do a flip-flop (on something) and do an
about-face to make a sudden reversal of
opinion. (Informal or slang.) Without
warning, the government did a flip-flop on
taxation. It had done an about-face on
the question of deductions last year.
do a job on someone or something 1. to dam-
age someone or something; to mess up
someone or something. (Informal or
slang.) The robbers really did a job on
the bank guard. They beat him when they
robbed the bank. The puppy did a job
on my shoes. They are all chewed to pieces.
2. [with something] to defecate on some-
thing. (Informal and euphemistic. Note
the variation in the second example.)
The puppy did a job on the living-room
carpet. It’s supposed to do its job on the
newspapers in the basement.
do a land-office business to do a large
amount of business in a short period of
time. The ice cream shop always does a
land-office business on a hot day. The
tax collector’s office did a land-office busi-
ness on the day that taxes were due.
do an about-face Go to do a flip-flop (on
something).
do an errand Go to run an errand.
do a number on someone or something to
damage or harm someone or something.
(Slang.) The teacher did a number on
the whole class. That test was terrible.
Tom did a number on Mary when he went
out with Ann.
do a snow job on someone to deceive or
confuse someone. (Informal or slang.)
Tom did a snow job on the teacher when
he said that he was sick yesterday. I hate
it when someone does a snow job on me. I
find it harder and harder to trust people.
do away with someone or something 1. [with
someone] to kill someone; to dispose of
someone or something. The crooks did
away with the witness. I was there, too.
I hope they don’t try to do away with me.
2. [with something] to get rid of some-
thing; to dispose of something. This
chemical will do away with the stain in
your sink. The time has come to do away
with that old building.
do credit to someone and do someone credit
to add to the reputation of someone.
Your new job really does credit to you.
Yes, it really does you credit.
Do I need to paint you a picture? It is
so very simple, so why do you require
more explanation to understand it?
What is so difficult? Do I need to paint you
a picture? I’ve explained it every way I
can. Do I need to paint you a picture?
do justice to something 1. to do something
well; to represent or portray something
accurately. Sally did justice to the con-
tract negotiations. This photograph
doesn’t do justice to the beauty of the
mountains. 2. to eat or drink a great deal.
Bill always does justice to the turkey on
Thanksgiving. The party didn’t do jus-
tice to the roast pig. There were nearly ten
pounds left over.
do not have a care in the world being
free and casual; being unworried and
carefree. (Do not have can be replaced
with be without.) I really feel good to-
day—as if I didn’t have a care in the world.
Ann always acts as if she doesn’t have
a care in the world.
do not have a leg to stand on [for an ar-
gument or a case] to have no support.
(Informal. Do not have can be replaced
with be without.) You may think you’re
in the right, but you don’t have a leg to
stand on. My lawyer said I didn’t have
a leg to stand on, so I shouldn’t sue the
company.
do not have all one’s marbles do not have
all one’s mental capacities. (Also literal.
Informal.) John acts as if he doesn’t
have all his marbles. I’m afraid that I
don’t have all my marbles all the time.
do one’s bit Go to do one’s part.
do one’s duty to do one’s job; to do what is
expected of one. Please don’t thank me.
I’m just doing my duty. Soldiers who
fight in wars are doing their duty.
do oneself proud [for one] to make oneself
proud. (Folksy. See also do credit to some-
one.) Well, Bill really did himself proud
in the horse race. You did yourself proud
by raising that fine-looking, prizewinning
hog.
do one’s (level) best to do (something) as
well as one can. Just do your level best.
That’s all we can ask of you. Tom isn’t
doing his best. We may have to replace
him.
do one’s (own) thing to do what one likes
or what one pleases. (Informal or slang.)
Tom doesn’t like being told what to do.
He prefers to do his own thing. When
you do your thing, you have no one but
yourself to blame if things don’t work out.
do one’s part and do one’s bit to do one’s
share of the work; to do whatever one can
do to help. All people everywhere must
do their part to help get things under con-
trol. I always try to do my bit. How can
I help this time?
do or die to do something or die trying.
(Refers to an attitude adopted when one
must do something whether one wants to
or not. Occurs as a noun or an adjective.)
It was do or die. There was no turning
back now. He simply had to get to the
airport on time. It was a case of do or die.
do so Go to do too.
do somehow by someone to treat someone in
a particular manner. (Informal. Do not
confuse this with a passive construction.
The someone is not the actor but the ob-
ject.) Tom did all right by Ann when
he brought her red roses. I did badly by
Tom. I fired him.
do someone a good turn to do something
that is helpful to someone. My neigh-
bor did me a good turn by lending me his
car. The teacher did me a good turn
when he told me to work harder.
do someone a kindness to do a kind deed
for a person. My neighbor did me a
kindness when he cut my grass. I am al-
ways happy to have the opportunity of do-
ing someone a kindness.
do someone damage to harm someone. (In-
formal.) I hope she doesn’t plan to do
me damage. They did us damage by
telling the whole story to the newspapers.
do someone good to benefit someone. (In-
formal.) A nice hot bath really does me
good. A few years in the army would do
you good.
do someone one better Go to go someone
one better.
do someone or something in 1. [with someone]
to make someone tired. That tennis
game really did me in. Yes, hard activ-
ity will do you in. 2. [with someone] to
cheat someone; to take someone in. The
crooks did the widow in. T They did in the
widow by talking her into giving them all
the money in her bank account. 3. [with
someone] to kill someone. T The crooks
did in the bank guard. T They’ll proba-
bly do in the witnesses soon. 4. [with
something] to destroy something. T The
huge waves totally did in the seaside com-
munity. The fire did the wooden build-
ing in.
do someone out of something to cheat some-
one out of something. (Informal or
slang.) They did the widow out of her
life savings. I won’t let anyone do me out
of anything. I’m a very cautious and sus-
picious person.
do someone’s bidding to do what is re-
quested by someone. The servant
grumbled but did his employer’s bidding.
