hold yew hard

References holding a horse's reins to keep it still. In this phrase, yew is an eye dialect spelling of you.

"Hold yew hard," said old Joe. "Will a hunnerd pounds hurt ye for the passage? We might make that a feeshin' in the time."

1909, James Blyth, A Bid for Loyalty, page 60:

"Hold yew hard," Sweetnin' adjured him, "while I get that there little step-ladder."

1933, Ralph Hale Mottram, The Lame Dog, page 273:

Mum flew at her sister like a tiger. 'Hold yew hard!' she bawled, spit coming out of her mouth. 'What dew yew mean by layin' inter that child like that? 'E in't dewin' yew no 'arm. Yew always was a spiteful bitch! Yew c'n git out a' my 'ouse, quick as yew like, or I'll fist yew one in the snout!'

1986, Audrey Whiting, Gal Audrey, page 24:

He held up his hand in defence. "Hold yew hard, Mr Challiss; hear me out afore yew blow me 'ead orf. […]"

2010, J. A. Noble, The Lime Walk, →ISBN, page 472:

(Norfolk, idiomatic, imperative) Wait for a moment. Be patient.


IDRGAF

(Internet slang) Initialism of I don't really give a fuck.


the devil looks after his own

On earth, lawyers rarely come to harm because the devil looks after his own.

2013, Adamu Kyuka Usman Lilymjok, The Mad Professor of Babeldu, page 489:

Charlie was often asked how he escaped so many attempts on his life. His reply was, “The Devil looks after his own.”

2013, Deborah Frethem -, Haunted Tampa: Spirits of the Bay, →ISBN:

Bad people often prosper unfairly, because the devil helps them.


where the shoe pinches

Where the cause of trouble or difficulty is found or located.


someone's jaw dropped

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-someone's jaw dropped.wav

Morris's jaw dropped — his countenance became the colour of tallow — his teeth chattered, and he gave visible signs of the utmost consternation.

(idiomatic) somebody was very surprised.


it happens

John said, "I'm sorry for knocking you over." Linda said, "It's okay. It happens."

Worrying is not necessary, since it is common to make this mistake or for this to occur.


I kid you not

Earliest known use is from November 3, 1943 on The Centenary Conglomerate.
A print reference of the phrase appeared in 1948 in the International Stereotypers' and Electrotypers' Union Journal, Volume 43:
Boy!, Oh Boy! I said I asked for a headache when I volunteered for this job, and I kid you not when I repeat it.
It next appeared as a phrase spoken by Lieutenant Commander Philip Francis Queeg in Herman Wouk's 1951 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, "The Caine Mutiny":
That's the Navy for you. Pass the buck and get a receipt. Act at discretion, hey? Well that's exactly what I'm going to do, and I kid you not.
It was later popularized by Jack Paar, host of The Tonight Show from 1957 to 1962, who used this as his signature phrase. It humorously combines the colloquial verb kid with the archaic negation through not without do-support. Compare believe you me.

I shit you not (alternative vulgar)
I fuck you not (alternative vulgar)

...I leaf through the stack of magazines they've got, and one of them — I kid you not — one of them is a Naughty Nurses magazine.

2011, Jonathan Marc Sherman, Knickerbocker, page 25:

(colloquial) Used to insist that one is telling the truth.


try as one may

It was an extraordinary thing that, try as we might, we could not finish our pipes at the same time.

1890, J[ames] M[atthew] Barrie, “English-grown Tobacco”, in My Lady Nicotine: A Study in Smoke, Boston, Mass.: Joseph Knight Company, published 1896, →OCLC, page 184:

'It could afford to be materialistic,' said Birkin, 'because it had the power to be something other--which we haven't. We are materialistic because we haven't the power to be anything else--try as we may, we can't bring off anything but materialism: mechanism, the very soul of materialism.'

1920 November 9, D[avid] H[erbert] Lawrence, chapter XXVI, in Women in Love, New York, N.Y.: Privately printed [by Thomas Seltzer] for subscribers only, →OCLC:

They didn't persist and quickly drove off, as Sam and Tom tried to ignore them and dismiss the entire experience. But try as they may, they weren't able to forget.

2013, Michael Myers, Doctors’ Marriages: A Look at the Problems and Their Solutions:

However hard one tries; despite one's best efforts.


something to

I found this note on the floor. At first, it looks like nothing special, but after I saw the weird symbol on the back I thought there might be something to it.


from goo to you by way of the zoo

(informal, humorous) The gradual evolution of humankind from simple organisms.


how the sausage gets made

A reference to the aphorism "Anyone who loves the law or sausages should never watch either being made"; sausage-making often uses animal parts of which people would rather remain unaware.

It is worlds away from conducting exciting operations, but it allows the officer to see "how the sausage gets made" and a stint in the post usually leads to a more desirable position.

2007, Valerie Plame Wilson, Fair Game, page 163:

Nevertheless, reform-minded media professionals cannot seem to part with the idea that there is a substantial readership beyond those who subscribe to trade publications willing to spend money to read about how the sausage gets made in the news media business or to read critiques of press performance.

2008, Arthur S. Hayes, Press Critics are the Fifth Estate: Media Watchdogs in America, page 93:

I wanted to divulge not only “how the sausage gets made” (i.e., how film and television properties are actually conveyed through the stages of development, financing, production, screening, and promotion around the world) but also to unveil the wizards behind the tiers of curtains.

2017, Heather Hale, How to Work the Film & TV Markets: A Guide for Content Creators:

The unpleasant way in which a process or activity is carried on behind the scenes.


so is life

The end brings a beginning. As a walk begins, so it ends, often on some obscure shore. But we do not walk to reach the end. Rather we walk today to feel the sting of the highway, the cold of the morning, the heat of the sun, and the disquiet and ecstasies of the wind on our bodies, our minds, and our souls. And so is life. We are here now to feel all that and more—and then the door closes.

2007, Michael Metras, Walking Life: Meditations on the Pilgrimage of Life, page 50:

He just didn't give a fuck about anything, and that's when I met Arron. I should never have gone there, he was trouble from the start, but you really don't see it when you're in it, You think its love, but really it was stupidity on my part. We were together about a year and you know the rest, it didn't end too good. But so is life.

2012, Georgina Campbell, The Kickdown Girls, page 102:

I begged my mother to write notes excusing me from taking the gym classes. She used to get upset at me. I don't know when she realized the reason why I was acting the way I was but she did. She wrote a long letter to the gym teacher and explained my problem. They made an exception and I was excused from having to partake in gym. To this day, even in my prime, I couldn't do a summersault or cart wheel. Oh well, so is life.

2013, Brenda Sue, Jack and Jill, Not an Easy Climb:

Life is not like an oil painting, which can be rubbed out and done over time and again until the artist is satisfied. With the sumiye painting any brush-strokes painted over a second time results in a smudge; the life has left it. All corrections show when the ink dries. So is life.

2013, Osvald Sirén, The Chinese on the Art of Painting:

It may be that the realistic story is commonplace, but so is life, and the realistic tale is true.

1894, Current Opinion, volume 15, page 210:

If there is one who knows, I know more than he, and if there is one who ignores it, even more than he I ignore it. My life is a fight between this knowing and this ignorance and so is his life and so is life.

2000, Time and Space: A Poetic Autobiography, page 55:

If it has respected me so far, I don 't see why it would decide to consume me now, when all my body has to offer are weakened bones and sagging flesh. Malaria can be fatal in the long run, I know. Well, so is life.

We can come across the hill and die from anything, anything can happen and often does, and we must be prepared for that. Nothing, nobody is permanent, and everything will change. Death is inevitable, but so is life.

2016, Abraham Pedro, Peyote: The Divine Flower of Life, page 115:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see so, is, life. i.e. life is, as well; life is (something) too.


the chuff

What the chuff are you doing here?!

(UK, informal) Synonym of the fuck (“intensifier”).


don't give up the day job

don't give up your day job
don't give up your day job#English

Alternative form of don't give up your day job.


no show without Punch

A reference to the Punch puppet in a Punch and Judy show.

The demand for computer installations and more accurate and effective information services grows and will continue to do so for years to come but, as there is no show without Punch, there can be no meaningful information service without accurate data collection.

1975, Hospital & Health Services Review - Volume 71, page 391:

Outside, the music could have been little more than a low, muffled rumble, capable of penetrating nothing, certainly not the consciousnesses of the flush-faced Fianna Fáilers and their triumphant champion, or of spoiling their moment with its pointed accusations. This was their show, and there is no show without Punch.

1991, John Waters, Jiving At The Crossroads:

I was concerned I might be skirting just the wrong side of late and was relieved to see the main man only just on his way in too. No show without Punch, after all.

2007, Christopher Brookmyre, Attack of the Unsinkable Rubber Ducks, →ISBN, page 192:

“Of course I'm coming. No show without Punch.”

2016, Eva Scott, Red Dust Dancer, →ISBN:

A show or endeavor cannot proceed without its star or main purpose.


DFTT

don't feed the troll
don't feed the troll#English

(Internet slang) Initialism of don't feed the troll.


back atcha

"You drive me crazy," she said flatly. "Back atcha, my sistah," I said with a laugh, then changed the subject.

2007, Victoria Laurie, Crime Seen: A Psychic Eye Mystery, page 109:

“Or how about . . .Are you a parking ticket? Because you've got FINE written all over you.” Back atcha, gorgeous.

2014, Candis Terry, Something Sweeter, →ISBN:

“Back atcha, mister,” I say, holding my hand over my eyes to block out the sun.

2016, Alecia Whitaker, The Way Back Home, →ISBN:

Pronunciation spelling
pronunciation spelling


AYT

(networking) Initialism of are you there?: a telnet command sequence sent from client to server to verify that the connection is still active.


I know you are, but what am I

I know you are but what am I
I know you are but what am I#English

Alternative form of I know you are but what am I.


WIN

Initialism of whip inflation now: a 1974 US political slogan.


I have a bridge to sell you

In reference to George C. Parker, an infamous conman who successfully duped his victims into “buying” the Brooklyn Bridge.

(idiomatic, derogatory, US) An indirect way of expressing that the addressee is gullible.


all one's taste is in one's mouth

en-au-all one's taste is in one's mouth.ogg

She doesn't like my decorating style, eh? Well, that's because all her taste is in her mouth!

“I pay to get into the movies just like everybody else, and I sure wouldn't waste my money on you.”
“That's because all your taste is in your mouth.”

2008, Emily Carmichael, The Good, the Bad, and the Sexy, →ISBN:

“Their cars are maroon and red. You should see them in the driveway.” He shuddered. “All his taste is in his mouth.”

2009, Katherine F. Robertson, Life in Violet, →ISBN, page 176:

It's all about vintage shag rugs in bad colors and milk crates stuffed with magazines and board-and-brick bookcases like kids make in graduate school, which makes me wonder whether all her taste is in her mouth.

2013, Kit Reed, The Story Until Now: A Great Big Book of Stories, →ISBN, page 373:

(idiomatic, mildly insulting) One lacks good taste in aesthetic or cultural matters.


all of one's taste is in one's mouth

all one's taste is in one's mouth#English

Alternative form of all one's taste is in one's mouth.


you got it

(US, informal) As an answer to a request: sure, no problem.

(US, informal) As an affirmative response to a question or statement: correct, that's right, yes.


come upon the town

To be sure, it would have been more for the advantage of conversation had Miss Lydia Bennet come upon the town; or, as the happiest alternative, been secluded from the world, in some distant farm house.

