς τὸν δῆμον εἰπὼν περὶ τούτων οὐδέν, ἐν παραβύστῳ, τῆς βουλῆς μὲν ἀφειμένης, τῶν δ’ ἄλλων διὰ τὴν ἑορτὴν ἱερομηνίαν ἀγόντων, λάθρα τὸν νόμον εἰσήνεγκεν.

384 BCE – 322 BCE, Demosthenes, Against Timocrates 47

[Timocrates ...] without laying any proposition before the Council or before the Assembly, on the sly, when the Council stood adjourned, and everybody was holiday-making in honor of the festival, he brought in his bill surreptitiously.
English translation (1939) by A. T. Murray. @perseus.tuftus.edu

ouk eis tḕn boulḗn, ouk eis tòn dêmon eipṑn perì toútōn oudén, en parabústōi, tês boulês mèn apheiménēs, tôn d’ állōn dià tḕn heortḕn hieromēnían agóntōn, láthra tòn nómon eisḗnenken.

Διὸ καὶ λανθάνουσιν ἐνίοτε οἱ ἐρωτῶντες ἐν παραβύστῳ προστιθέντες ἃ καθ’ αὑτὰ προτεινόμενα οὐκ ἂν τεθείη.

384 BCE – 322 BCE, Aristotle, Topics 157a:(VIII)

That is why, the ones who ask questions are occasionally not detected, by sneakily adding propositions which would not stand separately.

Diò kaì lanthánousin eníote hoi erōtôntes en parabústōi prostithéntes hà kath’ hautà proteinómena ouk àn tetheíē.

sneakily, on the sly, in a hole-and-corner


on shipboard

How great is that danger, to which poor lads are now exposed, when placed on shipboard to learn the art of sailing!

1776, John Woolman, chapter XI, in A Journal of the Life, Gospel Labours, and Christian Experiences of that Faithful Minister of Jesus Christ, John Woolman, […] , Dublin: Printed by R. Jackson, page 209:


in one's back pocket

There’s tremendous opportunities at The Bay in order to modify the offering in order to be attractive to a larger segment to the population. […] Having the Lord & Taylor banner in their back pocket, they’ve got an extra option there.

2008 July 16, David Friend, “New owner to spruce up Bay”, in The Star, Toronto, Canada, retrieved 2019-01-29:

Spitzer thinks it's an outrage that the same bankers who brought down the world economy are still firmly in place, bonuses in hand, a government guarantee in their back pocket.

2010 March 4, Sheelah Kolhatkar, “Eliot Spitzer's Mission Impossible”, in Time, retrieved 2019-01-29:

I didn’t mention my son’s remark to my parents because it seemed emotionally manipulative, but I have it in my back pocket just in case.

2010 June 18, Ben Greenman, “King of His Multigenerational Castle?”, in New York Times, retrieved 2019-01-29:

[S]he bosses around all the blokes in the European Union; has won three elections; and even has a physics degree in her back pocket.

2015 June 4, Sophy Ridge, “Angela Merkel is finally having her feminist moment”, in Telegraph, UK, retrieved 2019-01-29:

(idiomatic) Ready if needed, in reserve, prepared, available for use whenever it might be advantageous.


by right

From by + right (“that which complies with justice, law or reason; legal, just, or moral entitlement”).

The post of vice-president should, by right, have been given to John.

Whiche praise, with the honour thereunto due, as inheritaunce discendeth by righte unto his most noble sonne, our moste dere soueraigne lorde that nowe presently raigneth. For, as Tulli [i.e., Marcus Tullius Cicero] saithe, the best inheritance that the fathers leue to their children, excellynge all other patrimonie, is the glorie or praise of vertue and noble actis.

1531, Thomas Elyot, “Of the Fifthe Branche, Called Circumspection, Shewed in Reprinse”, in Ernest Rhys, editor, The Boke Named the Governour […] (Everyman’s Library), London: J[oseph] M[alaby] Dent & Co; New York, N.Y.: E[dward] P[ayson] Dutton & Co, published [1907], →OCLC, 1st book, page 104:

A huſband and a ſon thou ovveſt to me, / And thou a kingdome, all of you allegeance: / The ſorrovv that I haue by right is yours, / And all the pleaſures you vſurpe are mine.

c. 1593 (date written), [William Shakespeare], The Tragedy of King Richard the Third. […] (First Quarto), London: […] Valentine Sims [and Peter Short] for Andrew Wise, […], published 1597, →OCLC, [Act I, scene iii], signature C, verso:

Ovve not all Creatures by juſt right to thee / Duty and Service, nor to ſtay till bid, / But tender all their povver?