Am I expected to do your bidding when-
ever you ask?
do someone’s heart good to make someone
feel good emotionally. (Also literal. In-
formal.) It does my heart good to hear
you talk that way. When she sent me a
get-well card, it really did my heart good.
do something by hand to do something with
one’s hands rather than with a machine.
The computer was broken so I had to
do the calculations by hand. All this tiny
stitching was done by hand. Machines can-
not do this kind of work.
do something fair and square to do some-
thing fairly. (Folksy. See also fair and
square.) He always plays the game fair
and square. I try to treat all people fair
and square.
do something for a living to do some kind
of work to earn enough money to live.
John paints houses for a living. What
do you do for a living?
do something hands down to do something
easily and without opposition. The
mayor won the election hands down.
She was the choice of the people hands
down.
do something in a heartbeat to do some-
thing almost immediately. If I had the
money, I would go back to college in a
heartbeat. Just tell me that you need me
and I’ll come there in a heartbeat.
do something in person to appear some-
where and do something oneself rather
than sending someone else or doing it
over the telephone, or by mail. I know
the money should be in his account. I saw
him put it there in person. The famous
actor came to the hospital and greeted each
patient in person.
do something in public to do something
where anyone looking could see it. You
should dress neatly when you appear in
public. I wish that you wouldn’t talk to
me so rudely in public. Bob, you must
behave properly in public.
do something in secret to do something pri-
vately or secretly. Why do you always
do things like that in secret? There is no
need to count your money in secret.
do something in vain to do something with
no result; to do something that fails.
They rushed her to the hospital, but they
did it in vain. We tried in vain to get her
there on time.
do something on the fly to do something
while one is moving; to do something (to
something that is in motion). (Slang.
This has nothing to do with actual
flight.) We can’t stop the machine to oil
it now. You’ll have to do it on the f ly. We
will have to find the break in the film on
the f ly—while we are showing it.
do something on the run to do something
while one is moving hurriedly; to do
something while one is going rapidly
from one place to another. (Informal.)
I was very busy today and had to eat on
the run. I didn’t have time to meet with
Bill, but I was able to talk to him on the
run.
supposed to be losing weight, but she was
snacking on the sly.
do something over (again) to redo some-
thing; to repeat the doing of something.
This isn’t right. You’ll have to do it over
again. The teacher made me do my pa-
per over.
do something the hard way 1. to accomplish
something in the most difficult manner,
rather than by an easier way. I made it
to this job the hard way. I came up through
the ranks. She did it the hard way. She
had no help from her parents. 2. to do
something the wrong way. No, you
can’t pound in nails like that. You’re do-
ing it the hard way. I’m sorry. I learn
things the hard way.
do something to excess to do too much of
something; to consume too much of
something. Anne often drinks to excess
at parties. John smokes to excess when
he works.
do something up to repair or redecorate
something. If we’re going to sell the
house, we’ll have to do it up. T I’m going
to do up the kitchen.
do something up brown to do something
just right. (Folksy. Refers to cooking
something until it has just the right
amount of brownish color.) Of course
I can do it right. I’ll really do it up brown.
Come on, Bob. Let’s do it right this time.
I know you can do it up brown.
do something with a vengeance to do some-
thing with vigor; to do something ener-
getically as if one were angry with it.
(Folksy.) Bob is building that fence with
a vengeance. Mary is really weeding her
garden with a vengeance.
do the dishes to wash and dry dishes,
glasses, cups, knives, forks, etc., after a
meal. Bill, you cannot go out and play
until you’ve done the dishes. Why am I
always the one who has to do the dishes?
you do the honors?” Mr. Jones smiled and
began slicing thick slices of meat from the
The mayor stood up and ad-
dressed the people who were still eating
their salads. “I’m delighted to do the hon-
ors this evening and propose a toast to your
friend and mine, Bill Jones. Bill, good luck
and best wishes in your new job in Wash-
ington.” And everyone sipped a bit of wine.
do the trick to do exactly what needs to
be done. (Folksy.) Push it just a little
more to the left. There, that does the trick.
If you lend me five dollars, I’ll have
enough to do the trick.
do too and do so to do something (despite
anything to the contrary). (An emphatic
way of saying do. See also be too, have
BOB: You don’t have your money
with you. BILL: I do too! He does so! I
saw him put it in his pocket. She did too.
I saw her do it.
dog-eat-dog a situation in which one has
to act ruthlessly in order to survive or
succeed; ruthless competition.
dog-eat-dog in the world of business these
days. Universities are not quiet peaceful
places. It’s dog-eat-dog to get a promotion.
dog in the manger one who prevents other
people from doing or having what one
does not wish them to do or have. (From
one of Aesop’s fables in which a dog—
which cannot eat hay—lay in the hayrack
[manger] and prevented the other ani-
mals from eating the hay.) Jane is a real
dog in the manger. She cannot drive, but
she will not lend anyone her car. If Mar-
tin were not such a dog in the manger, he
would let his brother have that dinner
jacket he never wears.
dollar for dollar considering the amount
of money involved; considering the cost.
(Informal. Often seen in advertising.)
Dollar for dollar, you cannot buy a better
car. Dollar for dollar, this laundry de-
tergent washes cleaner and brighter than
any other product on the market.
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