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[lining] See: EVERY CLOUD HAS A SILVER LINING.
[link] See: MISSING LINK.
[lion's share] <n. phr.> A disproportionate share; the largest part. * /The manager always gets the lion's share of the company's profits./
[lip] See: BUTTON ONE'S LIP or ZIP ONE'S LIP, HANG ON THE WORDS OF or HANG ON THE LIPS OF, KEEP A STIFF UPPER LIP, SLIP OF THE TONGUE also SLIP OF THE LIP.
[lip service] <n.> Support shown by words only and not by actions; a show of loyalty that is not proven in action. - Usually used with "pay". * /Bv holding elections, communism pays lip service to democracy, but it offers only one candidate per office./ * /Some people pay lip service to education, but don't vote taxes for better schools./
[liquid assets] <n. phr.> Those belongings that can be easily converted into cash. * /Herb asked for a loan and the bank manager told him to bring in proof of all his liquid assets./
[liquor up] <v. phr.>, <slang> To drink an excessive amount of liquor before engaging in some activity as if comparing oneself to a car that needs to be filled before a journey. * /Joe always liquors up before he takes Sue for a dance./
[list] See: SUCKER LIST, WAITING LIST.
[listen in] <v.> 1. To listen to a radio broadcast. * /We found them listening in to the president's speech./ 2. To listen to the talk of others, often to talk that is not intended for your ears; eavesdrop. * /When Mary talked to her boyfriend on the telephone, her little brother listened in./
[listen to reason] <v. phr.> To listen to and think about advice that you are given. * /Joe was stubborn and would not listen to reason./ * /It will save you a lot of trouble if you will just listen to reason./
[litterbug] <n.>, <slang>, <informal> A person who leaves garbage in a public place, such as a park or beach or a street; one who litters. * /Don't be a litterbug; keep the city clean!/
[little] See: A LITTLE, A LITTLE KNOWLEDGE IS A DANGEROUS THING, GREAT OAKS FROM LITTLE ACORNS GROW, LITTLE FROG IN A BIG POND, MAKE LITTLE OF, NOT A LITTLE, QUITE A LITTLE or QUITE A LITTLE BIT, THINK LITTLE OF, TWIST AROUND ONE'S LITTLE FINGER.
[little does one think] <v. phr.> To not realize; not expect; be hardly aware of. * /Little did Ed think that very soon he would be the father of twin daughters./
[little folk] or [little people] See: WEE FOLK.
[little frog in a big pond] or [small frog in a big pond] <n. phr.> An unimportant person in a large group or organization. * /In a large company, even a fairly successful man is likely to feel like a little frog in a big pond./ * /When Bill transferred to a larger high school, he found himself a small frog in a big pond./ Contrast: BIG FROG IN A SMALL POND.
[little pitchers have big ears] Little children often overhear things they are not supposed to hear, or things adults do not expect they would notice. - A proverb. * /Be especially careful not to swear in front of little children. Little pitchers have big ears./
[little theater] <n.> A theater, usually with nonprofessional actors and actresses, which presents plays more for personal pleasure and practice than for profit. * /Little theater groups are active in all parts of the United States./ * /Many famous actors began in little theaters./
[lit up like a Christmas tree] <adj. phr.>, <informal> To be drunk. * /On New Year's Eve Ned was lit up like a Christmas tree./ Compare: THREE SHEETS TO THE WIND.
[live] See: PEOPLE WHO LIVE IN GLASS HOUSES SHOULD NOT THROW STONES.
[live and learn] You learn more new things the longer you live; you learn by experience. - A proverb. * /"Live and learn," said Mother. "I never knew that the Indians once had a camp where our house is."/ * /Janet made her new dress from cheap cloth, and when she washed it, it shrank and was too little. Live and learn./
[live and let live] To live in the way you prefer and let others live as they wish without being bothered by you. * /Father scolds Mother because she wears her hair in curlers and Mother scolds Father because he smokes a smelly pipe. Grandfather says it's her hair and his pipe; live and let live./ Compare: GIVE AND TAKE(1), LET BYGONES BE BYGONES, FORGIVE AND FORGET.
[live down] <v.> To remove (blame, distrust or unfriendly laughter) by good conduct; cause (a mistake or fault) to be forgiven or forgotten by not repeating it. * /John's business failure hurt him for a long time, but in the end he lived it down./ * /Frank was rather a bad boy, but he lived it down as he grew up./ * /Sandra called her principal the wrong name at the banquet, in front of everyone, and she thought she would never live it down./
[live from hand to mouth] <v. phr.> To live on little money and spend it as fast as it comes in; live without saving for the future; have just enough. * /Mr. Johnson got very little pay, and the family lived from hand to mouth when he had no job./ * /These Indians live from hand to mouth on berries, nuts, and roots./
[live high off the hog] or [eat high on the hog] See: EAT (LIVE) HIGH ON THE HOG or EAT (LIVE) HIGH OFF THE HOG.