1671, John Milton, “The Second Book”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: […] J[ohn] M[acock] for John Starkey […], →OCLC, page 45, lines 325–327:

[T]all and stately men, and fair ladies, worthy of the days when the gentry of England were by due right the leaders of the people, by personal prowess and beauty, as well as by intellect and education.

1855, Charles Kingsley, “How Amyas Came Home the First Time”, in Westward Ho!: Or, The Voyages and Adventures of Sir Amyas Leigh, Knight, […], volume I, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire: Macmillan & Co., →OCLC, page 32:

Well, whether the gentlemen really do deprive us of any little matters which ought to be ours by rights, I cannot say for certain; but the opinion of the old ones is they do.

1863 October 24, Charles Dickens, “Titbull’s Alms-houses”, in The Uncommercial Traveller, new edition, London: Chapman & Hall, […], published 1866, →OCLC, page 192, column 2:

He told me not to tell anyone. I suppose that I should not by rights have told you.

1884, H[enry] Rider Haggard, chapter VII, in Dawn […], volume I, London: Hurst and Blackett, […], →OCLC, page 101:

The rest will be speculators, that's men trying to get between you and the oilmen to get some of the money that ought, by rights, come to you.

2007 September 27, Paul Thomas Anderson, There Will Be Blood, spoken by Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis), Los Angeles, Calif.: Paramount Vantage; Miramax Films, →OCLC:

By rights I ought to have been lolling in bed this morning, but Nancy was ill and I had to goalkeep for the Second.

2011 February 21, Eilidh Nisbet, “February 1951”, in Giddy Old School: The Diary of a Swot 1948 to 1951, Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire: AuthorHouse, →ISBN, page 268:

According to what is right, or what one is legally or morally entitled to; justly, properly, rightfully.

իրավամբ

according to what is right, or what one is legally or morally entitled to — see also rightfully

And ſome [fowl], becauſe the light doth them offend, / Neuer appeare, but in the darke, or night. / Other reioyce, to ſe the fire ſo bright / And wene to play in it, as they pretend: / Alas, of that ſort may I be, by right. / For to withſtand her loke I am not able: / Yet can I not hide me in no dark place: […]

a. 1543 (date written), [Thomas Wyatt], “How the Louer Perisheth in His Delight, as the Flie in the Fire”, in Songes and Sonettes, London: […] Richard Tottel, published 10 August 1557 (Gregorian calendar), →OCLC, folio 21, verso:

(obsolete) In reality; correctly, to tell the truth, truthfully.


senza peli sulla lingua

Literally, “without hairs on the tongue”.


on parade

[…] he was ordered to leave general Washington’s camp, in consequence of the character that had been given of him; and upon his appearing on parade afterwards, he was ordered to leave general Washington’s camp on pain of imprisonment.

1780, Proceedings of a General Court Martial of the Line […] for the Trial of Major General Arnold, Philadelphia, page 8:

The upper clouds are to the lower, what soldiers on parade are to a mixed multitude; no men walk on their heads or their hands, and so there are certain laws which no clouds violate; but there is nothing except in the upper clouds resembling symmetrical discipline.

1843, [John Ruskin], chapter 2, in Modern Painters […], volume I, London: Smith, Elder and Co., […], →OCLC, , § 3:

Rawdon sat down in the study before the Baronet’s table, set out with the orderly blue books and the letters, the neatly docketed bills and symmetrical pamphlets, the locked account-books, desks, and dispatch boxes, the Bible, the Quarterly Review, and the Court Guide, which all stood as if on parade awaiting the inspection of their chief.

1847 January – 1848 July, William Makepeace Thackeray, “54”, in Vanity Fair […], London: Bradbury and Evans […], published 1848, →OCLC:

The morning of Major Ferguson's round had come again. It was the most detested event of the week: for the staff, because he expected the punctilio of a large teaching hospital to which the resources of the place were unequal; and for the patients because for an hour or more they would be virtually on parade unable to move from their beds, smoke or talk.

1953, Mary Renault, chapter 3, in The Charioteer, New York: Pantheon, published 1959, pages 40–41:

Battalions of infantry stood on parade around the durbar ground […]

1973, Jan Morris, chapter 16, in Heaven’s Command: An Imperial Progress,, New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, page 332:

(military) Assembled and in formation, prepared for inspection, to receive orders, etc.

