O

occur to someone [for an idea or thought]

to come into someone’s mind. It oc-

curred to me that you might be hungry af-

ter your long journey. Would it ever oc-

cur to you that I want to be left alone?

an ocean of someone or something Go to

oceans of someone or something.

oceans of someone or something and an

ocean of someone or something a very large

amount of something. The naughty

student was in oceans of trouble. After

a week of vacation, there was an ocean of

work to do.

odd man out an unusual or atypical per-

son or thing. I’m odd man out because

I’m not wearing a tie. You had better

learn to work a computer unless you want

to be odd man out.

the odd something an extra or spare some-

thing. The tailor repaired the odd loose

button on my shirt. When I travel, I

might buy the odd trinket or two, but I

never spend much money.

odds and ends small, miscellaneous

things. There were lots of odds and ends

in the attic, but nothing of real value. I

had the whole house cleaned up except for

a few odds and ends that didn’t seem to be-

long anywhere.

odor of sanctity an atmosphere of exces-

sive holiness or piety. I hate their house.

There’s such an odor of sanctity, with

Bibles and religious pictures everywhere.

People are made nervous by Jane’s odor

of sanctity. She’s always praying for peo-

ple or doing good works and never has any fun

of age old enough to marry or to sign le-

gal agreements. (See also come of age.

Preceded by be or seem.) Now that

Mary is of age, she can buy her own car.

When I’m of age, I’m going to get married

and move to the city.

of all the nerve how shocking; how dare

(someone). (Informal. The speaker is ex-

claiming that someone is being very

cheeky or rude.) How dare you talk to

me that way! Of all the nerve! Imagine

anyone coming to a formal dance in jeans.

Of all the nerve!

of all things Can you imagine?; Imagine

that! (Folksy.) She wore jeans to the

dance. Of all things! Billy, stop eating

the houseplant! Of all things!

of benefit (to someone) serving someone

well; to the good of someone. I can’t

believe that this proposal is of benefit to

anyone. Oh, I’m sure it’s of benefit.

of interest (to someone) interesting to

someone. This is no longer of any in-

terest. This is of little interest to me.

of late lately. (Formal.) Have you seen

Sally of late? We haven’t had an oppor-

tunity to eat out of late.

of no avail Go to to no avail.

of one’s own accord and of one’s own free

will by one’s own choice, without coer-

cion. I wish that Sally would choose to

do it of her own accord. I’ll have to or-

der her to do it because she won’t do it of

her own free will.

of one’s own free will Go to of one’s own

accord.

of the first water [someone] of the finest

quality. (From the system of grading

pearls for quality.) She is a very fine

lady—a pearl of the first water. Tom is

of the first water—a true gentleman.

of the old school holding attitudes or

ideas that were popular and important in

the past, but which are no longer con-

sidered relevant or in line with modern

trends. Grammar was not much taught

in my son’s school, but fortunately he had

a teacher of the old school. Aunt Jane

is of the old school. She never goes out

without wearing a hat and gloves.

off again, on again Go to on again, off

again.

off and on Go to on and off.

off and running started up and going.

(Also literal, as in a footrace.) The car

was finally loaded by 9:30, and we were off

and running. The construction of the

building was going to take two years, but

we were off and running, and it appeared

we would finish on schedule.

off base unrealistic; inexact; wrong. (Also

literal in baseball.) I’m afraid you’re off

base when you state that this problem will

take care of itself. You’re way off base!

off campus not located on the grounds of

a college or university. Tom has an

apartment off campus. The dean is off

campus and cannot be reached.

off-center not exactly in the center or mid-

dle. The arrow hit the target a little off-

center.  The picture hanging over the

chair is a little off-center.

off chance slight possibility. I need your

phone number on the off chance I need

more help. There’s an off chance that we

might be hiring next month.

off-color 1. not the exact color (that one

wants). The book cover used to be red,

but now it’s a little off-color. The wall

was painted off-color. I think it was meant

to be orange. 2. in bad taste; rude, vulgar,

or impolite. That joke you told was off-

color and embarrassed me. The night-

club act was a bit off-color.

off duty not working at one’s job. (The op-

posite of on duty.) I’m sorry, I can’t talk

to you until I’m off duty. The police of-

ficer couldn’t help me because he was off

duty.

off like a shot away [from a place] very

quickly. He finished his dinner and was

off like a shot. The thief grabbed the

lady’s purse and was off like a shot.

off limits and out of bounds forbidden.

