for the sake of somebody
done to help or benefit someone
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for the taking
Available to be obtained or used with little effort
for the time being
Temporarily, until a later time
for this once
Used to make an exception to a rule
for this reason
Common English phrase; full definition pending editorial review.
for thy dear sake
Quoth she, Murabudget. BUTLER: Hudibras, I, iii, 208.
for toffee
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
for two pins
very willingly or eagerly
for Wales
completely or entirely
for want of a nail
'Tor want of a nail, the shoe is lost; for want of a shoe, the horse
for want of a nail the shoe is lost, for want of a shoe the horse is lost, for want of a horse the rider is lost
English proverb; full definition pending editorial review.
for want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the man was lost
Small oversights can lead to significant consequences
For when the wine is in the wit is out. (Thomas Becon)
Alcohol impairs judgment
for XYZ reasons
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
forakers
The toilet.
forakers
The closet of decency, or house of office. Term used by the boys at Winchester School. Very likely from "four acres," the original necessary having been in all likelihood a field behind the school.
forbidden fruit
Something desirable but off-limits
force down someone's throat
To impose something on someone against their will
force of habit
An automatic or usual practice
force someone's hand
To make someone take action or make a decision
fore and aft
A fixed-order word pair (irreversible binomial); full definition pending editorial review.
foreign and domestic
Relating to both outside and inside a country
foreign correspondent
A newspaper corres- pondent living in foreign parts, not a cor- respondent who is a foreigner. Until The Times newspaper originated the system of sending specially equipped men to reside abroad and send news regularly, all foreign news was sent by casual and amateur correspondents whose own political views gave a distinctive colour to the news — or the presentation of it — they transmitted.
Foreign Legion
A body of highly-trained mercenaries of any nationality; the French and Spanish armies include such bodies.
Foreign Office
The department presided over by the Secretary of State for Foreign
Foreign Office and its policy
In the Allied bombing of Berlin in World War II most of the street was levelled with the ground.
foreman of the jury
One who engrosses all the talk to himself, or speaks for the rest of the company.
foreskin eater
A lascivious or promiscuous individual, usually a female.
forest puppy
Deer.
forever and a day
for a very long time
forever and ever
for a very long time
forewarned is forearmed
Being prepared for something because you know it might happen
forget oneself
Behave without restraint or propriety
forget to take one's medication this morning
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
forget you
used to express anger or dismissal
forgive and forget
A fixed-order word pair (irreversible binomial); full definition pending editorial review.
forgive but don't forget
Pardon someone, but remember the offense
fork
A pickpocket. Let us fork him; let us pick his pocket.--'The newest and most dexterous way, which is, to thrust the fingers strait, stiff, open, and very quick, into the pocket, and so closing them, hook what can be held between them.' N.B. This was taken from a book written many years ago: doubtless the art of picking pockets, like all others, must have been much improved since that time.
fork off
to split or diverge from something
fork over
to pay or give something reluctantly
forked tongue
speaking dishonestly or hypocritically
forks
Or GRAPPLING-IRONS, fingers. Costermongers and other clumsy feeders have a proverb which seems to justify their taking bones and choice morsels in their hands during the progress of a meal. It is, "Fingers were the first FORKS;" sometimes varied to "Fingers were made before FORKS."
forlorn hope
A gamester's last stake.
Forlorn Hope
This phrase is the Dutch verloren hoop, the lost squad or troop, and is due to a misunderstanding, as the words are not connected with our forlorn or hope. The French equivalent is enfants perdtis, the lost ones. The forlorn hope was originally a picked body of men sent in front to begin an attack; thus Cromwell says, "Our forlorn of horse marched within a mile of the enemy," i.e.
form
Condition, training. "In good FORM" or "in bad FORM" refers to a man’s or horse’s state of being in the sporting world. FORM has also had a moral significance of late years, and with the qualifying adjectives attached as occasion requires, is extensively used in general conversation. As, "It was bad FORM of Brown to do that." "That article was bad FORM." In the latter cases the word "in" rarely appears.
form and function
The relationship between the design and purpose of something
Fort Knox
A highly secure or impenetrable place
Fortunate Islands
An ancient name for the Canary Islands; also, for any imaginary lands set in distant seas, like the "Islands of the Blest"
fortune hunters
Indigent men, seeking to enrich themselves by marrying a woman of fortune.
forty foot
A derisive appellation for a very short person.
forty guts
Vulgar term for a fat man.
forty minutes of hell
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
forty stripes save one
The Jews were for- bidden by the Mosaic law to inflict more than forty stnpes on an offender, and for fear of breaking the law they stopped short of the number. If the scourge contained three lashes, thirteen strokes would equal "forty save one.
forty winks
A short nap. The Forty Immortals (or simply the Forty). The members of the French Academy, who number forty.
forty-twa
The common place of retirement on a well-known French plan at Edinburgh, so called from its accommodating that number of persons at once.
Forum at Rome
They were subjected to very severe discipline, and in the event of losing their virginity were buried alive.
forward and backward
Knowing something very well
fou
Rather more than slightly intoxicated.—Scotch.
fought back to the ropes
Fought to the bitter end. A phrase from the prize-ring, the "ropes" forming the boundary of the "ring.
foul
To foul a plate with a man, to take a dinner with him.