Earlier the team had arrived at Liverpool John Lennon airport […] and were greeted by dignitaries, including the lord mayor of Liverpool, Alan Dean—an Everton fan—who officially invited them to go on parade.

2005 May 26, “Victorious Liverpool parade through city”, in The Guardian:

1899, Mary Noailles Murfree (as Charles Egbert Craddock), The Story of Old Fort Loudon, Chapter 1,
Perhaps her husband realized her fatigue and depression and was willing to put his French accent on parade for her amusement […]

1924, Hulbert Footner, The Steerers, Chapter 2, in Argosy All-Story Weekly, 2 August, 1924,
Their manners were better than those of most of the people in our vicinity. They looked at nobody but took their places without the least self-consciousness, and talked to each other in low tones with light smiles. You cannot be sure about married people on parade, of course; they might have been quarrelling fiercely.

Much of the progressive movement’s original steam had been generated because of capital’s predominant position in American life and progressives had successfully put the sins of the businessman on parade for all to see.

1955, Robert K. Murray, chapter 1, in Red Scare: A Study of National Hysteria, 1919-1920, New York: McGraw-Hill, published 1964, page 8:

He had found a public voice, a way of holding himself and forming sentences and formulating policy and judgment, to ensure that the personal and the carnal would be held in check and not have to be on parade.

2004, Colm Tóibín, chapter 5, in The Master, New York: Scribner, page 84:

On public display, shown in a way that attracts attention.


in the cold light of day

/ɪn‿ðə ˈkəʊld laɪt‿əv ˈdeɪ/

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-in the cold light of day.wav

Probably an allusion to a situation being seen more clearly in daylight, and after some time has passed. The word cold is used in the sense of “dispassionate; not prejudiced or partisan; impartial”.

In the cold light of day, I felt I had overreacted.

In my over-wrought state of the night before, it had seemed reasonable enough; but here, in the cold light of day, it seemed preposterous.

1912 March, Burton E[gbert] Stevenson, “Preparations”, in The Mystery of the Boule Cabinet: A Detective Story, New York, N.Y.: Dodd, Mead & Company, published 1918, →OCLC, page 119:

To the dreamer, a dream can seem at the time eerily indistinguishable from everyday consciousness yet, in retrospect, upon waking, so self-evidently different. The fragmented narrative, the improbability of much of what happens – flying, for example, or the transmogrification of one individual suddenly into another, and so on – seem ludicrous, even embarrassing, in the cold light of day.

2016, Susan Greenfield, “Dreaming”, in A Day in the Life of the Brain: The Neuroscience of Consciousness from Dawn till Dusk, London: Penguin Books, published 2017, →ISBN:

In the cold light of day, we're a flame in the wind / Not the fire that we've begun.

2018 August 16, Marshmello, Steve Mac, Dan Smith (lyrics and music), “Happier”, performed by Marshmello and Bastille:

Viewed calmly and dispassionately after allowing emotions to cool or after having sobered up.

in alle rust

viewed calmly and dispassionately after allowing emotions to cool

And above the crowd of living figures rise colossal forms of armed warriors, and peaceful poets, and sceptred monarchs; these glowing crimson; those standing calm and pale in the cold light of day.

1853, Anna Mary Howitt, “The Casting of the Sieges-Thor, Bavaria”, in An Art-student in Munich. […], volume II, London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, →OCLC, page 178:

However subtle the social pecking order may have been, the outsider entering the famous town with high expectations saw it in the cold light of day shrink into a philistine backwoods dump.

1989, Rüdiger Safranski, “Weimar”, in Ewald Osers, transl., Schopenhauer and the Wild Years of Philosophy, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, published 1991, →ISBN, book 1, page 72:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see in, the, cold, light, of, day: during the day; in daylight.


a ruota libera

without fear or inhibition; freely, freewheelingly


in gear

(of a vehicle) Having gears correctly aligned so that movement is possible.

to get in gear

(informal, by extension) In a state of readiness or activity.


to the wide

“He's bust to the wide,” said Oliver. “Don't you agree, Wilfred?”
“I think he must be,” said Harrap. “I had it on good authority that the bank was clamping down on his overdraft. When he's finished paying both sets of costs he won't have any credit left.”