1813 January 27, [Jane Austen], chapter VIII, in Pride and Prejudice: […], volume III, London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC, page 144:

(UK, obsolete, euphemistic) To become a prostitute; to turn to prostitution.

While Brimfield people have never been very rich, they have been prudent and thrifty, and there have been very few so poor as to come upon the town for support.

1879, Historical Celebration of the Town of Brimfield, Hampden County, Mass, Clark W. Bryan Company, page 65:

The daughter had children and they all three came upon the town for support, for they would not work.

1912, Ada Harriet Kepley, A Farm Philosopher, Worman's Printery, page 149:

(US) To receive public charity; to have one's living supported by public funding.

(US) To make one's debut in town society; to become (known as) a man or woman about town.


all's one

(obsolete) It is just the same; it makes no difference.


seventy-threes

Carlsen concluded the domestic parley with the ham sign-off, "Seventy-threes," and went to the bridge to look at the ocean.

Seventy-threes and hope to catch you later.

1976, Popular Electronics - Volume 9, page 92:

Seventy-Threes to you, Neil. Look for you later on the flip.

1977, Bob Cunningham, Rod Furan, Barbara Howell Furan, 10-33 emergency, →ISBN, page 8:

Seventy-threes (regards) to the Cycle Man and spread 'em around (pass the word) on that Super Slab (Interstate).

1978, U.S. Army Recruiting and Career Counseling Journal:

Seventy-threes to you, Deke. Still totin' the Lord?”

2003, Jerry B. Jenkins, Tim LaHaye, Pursued, →ISBN, page 7:

(amateur radio, CB) Best wishes; regards.


that's as may be

They claimed they were following procedure. That's as may be, but it was still wrong given the circumstances.

“Well, here it is,” said Silver. “We want that treasure, and we’ll have it—that’s our point! You would just as soon save your lives, I reckon; and that’s yours. You have a chart, haven’t you?”
“That’s as may be,” replied the captain.

1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, “Silver’s Embassy”, in Treasure Island, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883, →OCLC, part IV (The Stockade), page 162:

That's as may be, some managers replied, but they protested vigorously that the BBC had the fairest system of appointment boards for every job and promotion, attended by the personnel department to prevent an inside fix.

1999 February 24, Polly Toynbee, “How I stopped worrying and learnt to love racial awareness training”, in Alan Rusbridger, editor, The Guardian, London: Guardian News & Media, →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 2016-11-23:

(chiefly British, followed by "but") Even if that is the case; acknowledging another's point before introducing a more pertinent one.


can't do right for doing wrong

“Hold your confounded tongue!” he bawled. “You can't do right for doing wrong, can you? No, by G-d! […]

1971, George MacDonald Fraser, Flash for Freedom!, page 59:

Insolvency doesn't necessarily happen when a company is doing poorly; quite the contrary, it can happen just as easily when a company is too successful (you see, sometimes you can't do right for doing wrong!).

2013, Steve Collings, Michael Taillard, Corporate Finance for Dummies, John Wiley & Sons, page 201:

They, like the sufferer, need support, since the emotional demands placed upon them can be very intense. They often feel that they can't do right for doing wrong when trying to offer help to the sufferer.

2014, Patricia Furness-Smith, chapter 2, in Overcoming Problem Eating: A Practical Guide, Icon Books:

(British) Be in a situation where any course of action leads to a negative outcome.

damned if one does and damned if one doesn't


pour honey into one's ear

Thus, thus is the soul wrenched from the body! With loving words he pours honey into her ears, lifts her up and clasps her to his breast, kisses her lips, her neck, her back, pushes her from him. “Goodbye!”

1975, José Martí, Elinor Randall, transl., Inside the Monster, Monthly Review Press, page 317:

It just did not ring true. This was the dark angel, Bond thought, the fallen angel, Satan himself, pouring honey into his ear—honey laced with poison. The temptation was too great.

“Listen to him, Gianfranco. He is like your heroine, the way he pours honey into my ear.”

2008, “Federico Fellini”, in Elsie M. Walker, David T. Johnson, editors, Conversations with Directors, Scarecrow Press, page 183:

pour honey in one's ear
pour honey in one's ear#English

Alternative form of pour honey in one's ear.


pour honey in one's ear

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-pour honey in one's ear.wav

I'm five yards away, and horribly jealous. He comes over and pours honey in my ear about how all those months back I said I couldn't play it and then I brought so much to it and I am faint from what I can't say.

2010, Maureen Lipman, “A Little Night-Night Music”, in I Must Collect Myself ...Choice Cuts from a Long Shelf Life, Simon & Schuster:

You knew you and I were perfect for each other. But he poured honey in your ear somewhere along the way and got you pregnant and then he started fucking up. And you know how that tore at me?

2011, Doug Magee, Darkness All Around, Simon & Schuster, page 291:

Rhys snapped shut the lid. “So he plies you with jewels and pours honey in your ear, and now you feel bad?”

2016, Sarah J. Maas, A Court of Mist and Fury, Bloomsbury, page 335:

(idiomatic, informal) To tell someone something they want to hear.


ink isn't dry on

before the ink was dry (alternative)
before the ink had time to dry (alternative)
the ink was not even dry (alternative)

The ink isn't dry on his latest contract yet and already there is talk about a successor to Conrail President and Chiel Executive Officer L. Stanley Crane.

1987, Traffic World - Volume 211, page 88:

I'll fight against any kind of development in Iqaluk, Billy, barring the logging leases we've already signed, but if you decide you want to go after subsurface mineral development and you get your way, it's better for all of us to deal with Dan, someone who knows us and knows our ways, than some yahoo with a deploma so new, the ink isn't dry on it yet.

2002, Dana Stabenow, A Fine and Bitter Snow, →ISBN, pages 9–10:

The ink isn't dry on the marriage certificate when she dumps that poor, miserable bastard.

(referring to a document) Used to indicate that a document was just issued.


which is which

(informal, especially as a question) Used to indicate multiple things are difficult to tell apart


you were saying

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-you were saying.wav

Prompts the interlocutor to resume what they had been saying prior to an interruption.

A: There isn't much crime around here any more.
(A and B suddenly witness a crime take place.)
B: ...You were saying?

(humorous, sarcastic) Draws attention to something that has just happened that conflicts or contradicts a statement that the interlocutor had just made.


you happy jiu OK

Intentional Chinglish rendering of the Chinese Internet catchphrase 你開心就好／你开心就好 (nǐ kāixīn jiù hǎo, “as long as you are happy”).

zh-l

(slang, neologism, Chinglish) Used to show snide disagreement.


fed up to the back teeth

(informal, UK) Emphatic form of fed up: very frustrated, annoyed, tired.


of coz

(Internet slang, text messaging) of course


JFDI

(slang, vulgar) Initialism of just fucking do it.


say what you like

'Say what you like, trial by jury is a sound system.'

1934, Agatha Christie, chapter 8, in Murder on the Orient Express, London: HarperCollins, published 2017, page 134:


up to one's neck in alligators

An expressive image, derived from the proverb "when you're up to your neck in alligators, it's hard to remember that your initial objective was to drain the swamp".

For quotations using this term, see Citations:up to one's neck in alligators.

(slang, idiomatic) Extremely busy; having many pressing obligations, distractions, etc., consuming one's time.


or bust

Indicating that the only alternative to what is being attempted is a bust (“(slang) failed enterprise; bomb”).

Nearly half a lifetime I have lived in Laramie, with all the while a great longing to see the wonders of the Yellowstone— [...] so when the boys wrote along the wagon top "Park or Bust," that settled it, and we started July 4th, 1903.

1905 June 29, N. E. Corthell, “A Family Trek to the Yellowstone”, in Henry Chandler Bowen, editor, The Independent, volume LVIII, number 2952, New York, N.Y.: The Independent, […], →OCLC, page 1460, column 1:

Mr. [William Jennings] Bryan recognizes that he must win New York—"or bust." He went there straight from Des Moines and had a three-hour conference with the local leaders.

1908 September 12, “Campaign Topics”, in Alfred Holman, editor, The Argonaut, volume LXIII, number 1642, San Francisco, Calif.: Argonaut Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 399, column 2:

Here it was, in black and white: More than 50 percent of our membership Tenderfoot Scouts, about 25 percent Second Class, only 20 percent First Class or more! [...] Set a goal—something like "First Class or more before '54!" or, if you are more ambitious than that: "First Class or bust, by September Fu'st!"

1953 May, “Green Bar Bill” [pseudonym], “Green Bar Bill Says … First Class or Bust!”, in Harry A. Harchar, editor, Boys’ Life: The Magazine for All Boys, volume XLIII, number 5, New York, N.Y.: Boy Scouts of America, →OCLC, page 23, column 2:

The rush [the Pike's Peak Gold Rush] took on new momentum. [...] Each day fresh emigrants left the outfitting places along the Missouri with signs on their wagons, "Pikes Peak or Bust." During the summer of 1859 a continuing flood of gold-seekers poured across the plains and on into the mountains to conquer the Front and Park Ranges.

1987, Caroline Bancroft, Colorful Colorado: Its Dramatic History (Bancroft Booklets), Boulder, Colo.: Johnson Books, published 2002, →ISBN, page 44:

In the fall of 1951, I was on my way to South Dakota State College in Brookings SD with Dale Pettyjohn in his Model A Ford. We painted the back of the Model A in white letters "SDSC or Bust".

2014 April 2, Delane Quiver Boyer, “SDSC or Bust”, in Path Chosen: Life of a Lakota: Mi Lakota Yelo, [Bloomington, Ind.]: Xlibris, →ISBN, page 82:

For scores of African migrants, it's a case of "Europe or bust", no matter what Moroccan authorities throw at them in the way of detentions and being bussed hundreds of kilometres away.

2018 October 25, “‘Europe or Bust’ Migrants Undeterred in Morocco”, in France 24, archived from the original on 2018-10-25:

(chiefly US, informal) Used to indicate one's intention to do everything possible to achieve a goal, with failure being the only alternative.

tai ei mitään

used to indicate one's intention to do everything possible to achieve a goal, with failure being the only alternative


what was your first clue

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-what was your first clue.wav

(colloquial, sarcastic) A riposte to someone who has just stated an obvious conclusion.


continued on page 94

continued page 94
continued page 94#English


ILYSM

Alternative form: ilysm

(Internet slang) Initialism of I love you so much.


Near-synonym: MSM

(in personal ads or Internet slang) Initialism of male for male.

(ASMR) Of audio, a masculine or male voice using male pronouns.

(Internet slang) Initialism of masc for masc.


you ask me, I ask who

Calque from Chinese 你問我，我問誰／你问我，我问谁 (nǐ wèn wǒ, wǒ wèn shéi).

'What the hell was she trying to do?' I asked Callum. 'You ask me, I ask who?' he looked bemused.

2014 04, Celina Wong, Righteous Betrayal, PartridgeIndia, →ISBN, page 27:

"No, I'm not colour-blind, but it's been like this since I can remember. Even Doctor Lam doesn't know why all home-building blocks look grey to me. How come like that, ah?" "You ask me, I ask who?"

2020 December 27, Tan Jie Ying, “"The Colour of Glass"”, in Home Groan: A NutMag Anthology, Malaysian Writers Society:

So Bilbo's nephew Frodo... Aiyah, dun ask me why their name all so funny, can or not? You ask me, I ask who?

