This
database is a comprehensive collection of all the American idioms and slang available.
American Idioms are many and varied. We hope you enjoy our collection. We are adding more all the time.
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Bouched up
What does Bouched up mean? | Substandard; messed up; make a shamble of | Man, you really bouched up that project. Now the company will have to start all over costing double and missing all of our deadlines.
Sir Thomas Bouch designed a bridge that was built at the Tay estuary at Dundee in Scotland. It was supposed to be the greatest structure built in Victorian England. The building of the Tay rail bridge culminated in him being knighted. The Tay bridge was nearly two miles long, consisting of 85 spans and at the time (1879) was the longest bridge in the world.
One stormy night, only 19 months after the bridge was declared safe by the Board of Trade and opened to traffic in the summer of 1878, the wind caused some of its spans to collapse. A train and 6 carriages and 75 souls were lost that night ranking it as the worst accident caused by structural failure in the history of England. Sir Thomas Bouch died only 10 months after the failure. |
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Some Random Idioms
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the get-go
What does "the get-go" mean? | the beginning | Right from the get-go I did not like the new manager.
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Hit and miss
What does "Hit and miss" mean? | Something that is hit and miss is unpredictable and may produce results or may fail. |
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none of (someone's) beeswax
What does "none of (someone's) beeswax" mean? | none of someone's business | It was none of my beeswax so I did not ask my friend about his problems.
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in the black
What does "in the black " mean? | have a credit balance, make a profit | The company has been in the black for over three years now.
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one for the (record) books
What does "one for the (record) books" mean? | something very unusual or remarkable | His latest complaint about noise at work is one for the books and is very stupid.
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make a mountain out of a molehill
What does "make a mountain out of a molehill" mean? | make a big problem out of a small problem | He is making a mountain out of a molehill by worrying about his son`s problem.
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circumstantial evidence
What does "circumstantial evidence" mean? | indirect evidence | My court case was difficult to win as most of my evidence was circumstantial evidence.
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know the score
What does "know the score" mean? | know the facts about something | know the facts about somethingThe new secretary doesn't really know the score about how the company operates.
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Leave well alone
What does "Leave well alone" mean? | If you leave something well alone, you keep a safe distance from it, either physically or metaphorically. |
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deuce
What does "deuce" mean? | 2.5 ton truck; medium-sized truck for cargo (from “deuce and a halfâ€) |
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ramble on about (someone or something)
What does "ramble on about (someone or something)" mean? | to talk aimlessly and endlessly about someone or something | My friend spent the entire evening rambling on about his problems at work.
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snap out of (something)
What does "snap out of (something)" mean? | to return to a normal state | The man finally snapped out of his depression and was able to return to work.
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sell (something) for a song
What does "sell (something) for a song" mean? | to sell something very cheaply | They sold the furniture for a song.
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For the love of Pete
What does "For the love of Pete" mean? | I am frustrated with this situation. | For the love of Pete, can we just pick a restaurant and stop searching? I am hungry.
This phrase and phrases like "for Pete's sake" are euphemisms for the phrases "for the love of God/Christ" or "for God's/Christ's sake" and hail from a time when those phases were considered blasphemous. Nowadays phrases like "for the love of God" are commonly used, but the euphemisms are still used.
Why Pete? Most likely it is a reference to the catholic Saint Peter. |