neat as a button
Very neat.
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necessary evil
Something unpleasant but required to achieve a goal
necessity hath no law
Feigned necessities, imagin- ary necessities, are the greatest cozenage men can put upon the Providence of God, and make pretences to break known rules by.
Necessity is mother of invention. (Roger Ascham)
English proverb; full definition pending editorial review.
necessity is the mother of invention
Need or difficulty drives people to create new solutions.
neck
To swallow. Neck-oil, drink of any kind.
neck and crop
Entirely, completely; "he chuck’d him NECK AND CROP out of window."
neck and crop
Entirely. The crop is the gorge of a bird; a variant of the phrase, is, neck and heels ', as I bundled him out neck and heels. There was a punishment formerly in vogue which consisted m bringing the chin and knees of the culprit forcibly together, and then thrusting him into a cage.
neck and neck
Very near in merit; very close competitors. A phrase used in horse races, when two or more horses run each other yery closely.
neck beef
A synonym for coarseness. "As coarse as neck ends of beef."
neck of the woods
a nearby area or region
neck or nothing
Desperate. Originally a steeplechase phrase.
neck or nothing
Desperate. A racing phrase; to win by a neck or to be nowhere — i.e. not counted at all because unworthy of notice.
neck stamper
The boy who collects the pots belonging to an alehouse, sent out with beer to private houses.
neck verse
Formerly the persons claiming the benefit of clergy were obliged to read a verse in a Latin manuscript psalter: this saving them from the gallows, was termed their neck verse: it was the first verse of the fiftyfirst psalm, Miserere mei,&c.
necker's knob
a navigational landmark
neckinger
A cravat. See MUCKENGER.
necktie party
a hanging, especially a lynching
ned
A guinea. HALF-NED, half-a-guinea.
neddy
A horse, especially a racehorse.
neddy
A considerable quantity, as "a NEDDY of fruit," "a NEDDY of fish," &c.—Irish slang.
need one's eyes checked
to be considered foolish or mistaken
needful
Money, cash; the "one thing NEEDFUL" for the accomplishment of most pet designs.
needle
To annoy. To "cop the NEEDLE" is to become vexed or annoyed.
needle drop
a sudden, significant, and exciting event
needle in a haystack
Something very hard to find
needle mover
Someone or something that has a significant impact
needless to say
Obviously or as one would expect
needs must when the devil drives
Necessity can force one to do something unpleasant or undesirable
neezy
Nigga.
negative Nancy
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
negligee
A woman's undressed gown, Vulgarly termed a neggledigee.
negroe
A black-a-moor: figuratively used for a slave. I'll be no man's negro; I will be no man's slave.
negroe's heads
Brown leaves delivered to the ships in ordinary.
neither fish, flesh, nor good red herring
Something or someone that is unclear or indefinite in purpose or nature
neither hawk nor buzzard
Of doubtful social position — too good for the kitchen, and not good enough for the family; not hawks to be fondled and petted — the "tasselled gentlemen" of the days of falconry — nor yet buzzards — a dull kind of falcon synonymous with dunce or plebeian. "Neither flesh, fowl, nor good red herring.
neither hay nor grass
That hobbledehc'y state when a youth is neither boy nor man.
nerdlinger
A nerd.
Nereus and his wife Doris
Their palace was at the bottom of the Mediterranean; his hair was sea-weed.
nertz
nuts.
nervous hit
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
nescio
He sports a Nescio; he pretends not to understand any thing. After the senate house examination for degrees, the students proceed to the schools, to be questioned by the proctor. According to custom immemorial the answers MUST be Nescio. The following is a translated specimen:
Nestor Ironside
Sir Richard Steeie assumed the name in The Guardian. Ironsides*. The soldiers that served under Cromwell were so called, especially after the battle of Marston Moor (1644), where they displayed an iron resolution.
net gen
Ten shillings, or half a sovereign.
net nevis gen
Seventeen shillings.
net roaf gen
Fourteen shillings. It will be seen by the foregoing that the reckoning is more by tens than by "teens." This is, however, matter of choice, and any one wishing to be considered accomplished in this description of slang, must do as he thinks best—must lead and not be led.
net worth your salt
Not worth your wages. The reference is to the salary (q.v.) composed of rations of salt and other necessaries served out by the Romans to their soldiers, etc.
nettled
Teized, provoked, out of temper. He or she has pissed on a nettle; said of one who is peevish or out of temper.
never ask pardon before you are accused
English proverb; full definition pending editorial review.
Never cast a clout until May be out
Don't stop taking precautions until a situation is fully resolved
never do things by halves
Do things completely or not at all
never give a sucker an even break
Take advantage of someone who is naive or vulnerable
never give advice unless asked
Refain from offering guidance unless someone requests it
never in a million years
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
never in a month of Sundays
Recognized English idiom; full definition pending editorial review.
never judge a book by its cover
Do not judge something by its appearance
never let the right hand know what the left hand is doing
Acting secretly or deceptively, often in one's own interests
never let the sun go down on your anger
Resolve conflicts before the end of the day
never let the truth get in the way of a good story
Embellish or distort facts for entertainment value
never lie to your doctor
Be honest with your doctor for proper treatment