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"By" Idioms & Phrases with "By"
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keyword: By
A Bird In The Hand Is Worth Two In The Bush »
(don't risk losing what you have by trying to get more...)
A Known Fact »
(a fact that everyone knows; it is known to be true by most people...)
A Landslide Victory »
(won by a large amout; a huge victory...)
A Play By Play Description »
(description of a game done as a narration of what is happening...)
Abide By Something »
(agree to do what one is told to do...)
Across The Board »
(it will apply to all; all will be affected by it...)
Ahead Of Schedule »
(more has been done than was expected by this time...)
All Worked Up About Something »
(one let oneself be very bothered by that thing...)
All Worked Up Over Something »
(one let oneself be very bothered by that thing...)
All’s Well That Ends Well »
(the name of a play written by Shakespeare; as long as the ending is good, what happened before is good too...)
An Aching Heart »
(one feels the pain of loss or want; one is pained by losing or wanting something...)
An Act Of God »
(an accident caused by nature, such as bad weather; not bacause of what people did...)
Back East »
(said by a person from the East when talking about the East...)
Behind The Scenes »
(done by people who could not be seen...)
Beyond The Call Of Duty »
(more than is expected or required by a job...)
By Word Of Mouth »
(by hearing it from others...)
Cause A Commotion »
(make a lot of noise and be noticed by others or bother others...)
Chance Upon Someone Or Something »
(discover something by accident; find something without looking for it...)
Do A Snow Job On Someone »
(trick someone by confusing them with lots of information...)
Doing As You're Told »
(doing the thing that you were told to do by an authority...)
Door To Door »
(to find customers by going to people's houses, knocking on the door and introducing oneself...)
Easy To Come By »
(something that can be found easily...)
Fair Game »
(it is available for anyone to get; they are not owned by anyone...)
Fall From Grace »
(popular in the past but not popular now; not liked by those in power...)
Fall Into My Trap »
(be tricked and trapped by my secret plan...)
Field Questions »
(answer questions asked by different people...)
Find Something Out The Hard Way »
(one learned it by making a mistake...)
Fly By Night »
(a business that opens briefly, cheats people, and disappears...)
From Door To Door »
(by going to peoples houses, knocking on the door and introducing oneself...)
From The Horse’s Mouth »
(told by the person who was there...)
Get A Licking »
(lose by a lot of points; be beaten by a lot...)
Get A Tongue Lashing »
(was yelled at by someone, as a punishment...)
Get All Dolled Up »
(a woman makes herself more pretty by putting on nice clothes or cosmetics...)
Get By On Something »
(able to live or survive with only that thing...)
Get By With Something »
(able to funtion or continue with only that thing...)
Get Hell »
(be yelled at by others...)
Get In Someone’s Hair »
(bother that person by being too close or involved with them...)
Get The Worst Of Something »
(this one was effected most badly by what happened...)
Get Through To Someone »
(be understood by that person...)
Hanging On Your Coattails »
(try to gain success by following a successful person...)
Join Hands »
(holding each other by the hands...)
Jump The Gun »
(start before it is time to begin; cheat in a race by starting early...)
Keep A Stiff Upper Lip »
(be strong and unaffected by emotions...)
Next Of Kin »
(one's closest relative; related by blood; one's child...)
Nobody’s Fool »
(not stupid; not fooled by that...)
On Credit »
(paid for by borrowing money; one buys the thing now and will pay later...)
On One’s Own Time »
(when one is not being paid by another...)
Save One’s Breath »
(don't talk now; you are wasting your time by talking; nobody is listening to you...)
Say Something In A Roundabout Way »
(speak indirectly; try to communicate one thing by saying something else...)
Sit Idly By »
(sit and watch without helping...)
Slap Someone’s Wrist »
(push one by slapping one's hand; a very light punishment...)
Take A Licking »
(to lose by a large amount...)
Take A Shellacking »
(lose very badly; lose by a lot...)
Take Someone By Surprise »
(suprise that person...)
Take Someone Or Something By Storm »
(arrive with a big noise and lots of activity...)
Take The Bull By The Horns »
(take strong action and gain control of the situation...)
Thin Skinned »
(easily bothered by things...)
Who Do You Think You’re Kidding »
(You are mistaken and I am not going to be fooled by your error...)
With Each Passing Day »
(time goes by while it happens...)
Work One’s Way Through College »
(when a student works to pay for college by oneself while attending college...)
Work One’s Way Up »
(Improve one's position by increasing one's rank over time...)
You Know »
(said to gain agreement by the listener, sometimes said out of habit with no significant meaning besides asking agreement from listeners...)
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