2012, Michael Gilbert, The Dust and The Heat:


unter aller Kanone

Literally, “under all cannon”; a purposeful jocular mistranslation of Latin sub omni canone.


a torto o a ragione

Literally, “at wrongness or at rightness”. Compare French à tort ou à raison.

whether right or wrong; rightly or wrongly


in haste

In her haste to get to school, she almost forgot her school bag.

The decision had been taken in haste, and hence was the bad outcome.

Too quickly, without careful thought and planning.


col cerino in mano

Literally, “with the wax match in hand”.

holding the baby
leave someone holding the baby

in a position of abandonment and liability to blame; holding the baby


on all hands

It was believed on all hands that the two of them were having an illicit affair.

’Tis acknowledg’d on all hands, ſays that learned Prelate, that the Authority, either of the Scripture or of Tradition, is founded merely on the Teſtimony of the Apoſtles, who were Eye-witneſſes to thoſe Miracles of our Saviour, by which he prov’d his divine Miſſion.

1748, [David Hume], “Essay X. Of Miracles”, in Philosophical Essays Concerning Human Understanding, London: […] A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC, part I, page 173:


on tag

The prisoner was released on tag.

(UK) Under judicial surveillance by means of an electronic tag worn on the ankle etc.


in a huff

In an angry or annoyed state, feeling angry or upset.


out of the ark

to be out of the ark, to come out of the ark


on short notice

(US) Alternative form of at short notice


for a laugh

(UK, informal) For no reason other than to be amusing.


off one's guard

Not on one's guard; inattentive to possible hazards and thus vulnerable.


on one's behaviour

Placed in a situation where one's best behaviour is necessary or advisable.


in someone's boots

in someone's shoes
in someone's shoes#English


FCOL

for crying out loud
for crying out loud#English

(Internet slang) Initialism of for crying out loud.


like a house afire

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-like a house afire.wav

like a house on fire
like a house on fire#English


von der Pike auf

etwas von der Pike auf lernen


without so much as a by your leave

"What now," he said, "have the King's men respect neither for piety nor age that they burst in upon the seclusion of a holy man without so much as a 'by your leave' ?"

1914, Edgar Rice Burroughs, The Outlaw of Torn:

You just slam the fucking door without so much as a by your leave.

2013, Strom Thurmond, A History of the African-American People:

By lunchtime the Professor had had enough, and he left the retreat, his Brahminical thread and all, without so much as a by your leave.

2014, Ashvajit Dharmachari, In the Footstep of the Buddha, page 212:

I had a new sympathy for babies, poor little things, who are rocked hours at a time without so much as a “by your leave” in the case.

2021, Charles Edward Stowe, The Life Of Harriet Beecher Stowe:

(dated) Omitting the social niceties, especially that of asking permission.


sa katunayan

tl-head

sa katunayan (Baybayin spelling ᜐ ᜃᜆᜓᜈᜌᜈ᜔)


in the twinkling of a bedstaff

(archaic) In no time at all; immediately.


εν παραβύστω

head

εν παραβύστω

εν παραβύστω • (en paravýsto)

From Ancient Greek ἐν παραβύστῳ (en parabústōi).

bor

ἐν παραβύστῳ


en marche

up, functional, in operation, operational, up and running


on the sauce

From on (“regularly taking”) + the + slang sauce (“any alcoholic drink”).

(slang) Drinking alcoholic beverages to excess.


con le mani in mano

sitting on one's hands
sit on one's hands

(idiomatic) idle, lazy, sitting on one's hands


for a minute

For a minute there, I lost myself.

1997, Thom Yorke (lyrics and music), “Karma Police”, performed by Radiohead:


for one's part

For my part, I don't care whether she stays or goes.

The subsidy to Prussia had also been the subject of much reprehension; for his part, there was nothing in that transaction which was to him matter of surprise.

1818, The Parliamentary History of England from the Earliest Period to the Year 1803:


on the grog

From on (“regularly taking”) + the + slang grog (“any alcoholic drink”).

After a fine night on the grog, with bladder pressures reaching an estimated 4,000,000 psi (estimated by drunken scientists), the comparatively short range marksmanship required of an in-sink micturator is a significantly more approachable challenge than the tricky long yellow of the traditional method.

2007, Amanda Astill, Tom Bromley, Michael Moran, Simon Trewin, Shopping While Drunk: Confessions from Modern Life, London: John Murray, →ISBN, page 157:

(Australia, slang) Drinking alcoholic beverages to excess.


by comparison

When compared to something else; in comparison.


under the rule

No party shall be permitted to supply offers to buy or sell Securities closed for his account “under the rule.”

