This page gathers the 4,686 dictionary entries of which at least one sense is labelled “Idiomatic” by Wiktionary. The definition shown is that sense; each word leads to its full entry. Page 3 of 47: from “back down” to “beg off”.
- back down verb To take a less aggressive position in a conflict than one previously had, or has planned to have.
- back forty noun The most remote or inaccessible part of any place.
- back in the game phrase Having recovered from a disadvantageous position.
- back into verb To advance to the post-season as a result of another team's loss, especially where one's own team has also lost.
- back of one's hand noun A display of disrespect or scorn.
- back off verb To become less aggressive, particularly when one had appeared committed to act.
- back office noun The IT and infrastructure support services for a company, separate from the public face of the business.
- back pocket verb To put (something) aside for future use; to keep in reserve.
- back to square one adj Located back at the start, as after a dead end or failure.
- back to the drawing board adv Indicates that one must try a different strategy in order to achieve some goal following the failure of a recent attempt.
- back up verb To move backwards, especially for a vehicle to do so.
- back-of-the-envelope adj Especially of a calculation, estimation, or other reasoning, or an idea: approximate, rough, simplified.
- back-to-back-to-back adj Sequential or consecutive, in the case of exactly three events.
- backfire verb To fail in a manner that brings down further misfortune.
- backpedal verb To distance oneself from an earlier claim or statement; back off from an idea.
- backwards and forwards adv Thoroughly; completely, comprehensively.
- backwater noun A remote place: somewhere that remains unaffected by new events, progresses, ideas, etc; any field of endeavor that figuratively resembles…
- bad actor noun An individual or entity with a prior criminal conviction, or who has been sanctioned by the court or regulator.
- bad apple noun A person who is not wholesome, honest, or trustworthy, especially one who has an adverse influence on others.
- bad blood noun Feelings of hostility or ill will.
- bad business noun Synonym of bad news (“irritating, troublesome or harmful thing, situation or person”).
- bad egg noun Someone whose behaviour is reprehensible or irresponsible; a rogue.
- bad hair day noun A day when things seem to be unmanageable or go wrong.
- bad news noun An irritating, troublesome or harmful object, situation or individual.
- bad penny noun A person or thing which is unpleasant, disreputable, or otherwise unwanted, especially one which repeatedly appears at inopportune times.
- bad taste in one's mouth noun A feeling that something is morally despicable as to cause nausea.
- bad trip noun An acute adverse psychological reaction to the effects produced under the influence of psychoactive substances, namely hallucinogens.
- bag of tricks noun A set of skills, techniques, items of information, or other resources used to help achieve professional or personal goals.
- bail out verb To rescue, especially financially.
- baker's dozen noun Thirteen; a group of thirteen.
- baking hot adj Very hot.
- balance out verb To attain balance through the contrasting or reciprocating effect of different elements.
- balance the books verb To add up all the debits and credits.
- balloon goes up phrase Something exciting, risky, or troublesome begins.
- balls to the wall adv With maximum effort or commitment.
- balls-out adj Extreme; extremely great.
- bamboo ceiling noun A social barrier to further promotion or progression, in employment and elsewhere, for a person of East Asian ethnicity.
- banana nose noun A large, unusually long nose.
- banana republic noun A small country, especially one in Central America or the West Indies, that is dependent on a single export commodity (traditionally…
- band-aid noun A temporary or makeshift solution to a problem, created ad hoc and often with a lack of foresight.
- bandwagon fan noun A fan who has shown no past loyalty to a team and supports them all because they are actively succeeding or trendy.
- bang away verb to strike or hit repeatedly
- bang down the door verb To present oneself as a strong candidate for a role or achievement, explicitly or implicitly.
- bang out verb To do (something) quickly, in a slipshod, or unprofessional manner, especially performing or composing music or a piece of writing.
- bang some heads together verb Attempt to get results from a previously ineffectual or argumentative group, typically by coercion or force.
- bang to rights adv Red-handed, (caught) in the act.
- bang up adj Good, superior, excellent.
- banger noun A powerfully energetic or exceptional song, especially in hip-hop and dance music.
- bank night noun An event where patrons are enticed to buy entry tickets into some venue, for example a movie theater, with the anticipation that they will…
- banyan day noun In British naval tradition, a day of the week when galley kitchens served no meat on board ship.
