[touchup]{n.} 1. A small repair; a small amount of paint. •/Just a small touchup here and there and your novel may be publishable./ 2. Redoing the color of one’s hair. •/My roots are showing; I need a touchup./

[touch up]{v.} 1. To paint over (small imperfections.) •/I want to touch up that scratch on the fender./ •/The woodwork is done, but there are a few places he has to touch up./ 2. To improve with small additions or changes. •/He touched up the photographic negative to make a sharper print./ •/It’s a good speech, but it needs a little touching up./ 3. {slang} To talk into lending; wheedle from. •/He touched George up for five bucks./

[tough act to follow]{n. phr.} A speech, performance, or activity of such superior quality that the person next in line feels and thinks that it would be very difficult to match it in quality. •/Sir Lawrence Olivier’s performance of Hamlet was a tough act to follow in every sense./

[tough break] See: TOUGH LUCK, TOUGH SHIT.

[tough cat]{n.}, {slang} A man who is very individualistic and, as a result, highly successful with women. •/Joe is a real tough cat, man./

[tough cookie]{n. phr.} An extremely determined, hardheaded person, or someone with whom it is unusually difficult to deal. •/Marjorie is a very pretty girl, but when it comes to business she sure is one tough cookie./

[tough it out]{v. phr.} To live through and endure a trying situation. •/The tourists got lost in the desert without a compass, and they had to tough it out for three days on a single bottle of water./

[tough luck]{n. phr.} An informal way to say that one had that coming; it serves one right. •/So your date didn’t show up, eh? Tough luck, fellow./

[tough nut to crack] See: HARD NUT TO CRACK.

[tough row to hoe] See: HARD ROW TO HOE.

[tough shit]{n. phr.}, {vulgar}, {avoidable} See: HARD CHEESE, TOUGH LUCK.

[tough sledding] See: HARD SLEDDING.

[tourist trap] See: CLIP JOINT.

[to use] See: PUT TO USE.

[tow] See: IN TOW.

[towel] See: THROW IN THE SPONGE or THROW IN THE TOWEL.

[tower of strength]{n. phr.} Someone who is strong, helpful, and sympathetic, and can always be relied on in times of trouble. •/John was a veritable tower of strength to our family while my father was in the war and my mother lay ill in the hospital./

[town] See: GO TO TOWN, ON THE TOWN, PAINT THE TOWN RED.

[town and gown]{n.} The residents of a college town and the students and teachers of the college. •/The senator made a speech attended by both town and gown./ •/There were fights between town and gown./

[toy with an] or [the idea] {v. phr.} To consider an idea or an offer periodically without coming to a decision. •/He was toying with the idea of accepting the company’s offer of the vice presidency in Tokyo, but he was unable to decide./

[to your hat] See: HANG ON TO YOUR HAT or HOLD ON TO YOUR HAT.

[trace] See: KICK OVER THE TRACES also JUMP THE TRACES.

[track] See: COVER ONE’S TRACKS, IN ONE’S TRACKS, INSIDE TRACK, JUMP THE TRACK, KEEP TRACK, LOSE TRACK, MAKE TRACKS, OFF THE BEATEN TRACK, ON THE TRACK OF, THE TRACKS.

[track down]{v.} To find by or as if by following tracks or a trail. •/The hunters tracked down game in the forest./ •/She spent weeks in the library tracking the reference down in all their hooks on the subject./ Compare: HUNT DOWN.

[trade] See: CARRIAGE TRADE, HORSE TRADE, TRICKS OF THE TRADE.

[trade in]{v.} To give something to a seller as part payment for another thing of greater value. •/The Browns traded their old car in on a new one./ Syn.: TURN IN(3).

[trade-in]{n.} Something given as part payment on something better. •/The dealer took our old car as a trade-in./ — Often used like an adjective. •/We cleaned up the car at trade-in time./

[trade on]{v.} To use as a way of helping yourself. •/The coach traded on the pitcher’s weakness for left-handed batters by using all his southpaws./ •/The senator’s son traded on his father’s name when he ran for mayor./

[trading stamp]{n.} One of the stamps that you get (as from a store or gas station) because you buy something there; a stamp you get with a purchase and save in special books until you have enough to take to a special store and trade for something you want. •/Mother always buys things in stores where they give trading stamps./

[trail] See: BLAZE A TRAIL, ON THE TRACK OF or ON THE TRAIL OF.

[trail-blazer] See: BLAZE A TRAIL.

[trap] See: MIND LIKE A STEEL TRAP, SAND TRAP, SPEED TRAP.

[travel light]{v. phr.} To travel with very little luggage or with very little to carry. •/Plane passengers must travel light./ •/Tom and Fred traveled light on their camping trip./

[tread on the toes of] or [tread on one’s toes] See: STEP ON THE TOES OF or STEP ON ONE’S TOES.

[tread water]{v. phr.} To keep the head above water with the body in an upright position by moving the feet as if walking. •/He kept afloat by treading water./

[treat] See: TRICK OR TREAT.

[tree] See: BARK UP THE WRONG TREE, CAN’T SEE THE WOOD FOR THE TREES, UP A TREE.

[trembling] See: FEAR AND TREMBLING.

[trial] See: ON TRIAL.

[trial and error]{n.} A way of solving problems by trying different possible solutions until you find one that works. •/John found the short circuit by trial and error./ •/The only way Tom could solve the algebra problem was by the method of trial and error./

[trial balloon]{n.} A hint about a plan of action that is given out to find out what people will say. •/John mentioned the class presidency to Bill as a trial balloon to see if Bill might be interested in running./ •/The editorial was a trial balloon to test the public’s reaction to a change in the school day./

[trice] See: IN A FLASH also IN A TRICE.

[trick] See: DO THE TRICK, TURN THE TRICK.

[trick of the trade]{n. phr.}, {usually in plural}, {informal} 1. A piece of expert knowledge; a smart, quick, or skillful way of working at a trade or job. •/Mr. Olson spent years learning the tricks of the trade as a carpenter./ •/Any one can learn how to hang wallpaper, but only an expert can show you the tricks of the trade./ 2. A smart and sometimes tricky or dishonest way of doing something in order to succeed or win. •/The champion knows all the tricks of the boxing trade; he knows many ways to hurt his opponent and to get him mixed up./

[trick or treat]{n.} The custom of going from house to house on Halloween asking for small gifts and playing tricks on people who refuse to give. •/When Mrs. Jones answered the doorbell, the children yelled "Trick or treat." Mrs. Jones gave them all some candy./ •/On Halloween Bill and Tom went out playing trick or treat./

[trigger] See: QUICK ON THE TRIGGER.

[trigger happy] See: QUICK ON THE TRIGGER(1).

[triple threat]{n.} A football player who is able to pass, kick, and run all very well. •/The triple threat halfback was the star of the team./

[tripped out]{adj.}, {slang}, {informal} Incoherent, confused, faulty of speech, illogical; as if under the influence of drugs or alcohol. •/It was hard to make sense of anything Fred said yesterday, he sounded so tripped out./ See: SPACED OUT.