2023 September 8, Devyani Sharma, From Deficit to Dialect: The Evolution of English in India and Singapore, Oxford University Press, →ISBN:

(Chinglish, Singlish) I don't know, how should I know


nulla bona

(law) No goods; used to indicate that a search has found no seizable property.


try as one might

It was an extraordinary thing that, try as we might, we could not finish our pipes at the same time.

1890, J[ames] M[atthew] Barrie, “English-grown Tobacco”, in My Lady Nicotine: A Study in Smoke, Boston, Mass.: Joseph Knight Company, published 1896, →OCLC, page 184:

She again took up the shining skimmer, held it beneath the pump, and began anew. But she could not, as at other times, hit the exact under-surface of the cream with the delicate dexterity required, try as she might: sometimes she was cutting down into the milk, sometimes in the air. She could hardly see, her eyes having filled with two blurring tears drawn forth by a grief which, to this her best friend and dear advocate, she could never explain.

1891, Thomas Hardy, chapter XXVII, in Tess of the d’Urbervilles: A Pure Woman Faithfully Presented […], volume II, London: James R[ipley] Osgood, McIlvaine and Co., […], →OCLC:

The pub was so noisy it hardly seemed the most sensible place for a top-secret meeting. Try as he might, the boy couldn’t spot his father anywhere. Just as he was about to give up and head home, Frank heard muffled voices coming from the car park. The boy turned round to see some men sitting talking in a Rolls-Royce.

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


what good is

You poured more oil into the leaking oil tank? What good is (it doing) that?

what's the good of
what's the good of#English


computer says no

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-computer says no.wav

From the British sketch comedy series Little Britain, where it was the catchphrase of the character Carol Beer, a bank worker and later holiday rep and hospital receptionist, who dealt with customer enquiries by typing them into her computer and responding with computer says no.

The immigration minister has said she wants to change the “computer says no” culture of the Home Office, after being confronted with evidence that up to 1,000 highly skilled immigrants face being deported for minor errors on their tax forms.

2018 May 8, Heather Stewart, “Immigration minister wants to end 'computer says no' culture at Home Office”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(humorous) Alluding to an attitude where decisions are based solely on the output of a computer system, apparently without using common sense and without any desire to help, especially in customer or public service.

Computer says no
Little Britain (TV series)

computer zegt nee

popular phrase for an attitude in customer service


believe me

You keep Max from destroying you and your family. Which is what he’s after, believe me.

1972, Louis Auchincloss, I Come as a Thief, Houghton Mifflin, page 187:

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see believe, me.


the rubber hits the road

It is in these conversations that the rubber hits the road, where the plan gets traction.

2011, Kevin Murray, The Language of Leaders, →ISBN:

We do it in our teaching, which is where the rubber hits the road in the improvisation community.

2014, Kent De Spain, Landscape of the Now: A Topography of Movement Improvisation, →ISBN:

It often tends to be the most controversial field in theology because it's where the rubber hits the road in terms of what the Church says on the hotbutton issues of the day, from abortion and homosexuality to war and the environment.

2014, John L. Allen Jr., The Catholic Church: What Everyone Needs to Know®, →ISBN:

When Senator Barack Obama ran for president, he noted: The mayors have some of the toughest jobs in the country, because that's where the rubber hits the road.

2014, Robert D. Behn, The PerformanceStat Potential, →ISBN:

the rubber meets the road
the rubber meets the road#English

Alternative form of the rubber meets the road.


afaict

Alternative letter-case form of AFAICT (“as far as I can tell”).


DNFTT

do not feed the troll
don't feed the troll#English

(Internet slang) Initialism of do not feed the troll.


one's race is run

One's life has reached its end; one is dead or soon to die.


Robert's your father's brother

More recent variant, deliberately making the phrase sound incongruously formal.

Robert is your father's brother (alternative)


out of one's cotton-picking mind

out of one's cotton-pickin' mind (alternative)

out of one's mind
out of one's mind#English

(US, dialectal) Synonym of out of one's mind.


one word leads to another

One word led to another and all of a sudden they were threatening each other with divorce.

Said of a conversation which suddenly develops in a way that was not planned or anticipated by any of the people involved, sometimes in a positive context, but especially of an escalating argument.


LIGAF

(Internet slang) Initialism of like I give a fuck.


LIGAFF

give a flying fuck
give a flying fuck#English

(Internet slang) Initialism of like I give a flying fuck.


I'll show you

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see show.

I'll show them who's the failure in this family!

Athletics gave me persistence as a teenager. [...] I used to train eight times a week. Even in the middle of winter I would break into the stadium and shuffle through snow on the track. [...] Building a quantum computer is like space travel to Mars. For many years, people said this is completely impossible. That's what got me into this field. I thought, I'll show you.

2018 August 1, Jacqui Bealing, quoting Winfried Hensinger, “Progress in Quantum Technology”, in The w:University of Sussex:

"Hey Jack," Bobby said, changing the subject. "Did you notice Bernie in front of the formation tonight? When he saluted Major Reynolds he jiggled. He's gained some weight. Better get in shape if he's going to war."
"Don't you believe it, Jarhead," Bernie retorted. "Step outside. I'll show you who's out of shape!" They all laughed.

2011, Robert Riggs, War in the Land of Morning Calm: A Korean War Novel, →ISBN, page 3:

"The fact that I was a [Broadway] director of color directing this play was the most important banner I wanted to wave," he said. "Because I'm breaking a boundary there. Whereas, if the [homo]sexuality is stressed, that excuses on a certain level the racial thing," [...] He had returned to his home town of Frankfort, Kentucky, for George C. Wolfe Week. He didn't recall feeling oppressed by segregation while he was growing up, but, as the returning hero, he felt the childhood emotions flooding back. "It was so interesting, walking into these tiny little shops and going, ‘What was so precious here that a little six-year-old boy couldn't touch, couldn't walk inside of?' " he said. "Or the Capitol Theatre—they wouldn't let me go in there? Oh, it's a parking lot now? Good. The first eleven years of my life came rushing back to me with a certain sort of rage. I thought, I'll show you. And it wasn't George Wolfe showing you. It was a little black boy showing you."

1993 September 20, Arthur Lubow, “George Wolfe in Progress”, in w:The New Yorker:

[Jubilee blinds Juggernaut with brief flare]
Juggernaut: What's this, the 4th of July? No one told me.
Jubilee: Leave him alone!
Wolverine: Jubilee, don't.
Juggernaut: [Laughs] What's she gonna do, hit me with her diaper?
Jubilee: I'll show you, you overgrown trash can!
[Jubilee vents a stream of plasma behind Juggernaut, almost topples him]

1993 March 6, “The Unstoppable Juggernaut”, in w:X-Men: The Animated Series, season 1, episode 8:

prove someone wrong; overturn prejudices; seek vindication


that was then, this is now

that was then and this is now (alternative)
that was then; this is now (alternative)
That was then. This is now. (alternative)

Reminded of some of his past opinions about the coalition, he smiled and said what amounted to: That was then; this is now.

1983 February 6, Joseph F. Sullivan, “Mr. Kean and the coalition”, in New York Times, retrieved 2018-07-15:

Of course everyone remembers the glory days when Varsity was host to the Argos and then John Lennon and Yoko Ono – that was then, this is now.

2007 February 1, Christopher Hume, “Varsity needs more than a 9 iron”, in The Star, Canada, retrieved 2018-07-15:

But in the 1990s a similar optimism hit here too, only to fizzle as gas prices plummeted and gas-guzzling SUVs took over the auto market with a vengeance. That was then; this is now.

2009 July 16, Robert Chew, “Utilities Scramble to Meet Power Needs of Electric Cars”, in Time, retrieved 2018-07-15:

Yes, it is true that some time ago, Parliament could reasonably have been been said to be pro-EU and pro-single market. But that was then, this is now.

2016 October 10, James Kirkup, “Brexit means Brexit, but Parliament is Parliament. MPs must vote on how we leave”, in Telegraph, UK, retrieved 2018-07-15:

(set phrase) The situation, behavior, or opinion of a person or group has changed considerably; the circumstances or characteristics of something have changed considerably.


that was then and this is now

that was then, this is now
that was then, this is now#English

Alternative form of that was then, this is now.


that was then; this is now

that was then (canonical)
this is now (canonical)


what someone says goes

Used to indicate that someone has authority to make a final decision.


IANAS

(Internet) Initialism of I am not a scientist.


do you love me

私を愛していますか

わたしをあいしていますか

subject pronoun is usually omitted, object pronoun can be omitted or replaced depending on the speech level

나를 사랑해?

저 (jeo, “I”) is more formal than 나 (na, “I”)


two upon ten

From the idea of keeping one's two eyes fixed on the shoplifter's ten fingers.

A coded warning among shopkeepers that a potential shoplifter must be watched.


asposed to

“No you are not asposed to give McKensi cookies!” said Mrs. Hoistad.

2007, B Hoistad, Making a Friend and Other Fables: Tales From the Plains of Nebraska, iUniverse, →ISBN:

"I'm not asposed to tell it to strange people."

2000, Jane Rubino, Kathleen Anne Barrett, Fred Hunter, Homicide for the Holidays, Worldwide Library, →ISBN:

"I asposed to get cake! It's my birfday!

1989, Fredelle Bruser Maynard, The Tree of Life, Markham, Ont.: Penguin Books, →ISBN:

"Vi'tor, you're not asposed to hit people."

2000, Jane Rubino, Plot Twist, Write Way Publishing, →ISBN:

(childish) Alternative form of supposed to.


the schoolmaster is abroad

Coined by Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux.

Education and intelligence are now widespread among the people.


thanks be

Ellipsis of thanks be to God, a present subjunctive clause inherited intact from a time when English was freely productive of them.

Near-synonyms: thank goodness; praise be, praise be to God, praise the Lord

'Not a woman near the place,' said the village.
'Thanks be,' said Peters.

Expressing relief or gratitude for some happening or situation.


BIB

BIB mum

(medicine, informal) Initialism of brought in by.

(business) Abbreviation of business is business.


all good

(idiomatic) Is everything alright? You ok? You fine with that?


PFO

emergency department
emergency department#English

(medicine, slang) Initialism of pissed, fell over, describing an inebriated person who presents to the emergency department.


WMSL

(Internet slang, text messaging) Initialism of wetting myself laughing.


aeb

AEB (alternative)
A.E.B. (alternative)
a.e.b. (alternative)
A. E. B. (alternative)
a. e. b. (alternative)

(medicine) Initialism of as evidenced by.


Maga

The 17-year-old told a CBS affiliate the Maga hats - a staple of President Trump's campaign - are a "racist and hateful symbol." ¶ According to the sheriff's office, the student began verbally attacking her peer on Monday because of the Maga hat, before grabbing and hurling it to the ground.

2018 August 29, “California schoolgirl arrested in Trump hat classroom fracas”, in BBC News, BBC, archived from the original on 2018-08-30:

The millions that Willis says he stands to make from a Maga-endorsed YMCA presumably makes it easier for him and his associates to put on all the bells and whistles (well, fringe and leather) for an administration set on a scorched-earth approach to LGBTQ+ protections.

2025 January 26, Owen Myers, “From gay clubs to Maga anthem: the absurd, contested history of the Village People’s YMCA”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

(chiefly British spelling) Alternative letter-case form of MAGA (“Make America Great Again”).


and no mistake

"We've fallen on our feet and no mistake," said Peter. "This is going to be perfectly splendid. That old chap will let us do anything we like."

