[charge up] <v. phr.> 1. To submit to a flow of electricity in order to make functional. * /I mustn't forget to charge up my razor before we go on our trip./ 2. To use up all the available credit one has on one's credit card(s). * /"Let's charge dinner on the Master Card," Jane said. "Unfortunately I can't," Jim replied. "All of my credit cards are completely charged up."/

[charge with] <v. phr.> To accuse someone in a court of law. * /The criminal was charged with aggravated kidnapping across a state line./

[charmed life] <n.> A life often saved from danger; a life full of lucky escapes. * /He was in two airplane accidents, but he had a charmed life./ * /During the war a bullet knocked the gun out of his hand, but he had a charmed life./

[chase] See: GIVE CHASE, GO CHASE ONESELF, LEAD A MERRY CHASE.

[chase after] See: RUN AFTER.

[chase around] See: RUN AROUND.

[cheapskate] <n.>, <informal> A selfish or stingy person; a person who will not spend much. - An insulting term. * /None of the girls like to go out on a date with him because he is a cheapskate./

[cheat on someone] <v. phr.>, <informal> To be unfaithful (to one's wife or husband, or to one's sweetheart or fiancee). * /It is rumored that Joe cheats on his wife./

[check] See: BLANK CHECK, CLAIM CHECK, DOUBLE CHECK, IN CHECK, RAIN CHECK, RUBBER CHECK, SALES CHECK.

[check in] <v.> 1a. To sign your name (as at a hotel or convention). * /The last guests to reach the hotel checked in at 12 o'clock./ Contrast: CHECK OUT. 1b. <informal> To arrive. * /The friends we had invited did not check in until Saturday./ 2. To receive (something) back and make a record of it. * /The coach checked in the football uniforms at the end of the school year./ * /The students put their books on the library desk, and the librarian checked them in./

[check off] <v.> To put a mark beside (the name of a person or thing on a list) to show that it has been counted. * /The teacher checked off each pupil as he got on the bus./ * /Bill wrote down the names of all the states he could remember, and then he checked them off against the list in his book./ Compare: TICK OFF.

[check on someone/thing] or [check up on someone/thing] <v>. To try to find out the truth or rightness of; make sure of; examine; inspect; investigate. * /We checked on Dan's age by getting his birth record./ * /Mrs. Brown said she heard someone downstairs and Mr. Brown went down to check up on it./ * /You can check on your answers at the back of the book./ * /The police are checking up on the man to see if he has a police record./ * /Grandfather went to have the doctor check on his health./ Compare: LOOK INTO, LOOK OVER.

[check out] <v.> 1a. To pay your hotel bill and leave. * /The last guests checked out of their rooms in the morning./ Contrast: CHECK IN. 1b. <informal> To go away; leave. * /I hoped our guest would stay but he had to check out before Monday./ Compare: CHECK IN. 2a. To make a list or record of. * /They checked out all the goods in the store./ 2b. To give or lend (something) and make a record of it. * /The boss checked out the tools to the workmen as they came to work./ 2c. To get (something) after a record has been made of it. * /I checked out a book from the library./ 3. <informal> To test (something, like a part of a motor). * /The mechanic checked out the car battery./ * /"He checked out from the motel at nine," said the detective, "then he checked out the air in the car tires and his list of local clients."/ 4. <slang> To die. * /He seemed too young to check out./

[check up] <v.> To find out or try to find out the truth or correctness of something; make sure of something; investigate. * /Mrs. Brown thought she had heard a burglar in the house, so Mr. Brown checked up, but found nobody./ * /Bill thought he had a date with Janie, but phoned her to check up./

[check-up] <n.> A periodic examination by a physician or of some equipment by a mechanic. * /I am overdue for my annual physical check-up./ * /I need to take my car in for a check-up./

[check with] <v. phr.> 1. To consult. * /I want to check with my lawyer before I sign the papers./ 2. To agree with. * /Does my reconciliation of our account check with the bank statement?/

[cheek] See: TURN THE OTHER CHEEK.

[cheer] See: BRONX CHEER.

[cheer on] <v. phr.> To vociferously encourage a person or a team during a sports event. * /The spectators at the stadium cheered on their home team./

[cheer up] <v.> 1. To feel happy; stop being sad or discouraged; become hopeful, joyous, or glad. * /Jones was sad at losing the business, but he cheered up at the sight of his daughter./ * /Cheer up! The worst is over./ 2. To make cheerful or happy. * /The support of the students cheered up the losing team and they played harder and won./ * /We went to the hospital to cheer up a sick friend./ * /Flowers cheer up a room./

[cheese] See: BIG CHEESE, WHOLE CHEESE.