This area is off limits. You can’t go in

there. Don’t go there. It’s out of bounds.

That kind of behavior is off limits. Stop

it!

off one’s nut Go to off one’s rocker.

off one’s rocker and off one’s nut; off one’s

trolley crazy; silly. (Slang.) Sometimes,

Bob, I think you’re off your rocker. Good

grief, John. You’re off your nut. About

this time of the day, I go off my trolley. I

get so tired.

off one’s trolley Go to off one’s rocker.

off season not in the busy time of the year.

We don’t have much to do off season.

Things are very quiet around here off

season.

off someone or something goes someone or

something is leaving. (Said on the de-

parture of someone or something.) It’s

time to leave. Off I go. Sally looked at

the airplane taking off and said, “Off it

goes.”

off the air not broadcasting (a radio or

television program). The radio audi-

ence won’t hear what you say when you’re

off the air. When the performers were

off the air, the director told them how well

they had done.

off the (beaten) track in an unfamiliar

place; on a route that is not often trav-

eled. (See also off the track.) Their

home is in a quiet neighborhood, off the

beaten track. We like to stop there and

admire the scenery. It’s off the track, but

it’s worth the trip.

off-the-cuff spontaneous; without prepa-

ration or rehearsal. (Informal.) Her re-

marks were off-the-cuff, but very sensible.

I’m not very good at making speeches

off-the-cuff.

off the mark not quite exactly right.

answer was a little off the mark. You

were off the mark when you said we would

be a little late to the party. It was yester-

day, in fact!

off the record unofficial; informal.

is off the record, but I disagree with the

mayor on this matter. Although her

comments were off the record, the news-

paper published them anyway.

off the subject not concerned with the

subject being discussed. I got off the

subject and forgot what I was supposed to

be talking about. The speaker was off

the subject, telling about his vacation in

Hawaii.

off the top of one’s head [to state some-

thing] quickly and without having to

think or remember. (Informal.) I can’t

think of the answer off the top of my head.

Jane can tell you the correct amount off

the top of her head.

off the track 1. Go to off the (beaten)

track. 2. irrelevant and immaterial (com-

ments). I’m afraid you’re off the track,

John. Try again. I’m sorry. I was think-

ing about dinner, and I got off the track.

off-the-wall odd; silly; unusual. (Slang.)

Why are you so off-the-wall today? This

book is strange. It’s really off-the-wall.

off to a running start with a good, fast be-

ginning, possibly a head start. I got off

to a running start in math this year. The

horses got off to a running start.

off to one side beside (something);

(moved) slightly away from something.

Our garden has roses in the middle and

a spruce tree off to one side. He took me

off to one side to tell me the bad news.

oil someone’s palm Go to grease someone’s

palm.

old as the hills Go to (as) old as the hills.

old enough to be someone’s father Go to

old enough to be someone’s mother.

old enough to be someone’s mother and

old enough to be someone’s father as old

as someone’s parents. (Also literal. Usu-

ally a way of saying that a person is too

old.) You can’t go out with Bill. He’s old

enough to be your father! He married

a woman who is old enough to be his

mother.

Old habits die hard. It’s hard to stop do-

ing things that are part of a habit, espe-

cially a habit that one is trying to break.

(Proverb.) A: My grandfather still uses

hand signals when he turns right. B: Old

habits die hard. Old habits die hard and

bad one’s last even longer.

an old hand at doing something someone who

is experienced at doing something. (Pre-

ceded by be, become, seem like, or act

like.) I’m an old hand at fixing clocks.

He’s an old hand at changing diapers.

old hat old-fashioned; outmoded. (Infor-

mal. Preceded by be, become, or seem.)

That’s a silly idea. It’s old hat. Nobody

does that anymore. That’s just old hat.

[old stamping ground] Go to one’s old

stamping ground.

on a bias and on the bias on a diagonal

line; on a diagonal pathway or direction.

(Usually with reference to cloth.) The

panels of the dress were cut on a bias.