1950, C. S. Lewis, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe:

(chiefly UK, dated) Without any doubt whatsoever; for sure.


would you believe it

would you believe it ! (canonical)
would you believe (alternative)

Used to express astonishment or incredulity.


no string attached

Mr. [James Gillespie] Blaine's declination—it is always understood that we assume there is no string attached to his letter—is undoubtedly a wise move on his part.

1892 February 17, “Cartoons and Comments”, in H[enry] C[uyler] Bunner, editor, Puck, volume XXX, number 780, New York, N.Y.: Keppler & Schwarzmann, →OCLC, page 430, column 2:

"No," I assured him, after receiving his cordial welcome, "my offer had no string attached. I'm more than ready to help in any way I can, to find a niche for you in this old town and fit you into it. It doesn't matter where you hail from, or how you got here; New York is an all-comers' race, and the devil take the hindmost."

1919, Carolyn Wells, “Case Rivers”, in The Man Who Fell through the Earth, New York, N.Y.: George H[enry] Doran Company, →OCLC, page 170:

As to the $12 billion State share, there is not even the pretense of an attempt at congressional oversight, Federal control, or standards of performance. The State share is totally no-string attached.

1972 July 27, Andrew J[ohn] Biemiller, witness, “Statement of Andrew J. Biemiller, Director, Department of Legislation, American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, Accompanied by Nathaniel Goldfinger, Director, Research Department, and Arnold Cantor, Economist, Research Department”, in Revenue Sharing: Hearings before the Committee on Finance, United States Senate, Ninety-second Congress, Second Session on H.R. 14370 to Provide Payments to Localities for High-priority Expenditures, to Encourage the States to Supplement Their Revenue Sources, and to Authorize Federal Collection of State Individual Income Taxes […], Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, →OCLC, page 452:

When government delivers handouts with no string attached, more people naturally want to use and abuse them, which eventually ruins economy and drains a country's wealth. Essentially the welfare state destroys the ethic which sustains this very state.

2021, Andrei Znamenski, “Regime of Goodness: Social Democracy and the Swedish Model, 1920s–1990s”, in Socialism as a Secular Creed: A Modern Global History, Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, The Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 205:

no strings attached
no strings attached#English


meant to

You're meant to wash up after yourselves, don't leave it for me.

(idiomatic) supposed to, obliged to, ought to


those were the days

That was a particularly pleasant, exciting, or noteworthy time.


the fur flies

There is a vicious fight or disagreement.


nail in one's coffin

A man whom I knew frequented a certain public-house, the landlady of which, on handing him his pint of beer, would oftimes accompany it with the remark, "Here, J—, is another nail in your coffin."

1859, Henry Mudge, Physiology, Health and Disease, Demanding Abstinence from Alcoholic Drinks, and Prohibition of Their Common Sale, page 38:

"Hullo! Just in time — just had drinks all round. Come, put another nail in your coffin!"

1875, Overland Monthly and Out West Magazine, volume 15, page 383:

another nail in someone's coffin#English

Synonym of another nail in someone's coffin (“event leading to further failure”).


head

Father Charles goes down and ends battle

(music, mnemonic) A mnemonic for the order of sharps: F C G D A E B.


all over someone like a rash

“Do ya want some grub? I suppose I betta feed ya,” said the vile woman. “If ya starve to death I’ll have social services all over me like a bleedin’ rash.”

2012, David Walliams [pseudonym; David Edward Williams], Ratburger, London: HarperCollins Children’s Books, →ISBN:

(simile, colloquial, derogatory) Giving someone an excessive amount of attention, especially romantic or sexual attention.


who would have thunk it

The word thunk is a humorous, nonstandard past participle of think.

He stayed until he saw she had recovered her self possession, then he left, telegraphed to Mr. Hinsdale of Helen's safe arrival—always the same thoughtful fellow—and then went home and wrote sonnets to his lady love. "Who'd have thunk it of 'im?"

1895 September, Frances Cora Perce, “A Sonata of the Woods”, in W. S. B. Mathews, editor, Music. A Monthly Magazine Devoted to the Art, Science, Technic and Literature of Music, volume VIII, Chicago, Ill.: The Music Magazine Publishing Company […], →OCLC, pages 478–479:

"Hello, Muggs!" he cried, vainly trying to bestow a pat upon that unquiet animal. "Say, Trevor, hasn't he grown? He's twice the size he was when you got him!" / "It's a way puppies have." / "You don't say so? Who'd have thunk it![…]"

1906, Ralph Henry Barbour, “In the Rowing-room”, in Captain of the Crew, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton and Company, page 147:

Think of it, the N.A.R.D. Journal has included in its propaganda work a forcible crusade against long speeches! Wonders never cease; who would have "thunk it"? Is brevity a lost art? With all the ridicule, satire, hissing and rotten eggs showered upon long windedness, it still remains with us.

1916 February 15, “Bodemann’s Aphorisms”, in Romaine Pierson, editor, The Practical Druggist and Pharmaceutical Review of Reviews, volume XXXIV, number 2, New York, N.Y.: Published by Romaine Pierson, […], →OCLC, page 31, column 1:

Who would have thunk it? Had anyone told me some 10 years ago that I would be alive to see a black person run for President of the United States and be taken seriously, I would have asked what they were tripping on.

1988, Marcia Ann Gillespie, “Something to Celebrate: Thanks to Jesse Jackson, We are Emerging from the Reagan Years with a New Willingness to Pull Together Again”, in Ms., volume 17, New York, N.Y.: Liberty Media for Women, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 22, column 1:

From somewhere in their well-fed, timorous, it-can't-happen-here ranks, a Spartacus had arisen—who would have thunk it?

2001, Stephen King, Dreamcatcher, New York, N.Y.: Pocket Books, →ISBN; 1st Gallery Books trade paperback edition, New York, N.Y.: Gallery Books, January 2018, →ISBN, page 462:

rhetorical question
rhetorical question#English

(colloquial, sometimes sarcastic) A rhetorical question used to express incredulity: who would have guessed it?; who would have thought that would happen?


catch no ball

Calque of Hokkien 掠無球 /掠无球 (lia̍h bô kiû, “to not understand”, literally “catch no ball”).

calque

Being someone who doesn't understand Hokkien, I catch no ball as to what you say :-).

1992 March 19, soc.culture.asean (Usenet):

Ah! I see the problem. Fearless is only semi-literate. In which case, I can understand why he catch no ball. I guess we must ALL show patience to the slow-witted.

1999 April 29, soc.culture.malaysia (Usenet):

"Infini... what? Sorry, I catch no ball. Again, please."
"Infinitessimal - small, small winnings, Chin," said Clarence...

2000, Chong Yen Chung, Clarence Plays the Numbers: A Novel, page 83:

"The sense of meaning halal should debated on either symbolic reminder of hygiene also define the level of hygiene to the level of a stomach ache or death that is what make sense!"
Huh? What kind of English is this? Catch no ball....LOL.

2005 March 23, soc.culture.malaysia (Usenet):

THE ‘CATCH NO BALL BUT WILL KEEP TRYING’ AWARD INCEPTION Only the incomparable Christopher Nolan, after reviving the superhero genre, could have had the cojones to convince a tightfisted big movie studio to greenlight a movie as ridiculously convoluted and richly layered as this.

2010 December 15, “The 'catch no ball but will keep trying’ award Inception”, in TODAY:

Catch no ball of what you're talking and saying in your content. Talking and saying, and writing are different ways of expressions. They are not the same.

2013 August 14, soc.culture.china (Usenet):

(Singapore, Malaysia, colloquial) To fail to understand something; be unable to comprehend what others are saying.


if I may be so bold

if I might be so bold (alternative)
if I may make so bold (alternative)

(formal) Used to soften a statement or question that is expected to annoy the listener.


how do you mean

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Sapaa-how do you mean.wav

A request for clarification of what the listener just said.

你這是什麼意思？ /你这是什么意思？

a request for clarification of what the listener just said


spoiling for a fight

In a mood to fight; looking to argue or quarrel with someone.


be damned

All they care about is profit, the environment be damned.

One pull more and you're at the top, and be damned to you.

1859, Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities:

However, even if he can't save Taffy 3, there are still the ships of the landing force to consider, and he orders Admiral Oldendorf to extract two destroyer squadrons, five cruisers, and the battleships Tennessee, California, and Pennsylvania from wrapping-up operations in Surigao Strait and proceed at best speed north, fuel-and-ammunition-level concerns be damned.

2019 February 27, Drachinifel, 19:11 from the start, in The Battle of Samar - Odds? What are those?, archived from the original on 2022-11-03:

(mildly vulgar, optative) Used as an exclamation to express irritation with or reckless disregard of a person or thing.


show, don't tell

The second flaw is a flagrant violation of “show, don't tell.” Don't tell readers that she's sad and he's mad. Show the reader what they do. Worst of all, don't do both!

1999, Kendall Haven, Write Right!: Creative Writing Using Storytelling Techniques, Bloomsbury, page 186:

In “Steve Jobs,” Oscar-winning writer Aaron Sorkin “Sorkins” the hell out of an unconventional adaptation of Walter Isaacson’s best-selling biography by daring to break the cardinal rule of show don’t tell.

2015 October 21, Dana Barbuto, “Review: Aaron Sorkin makes ‘Steve Jobs’ work”, in Northwest Herald:

Advice to writers: convey an impression by the way that events are described in the narrative, and not by explicitly stating facts.


all hands to the pump

(chiefly UK) A situation where as many people as possible are required to contribute to some urgent enterprise.


BTS

behind the scenes
behind the scenes#English


I don't have all day

Used to say that you want someone to do something faster because you do not have enough time to wait for them to finish


AISI

(Internet slang, text messaging) Initialism of as I see it.


the game is up

Secret plans or activities have been revealed, usually leading to their failure.


BTTS

The odds for BTTS are 1.8

(sports betting) Initialism of both teams to score.


I dare be bound

(archaic) Synonym of I'll be bound (“I am certain”).


repet.

(medicine, dated, used in prescriptions) Let it be repeated.


the devil is a liar

“The devil is a liar! It ain't that damn bad! Don't even go there Jay”, says Teresa closing the bathroom door.

2007, Tamika Davis, Life...And the Drama It Brings, page 175:

“It must be this place planting seeds of doubt, like a virus in my mind. The devil is a liar,” She said.

2010, Tre, Draco's Awakening - Part Two, page 256:

I reached into my hand bag for the court papers and held them towards him, he took them from my hand and looked at them with contempt and handed back to me and said, The devil is a liar, this divorce proceeding shall not stand neither shall it come to pass.

2011, Matthew I. Edison, The Height of a Woman: Finishing Strong, page 102:

Girl the devil is a liar I wanted to say mother flower you can place your hands all over my body and do whatever it is you want damn!

“Lazarus? Our Lazarus? This can't be!” Legion huffed angrily and shouted, “The devil is a liar!”

2016, Daniel Black, Listen to the Lambs: A Novel, page 40:

(idiomatic) A general expression of distrust, particularly implying that another person is attempting to deceive the speaker, or that a situation is not, or can not be, as it appears.


lucus a non lucendo

From Latin lūcus ā nōn lūcendō, literally "a grove from not shining", referring to Roman rhetorician Quintilian's assertion, in his Institutio Oratoria, that Latin lūcus (“grove”) derived from lūceō (“I shine”), because groves were dark places and did not shine.

This Sun, into which Jones was now conducted, was truly named, as lucus a non lucendo; for it was an apartment into which the sun had scarce ever looked.

