[move heaven and earth]{v. phr.} To try every way; do everything you
can. •/Joe moved heaven and earth to be sent to Washington./ Compare: LEAVE
NO STONE UNTURNED.
[move in on]{v. phr.}, {slang}, {colloquial} To take over
something that belongs to another. •/He moved in on my girlfriend and now
we’re not talking to each other./
[movement] See: LABOR MOVEMENT.
[moving spirit]{n. phr.} The main figure behind a business or an
activity; the one who inspires the others. •/Mr. Smith is the moving spirit
behind our expansion plans./
[much] See: AS MUCH AS, FOR AS MUCH AS, MAKE MUCH OF, SO MUCH, SO MUCH FOR,
THINK A GREAT DEAL OF or THINK MUCH OF.
[much as] See: AS MUCH AS(1).
[much less]{conj.} And also not; and even less able or likely to. — Used after a negative clause. •/I never even spoke to the man, much less
insulted him./ •/John couldn’t even pick up the box, much less carry it
upstairs./ •/George can hardly understand arithmetic, much less algebra./
Compare: LET ALONE, NOT TO MENTION.
[mud] See: NAME IS MUD, STICK-IN-THE-MUD.
[mud in your eye]{n. phr.}, {informal} A cheering exclamation when
people drink, much like "cheers!" •/Each time John raised his glass he said,
"Well, here’s mud in your eye!"/
[mug shot]{n. phr.} A police photograph showing the arrested person’s
full face and profile. •/"Go over these mug shots," Sergeant O’Malley said,
"and tell me if you find the person who held up the liquor store!"/
[Muhammad] See: IF THE HILL WON’T COME TO MUHAMMAD, THEN MUHAMMAD MUST COME
TO THE HILL.
[mull over]{v. phr.} To consider; think over. •/He mulled over the
offer for some time, but finally rejected it./
[mum is the word] You must keep the secret; keep silent; don’t tell anyone. — Often used as an interjection. •/We are planning a surprise party for John
and mum is the word./ •/"Mum is the word!" the robber captain told his
men./
[murder] See: SCREAM BLOODY MURDER.
[muscle] See: MOVE A MUSCLE.
[muscle-bound]{adj.} Having your muscles large, hard, and tight from
too much exercising; having muscles so developed that you can hardly move.
•/Bob was big and strong, but he was muscle-bound, and Bill could beat
him./ •/An athlete must train properly so as not to become muscle-hound./
[muscle in on]{v. phr.} To intrude; penetrate; force oneself into
another’s business or territory. •/The eastern Mafia muscled in on the
western Mafia’s turf and a shooting war was started./
[music] See: FACE THE MUSIC.
[musical chairs]{n. phr.} (Originally the name of a children’s game.)
The transfer of a number of officers in an organization into different jobs,
especially each other’s jobs. •/The boss regularly played musical chairs with
department heads to keep them fresh on the job./
[music to one’s ears]{n. phr.} Something one likes to hear. •/When
the manager phoned to say I got the job, it was music to my ears./
[mustard] See: CUT THE MUSTARD.
[muster] See: PASS MUSTER.
[my God] or [my goodness] {interj.} Used to express surprise,
shock, or dismay. •/My God! What happened to the car?/
[my lips are sealed]{informal sentence} A promise that one will not
give away a secret. •/"You can tell me what happened, " Helen said. "My lips
are sealed."/
N
[nail] See: HARD AS NAILS, HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD, TOOTH AND NAIL.
[nail down]{v. phr.}, {informal} To make certain; make sure;
settle. •/Joe had a hard time selling his car, but he finally nailed the sale
down when he got his friend Sam to give him $300./ •/The New York Yankees
nailed down the American League Championship when they beat the Red Sox 3 to 0
on September 15./
[nail one’s colors to the mast]{literary} To let everyone know what
you think is right and refuse to change. •/During the election campaign the
candidate nailed his colors to the mast on the question of civil rights./
[name] See: CALL NAMES, HANDLE TO ONE’S NAME, IN NAME, TAKE ONE’S NAME IN
VAIN, TO ONE’S NAME.
[name calling] See: CALL NAMES.
[named after]{adj. phr.} Given the same name as someone. •/Archibald
was named after his father./
[name day]{n.} The day of the saint for whom a person is named.
•/Lawrence’s name day is August 10, the feast of St. Lawrence./
[namedropper]{n. phr.} A person who is always mentioning well-known
names. •/Since her move to Hollywood she has become a regular namedropper./
[name is mud]{informal} (You) are in trouble; a person is blamed or no
longer liked. — Used in the possessive. •/If you tell your mother I spilled
ink on her rug my name will be mud./ •/Your name will be mud if you tell
the teacher about the bad thing we did./ Compare: IN THE DOG HOUSE.
[name of the game]{n.}, {informal} The crux of the matter; that
which actually occurs under the disguise of something else. •/Getting medium
income families to support the rest of society — that’s the name of the
game!/
[narrow down]{v. phr.} To limit within very strict margins. •/Of the
numerous applicants, the list has been narrowed down to just a few./
[narrow escape]{n. phr.} An escape by a very small margin; a near
miss. •/If the truck that hit his car had been coming faster, it would have
killed him; it was certainly a narrow escape that he only had a broken arm!/
[narrow-minded]{adj. phr.} Limited in outlook; resistant to new ideas;
bigoted. •/He is generally very open about everything, but when it comes to
politics, he is terribly narrow-minded./
[nary a]{informal} Not a single; not one; never a. •/One afternoon a
large dark cloud came in the sky. John thought it would rain so he took his
raincoat — but nary a drop fell./ •/John went fishing but he caught nary a
one./
[nasty-nice]{adj.} Unkind in a polite way; disagreeable while
pretending to be gracious. •/The bus driver has a nasty-nice way of showing
his dislike./
[natural] See: BIG AS LIFE or BIG AS LIFE AND TWICE AS NATURAL.
[natural-born]{adj.} 1. Being a (citizen) because you were born in the
country. •/Mr. and Mrs. Schmidt came to the United States from Germany and
are naturalized citizens but their children are natural-born citizens./ 2.
Born with great ability to become (something); having great ability (as in a
sport or art) almost from the start. •/Joe had never played baseball before
trying out for the team but he showed that he was a natural-born pitcher and he
became the best in the league./ •/Mozart was a natural-born musician. He
could play the piano well when he was only six years old./
[nature] See: SECOND NATURE.
[naught] See: GO FOR NOTHING also GO FOR NAUGHT.
[near] See: FAR AND NEAR.
[near at hand] See: AT HAND.
[necessity] See: MAKE A VIRTUE OF NECESSITY, OF NECESSITY.
[neck] See: BREATHE DOWN ONE’S NECK, BREAK ONE’S NECK, CATCH IT IN THE NECK
or GET IT IN THE NECK, PAIN IN THE NECK, SAVE ONE’S NECK, STICK ONE’S NECK OUT.
[neck and neck]{adj. or adv.}, {informal} Equal or nearly equal in
a race or contest; abreast; tied. •/At the end of the race the two horses
were neck and neck./ •/For months John and Harry seemed to be neck and neck
in Alice’s favor./ Compare: NIP AND TUCK.