[live in] or [room in] <v.>, <informal> To live in the school you attend or the place where you work. * /Jack decided to live in during his freshman year at college./ * /Many women advertise for mother's helpers to room in with families and help take care of children./
[live in a fool's paradise] <v. phr.> To deceive oneself; tell oneself unreal stories. * /His information is based on a lot of misunderstanding - the poor guy is living in a fool's paradise./
[live in an ivory tower] <v. phr.> To be blind to real life; live an unrealistically sheltered existence. * /Professor Nebelmacher has no idea of the cost of living; he lives in an ivory tower./
[live in the fast lane] <v. phr.>, <informal> To live a full and very active life pursuing wealth and success. * /They have been living in the fast lane ever since they arrived in New York City./
[live it up] <v. phr.>, <informal> To pursue pleasure; enjoy games or night life very much; have fun at places of entertainment. * /Joe had had a hard winter in lonesome places; now he was in town living it up./ * /The western cowboys usually went to town on Saturdays to live it up./
[live off someone] <v. phr.> To be supported by someone. * /Although Eric is already 40 years old, he has no job and continues to live off his elderly parents./
[live off the fat of the land] See: FAT OF THE LAND.
[live on borrowed time] <v. phr.> To live or last longer than was expected. * /Ever since his operation, Harvey felt he was living on borrowed time./ * /Mr. Brown was living on borrowed time because a year ago the doctors had told him he would only live six months./
[live out] <v.> 1. To finish (a period of time); spend. * /Smith lived out the year in the North as he had agreed, but then moved to the South again./ * /After retiring, John and his wife lived out their lives in Florida./ 2. To last through; endure to the end of. * /We lived out the winter on short ration./ * /He lived out the earthquake, but his house was destroyed./
[live out of a suitcase] <v. phr.> To have no permanent residence or a permanent place to hang one's clothes. * /When Jennifer accepted her new job, she had no idea that she would have to live out of a suitcase for six months./
[live up to] <v.> To act according to; come up to; agree with; follow. * /So far as he could, John had always tried to live up to the example he saw in Lincoln./ * /Bob was a man who lived up to his promises./ * /The new house didn't live up to expectations./
[live wire] <n. phr.> 1. An electrically charged wire, usually uninsulated. * /The electrician was severely burned by the live wire./ 2. An alert or energetic person. * /To sell the new merchandise, our company needs several salespeople who are live wires./
[living daylights] See: BEAT THE --- OUT OF, KNOCK THE --- OUT OF.
[living end] <adj.>, <slang> Great; fantastic; the ultimate. * /That show we saw last night was the living end./
[load] See: GET A LOAD OF.
[loaded for bear] <adj. phr.>, <slang> Ready for action; prepared and eager. * /Frank liked the new merchandise and as he set out on his rounds as a salesman, he felt really loaded for bear./ * /The football team arrived Friday noon, loaded for bear./
[load the bases] or [fill the bases] <v. phr.> To get men on all three bases in baseball. * /The Mets loaded the bases with two singles and a base on balls./ * /Don hit a home run with the bases loaded./
[loaf] See: HALF A LOAF IS BETTER THAN NONE or HALF A LOAF IS BETTER THAN NO BREAD.
[loan shark] <n. phr.> A money lender who charges excessive interest. * /Why go to a loan shark when you can borrow from the bank at the legal rate?/
[local yokel] <n.>, <slang>, <citizen's hand radio jargon> City police officer, as opposed to state police or highway patrol. * /There's a local yokel westbound on the move./
[lock] See: SCALP LOCK.
[lock, stock, and barrel] <n. phr.> Everything; completely. * /The robbers emptied the whole house - lock, stock, and barrel./ Compare: HOOK, LINE, AND SINKER.
[lock the barn door after the horse is stolen] To be careful or try to make something safe when it is too late. - A proverb. * /After Mary failed the examination, she said she would study hard after that. She wanted to lock the barn door after the horse was stolen./
[lock up] <v. phr.>, <slang> To be assured of success. * /How did your math test go? - I locked it up, I think./
[lodge a complaint] <v. phr.> To make a complaint; complain. * /If our neighbors don't stop this constant noise, I will have to lodge a complaint with the management./
[loggerhead] See: AT LOGGERHEADS.