1749, Henry Fielding, chapter IV, in The History of Tom Jones, A Foundling, Book VIII:

BUDGE, strong drink; […] Probably a corruption of BOOZE. Probably also, on the lucus a non lucendo principle, because its use made one incapable of budging.

1873, John Camden Hotten, The Slang Dictionary:

A form of illogical argument asserting that two things are related because they have opposite significations.


you've got to be kidding me

you've gotta be kidding me (alternative)

(informal) Used to express anger or frustration.

(informal) Used to express disbelief or shock.


head

my very easy method just speeds up naming planets

my very educated mother just served us nine pumpkins#English

(astronomy) Synonym of my very educated mother just served us nine pumpkins.


and a partridge in a pear tree

/ænd ə ˈpɑːtɹɪd͡ʒ ɪn ə ˌpɛə ˈtɹiː/

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-and a partridge in a pear tree.wav

/ænd ə ˈpɑɹtɹɪd͡ʒ ən ə ˌpɛɚ ˈtɹi/

From the traditional Christmas song “The Twelve Days of Christmas” first published around 1780, in which earlier lines are repeated and added to with every succeeding line that is sung. The last round of one version of the song that is commonly sung today ends: “On the twelfth day of Christmas, / My true love sent to me / Twelve drummers drumming, / Eleven pipers piping, / Ten lords a-leaping, / Nine ladies dancing, / Eight maids a-milking, / Seven swans a-swimming, / Six geese a-laying, / Five golden rings, / Four calling birds, / Three French hens, / Two turtledoves / And a partridge in a pear tree.”

nb...

Containing The Twelve Days of Christmas, the Play of the Gaping-wide-mouthed-wadling Frog, Love and Hatred, the Art of Talking with the Fingers, and Nimble Ned’s Alphabet and Figures.

Linnie McAllister: ...five boys, six girls, two drivers,... and a partridge in a pear tree.

1990, John Hughes, Chris Columbus, Home Alone:

Her dearly departed husband had left no will. He'd always meant to get around to it, but you know how it is, just kept putting it off. I was to raise Mr. Doughal in front of two lawyers, two witnesses, the Doughals' three grown children, and a partridge in a pear tree.

1995, Laurell K[aye] Hamilton, chapter 19, in Circus of the Damned (Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter; 3), New York, N.Y.: Jove Books, published 2002, →ISBN:

In this corner, one missing Shroud, one impossibly and thoroughly dead corpse, one dedicated and deadly vampire warlord, three holy Knights, twenty-nine fallen angels, and a partridge in a pear tree.

2003 August 5, Jim Butcher, Death Masks (The Dresden Files; 5), New York, N.Y.: Roc Books, →ISBN, page 95:

About three years ago, half of them had piled into a taxicab that subsequently got into a collision with another cab, which contained—coincidentally—the other half of the Melba family. Consequently, we had eight injured Melbas, seven cases of whiplash, six cracked ribs, five fractured wrists, four chipped teeth, three broken noses, and two uninsured taxis. And a partridge in a pear tree.

2004, Leslie Carroll, chapter 1, in Temporary Insanity: […], New York, N.Y.: Avon Trade, HarperCollins, →ISBN, page 6:

[W]e are straight, lesbian, married, single, parents, grandparents, "will never have kids!", Christian, "spiritual," Jewish, Republican, Democrat, Independent, American, Iranian, East Coast, West Coast, dog lovers, cat lovers, opera lovers, football fanatics, Gen Y, Gen X, boomers, and a partridge in a pear tree.

2009, Susan Scott, “Fierce Practice #2: From Hiring for Smarts to Hiring for Smart+Heart”, in Fierce Leadership: A Bold Alternative to the Worst “Best” Practices of Business Today, New York, N.Y.: Broadway Business, Crown Publishing Group, →ISBN, pages 81–82:

I have one visible minority, one woman who said she's disabled, one with an indigenous background, two who indicated poverty … and a partridge in a pear tree.

2011, Sophie Tamas, Life after Leaving: The Remains of Spousal Abuse (Writing Lives: Ethnographic Narratives), Walnut Creek, Calif.: Left Coast Press, →ISBN, act III—Asking Others, page 93:

"Mr. Jordan Moore, been in and out of every juvenile facility in the state. Three counts of breaking and entering, four counts of assault, seven misdemeanors for carrying illegal substances, and a partridge in a pear tree," Paul finished with a smirk, handing the rap sheet to Mason.

2012 April 27, David Ylhainen, chapter 5, in Second Sons, Bloomington, Ind.: WestBow Press, Thomas Nelson, →ISBN, page 48:

(humorous) Used at the end of a list of items to emphasize its length.

alouette

used at the end of a list of items to emphasize its length


it's not my fault

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Sapaa-it's not my fault.wav

It's not my fault that it's raining.

It's not my fault that you're so smart!

(by extension, informal) I did not cause it (regardless of whether the subject matter is perceived as problematic).


how should I know

how am I to know (alternative)
how do I know (alternative)
how would I know (alternative)

Near-synonyms: God knows, who knows, I don't know

A rhetorical question asked to show that the person asking it neither knows the answer nor would be able to know it; sometimes therefore also implying that the asker was wrong to ask the askee at all.


WDYM

Alternative form: wdym

(Internet slang, text messaging) Initialism of what do you mean?.


DYJHIW

(Internet slang, rare) Initialism of don't you just hate it when...?.


or anything

No, we won't need weapons on our hike through the forest. It's not like there are bears or anything.

Synonym of or something; used with negative constructions.


too long; didn't read

too long (canonical)
didn't read (canonical)
tl;dr (alternative)
tl/dr (alternative)
TL;DR (alternative)
TL/DR (alternative)
TLDNR (alternative)
TL/DNR (alternative)
TL-DNR (alternative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-too long; didn't read.wav

(chiefly Internet slang) Used to indicate that one did not read a (long) text, or to introduce a short summary of a text perceived as overly long.


SFINAE

substitution failure is not an error
w:substitution failure is not an error

(programming) Initialism of substitution failure is not an error.


fuck if I know

Hit by a mortar or an M16 round or maybe he was dead years ago...fuck if I know.

2008, Edward Stapleton III, The Believers, Lulu.com, →ISBN, page 42:

Fuck if I know, and honestly, I don't give a shit.

2008, Harold L. Turley, Born Dying, Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 182:

Fowler is lying on the floor, switching CDs. He props himself up on his elbow. He says, “You think it'd hurt us though?” I shrug. “Fuck if I know.”

2011, Peter Brown Hoffmeister, The End of Boys, Catapult, →ISBN, page 72:

“She's married?” “She's not only married, she's leaving. Or she already left. Fuck if I know.”

2013, Lexi Ryan, Wish I May, Lexi Ryan, →ISBN, page 169:

(vulgar, idiomatic) I have no idea whatsoever


is it me

Is it me or is it really stuffy in here?

(followed by "or") Is it a situation of my own imagination (or ...)?


ywn

(Internet slang) Initialism of you will never.


SPAR

Coordinate term: SPAD

(rail transport, UK) Initialism of signal passed at red.


wharra

Hey, you, wharra you lookin' at?

(representing slurred pronunciation) What are.

Wharra you think you're doin'?

(representing slurred pronunciation) What do.


PIDOOMA

pulled it directly out of my ass
pull out of one's ass#English

(slang) Initialism of pulled it directly out of my ass.


I don't eat beef

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Sapaa-I don't eat beef.wav

Indicates that the speaker does not eat beef.


it's a date

- Could you please come by my house tomorrow at five in the afternoon to help me?
- It's a date!

"We Don't have cows, but a neighbour up the road does if that's what takes your fancy,' Lara said, chuckling. 'Smart arse,' Mel scoffed. 'Well, it's a date, then. I'll be up in March. I'm so excited.'

2012, Fiona Palmer, The Road Home, →ISBN:

Maybe I'll tell you tomorrow night, over some psychiatric checklists and a bottle of pills.” “It's a date,” she replied.

2013, Jonathan-David Jackson, The Quest for Juice, →ISBN:

He considered it for a moment, then nodded. “I concede. So this weekend? We could actually leave the island. I won't make you ride a boat, if that's a determining factor.” “It's a date,” she said, grinning at him.

2014, Molly Harper, Better Homes and Hauntings, →ISBN, page 257:

(informal) It's a deal (used to show agreement to meet at a certain time and place)


san fairy ann

A homophonic translation of French ça ne fait rien (“it doesn’t matter”), probably originating among British and ANZAC army soldiers during World War I (1914–1918).

bor

“[…] It seems scrounging for fuel ’ad reached such a pitch in the village […] But our washing ’ad to be done, ’an I thought if I got the whole of this football team scrounging they might find something as everyone else ’ad overlooked.[…]” / “‘Very well,’ says I, ‘San fairy ann. Napoo [i.e., n’y a plus] washing—napoo ball.’[…]”

1920 March 10, “Won on the Posts. (With the British Army in France.)”, in Punch, or The London Charivari, volume CLVIII, London: […] Bradbury, Agnew & Co., […], →OCLC, page 185, column 1:

‘Very well,’ says I, ‘it doesn't matter. No more washing—no more ball.’

We said he were wonderful brave dog about Upstart, which me and Slippers would not have taken on. He said: "Fairy Ann! Fairy Ann!" But he were most-happy dog.

[1930 October, Rudyard Kipling, “Toby Dog”, in Thy Servant a Dog […], London: Macmillan and Co., […], published October 1931, →OCLC, pages 87–88:

We stood to attention for a seeming eternity while the Adjutant, a runt-like little Guards captain, proceeded at a snail's pace along the ranks, closely attended by the dreaded R.S.M. Copp. […] His [Copp's] choicest utterance was 'I've had enough of your San-Fairy-Ann [ça ne me fait rien] attitude!' – was this an echo of 1914-18 or of our earlier wars against the French?

1997, Christopher Hurst, “A Taste of Hell”, in The View from King Street: An Essay in Autobiography, London: Thalia Press, →ISBN, book I (The Pre-history of a Publisher), page 123:

Occasionally, when he has had too much to drink, he'll give voice to his disappointments, but Sarah only smiles at that and blows him a kiss and says, San Fairy Ann, dear, San Fairy Ann, and he will give up trying to explain.

2002, Melanie McGrath, chapter 1, in Silvertown: An East End Family Memoir, London: Fourth Estate, HarperCollinsPublishers, →ISBN, page 10:

[G]oo-on, he says, goo-on, I'll give you 'alf, Morris, he says if she [a racehorse] romps home, romp, did she bloody romp, she ran like the clappers out of hell, dropped dead two hours after in her trailer but san-fairy-ann, what's that to me, and where's my fiver?

2005, Hilary Mantel, Beyond Black, London: Fourth Estate, HarperCollinsPublishers, →ISBN, page 164:

‘Ça ne fait rien.’ / ‘San fairy Ann,’ she laughed. ‘Well, I suppose that’s English now, in a way.’ / ‘That’s what some of the soldiers say, san fairy Ann,’ one of the children piped. ‘What does it mean?’ / ‘Eet doesen’t matair.’

[2007, Annie Wilkinson, For King and Country, London: Simon & Schuster, →ISBN, page 232:

As Mrs. Jarvie loves to say "San fairy ann," or in other words, fuck it.

2023, Natali Clark, “San Fairy Ann”, in Staring at Medusa, Altona, Man.: FriesenPress, →ISBN, page 275:

(Australia, New Zealand, UK, military slang, humorous, obsolete) It doesn't matter.


out of time

As is the way with all mature governments, Rishi Sunak's administration increasingly feels like it's out of ideas, out of energy... and out of time.

