[go to town]{v. phr.}, {slang} 1. To do something quickly or with great force or energy; work fast or hard. •/The boys went to town on the old garage, and had it torn down before Father came home from work./ •/While Sally was slowly washing the dishes, she remembered she had a date with Pete that evening; then she really went to town./ Compare: IN NO TIME, MAKE TIME. Contrast: TAKE ONE’S TIME. 2. or [go places]. To do a good job; succeed. •/Our team is going to town this year. We have won all five games that we played./ •/Dan was a good student and a good athlete; we expect him to go places in business./

[go to waste]{v. phr.} To be wasted or lost; not used. •/The strawberries went to waste because there was nobody to pick them./ •/Joe’s work on the model automobile went to waste when he dropped it./ Compare: IN VAIN.

[go to wrack and ruin]{v. phr.} To fall apart and be ruined; to become useless. •/The barn went to wrack and ruin after the farmer moved./ •/The car will soon go to wrack and ruin standing out in all kinds of weather./

[go under]{v.} 1. To be sunk. •/The ship hit an iceberg and went under./ 2. To fail; be defeated. •/The filling station went under because there were too many others on the street./

[go under the hammer]{v. phr.} To be auctioned off. •/Our old family paintings went under the hammer when my father lost his job./

[go up]{v.} 1. To go or move higher; rise. •/Many people came to watch the weather balloon go up./ •/The path goes up the hill./ 2. To be able to become heard; become loud or louder. •/A shout went up from the crowd at the game./ 3. Grow in height while being built; to be built. •/The new church is going up on the corner./ 4. To increase. •/Prices of fruit and vegetables have gone up./

[go up in smoke] or [go up in flames] {v. phr.} To burn; be destroyed by fire. 1. •/The house went up in flames./ •/The barn full of hay went up in smoke./ 2. Disappear; fail; not come true. •/Jane’s hopes of going to college went up in smoke when her father lost his job./ •/The team’s chances to win went up in smoke when their captain was hurt./

[go up in the air]{v. phr.} To become angry; lose one’s temper. •/Herb is so irritable these days that he goes up in the air for no reason at all./

[gourd] See: SAW WOOD or SAW GOURDS.

[go with]{v.} 1. To match; to look good with. •/A yellow blouse goes with her blonde hair./ •/The woman bought a purse to go with her new shoes./ 2. To go out in the company of. •/Tom goes with the girl who lives across the street./

[go without] See: DO WITHOUT.

[go without saying]{v. phr.} To be too plain to need talking about; not be necessary to say or mention. •/It goes without saying that children should not be given knives to play with./ •/A person with weak eyes should wear glasses. That goes without saying./

[go wrong]{v. phr.} 1. To fail; go out of order. •/Something went wrong with our car and we stalled on the road./ 2. To sink into an immoral or criminal existence. •/In a large city many young people go wrong every year./

[gown] See: TOWN AND GOWN.

[grab bag]{n.} 1. A bag from which surprise packages are chosen; a bag in which there are many unknown things. •/The woman paid a quarter for a chance at the grab bag./ •/The children brought packages to be sold from the grab bag at the school carnival./ 2. A group of many different things from which to choose; a variety. •/The TV program was a grab bag for young and old alike./

[grab off]{v.}, {informal} To take quickly; take or grab before anybody else can; choose for yourself. •/The people who got to the show first grabbed off the best seats./ •/The women hurried to the store to grab off the things on sale./ •/The prettiest girls at the dance were grabbed off for partners first./ Compare: SNAP UP.

[grabs] See: UP FOR GRABS.

[grace] See: FALL FROM GRACE, IN ONE’S BAD GRACES, IN ONE’S GOOD GRACES, WITH BAD GRACE, WITH GOOD GRACE.

[grace period] or [period of grace] {n.} The time or extra time allowed in which to do something. •/Most insurance companies have a grace period of one month for payments./ •/The teacher gave the class a week’s period of grace to finish workbooks./

[grade] See: MAKE THE GRADE.

[grain] See: AGAINST THE GRAIN, TAKE WITH A GRAIN OF SALT.

[grand slam]{n.} A home run hit when there are three men on the bases. •/Tony’s grand slam won the game for the Yankees, 4-0./

[grandstand]{v.}, {slang}, {informal} To show off, to perform histrionics needlessly. •/Stop grandstanding and get down to honest work!/

[grandstander]{n.}, {slang}, {informal} A showoff, a person who likes to engage in histrionics. •/Many people think that Evel Knievel is a grandstander./

[granted] See: TAKE FOR GRANTED.

[grasp at straws] or [clutch at straws] {v. phr.} To depend on something that is useless or unable to help in a time of trouble or danger; try something with little hope of succeeding. •/To depend on your memory without studying for a test is to grasp at straws./ •/The robber clutched at straws to make excuses. He said he wasn’t in the country when the robbery happened./

[grass] See: LET GRASS GROW UNDER ONE’S FEET, SNAKE IN THE GRASS.

[grasshopper] See: KNEE-HIGH TO A GRASSHOPPER

[grass is always greener on the other side of the fence] or [grass is always greener on the other side of the hill] We are often not satisfied and want to be somewhere else; a place that is far away or different seems better than where we are. •/John is always changing his job because the grass always looks greener to him on the other side of the fence./

[grave] See: ONE FOOT IN THE GRAVE, TURN IN ONE’S GRAVE or TURN OVER IN ONE’S GRAVE.

[graveyard shift]{n. phr.} The work period lasting from sundown to sunup, when one has to work in the dark or by artificial light. •/"Why are you always so sleepy in class?" Professor Brown asked Sam. "Because I have to work the graveyard shift beside going to school," Sam answered./

[gravy] See: PAN GRAVY.

[gravy train]{n.}, {slang}, {informal} The kind of job that brings in a much higher income than the services rendered would warrant. •/Jack’s job at the Athletic Club as Social Director is a regular gravy train./

[gray] See: GET GRAY HAIR or GET GRAY, GIVE GRAY HAIR.

[grease-ball]{n.}, {slang}, {derogatory} (avoid) An immigrant from a southern country, such as Mexico, Italy, or Spain; a person with oily looking black hair. •/Mr. White is a racist; he calls Mr. Lopez from Tijuana a grease-ball because he has dark hair./

[grease monkey]{n.}, {slang} 1. A person who greases or works on machinery; a mechanic or worker in a garage or gasoline station. •/Hey, grease monkey, fill up my gas tank!/ •/The grease monkey was all dirty when he came out from under the car./ 2. Airplane mechanic. •/Jack was a grease monkey in the Air Force./

[grease one’s palm] or [grease the palm] {slang} 1. To pay a person for something done or given, especially dishonestly; bribe. •/Some politicians will help you if you grease their palms./ 2. To give a tip; pay for a special favor or extra help. •/We had to grease the palm of the waiter to get a table in the crowded restaurant./