1908, New York Produce Exchange, Report, page 349:

A contract which has not been fulfilled according to the terms thereof may be officially closed “under the rule” by the Secretary, or by a member of the Committee on Arrangements, as herein provided.

1931, Charles Harrison Meyer, The law of stockbrokers and stock exchanges, and of commodity brokers and commodity exchanges:

(finance) Of a deal: concluded by the secretary of the stock exchange when the actual dealer has failed to do so.


in bonis

well-off, wealthy, in funds; possessing wealth, especially in money and/or property


from good hands

Father Joseph pretended, that he knew from good hands the High Chancellor only wanted that article changed which excluded the Swedes from the command in chief, and that regard should be had to their interests in concluding a peace.

1754, M. de Burigny (Jean Lévesque), The Life of the Truly Eminent and Learned Hugo Grotius (page 150)


inter pocula

From Latin inter pōcula (“among drinking cups”).

He asked them both to dinner, and inter pocula all seemed to go well. But it was only the convivial lull that was to precede a post-prandial storm.

2011, H. R. Haweis, Music and Morals, page 242:

Between alcoholic drinks; during a drinking session.


inter pocula

Unadapted borrowing from Latin inter pōcula (literally “among drinking cups”).


sulla punta della lingua

on the tip of one's tongue
on the tip of one's tongue


op zijn paasbest

in one's Sunday best, in a very tidy or decent manner (usually in relation to someone's dress)


mit Hängen und Würgen

[mɪt ˈhɛŋən ʊnt ˈvʏʁɡn̩]


on a tight leash

Tightly controlled; not given the freedom to do as one pleases.


con l'andare del tempo

Literally, “with the going of (the) time”.


in conclusione

when all is said and done
when all is said and done


in it

“You heard the sheriff yelling?” he said.
“Yes,” he said. You're in it now, aren't you, Aubrey? he thought. You're a big man, until you're not, until someone steps in your way and says, “Stop, in the name of the law.”

2012, Pam Durban, The Tree of Forgetfulness, page 133:

(slang) Getting on successfully, especially in a game.

(informal) Taking part in something, such as a lottery.

So you're taking all our trash to the dump, for free? I don't understand. What's in it for you?

Serving as an expected payout or reward.


on the knocker

(colloquial) Going from door to door attempting to buy or sell goods fraudulently.


im Vorhinein

[ɪm ˈfoːɐ̯hɪˌnaɪ̯n]


con le mani nella marmellata

Literally, “with the hands in the jelly”.

with one's hand in the cookie jar
with one's hand in the cookie jar

(idiomatic) with one's hand in the cookie jar


dans la dèche

LL-Q150 (fra)-LoquaxFR-dans la dèche.wav


on the nut

(slang) Not in deficit, profiting; making money.


off the nut

My first day's business took me off the nut.

1928, The Saturday Evening Post, volume 200, page 116:

(slang) In deficit, not profiting; sustaining a loss.


in un modo o nell'altro

Literally, “in one way or in the other”.

Da West Egg venivano i Pole e i Mulready, Cecil Roebuc e Cecil Schoen, Gulik il senatore e Newton Orchid, tra i proprietari della Film Par Excellence, Eckhaust e Clyde Cohen, Don S. Schwartze (il figlio) e Arthur McCarty, tutti nel giro del cinema in un modo o nell'altro.

2013, chapter 4, in F. Scott Fitzgerald, translated by Ferruccio Russo, Il Grande Gatsby [The Great Gatsby], Edizioni Scientifiche e Artistiche, page 92:

From West Egg came the Poles and the Mulreadys and Cecil Roebuck and Cecil Schoen and Gulick the state senator and Newton Orchid who controlled Films Par Excellence and Eckhaust and Clyde Cohen and Don S. Schwartze (the son) and Arthur McCarty, all connected with the movies in one way or another.


for fudge's sake

For fudge's sake, mate! Stop shooting at me!

(idiomatic, colloquial, euphemistic) for fuck's sake. An expression of anger or frustration.


in de eerste plaats

first of all; in the first place; first things first; firstly


as was

(UK) As it was; in a former state or condition.


wie am Schnürchen

Literally, “like on a string/on strings”, suggesting that everything works as though controlled by a marionette player.

Es hat alles geklappt wie am Schnürchen.