[cheesebox] <n.>, <slang> A small, suburban house built by a land developer available at low cost and resembling the other houses around it. * /They moved to a suburb, but their house is just a cheesebox./

[cheesecake] <n.>, <slang>, <informal> A showing of the legs of an attractive woman or a display of her breasts as in certain magazines known as cheesecake magazines. * /Photographer to model: "Give us some cheesecake in that pose!"/

[cherry farm] <n.>, <slang> A correctional institution of minimal security where the inmates, mostly first offenders, work as farmhands. * /Joe got a light sentence and was sent to a cherry farm for six months./

[chest] See: OFF ONE'S CHEST, ON ONE'S CHEST.

[chew] See: BITE OFF MORE THAN ONE CAN CHEW.

[chew out] <v.>, <slang> To scold roughly. * /The boy's father chewed him out for staying up late./ * /The coach chews out lazy players./ Syn.: BAWL OUT, CALL ON THE CARPET, HAUL OVER THE COALS.

[chew the fat] or [chew the rag] <v. phr.>, <slang> To talk together in an idle, friendly fashion; chat. * /We used to meet after work, and chew the fat over coffee and doughnuts./ * /The old man would chew the rag for hours with anyone who would join him./

[chew the scenery] <v. phr.>, <slang> To act overemotionally in a situation where it is inappropriate; to engage in histrionics. * /I don't know if Joe was sincere about our house, but he sure chewed up the scenery!/

[chicken] See: COUNT ONE'S CHICKENS BEFORE THEY ARE HATCHED, GO TO BED WITH THE CHICKENS, SPRING CHICKEN.

[chicken-brained] <adj.> Stupid; narrow-minded; unimaginative. * /I can't understand how a bright woman like Helen can date such a chicken-brained guy as Oliver./

[chicken feed] <n.>, <slang> A very small sum of money. * /John and Bill worked very hard, but they were only paid chicken feed./ * /Mr. Jones is so rich be thinks a thousand dollars is chicken feed./

[chicken-hearted] <adj.> Cowardly; excessively timid. * /"Come on, let's get on that roller coaster," she cried. "Don't be so chicken-hearted."/ See: CHICKEN-LIVERED.

[chicken-livered] <adj.>, <slang>, <colloquial> Easily scared; cowardly. * /Joe sure is a chicken-livered guy./ See: CHICKEN-HEARTED.

[chicken out] <v. phr.>, <informal> To stop doing something because of fear; to decide not to do something after all even though previously having decided to try it. * /I used to ride a motorcycle on the highway, but I've chickened out./ * /I decided to take flying lessons but just before they started I chickened out./

[chickens come home to roost] <informal> Words or acts come back to cause trouble for a person; something bad you said or did receives punishment; you get the punishment that you deserve. * /Fred's chickens finally came home to roost today. He was late so often that the teacher made him go to the principal./ - Often used in a short form. * /Mary's selfishness will come home to roost some day./

[chicken switch] <n.>, <slang>, <Space English> 1. The emergency eject button used by test pilots in fast and high flying aircraft by means of which they can parachute to safety if the engine fails; later adopted by astronauts in space capsules. * /Don't pull the chicken switch, unless absolutely necessary./ 2. The panic button; a panicky reaction to an unforeseen situation, such as unreasonable or hysterical telephone calls to friends for help. * /Joe pulled the chicken switch on his neighbor when the grease started burning in the kitchen./

[child] See: BURNT CHILD DREADS THE FIRE, WITH CHILD.

[children and fools speak the truth] Children and fools say things without thinking; they say what they think or know when grown-ups might not think it was polite or wise to do so. - A proverb. * /"Uncle Willie is too fat," said little Agnes. "Children and fools speak the truth," said her father./

[children should be seen and not heard] A command issued by adults to children ordering them to be quiet and not to interrupt. - A proverb. * /Your children should not argue so loudly. Haven't you taught them that children should be seen and not heard?/

[child's play] <adj.> Easy; requiring no effort. * /Mary's work as a volunteer social worker is so agreeable to her that she thinks of it as child's play./

[chill] See: SPINE-CHILLING.

[chime in] <v.> 1. <informal> To join in. * /The whole group chimed in on the chorus./ * /When the argument got hot, John chimed in./ 2. To agree; go well together. - Usually used with "with". * /Dick was happy, and the holiday music chimed in with his feelings./ * /When Father suggested going to the shore for the vacation, the whole family chimed in with the plan./

[chin] See: KEEP ONE'S CHIN UP, STICK ONE'S NECK OUT or STICK ONE'S CHIN OUT, TAKE IT ON THE CHIN, UP TO THE CHIN IN.

[china shop] See: BULL IN A CHINA SHOP.

