strain at a gnat
To be overly concerned with a small problem
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Where will you be? Anywhere UK & IrelandUnited StatesOnline slangBusiness jargon
strain at the leash
To be eager to start or take action, but be restrained
strain every nerve
Make a great effort to do something
strain the potatoes
To urinate.
straining upon the start
The game's afoot! Follow your spirit! — SHAKESPEARE. Henry F, ui, I.
strait and narrow
A strict and virtuous course of behavior
strait waistcoat
A tight waistcoat, with long sleeves coming over the hand, having strings for binding them behind the back of the wearer: these waistcoats are used in madhouses for the management of lunatics when outrageous.
strait-laced
Precise, over nice, puritanical.
stralia
Australia.
strange bedfellows
Unlikely allies or partners
strange bird
An unusual or eccentric person
Strange Case of Dr
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, first published in 1886. Jellyby, Mrs. (jel' i bi). The type of the en- tnusiastic, unthinking philanthropist who for- gets that charity should begin at home. Dickens, Bleak House.
strangle the parrot
to suppress or stifle one's creativity
strap
A barber. From Roderick Random.
strap oil
Slang for a thrashing. See above. Strappado (stra pa' do) (Ital. strappare, to pull). A mode of torture formerly practised for extracting confessions? retractations, etc. The hands were tied behind the back, and the victim was pulled up to a beam by a rope tied to them and then let down suddenly; by this means a limb was not infrequently dislocated, Were 1 at the strappado or the rack, I'd give no man a reason on compulsion. — I Henry IP, ii, 4.
strap on a pair
To become brave or courageous
strapper
A large man or woman.
strapping
Lying with a woman. CANT.
Strassburg Goose
A goose fattened, crammed, and confined in order to enlarge its liver from which is made true pat6 de foie gras.
straw
A good woman in the straw; a lying-in woman. His eyes draw straw; his eyes are almost shut, or he is almost asleep: one eye draws straw, and t'other serves the thatcher.
straw
Married ladies are said to be "in the STRAW" at their accouchements. The phrase is a coarse metaphor, and has reference to farmyard animals in a similar condition. It may have originally been suggested to the inquiring mind by the Nativity.
straw poll
Informal vote used to gauge opinion
straw that stirs the drink
The person who makes things happen or has the most influence
strawberry mark
A birthmark something like a strawberry. In Morton's Box and Cox the two heroes eventually reco'gnize each other as long-lost brothers through one of them having a strawberry-mark on his left arm.
strawberry preachers
So Latimer called the non-resident country clergy, because they "come but once a yeare and tarie not long * (Sermon on the Plough, 1549).
strawing
"selling" straws in the streets (generally for a penny), and "giving" the purchaser a paper (indecent or political) or a gold (!) ring,—neither of which, the patterer states, he is allowed by Act of Parliament to sell.
streak
To decamp, run away.—Saxon. In America the phrase is "to make STREAKS," or "make TRACKS."
streaky
Irritated, ill-tempered. Said of a short-tempered man who has his good and bad times in STREAK.
street appeal
attractiveness or charm that is associated with urban streets
Street Arabs
Children of the houseless poor; street children. So called because, like the Arabs, they are nomads or wanderers with no settled home.
street-pitchers
Negro minstrels, ballad-singers, long-song men, men "working a board" on which have been painted various exciting scenes in some terrible drama, the details of which the STREET PITCHER is bawling out, and selling in a little book or broadsheet (price one penny); or any persons who make a stand—i.e., a pitch—in the streets, and sell articles or contribute entertainments for a living.
streets ahead
Much better or more advanced than someone or something else
streets behind
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
stress and strain
Physical or mental pressure and tension
stress out
to become or feel extremely anxious or overwhelmed
stretch
A yard. The cove was lagged for prigging a peter with several stretch of dobbin from a drag; the fellow was transported for stealing a trunk, containing several yards of ribband, from a waggon.
stretch
Abbreviation of "STRETCH one’s neck," to hang, to be executed as a malefactor. As, "The night before Larry was STRETCHED."
stretch one's legs
to stand up and walk around after sitting for a long time
stretch the truth
Exaggerate or distort facts to make something more interesting
stretcher
A falsehood; one that requires a STRETCH of imagination or comprehension.
stretcher-fencer
One who sells braces.
stretching
Hanging. He'll stretch for it; he will be hanged for it. Also telling a great lie: he stretched stoutly.
stretching match
An execution. Often called a "hanging match."
strides
Trousers.
strike
Twenty shillings. CANT.
strike a blow
Deliver a significant attack or setback
strike a false note
to seem out of place or inconsistent
strike a jigger
To pick a lock, or break open a door.
strike a light
to suddenly understand or realize something
strike and dip
Geological terms describing orientation of a plane
strike it lucky
To suddenly experience good fortune
strike it rich
Become suddenly and unexpectedly wealthy
strike me lucky!
An expression used by the lower orders when making a bargain, derived from the old custom of striking hands together, leaving in that of the seller a LUCK PENNY as an earnest that the bargain is concluded. In Ireland, at cattle markets, &c., a penny, or other small coin, is always given by the buyer to the seller to ratify the bargain.—Hudibras. Anciently this was called a "God’s penny."
strike oil
to suddenly become successful or wealthy
strike one's flag
To surrender or admit defeat
strike someone when they are down
To take advantage of someone when they are vulnerable
strike tallies
to achieve successes
strike the tent
To leave or abandon a place or situation quickly
strike up
start a conversation or friendship
strike when the iron is hot. (14th century)
Take action when the opportunity is best
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