- bar sinister noun The state or characteristic of having been born out of wedlock; illegitimacy; bastardy.
- bare bones adj Minimalist; lacking that which is not essential.
- bare one's soul verb To reveal one's innermost feelings and thoughts, especially concerning one's doubts, regrets, or flaws; to tell one's personal secrets to…
- bare one's teeth verb To show aggression.
- bark up the wrong tree verb To take the wrong approach to a situation; to follow a false lead; to attempt to solve a problem using mistaken assumptions about its true…
- barn find noun A valuable item recovered from poor storage, such as a suburban garage, farm shed, etc., where it had been more or less forgotten…
- barnburner noun A sensationally exciting or successful event or person.
- bash into shape verb Of an item, to fix or build it; often in a rough and ready fashion.
- basket house noun A cafe or similar establishment where musical performances are given and the performers are then paid with money placed in a basket by…
- bass-ackwards adj Spoonerism of ass-backwards
- bat a thousand verb To achieve success at each attempt.
- bawl out verb To have a serious argument accompanied by shouting.
- be a man verb To put up with something or take responsibility for it; to deal with something, such as pain or misfortune, without complaining.
- be around verb To be alive, existent, or present.
- be down with verb To be alright, okay, or in agreement with; approve of; stand for; to accept as good, right, or preferred.
- be left at the post verb To be beaten from the beginning of a competition or race.
- be like verb To say.
- be oneself verb To behave or act naturally, without regard to how this behavior is perceived by others.
- be someone's to lose verb To be anticipated to be won by someone.
- be still my heart verb An admonition to oneself to calm down when overly excited, especially in terms of romantic attraction.
- be there verb To be available to provide comfort and support for someone, especially in a period of difficulty.
- be- prefix By, near, next to, around, close to.
- bean counter noun A person who is excessively interested in controlling or reducing expenses, increasing profits, or in quantitative details in general.
- bear a hand verb To make haste; to help quickly.
- bear fruit verb Of an effort, endeavor, etc., to produce good results; to yield benefits; to succeed.
- bear in mind verb To hold (something) in the memory; to remember; also, to be mindful of or pay attention to (something); to consider; to note.
- bear up verb To endure hardship cheerfully or without complaining.
- beat around the bush verb To treat a topic, but omit its main points, often intentionally.
- beat feet verb To run.
- beat it verb To leave; to go away.
- beat off verb To masturbate by stimulating one's own penis.
- beat one's swords into ploughshares verb To refrain from destructive military or paramilitary acts (war, terrorism, etc.) and put energy and resources to peaceful ends that would…
- beat someone's ass verb To beat someone severely.
- beat the clock verb To perform a task or successfully complete an activity within a time limit.
- beat the daylights out of verb To beat (someone) severely.
- beat the pants off verb To thoroughly and decisively defeat someone, either in a physical fight or, figuratively, in a competition.
- beat the poop out of verb To beat (someone) severely.
- beat the shit out of verb To beat (someone) severely.
- beat the stuffing out of verb To beat very severely.
- beat with the ugly stick verb Used to describe someone who is particularly ugly or unattractive.
- beautiful people noun Fashionable, privileged, glamorous people, especially those belonging to international high society; the beau monde.
- beauty sleep noun Originally, sleep taken before midnight, on the belief that early sleep hours conduce to beauty and health; now (chiefly humorous), sleep…
- bed blocker noun An elderly hospitalized person who is too infirm to return home but not sufficiently ill to necessitate continued hospitalization, creating…
- bed in verb To allow or help to settle in; to make (someone) feel at home.
- been there, done that phrase An assertion that the speaker has personal experience or knowledge of a particular place or topic and is not too keen on revisiting or…
- been there, done that, bought the T-shirt phrase Expresses the speaker's complete familiarity with a situation, with overtones of cynicism or exhaustion.
- beer muscles noun An aggressive attitude resulting from consumption of an alcoholic beverage.
- before someone's time prep_phrase From before one was born or old enough to be aware of the world.
- beg for one's life verb To plead or make a desperate attempt to continue with what one has been doing.
- beg off verb To obtain somebody's permission to skip or cancel an event that one has previously arranged with them.