PITA Idiom American Expressions and American Idioms

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. .

PITA What does PITA mean?	pain in the ass
	Some Random Idioms
heart is dead set against (something) What does "heart is dead set against (something)" mean?	to be totally against something	My mother's heart is dead set against my plan to go to art school.

throw in (something) What does "throw in (something)" mean?	to give or put something in as an addition	When we bought our car the dealer threw in some new tires as a bonus.
run afoul of the law What does "run afoul of the law" mean?	get into trouble with the law	The young man ran afoul of the law and was taken into police custody.
shot glass What does "shot glass" mean?	small glass,	5 to 2.0 ounces, for measuring or drinking liquor
in hock What does "in hock" mean?	in a pawnshop	The man put his expensive stereo in hock to get some money for a holiday.
by a long shot What does "by a long shot" mean?	by a big difference	Our company beat out the bids of the other companies by a long shot.
Rule of thumb What does "Rule of thumb" mean?	A basic rule that is usually but not always correct.	As a rule of thumb, plant tomato seeds three inches deep. Based on the use of ones thumb as a rough measurement tool. Generally correct for course measures. Most old English measures of distance were based on the body measurements of the king -- the length of the foot, inch (thumb tip to first knuckle), cubit (elbow-to-fingertip), and yard (nose-to-fingertip).
Short-change What does "Short-change" mean?	If you are short-changed, someone cheats you of money or doesn't give you full value for something.

on (someone`s) back What does "on (someone`s) back" mean?	constantly criticizing someone, pressuring someone	My sister is always on her daughter's back to clean up her room.
as the crow flies What does "as the crow flies" mean?	by the most direct way, along a straight line between two places	As the crow flies it is about six kilometers between my house and downtown.
pass the hat What does "pass the hat" mean?	to collect money for something (sometimes by passing a hat around to put the money into)	We passed the hat to collect some money for the party.

American Idioms and Expressions

PITA Idiom