[China syndrome] <n.>, <informal> From the title of the movie with Jane Fonda and Jack Lemmon. The possibility that an industrial nuclear reactor might explode, literally affecting the other side of the planet (as if by eating a hole through the earth all the way to China.) * /Antinuclear demonstrators are greatly worried about the China syndrome./

[chip] See: CASH IN ONE'S CHIPS at CASH-IN, IN THE CHIPS. LET THE CHIPS FALL WHERE THEY MAY, FISH-AND-CHIPS, WHEN THE CHIPS ARE DOWN.

[chip in] or [kick in] <v.>, <informal> To give together with others, contribute. * /The pupils chipped in a dime apiece for the teacher's Christmas present./ * /All the neighbors kicked in to help after the fire./ * /Lee chipped in ten points in the basketball game./ * /Joe didn't say much but chipped in a few words./

[chip off the old block] <n. phr.> A person whose character traits closely resemble those of his parents. * /I hear that Tom plays the violin in the orchestra his father conducts; he sure is a chip off the old block./

[chip on one's shoulder] <n. phr.>, <informal> A quarrelsome nature; readiness to be angered. * /He went through life with a chip on his shoulder./ * /Jim often gets into fights because he goes around with a chip on his shoulder./

[chips] See: WHEN THE CHIPS ARE DOWN.

[chisel] or [muscle in on] <v. phr.> To illegitimately and forcefully intrude into someone's traditional sales or professional arena of operation. * /Tim has a good sales territory, but he is always afraid that someone might chisel in on it./ * /Las Vegas casino owners are concerned that the Mafia might muscle in on their territory./

[choice] See: BY CHOICE, FIELDER'S CHOICE.

[choke off] <v.> To put a sudden end to; stop abruptly or forcefully. * /It was almost time for the meeting to end, and the presiding officer had to move to choke off debate./ * /The war choked off diamond shipments from overseas./

[choke up] <v.> 1a. To come near losing calmness or self-control from strong feeling; be upset by your feelings. * /When one speaker after another praised John, he choked up and couldn't thank them./ * /When Father tried to tell me how glad he was to see me safe after the accident, he choked up and was unable to speak./ 1b. <informal> To be unable to do well because of excitement or nervousness. * /Bill was a good batter, but in the championship game he choked up and did poorly./ 2. To fill up; become clogged or blocked; become hard to pass through. * /The channel had choked up with sand so that boats couldn't use it./

[choose] See: PICK AND CHOOSE.

[chooser] See: BEGGARS CAN'T BE CHOOSERS.

[choose up sides] <v. phr.> To form two teams with two captains taking turns choosing players. * /The boys chose up sides for a game of softball./ * /Tom and Joe were the captains. They chose up sides./

[chop] See: LICK ONE'S CHOPS.

[chow line] <n.>, <slang> A line of people waiting for food. * /The chow line was already long when John got to the dining hall./ * /The soldiers picked up trays and got into the chow line./

[Christmas] See: FATHER CHRISTMAS.

[Christmas card] <n.>, <slang>, <citizen's band radio jargon> A speeding ticket. * /Smokey just gave a Christmas card to the eighteen wheeler we passed./

[Christmas club] <n.> A plan for putting money in the bank to be saved for Christmas shopping. * /John deposits $10 each week in the Christmas club./ * /The woman will get her Christmas club money on December 10./

[chum around with] <v. phr.> 1. To be close friends with someone. * /They have been chumming around with one another for quite some time./ 2. To travel around with someone. * /Jack is planning to chum around with Tim in Europe this summer./

[cigar-store Indian] <n. phr.> A wooden statue of an Indian which in the past was placed in front of a cigar store. * /A cigar store Indian used to mean a cigar store in the same way a barber pole still means a barber shop./

[circle] See: COME FULL CIRCLE, IN A CIRCLE or IN CIRCLES, RUN CIRCLES AROUND also RUN RINGS AROUND.

[circulation] See: IN CIRCULATION, OUT OF CIRCULATION.

[circumstance] See: UNDER THE CIRCUMSTANCES also IN THE CIRCUMSTANCES.

[circumstances alter cases] <formal> The way things are, or happen, may change the way you are expected to act. * /John's father told him never to touch his gun, but one day when Father was away, John used it to shoot a poisonous snake that came into the yard. Circumstances alter cases./

[circus] See: THREE-RING CIRCUS.

[citizen] See: SENIOR CITIZEN.

[civil] See: KEEP A CIVIL TONGUE IN ONE'S HEAD.

[claim] See: STAKE A CLAIM.

[claim check] <n.> A ticket needed to get back something. * /The man at the parking lot gave Mrs. Collins a claim check./ * /The boy put the dry cleaning claim check in his billfold./ * /The man told Mary the pictures would be ready Friday and gave her a claim check./

[clamp down] <v.>, <informal> To put on strict controls; enforce rules or laws. * /After the explosion, police clamped down and let no more visitors inside the monument./ * /The school clamped down on smoking./ * /When the crowds became bigger and wilder, the police clamped down on them and made everyone go home./

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