By The Book 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. .

by the book What does by the book mean?	according to the rules	The police officer does everything by the book when he arrests someone.
by the book What does by the book mean?	according to the rules	The police officer does everything by the book when he arrests someone.
by the book What does by the book mean?	following all the rules when you do something	Our lawyer is very good and he does everything by the book.
	Some Random Idioms
the lay of the land What does "the lay of the land" mean?	the features of an area of land or of an organization	We checked out the lay of the land before we put up our tent and made a camping site.
show up What does "show up" mean?	to become easy to see	After we cleaned the vase the design began to show up.
honker What does "honker" mean?	the nose (often a large nose).	Check out that guy's honker. It's enormous.
Watch it! What does "Watch it!" mean?	be careful (usually used as a command)	"Watch it! That truck is going very fast and may hit you."
of all things What does "of all things" mean?	Imagine that!	"Of all things," the woman said when the post office worker told her that her package was too large for delivery.
dine out What does "dine out" mean?	to eat a meal at a restaurant	I love to dine out at nice restaurants.

in the works What does "in the works" mean?	to be in preparation, to be in the process of being planned or developed	The camera company has a new camera in the works but nobody knows about it.
down to the wire What does "down to the wire" mean?	near a deadline, with little time remaining	They were down to the wire but the two sides finally agreed to a new contract.
cop an attitude What does "cop an attitude" mean?	be oppositional or defiant.	Don't cop an attitude with me, it won't work.

American Idioms and Expressions

By The Book Idiom