2023 September 6, Nigel Harris, “Comment: Leaderless and rudderless”, in RAIL, number 991, page 3:


TOW

TOW the Prom Video

Yay! It's coming out this Friday! Staring Jennifer Aniston, Ben Stiller (played the Rachel's boyfriend in TOW The Screamer), Hank Azaria (David) and Debra Messing...3 Friends people. Looks funny.

2004 January 12, Adele, “Along Came Polly”, in alt.tv.friends (Usenet):

(fandom slang) Initialism of The One with ... or The One Where ...: used to refer to episodes of the American television sitcom Friends.


it'll be all right on the night

Originally said about the problems encountered during the final dress rehearsal before the premiere (first night) of a performance.

(UK, informal) Although it seems problematic now, it will ultimately succeed.


I'll have you know

Used to add annoyed emphasis to an associated statement.


IKTR

iktr (alternative)
IKDR (alternative)
ikdr (alternative)
iktfr (alternative)

(Internet slang, text messaging) Initialism of I know that's right, often used as an affirmational response.


LMN

Have you found my dog? If so, plz LMN ASAP!

(text messaging) Initialism of let me know.

Lifetime Movie Network
w:Lifetime Movie Network


for all someone cares

He can gamble away his last penny for all I care.

My mother could have left me standing out in the cold for all my father cared.

expresses that someone does not care at all about some hypothetical situation becoming reality


cushion for the pushin'

more cushion for the pushin' (alternative)

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-cushion for the pushin'.wav

(slang, humorous) Excess body fat or musculature on the buttocks area, seen as making someone more buoyant and allowing more comfort, "cushion," during intercourse than bony hips would, and also providing more bounce.


would you like to go out with me

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Sapaa-would you like to go out with me?.wav


on the brink

Bobbery's on the brink, ain't he, mate? I 'oped he'd pull through, but...

2004, Intelligent Systems, translated by Nintendo of America, Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, Nintendo, GameCube:

Rich countries must sign a “historic pact” with the poor on the climate, or “we will be doomed”, the UN secretary-general, António Guterres, has warned, as a deepening gulf between the developed and developing world has put climate talks on the brink.

2022 November 4, Fiona Harvey, “UN chief warns ‘we will be doomed’ without historic climate pact”, in The Guardian:

Germany is a nation on the brink. On Tuesday, perhaps unwittingly, a handful of members of parliament decided to see how much further they could push it.

2025 May 7, Mark Sappenfield, “Merz wins in vote that reveals the challenges ahead for Germany”, in The Christian Science Monitor:


BOPUS

2019, Molly Fosco, Talking Shop: Can Click and Collect Challenge Amazon?, 10 March 2019, OZY.
Despite evidence to the contrary at my local Target that evening, the option to buy online and pick up in store (BOPUS) is becoming increasingly popular throughout the U.S.

(retail) Acronym of buy online, pick up in store.


quoad sacra

With respect to religious observance or worship, as opposed to temporal matters.


of its kind

It will be the biggest of its kind.

The car is the first of its kind, needing only water to carry it forward.


you would think

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Sapaa-you would think.wav

You would think with the thousands of visitors each day, someone would have found the missing animals by now.

An expression denoting surprise or lack of understanding due to reality being very different from what is the norm or expected.


coulda fooled me

you could have fooled me
you could have fooled me#English

Alternative form of you could have fooled me.


a thousand

Alternative form of one thousand, the number 1000 = 10³.


what a shame

Used to express regret or disappointment about an unfortunate event or piece of information.


ngl

(Internet slang, text messaging) Alternative letter-case form of NGL.


head

old enough to bleed, old enough to breed

(derogatory, vulgar) Any girl who has started menstruating is old enough to have sex or start having children.


you could cut the atmosphere with a knife

The image is that the atmosphere is thick. Compare French à couper au couteau.

you could cut the air with a knife (alternative)

Used to describe a situation with intense anger in the area.


trust, but verify

Calque of Russian доверя́й, но проверя́й (doverjáj, no proverjáj). Often attributed to Vladimir Lenin, although no written evidence exists. Popularized in English by Ronald Reagan in the context of nuclear disarmament.

calque

доверя́й, но проверя́й

Before affixing his signature, Reagan also told the Soviet leader — and reassured congressional conservatives worried about Kremlin compliance — that he would follow the Russian adage to "trust, but verify."

1987 December 9, Thom Shanker, “Battle turns gentle with proverbs galore”, in Chicago Tribune:

If I had blindly fulfilled her first request, it would have inconvenienced many other users and wouldn't have solved the problem. Never forget this phrase - “trust, but verify.”

2013, Kelly C Bourne, Application Administrators Handbook: Installing, Updating and Troubleshooting Software, Newnes, →ISBN, page 351:

Trust but verify—plain and simple. Well, mostly just verify, as the objective record removes the vulnerability of getting cheated.

2014, David DeSteno, The Truth About Trust: How It Determines Success in Life, Love, Learning, and More, Penguin, →ISBN, page 97:

One should have general faith in the benevolent intentions of others, but ultimately one can only rely on things that have been verified.


never start a land war in Asia

never fight a land war in Asia
never fight a land war in Asia#English

Synonym of never fight a land war in Asia.


my kingdom for a horse

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-my kingdom for a horse.wav

From William Shakespeare's Richard III (written c. 1593; published 1597), Act V, scene iv (spelling modernized): "A horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse."

nb...

Containing, His Treacherous Plots against His Brother Clarence: The Pittiefull Murther of His Iunocent 􂀿sic􂁀 Nephewes: His Tyrannicall Vsurpation: With the Whole Course of His Detested Life, and Most Deserued Death. As it hath beene Lately Acted by the Right Honourable the Lord Chamberlaine His Seruants.

dwelling in Paules Chuch-yard 􂀿sic􂁀, at the signe of the Angell.

The speaker is willing to sacrifice anything to obtain a seemingly unimportant item that is invaluable at a critical moment.

mit kongerige for en hest

willingness to sacrifice anything for something previously unimportant

sell one's birthright for a mess of pottage


do you know the Bishop of Norwich

Traditionally, after a vintage port has been decanted, the decanter is passed clockwise around the table until everyone has poured some. If the decanter should stall en route, it is considered poor etiquette to ask for it directly, so one must request it in a roundabout way:
:— Do you know the Bishop of Norwich?
:— No.
:— He's a terribly good chap, but he always forgets to pass the port.

(UK, wine) Can you pass the port, please?


WHP

(mathematics, computer science) Initialism of with high probability.


so help you God

Roberts: So help you God? / Obama: So help me God.

2009 January 20, Barack Obama taking the oath of office⁽ᵛⁱᵈᵉᵒ⁾, John Roberts (actor):

Used when administering an oath, after which the taker is expected to reply "so help me God."


out of conceit with

No longer fond of; having turned against (something).


dinner's ready

dinner's ready ! (canonical)
dinner is ready (alternative)


who are you telling

That performance was off the chain!
Who are you telling?

(idiomatic, sarcasm) Used in response to an assertion that one is already fully aware of.


so it goes

His mother was incinerated in the Dresden fire-storm. So it goes.

1969 March 31, Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., chapter 1, in Slaughterhouse-Five […] (A Seymour Lawrence Book), New York, N.Y.: Delacorte Press, →OCLC, page 1:

An expression of acceptance of misfortune in life; that's life; such is life


who knew

[…] on at least a dozen occasions, the Supreme Court itself […] had spent the last three decades scrutinizing and parsing, expanding and restricting and harmonizing and distinguishing a decision that had been null and void all along. Who knew!

1999, The New York Times Biographical Service, volume 30, page 1518:

And over the course of a couple of days, albeit in a disjointed and non-linear manner, I had basically watched all of What Women Want. It’s a good film! Sarah Paulson is in it! Who knew?

2023 October 3, Stuart Heritage, “Mean Girls in 23 parts: the rise of movies and shows watched on TikTok”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:

Expressing surprise, or ironic lack of surprise, upon learning something.


mind how you go

(idiomatic, dated) A phrase used at parting.


head

(do) you kiss your grandmother with that mouth?

you kiss your mother with that mouth#English

Synonym of you kiss your mother with that mouth.


(do) you kiss your girlfriend with that mouth?

(rhetorical question, informal, sarcastic) Synonym of you kiss your mother with that mouth.


NODIS

(US, military) Abbreviation of no distribution: a document classification level.


LIMDIS

(US, military) Abbreviation of limited distribution: a document classification level.


EXDIS

(US, military) Abbreviation of exclusive distribution: a document classification level.


gosh knows

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-gosh knows.wav


she's the cat's mother

who's 'she', the cat's mother
who's 'she', the cat's mother#English

Alternative form of who's 'she', the cat's mother.


abandon hope all ye who enter here

From Dante Alighieri's work Inferno, translated by Henry Francis Cary as “all hope abandon ye who enter here”, from the Italian lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate. The variant “abandon hope, all ye who enter here”, with a change of meaning, was likely chosen for its iambic pentameter.

der

abandon hope (alternative)
abandon all hope ye who enter here (alternative)
abandon all hope, ye who enter here (alternative)
abandon hope, all ye who enter here (alternative)
all hope abandon ye who enter here (alternative)
all hope abandon, ye who enter here (alternative)

Visitors enter through a set of huge wrought-iron gates decorated with basalt statues writhing in agony and the famous phrase ABANDON HOPE, ALL YE WHO ENTER HERE.

2006, Karen Chance, Touch the Dark, Penguin, →ISBN:

It seems that, in many instances, the “abandon hope, all ye who enter here” warning that Microsoft displays on its knowledge base articles regarding the Registry really do ^([sic]) a good job of keeping the good guys out, […]

2011, Harlan Carvey, Windows Registry Forensics: Advanced Digital Forensic Analysis of the Windows Registry, Elsevier, →ISBN:

Supposed inscription at the gate of hell.

наде́жда вся́ка ту́ка оставе́те

supposed inscription at the gate of hell

ken tästä käy, saa kaiken toivon heittää

lasst alle Hoffnung fahren, ihr, die eintretet

ki itt belépsz, hagyj fel minden reménnyel

porzućcie wszelką nadzieję, wy, którzy wchodzicie

deixai toda a esperança, vós que entrais

abandonad toda esperanza, aquellos que entréis aquí


all hope abandon ye who enter here

abandon hope all ye who enter here#English

Alternative form of abandon hope all ye who enter here.


as ever trod shoe leather

As handsome a gentleman, to be sure, as ever trod shoe leather! I wonder that old folks can be so very, very blind!

1809 February, E[nos] Bronson et al., “On the Marriage Manufactory at Gretna Green”, in Select Reviews, and Spirit of the Foreign Magazines, volume I, Philadelphia, Pa.: From the Lorenzo Press of E. Bronson; published by Hopkins and Earle, […], →OCLC, page 118:

"He is a brave Indian, sir." – "Oh – is that all?" – "As brave a man, as ever trod shoe leather." – "Hum!" – "Yes." – "But Indians – do they tread shoe leather?" – "He's very brave, I mean – very." – "Why not say so, then?" – "I do."

1825, [John Neal], chapter XXVI, in Brother Jonathan: Or, The New Englanders: In Three Volumes, volume II, Edinburgh: William Blackwood; London: T[homas] Cadell, […], →OCLC, page 446:

[I]t's his temper as has saved his life; he's the best-temperdest cretur as ever trod shoe leather.