The seamstress sewed the fabric on the

bias.

on account [money paid or owed] on a

debt. I paid twelve dollars on account

last month. Wasn’t that enough? I still

have $100 due on account.

on active duty in battle or ready to go into

battle. (Military.) The soldier was on

active duty for ten months. That was a

long time to be on active duty.

on a diet trying to lose weight by eating

less food or specific foods. I didn’t eat

any cake because I’m on a diet. I’m get-

ting too heavy. I’ll have to go on a diet.

on a first-name basis (with someone)

knowing someone very well; good friends

with someone. I’m on a first-name ba-

sis with John. John and I are on a first-

name basis.

on a fool’s errand involved in a useless

journey or task. Bill went for an inter-

view, but he was on a fool’s errand. The job

had already been filled. I was sent on a

fool’s errand to buy some f lowers. I knew

the shop would be closed by then.

on again, off again and off again, on

again uncertain; indecisive. I don’t

know about the picnic. It’s on again, off

again. It depends on the weather. Jane

doesn’t know if she’s going to the picnic.

She’s off again, on again about it.

on a lark Go to for a lark.

on all fours on one’s hands and knees.

I dropped a contact lens and spent an hour

on all fours looking for it. The baby can

walk, but is on all fours most of the time

anyway.

on and off and off and on occasionally;

erratically; now and again. I feel better

off and on, but I’m not well yet. He only

came to class on and off.

on any account for any purpose; for any

reason; no matter what. (Compare this

with on no account.) On any account,

I’ll be there on time. This doesn’t make

sense on any account.

on approval for examination, with the

privilege of return. I ordered the mer-

chandise on approval so I could send it

back if I didn’t like it. Sorry, you can’t

buy this on approval. All sales are final.

on a shoestring with a very small amount

of money. We lived on a shoestring for

years before I got a good job. John trav-

eled to Florida on a shoestring.

on a splurge an instance of extravagant

spending. Bob went on a splurge and

bought a new car. Susan has been on

another spending splurge! Look at that new

furniture.

on a waiting list [with one’s name] on a

list of people waiting for an opportunity

to do something. (A can be replaced with

the.) I couldn’t get a seat on the plane,

but I got on a waiting list. There is no

room for you, but we can put your name

on the waiting list.

on behalf of someone Go to in behalf of

someone.

on bended knee with great humility. (The

form bended is obsolescent and occurs

now only in this phrase.) Do you ex-

pect me to come to you on bended knee and

ask you for forgiveness? The suitors came

on bended knee and begged the attention

of the princess.

on board 1. aboard (on or in) a ship, bus,

airplane, etc. Is there a doctor on board?

We have a sick passenger. When every-

one is on board, we will leave. 2. employed

by (someone); working with (someone).

(Informal.) Our company has a com-

puter specialist on board to advise us about

automation. Welcome to the company,

Tom. We’re all glad you’re on board now.

on Broadway located in the Broadway the-

ater district of New York City; performed

in the Broadway theater district. Our

musical is the best thing on Broadway!

I want to be a star on Broadway someday.

on call ready to serve when called. I live

a very hard life. I’m on call twenty hours

a day.  I’m sorry, but I can’t go out

tonight. I’m on call at the hospital.

on campus located or being on the

grounds of a college or university. Do

you live on campus or off campus?  I

don’t think that Lisa is on campus right

now.

on cloud nine very happy. (Informal.)

When I got my promotion, I was on cloud

nine. When the check came, I was on

cloud nine for days.

on consignment [of goods] having been

placed in a store for sale, without trans-

ferring the title of the goods to the op-

erator of the store. The artist placed his

work in a gallery on consignment. I will

attempt to sell your clothing on

consignment.

on credit using credit; buying something

using credit. I tried to buy a new suit

on credit, but I was refused. The Smiths

buy everything on credit and are very

much in debt.

on dead center 1. at the exact center of

something. (Dead means “exact” here.)

The arrow hit the target on dead center

When you put the f lowers on the

table, put them on dead center. 2. exactly

correct. Mary is quite observant. Her

analysis is on dead center. My view is-

n’t on dead center, but it’s sensible.

on deck 1. on the deck of a boat or a ship.