Für die Kampagne, einem Zusammenschluss aus Dutzenden Organisationen, die ohne Unterstützung der etablierten Parteien ausgekommen ist, lief es zuletzt wie am Schnürchen.

2023 March 26, Erik Peter, “Klima-Volksentscheid in Berlin: Klima der Veränderung”, in Die Tageszeitung: taz, →ISSN:

(simile) just as planned; without a hitch; like clockwork


a gambe levate

fuggire a gambe levate


in waves

The attention and praise come in waves for the pop star.

Relief came over me in waves.

With variable frequency; in large amounts spaced out.


on one's back

Having come to the end of one's resources.

I lay on my back, staring up at the clouds.

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see on, one's, back.


round about

Nevertheless, the modern outside cylinder 2-6-0 may be said to have had its beginnings on the G.N.R. and G.W.R. round about 1911.

1945 November and December, H. C. Casserley, “Random Reflections on British Locomotive Types—1”, in Railway Magazine, pages 318–319:

At a point or time approximately equal to.


in benefit

In the case of dispute and victimisation benefit and legal assistance, the member must have paid twenty-six weekly trade union contributions, and must be in benefit in accordance with the general rule regarding arrears as explained above.

1951, Transport and General Workers' Union (Great Britain), The Union, its work and problems (page 19)

He must pay all he owes the Union and wait three months after that to be in benefit.

1966, Lloyd Ulman, The Rise of the National Trade Union:

Having paid one's dues to a trade union, and thus eligible for the benefits of membership.


de plein gré

LL-Q150 (fra)-WikiLucas00-de plein gré.wav

Mais un législateur qui aurait un tant soit peu de valeur, si infime soit elle, quand bien même il n’en irait pas comme l’argument vient de le démontrer, n’aurait-il pas commis en cette occasion, plus qu’en n’importe quelle autre circonstance où il aurait eu l’audace de mentir aux jeunes gens dans l’intérêt du bien, son plus utile mensonge, celui capable de faire que tous, non pas de force mais de leur plein gré, se conduisent de façon entièrement juste ?


à découvert

vente à découvert


out of drawing

Drawn incorrectly, violating the principles of drawing.


in drawing

Drawn correctly, obeying the principles of drawing.


on someone's own dime

on someone's dime
on someone's dime#English


on someone's dime

They challenged my knowledge of the book, suggested that my article would inevitably be lousy and concluded that J. D. Salinger would be disgusted by what I was doing—all the while drinking on my dime.

1995 December 22, Adam Green, “If Holden Caulfield Spent a Weekend in Today's Manhattan”, in New York Times, retrieved 2019-06-03:

Their simple lives contrast sharply with the multimillion-dollar rumors surrounding Osama bin Laden. […] [T]hey weren't living large on his dime.

2001 September 23, John Cloud, “The Plot Comes Into Focus”, in Time, retrieved 2019-06-03:

But if you’re a Haitian, Mexican, or Brit and you step on American soil and are then detained by US officials, without a visa, you’ll be on the next boat back home—and on your dime too.

2011 December 19, Sebastian Doggart, “Green Card, Golden Ticket”, in Telegraph, UK, retrieved 2019-06-03:

(idiomatic) At the monetary expense of the person indicated.


κατ' ἐξοχήν

head

κᾰτ’ ἐξοχήν • (kat’ exokhḗn)

κᾰτ’ ἐξοχήν (canonical)
kat’ exokhḗn (romanization)

→ German: katexochen, kat' exochen

Greek: κατ' εξοχήν (kat' exochín)

→ Latin: per excellentiam (calque)

→ French: par excellence (calque)


in the sales

(UK) At a time when many stores are holding sales.


at all points

It may be said of her that she was at all points a gentlewoman.

1879, Anthony Trollope, Cousin Henry, page 129:


like grim death

Association between grim and death arose at least by 1590. More information at Grim Reaper.

I hung onto the rope like grim death.

I crouched low and held on like grim death to a little rail near me.

1944 May and June, “When the Circle was Steam Operated”, in Railway Magazine, page 133:

(simile) With savage determination or persistence.


as you please

bold as you please, calm as you please, cool as you please, charming as you please, casually as you please

(UK, informal) intensifier for a preceding adjective.


like fury

(UK, dated, informal) Furiously; energetically.


in the hand

These birds cannot be told apart except in the hand.

When being held in the hands; when being handled.


to be reckoned with

a force to be reckoned with

Too powerful or important to be ignored.