aW Idioma
a bawling out
a scolding, a lecture, an earful, catch it When I forgot to do my chores Dad gave me a bawling out.
a dead giveaway
a clear signal, an obvious sign The smile on her face was a dead giveaway that she got the job.
a faraway look
the eyes show thoughts of a distant place or friend When I mention horses, you get a faraway look in your eyes.
a raw deal
an unfair contract, paying too much, taken in If he's charging too much rent you're getting a raw deal.
a yawner
a boring event, a book etc. that is not interesting I went to the movie, but it was a yawner so I left.
above the law
not required to obey laws, privileged Just because he's rich, he thinks he's above the law.
an apple a day keeps the doctor away
eat one apple each day for good health "Mom gave me an apple, saying, ""An apple a day... ."""
at the crack of dawn
at the first sign of light, at first light At the crack of dawn he would rise, wash and go for a walk.
away out
(See way out)
away out of line
(See way out of line)
away to the races
going without a problem, smooth sailing When they approve our business loan, we'll be away to the races.
awesome
(See totally awesome)
AWOL
Absent Without Leave - often used in the military The military police were searching the area for the soldier who had gone AWOL.
back to the drawing board
go back to start a project or idea from the beginning The boss doesn
bawl me out
tell me I have been bad, scold me If I fail math, Dad will bawl me out. He'll give me a lecture.
beat someone to the punch (draw)
do something before others He beat me to the punch and arrived at the interview first.
blow them away
defeat them badly, kick butt The Russians blew them away in the first game of the series.
blow you away
defeat you easily, beat the pants off You're going to play chess with Boris? He'll blow you away.
break away
move away, go away from, stop doing or using She tried to break away when the cult leader asked for her savings.
break the law/rules
not obey the law, commit a crime If you rob a store, you are breaking the law.
brush with the law
an illegal act, a minor crime Judd told me about his brush with the law - a shoplifting charge.
claws are showing
show resentment or envy or jealousy, if looks could kill When you talked about Carla, your claws were showing. Do you dislike her?
crack of dawn
(See at the crack of dawn)
crawl on my hands and knees over broken glass just
do anything to be closer to her, worship the ground she walks on I'm so in love I'd crawl on my hands and knees over miles of broken glass to see her photo.
crawling with
having many of them, oodles, scads The hotel was crawling with police. I couldn't count them.
dawn on
become clear It finally dawned on me as to why he was angry.
dawn on me
cause me to think of, occur to me, hit me It didn't dawn on me that they're twins until I saw them together.
dead giveaway
(See a dead giveaway)
do away with
throw out, dispose of We want to do away with nuclear weapons - to dispose of them.
don't go away mad; just go away
"do not be angry, but leave; you are not welcome here" "He said to the heckler, ""Don't go away mad; just go away."""
draw a blank
be unable to think of an answer, mind go blank For some reason, I drew a blank when the professor questioned me.
draw a sober breath
be sober, not be drunk They say he hasn't drawn a sober breath since his son was killed.
draw attention to
"ask people to notice; show or display to people" If you wear a short skirt, you draw attention to your legs.
draw blood
make someone bleed, get blood from someone The doctor decided to draw some blood from the patient to check up on his blood sugar level.
draw fire
receive criticism or argument He has been drawing a lot of fire since he announced that he would not play basketball another year.
draw first blood
attack first, be first to hit or win The Jets drew first blood in the series, winning game one 5-4.
draw in one
spend less money Their company is not doing well so they will have to draw in their horns for awhile.
draw it to my attention
tell me about it, cause me to be aware of it Spelling is a problem. Thanks for drawing it to my attention.
draw (someone) out
make a person talk or tell something She was very quiet but we finally were able to draw her out so that she would join the party.
draw the line
set a limit We have to draw the line somewhere in regards to the costs of the party.
draw their fire
get attention while a friend moves or escapes You draw their fire while I move behind them. You distract them.
draw up
put in writing, write something in its correct form The lawyers drew up a contract for the new housing development on the government land.
draw upon
recall and use, remember At university, I drew upon my knowledge of Russian history.
drawing card
entertainment to attract people, loss leader The community hired a comedian as a drawing card for the fair.
drop your drawers
take your pants down, remove your shorts Don't you hate it when you have to drop your drawers for a nurse?
eat away
rot, erode, destroy The mildew has been eating away at the window frame all summer.
fire away
ask questions, comment, criticize, shoot After speaking for gun control, he invited the men to fire away.
get away
succeed in leaving, escape I was able to get away early from work today so I went shopping for awhile.
get away from it all
go on a holiday We want to get away from it all this summer and go and relax somewhere.
get away with
not obey the rules, not get caught He gets away with speeding, but the police will soon catch him.