Everyone except the cook was on deck

when the storm hit. Just pull up the an-

chor and leave it on deck. 2. ready (to do

something); ready to be next (at some-

thing). Ann, get on deck. You’re next.

Who’s on deck now?

on duty at work; currently doing one’s

work. (The opposite of off duty.) I can’t

help you now, but I’ll be on duty in about

an hour. Who is on duty here? I need

some help.

on earth and in creation; in the world

really; indeed; in fact. (Used as an inten-

sifier after who, what, when, where, how,

nothing, nowhere.) What on earth do

you mean? How in creation do you ex-

pect me to do that? Who in the world do

you think you are? When on earth do

you expect me to do this?

on easy street in luxury. (Slang.) If I

had a million dollars, I’d be on easy street.

Everyone has problems, even people who

live on easy street.

on edge 1. on (something’s own) edge.

Can you stand a dime on edge?  You

should store your records on edge, not f lat.

2. nervous. I have really been on edge

lately. Why are you so on edge?

on fire burning; being burned with flames.

Help! My car is on fire! That house

on the corner is on fire!

on foot by walking. My bicycle is bro-

ken, so I’ll have to travel on foot. You

can’t expect me to get there on foot! It’s

twelve miles!

on good terms (with someone) friendly

with someone. I’m on good terms with

Ann. I’ll ask her to help. We’re on good

terms now. Last week we were not.

on hold 1. waiting; temporarily halted.

(See also put someone or something on hold.)

The building project is on hold while we

try to find money to complete it. We put

our plans on hold until we finished school.

2. left waiting on a telephone line.

hate to call up someone and then end up

on hold. I waited on hold for ten min-

utes when I called city hall.

on horseback on the back of a horse.

Anne rode on horseback across the field.

Because they loved horses, the couple de-

cided to marry on horseback.

on impact Go to (up)on impact.

on impulse after having had an impulse or

sudden thought. On impulse, Bob de-

cided to buy a car. I didn’t need a cel-

lular telephone. I just bought it on impulse.

on in years Go to up in years.

on land on the soil; on the land and not at

sea. The f light was rough and I feel bet-

ter now that I am back on land. When

I am at sea, I feel more relaxed than when

I am on land.

on line 1. Go to in line. 2. connected to a

remote computer. As soon as I get on

line, I can check the balance of your ac-

count. I was on line for an hour before

I found out what I wanted to know.

on location a place, located in a place dis-

tant from the movie studio, where a

movie is filmed. This movie was shot

on location in Ontario. The actress went

on location in Spain for her latest film.

on medication taking medicine for a cur-

rent medical problem. I can’t drive the

car since I am on medication. He is on

medication and hopes to be well soon.

on no account and not on any account

for no reason; absolutely not. On no

account will I lend you the money. Will

I say I’m sorry? Not on any account.

on occasion occasionally. We go out for

dinner on occasion. I enjoy going to a

movie on occasion.

on one’s best behavior being as polite as

possible. When we went out, the chil-

dren were on their best behavior. I try

to be on my best behavior all the time.

on one’s feet 1. standing up. Get on your

feet. They are playing the national an-

them. I’ve been on my feet all day, and

they hurt. 2. well and healthy, especially

after an illness. I hope to be back on my

feet next week. I can help out as soon

as I’m back on my feet.

on (one’s) guard cautious; watchful.

on guard. There are pickpockets around

here. You had better be on your guard.

on one’s honor on one’s solemn oath; sin-

cerely. On my honor, I’ll be there on

time. He promised on his honor that

he’d pay me back next week.

on one’s mind occupying one’s thoughts;

currently being thought about. You’ve

been on my mind all day. Do you have

something on your mind? You look so

serious.

on one’s own by oneself. Did you do this

on your own, or did you have help? I

have to learn to do this kind of thing on my

own.

on one’s own time not while one is at work.

The boss made me write the report on

my own time. That’s not fair.  Please

make your personal telephone calls on your

own time.

on one’s person [of something] carried

with one. Always carry identification

on your person. I’m sorry, I don’t have

any money on my person.

on one’s toes alert. (Also literal. See also

step on someone’s toes.) You have to be

on your toes if you want to be in this busi-

ness. My boss keeps me on my toes.

on one’s way to doing something Go to on the

way to doing something.