1830, [Theodore Edward Hook], chapter II, in Maxwell. … In Three Volumes, volume II, London: Henry Colburn and Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC, pages 54–55:

as ever trod shoe-leather
as ever trod shoe-leather#English

(idiomatic, archaic) Alternative form of as ever trod shoe-leather.


ggwp

We had an amazing game with @AnonymoEsports thank you so much guys ggwp! 👑

2023 November 17, @Z10esports, Twitter, archived from the original on 2023-11-17:

(video games) Initialism of good game, well played.


ggez

GGEZ is toxic and should be bannable but saying that on this subreddit will get you downvoted and called a pussy.

[2022 April 29, “Is saying GGEZ considered toxic?”, in Reddit, r/leagueoflegends, archived from the original on 2023-11-17:

(video games) Abbreviation of good game, easy (used to taunt the loser).


best pleased

Satisfaction levels among performers might be generally high, but there are whispers from old-school theatre folk that they're not best pleased about Hollywood coming in and stealing the limelight.

2010 June 14, Carrie Dunn, “Tony awards: Hollywood invasion provokes Broadway stage whispers”, in The Guardian, London:

Can't say we'd be best pleased if the terrifying sound of explosives was going on underneath our bedroom window, but the assembled crowd seem to enjoy it.

2014 December, “Bosnian family sets off 15,000 firecrackers in weird Christmas tradition”, in entertainment.ie:

They said: “I'm hardly best pleased to receive this and neither, I presume, are all the others whose confidentiality has been breached by this.”

2017 August 29, Gayle McDonald, “Council investigation after it accidentally reveals email addresses of 200 Plymouth residents”, in Plymouth Herald:

(British, idiomatic, with negative) displeased, upset, disgruntled


reverse charge

This delivery is subject to reverse charge in the country of receipt.

(taxation) Added to an invoice to indicate that receiver of the goods or services in another member state of European Union is responsible for paying VAT.


we all make mistakes

Used when someone's mistakes or flaws are acknowledged, as a reminder that everyone makes mistakes and has flaws.


I can't remember the last time

I can’t remember the last time I was left disappointed by an action movie.

Indicates that the event in question happens seldom or infrequently.


can I help you

我會使鬥汝𣍐？ /我会使斗汝𫧃？

góa ē-sái tàu lí--bōe? / góa ē-sái tàu lí--bē? / óa ē-sái tàu lú--bē?

我會做鬥汝𣍐？ /我会做斗汝𫧃？

góa ē-chòe tàu lí--bōe? / góa ě-chòe tàu lí--bǒe? / góa ě-chòe tàu lír--bǒe?

どのようにお手伝いできますか

どのようにおてつだいできますか

"Can I help you? Why are you standing there looking at me like that?"

2015, Charles M. Kemp, Indignant, page 8:

An indignant response to nosey or rude behavior.


hit one's straps

To perform at one's maximum; to begin to excel; to hit one's stride.


someone's number is up

Even in this hopeless situation, I don't feel like my number's up. I have to reach the next level, get closer to her. I don't have time to play with the monsters down here. I'm in the eye of a storm of howls and roars, but I'm different[…]

2014 December 16, Fujino Omori, Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, Vol. 1 (light novel), Yen Press LLC, →ISBN:

So I just thought, well, my number's up. I'm going to get some stupid assignment that nobody wants.

2012 July 3, DW Gibson, Not Working: People Talk About Losing a Job and Finding Their Way in Today's Changing Economy, Penguin, →ISBN:

(informal) It is someone's time to die, or to undergo some other difficult experience.


wdyfw

(Internet slang, text messaging) Initialism of what do you fucking want?.


would you believe

would you believe it
would you believe it#English

Alternative form of would you believe it.


I'm sure

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-I'm sure.wav

Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see sure.

— Hey, you're standing too close to me.

— Huh, sorry I'm sure.

(usually sarcastic) Used to emphasise an apology, acknowledgement, etc.

— You're just using that as an excuse to ditch class and go surfing.

— Uh!...I'm sure!...

(idiomatic, dated) Used as an interjection to indicate denial or contradiction in response to an assertion or accusation.


ex opere operato

(theology) From the work worked; referring to sacraments deriving their power from Christ's work rather than the role of humans, and thus not requiring faith to be effective.


how's come

How's come you don't visit no more?

"How's come we don't hear more about it back where we come from ?”

1934, The New York Lumber Trade Journal, volumes 96-99, page 15:

So, some of the brothers who are way out there said to me, “How's come you come back and go to work for $3.90 from where you were?"

c'''. 1975, Proceedings of the Convention, volumes 37, 1963-1979, Amalgamated Transit Union:

“How's come they did that, Stacey, huh?” he asked, dusting himself off. “How's come they didn't even stop for us?”

2004, Mildred D. Taylor, Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry, book 2, page 13:


there goes the neighborhood

there goes the neighbourhood (alternative)

(colloquial) Something undesirable has been introduced into one's community.


hru

(Internet slang, text messaging) Alternative letter-case form of HRU.


stars align

(idiomatic) Events or circumstances combine fortuitously.


I declare

Well, I declare, I have all along thought you would object, and that's the reason I've been afraid to ask you.


I do declare

“Well, I do declare now, if you haven't got a work-shop,” said Farmer S., “and all your tools seem to be in such excellent order, and you have a turning lathe, and a grind-stone, on friction rollers, and a set of planes and saws, […]

1855, The New England Farmer, volume 7, page 490:


what though

What though we can no longer perform signs and wonders by his influence; by faith we can yet remove mountains of sin and ignorance, and cast them into depths where they shall be seen no more.

1837, The Church of England magazine, page 300:

(archaic) But what does it matter; notwithstanding.


death on

She's death on the fashion, Mercy is. Why, that last gown of hers, cut out a piece of calico a neighbor brought from the East—you'd ought to see it.

1901, Evelyn Raymond, The Sun Maid: A Story of Fort Dearborn:

She's a Canadian half-breed, and she has a sweet tooth and a bitter tongue. The only joys that lighten her dusty pilgrimage through this vale of tears are eating candy and giving cheek to her superior officer. She's death on candy, […]

1913, Robert Blatchford, Tommy Atkins of the Ramchunders, page 106:

(colloquial) Very keen on or good at (something).


all quiet on the Western Front

From the English translation of the title of Erich Maria Remarque's war novel Im Westen nichts Neues.

(colloquial) Nothing much is happening; the situation is stable, or stagnant.

All Quiet on the Western Front
Erich Maria Remarque


it's five o'clock somewhere

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-it's five o'clock somewhere.wav

Related to the convention of not consuming alcohol prior to the end of working hours (generally 5 PM), and alluding to time offsets.

(idiomatic) Used as an excuse for drinking alcoholic beverages outside of customary hours.


more money than brains

The Diver ſhall walk at the bottom of the Thames; the Saltpeter-Maker ſhall Build Tom T---ds Pond into Houſes; the Engineers Build Models and Windmills to draw Water, till Funds are rais’d to carry it on, by Men who have more Money than Brains, and then good night Patent and Invention; the Projector has done his buſineſs, and is gone.

1693 (date written), D. F. [pseudonym; Daniel Defoe], “Of Projectors”, in An Essay upon Projects, London: […] R. R. for Tho[mas] Cockerill, […], published 1697, →OCLC, pages 34–35:

But I suppose that a prig with more money than brains was much the same sixty or seventy years ago as he is now.

1873–1884 (date written), Samuel Butler, chapter IV, in R[ichard] A[lexander] Streatfeild, editor, The Way of All Flesh, London: Grant Richards, published 1903, →OCLC, page 16:

Wealthy, but lacking the wisdom to spend that wealth wisely.


eq `num`

(proofreading) Abbreviation of equalize spacing.


OSLT

(Internet slang) Initialism of or something like that.


you got a mouse in your pocket

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-you got a mouse in your pocket.wav

From the idea of another referent included in "we," besides the speaker, being invisible.

is there a mouse in your pocket (alternative)

Your back teeth don't know what your front teeth are saying. 'We know nothing about anything.' Who's we, Connors, you got a mouse in your pocket?

1979, Rosemary Edelman, Fireworks: a novel, →ISBN, page 52:

(rhetorical question, informal, sarcastic) Used as a response to statements starting with "we," usually indicating the speaker does not want to be involved in the interlocutor's statements.


is there a mouse in your pocket

you got a mouse in your pocket
you got a mouse in your pocket#English

Alternative form of you got a mouse in your pocket.


IHDK

(Internet slang, text messaging) Initialism of I honestly don't know.


fuck 12

From fuck + 12, of uncertain origin. Widespread use of the phrase as an anti-police slogan grew following the killing of Michael Brown in 2014 in Ferguson, Missouri.
* Possibly from 1312, an alternative form of ACAB (“all cops are bastards”) in which the letters are substituted with their position in the alphabet.
* Alternatively, from the American police procedural television series Adam-12 (1968–1975), in which 1-Adam-12 refers to a patrol unit and its radio call sign.
Likely popularized by "F*ck 12", a song by American hip-hop group Migos from their mixtape Y.R.N. (Young Rich Niggas) (2013), which uses 12 in reference to the police while describing a narcotics raid: “12 kickin' in my front door […] 12 in my home, they won't leave me alone”.

Vehicles with the words "Fuck 12" painted on the sides and windows drove down West Florissant Avenue, honking in support of protesters on the street as others would chant the straight-to-the-point slogan.

2014 August 17, Ray Downs, “Ferguson Protesters Defy State of Emergency Curfew and Fight Tear Gas”, in Riverfront Times:

Kwame Shakur, deputy chairman of the New African Black Panther Party, showed up with a megaphone and led the protesters in chants of "All power to the people" and "Fuck 12."

2020 May 7, Tyler Fenwick, “'We're just trying to get answers': Fatal IMPD shooting captured on Facebook Live”, in Indianapolis Recorder:

(slang, vulgar, derogatory) Fuck the police: a political slogan protesting against police behavior.

Adam-12
Migos
Y.R.N. (Young Rich Niggas)
killing of Michael Brown
murder of George Floyd


deuces wild

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-deuces wild.wav

Refers to various card games where deuces are used as wild cards. Probably coined by Los Angeles Dodgers sportscaster Vin Scully.

The deuces are wild, he would announce before a pitch. Two balls, two strikes, two out, two on, and two to two in the bottom of the second. Bosch could hear Scully's voice in his head as he considered that the deuces were now wild in his own game

If there were two balls and two strikes on a batter, with two outs in an inning—what is called “deuces wild” in baseball—the bullpen would work like mad to get its pitcher out of the inning.

2011, Travis Haney, Gamecock Glory: The University of South Carolina Baseball Team's Journey to the 2010 NCAA Championship.:

(baseball) A situation in a ballgame where there are two balls, two strikes, two outs and two men on base.


juice is worth the squeeze

the juice is worth the squeeze (canonical)

Another part of the problem may be that I have talked to one of these folks that were looking for grants, and he told me, Ken, the juice isn't worth the squeeze from trying to get the money from the Feds and the complications that go into this.

2008, United States. Congress, Department of Homeland Security Appropriations for 2010:

I'm not sure the juice is worth the squeeze on this one ... maybe I'll just take the hit on the exam and learn it later.

2010, Jeff Wiese, Teaching in the Hospital, page 5:

We need to ask ourselves whether the juice is worth the squeeze. Let's say we have a perfect fraud model that can completely identify all the fraud occurring in a portfolio. However, if the model takes so long to run in production that it crashes the production system, that model is far from desirable.

2014, Revathi Subramanian, Bank Fraud: Using Technology to Combat Losses, page 114:

So our purpose, work, and efforts should result in “juice” worth the “squeeze” of the life we choose.

2018, John Mason, Seize Today: How Asking the Right Questions Will Change Your Life:

(informal) The effort put into something is justified by the outcome.


word is

Word is that the eatery will reopen soon under new management.

But the word is they were having problems with the new design.


many moons ago

In reference to lunar calendars, which were more commonly used in premodern times.

(informal, idiomatic) A (very) long time ago.


that's your lot

Hendrix is hilarious, as ever, explaining new song Izabella is “about a cat, blah blah, woof woof …” It’s a real shame they wouldn’t keep this lineup together. Hendrix repeatedly comments on the “patience” of the crowd. He plays the national anthem, his guitar dive-bombs at the end of Hey Joe and, that’s your lot. The applause dies away surprisingly quickly.

2019 August 15, Bob Stanley, “'Groovy, groovy, groovy': listening to Woodstock 50 years on – all 38 discs”, in The Guardian:

(UK, colloquial, idiomatic) That is the end; there is no more; that's it; that's all


WCPGW

(Internet slang) Initialism of what could possibly go wrong?: a sarcastic response to a bad idea that would lead to obvious problems.


how are you going

how are you doing
how are you doing#English

(Australia, New Zealand) Alternative form of how are you doing.


none other than

Produced by none other than Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, Good Boys again most closely resembles a kind of junior-varsity tryout for that duo's Superbad, down to its modestly affecting emotional through-line: an acceptance of the fact that childhood friendships, forged out of proximity and convenience, aren't always destined to last.

2019 August 14, A. A. Dowd, “Good Boys Puts a Tween Spin on the R-rated Teen Comedy, to Mostly Funny Effect”, in The A.V. Club, archived from the original on 2021-03-04:

(idiomatic) Used to qualify a person whose eminence may be more than one would expect in the given situation.

正是

(used to qualify a person whose eminence may be more than one would expect)


TOA-CAH-SOH

Inversion of SOH-CAH-TOA, nearly homophonic with Hokkien 大跤嫂 (tōa-kha-só, literally “middle-aged woman with huge feet”).

(Singapore, mnemonic, trigonometry, humorous) Synonym of SOHCAHTOA.


head

/ə ˈwʊmən wɪðˌaʊt ə ˈmæn ɪz laɪk ə ˈfɪʃ wɪðˌaʊt ə ˈbaɪsɪkl̩/

/ə ˈwʊmən wɪðˌaʊt ə ˈmæn ɪz laɪk ə ˈfɪʃ wɪðˌaʊt ə ˈbaɪˌsɪkəl/

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-a woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle.wav

A well-known feminist slogan coined in 1970 by the Australian filmmaker, social activist, and writer Irina Dunn (born 1948); according to her recollection, adapted from the phrase “A man needs God like a fish needs a bicycle” which she read in a philosophical text. The original phrase appears to be “A man without faith is like a fish without a bicycle”, coined by Charles S. Harris in 1955 and published in a 1958 article in the Swarthmore Phoenix. The phrase is often erroneously attributed to the American feminist journalist and social political activist Gloria Steinem (born 1934), but she disclaimed this in a letter to Time magazine published on 16 September 2000.

We found this anonymous contribution to International Women's Year on a wall at Forest Lodge: "A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle."

1975 January 25, “Column 8”, in The Sydney Morning Herald, number 42,779, Sydney, N.S.W.: John Fairfax & Sons, →ISSN, →OCLC, page 1, column 8:

No matter how hip or how liberated I got to be, I could never really convince my deepest self that a woman without a man, at least when the music started, was like a fish without a bicycle.

1990, Jane Adams, Wake Up, Sleeping Beauty: How to Live Happily Ever After—Starting Right Now, New York, N.Y.: William Morrow and Company, →ISBN, page 107:

Women who are ideologically opposed to marriage would go along with Gloria Steinem's^([sic]) commonly quoted maxim: "A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle." If, whatever your reasons, you are adamantly not the marrying kind, then it is important for you to make that clear to any man who becomes involved with you.

2009, Wesley L. Ford, “Safe Conduct: Guidelines for an Affair of the Heart”, in How to Pick a Lover: For Women Who Want to Win at Love, [Bloomington, Ind.]: Xlibris, →ISBN, page 359:

By 1962, well before the so-called "sexual revolution" or even the feminist slogan "a woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle," Helen Gurley Brown could write in Sex and the Single Girl, "I think marriage is insurance for the worst years of your life.["]

2012, Hanne Blank, “The Marrying Type”, in Straight: The Surprisingly Short History of Heterosexuality, Boston, Mass.: Beacon Press, →ISBN:

"A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle," I said. "One of these days you're going to want another bicycle," she said, laughing.

2014 November, Mary McHugh, Chorus Lines, Caviar, and Corpses: A Happy Hoofers Mystery, Kensington Publishing Corp., →ISBN, page 28:

(figuratively, humorous, simile) A woman is capable of living a complete and independent life without a man.

Gloria Steinem
Irina Dunn
Nigel Rees
Swarthmore College

沒有男人的女人就像沒有自行車的魚 /没有男人的女人就像没有自行车的鱼

a woman is capable of living a complete and independent life

méiyǒu nánren de nǚrén jiùxiàng méiyǒu zìxíngchē de yú

een vrouw zonder man is als een vis zonder fiets

nainen ilman miestä on kuin kala ilman polkupyörää

une femme sans homme est comme un poisson sans bicyclette

eine Frau ohne Mann ist wie ein Fisch ohne Fahrrad

literal translation if quoting the English phrase

una donna senza un uomo è come un pesce senza bicicletta

남자 없는 여자는 자전거 없는 물고기와 같다

namja eomneun yeoja-neun jajeon'geo eomneun mulgogi-wa gatda

en kvinne uten mann er som en fisk uten sykkel

kobieta tak potrzebuje mężczyzny, jak ryba potrzebuje roweru

uma mulher sem um homem é como um peixe sem uma bicicleta

o femeie fără bărbat este ca un pește fără bicicletă

женщина без мужчины — всё равно что рыба без велосипеда (ženščina bez mužčiny — vsjo ravno što ryba bez velosipeda)

женщина без мужчины — всё равно что рыбка без зонтика (ženščina bez mužčiny — vsjo ravno što rybka bez zontika)

žena bez muškarca je kao riba bez bicikla

una mujer sin un hombre es como un pez sin bicicleta

en kvinna utan en man är som en fisk utan en cykel


job's a good 'un

Attested in 1968, but probably popularised by footballer Robbie Fowler who, after scoring four goals in a Premier League match against Middlesbrough on 14 December 1996, revealed a T-shirt with the phrase written on it in marker pen. He explained to the press that it was Happy Mondays percussionist Bez's catchphrase in his segment "Science with Bez" on BBC Two's The Sunday Show (1995–97).

job's a good'un (alternative)
job's a goodun (alternative)
the job's a good 'un (alternative)

We've cracked it Ginge! Showed out for a cock and hen and drew for a flag. There’s one born every minute. Let this one go for now and the job’s a good un. Hello, there’s a jam role there. And diamonds is a roles best friend. They love em! See me cop off this.

1968, Robert Roberts, Imprisoned Tongues, Manchester University Press, page 210:

‘The job’s a good ’un. Ahm getting a word put in and it’ll all be fixed up.’

1975 August, Michael Foley, “The Wrassler: A Bit of Strange”, in Fortnight, number 109, →JSTOR, page 14:

‘Well, if that's what you want,’ he says, sounding a touch ratty, ‘I’ll stop everything else and you can have the entire A350 budget to turn up at the bookshop tomorrow.’ ‘Job's a good ’un,’ I tell him. ‘Oh, and one other thing. Cash, please.’

1998 October 16, "Darren Tackle" [Jim White], “Brought to book by the Fraud squad”, The Guardian, page 16

A traffic jam made up of normal cars will be twice as long as one made up of these Japanese “kei” cars. And a kei jam will clear more quickly, because in a car the size of a bacterium you don’t have to drive round and round the block looking for somewhere to park. You just pop it in your pocket and the job’s a good ’un.

2008, Jeremy Clarkson, “The problem is ... it's out of this world”, in The Sunday Times, page 20:

‘What do you need new stuff for? Just do the stuff you did on The T Factor – that had them rolling in the aisles! Bish bash bosh! Job’s a goodun’! You get paid! And more importantly so do I!’ said Dickie with a smirk.

2018, Harry Hill, Matt Millz Stands Up!, Faber & Faber:

(British, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, colloquial) Expresses satisfaction that a task has been or will be carried out successfully, often suggesting that the task is simple, or ironically implying that it has been completed in a cursory or slapdash manner.

BBC Two
Happy Mondays
Premier League
Robbie Fowler
Sunday Mirror
The Sunday Show


let the matter drop

To stop pursuing something about which there is a dispute, disagreement, etc.


once more into the breach

A misquotation of Shakespeare's Henry V, act III, scene I: "Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more."


by name

By the usage (uttering, mentioning, writing etc) of one’s name.


one for the money, two for the show, three to make ready, and four to go

“Yes, I'll make Simpledoria get out of the way. Come here, Simpledoria. Now, Bill, put your heels together on the edge of the walk. That's right. All ready? Now then! One for the money—two for the show—three to make ready—and four for to GO!” Another silence. “By jingo, Bill Hammersley, you've beat me! Ha, ha! That was a jump! What say?”

1909, Booth Tarkington, Beasley's Christmas Party, New York: Harper & Brothers, pages 22–23:

And then they swung him back and forth, and back and forth, saying: "One for the money, two for the show, three to make ready, and four to go." And up they tossed him into the air.

2007, William Bernard McCarthy, Cinderella in America, page 268:

A countdown prior to exerting some effort, such as launching a burden or running a race.


put her there

(colloquial) Inviting a person to shake one's hand.


more power to someone

“Long life to your grace" says O'Dempsy, taking off his hat; “you desarve to be an O'Shaughnessy!” “More power to you, Paddy!" says Lord Edward […]

1837, Samuel Lover, Rory O'More: A National Romance, volume 1, page 81:

Peter didn't seem to be married, and if she wanted to make a run at him, more power to her.

2008, Sarah Atwell, Pane of Death, page 34:

It doesn't really click with me, but if that's what he wants, more power to him.

2012, Lance J. Lessler, Sascha's World, page 264:

Used to express wishes for someone's success in an endeavour of their own choosing.


or it didn't happen

LL-Q1860 (eng)-Flame, not lame-or it didn't happen.wav

Derived from pics or it didn't happen, replacing pics with something else that is demanded as proof like links or video.

To paraphrase a popular Internet meme, share your movie or it didn't happen.

2014, Jeff Carlson, iPad and iPhone Video: Film, Edit, and Share the Apple Way, Peachpit Press, →ISBN, page 145:

(Internet, humorous) Unless one can provide the proof that one is requesting, that person has no credibility in the matter.


honors easy

(whist) The situation where the honors are evenly divided.


man bites dog

Shortened version of a phrase attributed to various 19th-century journalists: "When a dog bites a man, that is not news, because it happens so often. But if a man bites a dog, that is news."

(journalism) A situation that is worth reporting on because it is unusual or bizarre.


don't quote me

Used to indicate that the speaker is uncertain of the accuracy of their statement and does not wish to have the statement attributed to them.