[loin] See: GIRD UP ONE'S LOINS.
[lone wolf] <n.> A man who likes to work or live alone. * /The man who paints a picture or establishes a business is often a lone wolf; so is the criminal outlaw./ * /Jones is a good pitcher, but he is a lone wolf./
[long] See: AT LAST or AT LONG LAST, BEFORE LONG, COME A LONG WAY, IN THE LONG RUN, NO LONGER, SO LONG, THE LONG AND THE SHORT.
[long and short of it] <n. phr.> The essence; the whole story in a nutshell. * /The long and short of it is that he is lazy and doesn't really want to find a job./
[long ball] <n.> A baseball hit far enough to be a home run. * /The White Sox need a player who can hit the long ball./
[long face] <n.> A sad look; disappointed look. * /He told the story with a long face./ - Often used in the phrase "pull a long face". * /Don't pull a long face when I tell you to go to bed./
[longhair(1)] 1. <n.>, <slang> A male hippie. * /Who's that longhair? - It's Joe./ 2. An intellectual who prefers classical music to jazz or acid rock. * /Catwallender is a regular longhair; he never listens to modern jazz./
[longhair(2)] <adj.>, <slang> Pertaining to classical art forms, primarily in dancing and music. * /Cut out that longhair Mozart Symphony and put on a decent pop record!/
[long haul] or [long pull] <n.>, <informal> 1. A long distance or trip. * /It is a long haul to drive across the country./ Contrast SHORT HAUL. 2. A long length of time during which work continues or something is done; a long time of trying. * /A boy crippled by polio may learn to walk again, but it may be a long haul./ - Often used in the phrase "over the long haul". * /Over the long haul, an expensive pair of shoes may save you money./ Contrast: SHORT HAUL.
[long pull] See: LONG HAUL.
[long shot] <n.> 1. A bet or other risk taken though not likely to succeed. * /The horse was a long shot, but it came in and paid well./ * /Jones was a long shot for mayor./ * /The business long shot that succeeds often pays extremely well./ 2. See: BY A LONG SHOT.
[long-winded] <adj.> Tedious; overlong; given to too much talking. * /Everyone was bored by the old man's long-winded stories./
[look] See: DIRTY LOOK.
[look after] also [see after] <v.> To watch over; attend to. * /John's mother told him to look after his younger brother./ * /When he went to Europe, Mr. Jenkins left his son to see after the business./ Syn.: TAKE CARE OF(1). Compare: LOOK OUT(3).
[look a gift horse in the mouth] To complain if a gift is not perfect. - A proverb. Usually used with a negative. * /John gave Joe a baseball but Joe complained that the ball was old. His father told him not to look a gift horse in the mouth./
[look alive] <v.> Act lively; be quick; wake up and work; be busy; hurry. - Often used as a command. * /"Look alive there," the boss called./
[look as if butter wouldn't melt in one's mouth] See: BUTTER WOULDN'T MELT IN ONE'S MOUTH.
[look as if one has come out of a bandbox] <v. phr.>, <informal> To look very clean and fresh; look as if you had just had a bath and put on all-new clothing. * /In spite of the long, hot train ride, Jody arrived looking as if she had come out of a bandbox./ * /After a day at the rodeo we were all dusty and tired except for Hope, who looked as if she'd come out of a bandbox./
[look at] <v.> To have a way of thinking or feeling toward; think about something in a certain way. * /Is he a hero or a villain? That depends on how you look at it./ * /Depending on how you looked at it, the tea party could be called a pleasure or a bore./
[look at the world through rose-colored glasses] or [see with rose-colored glasses] <v. phr.> To see everything as good and pleasant; not see anything hard or bad. * /When Jean graduated from high school, she looked at the world through rose-colored glasses./ * /If you see everything through rose-colored glasses, you will often be disappointed./
[look back] <v.> To review the past; think of what has happened. * /As John looked back, his life seemed good to him./ * /Murphy looked back on his early struggles as having made him feel especially alive./ * /When Ed applied for a job and asked the school to recommend him, the principal looked back over his records./
[look bleak] <v.> To indicate misfortune; appear threatening or ruinous. * /As prices dropped lower and lower, things looked bleak for Henry's company./ * /Many witnesses gave testimony against Jerry and his case looked bleak./ * /The future looked bleak when Father got hurt and could not work./
[look daggers] <v. phr.> To show anger with a look; express hate or enmity by a look or stare; look fiercely. * /The other driver looked daggers at Morris for turning in before him./ * /Mary did not dare talk back to her father, but she looked daggers./
[look down on] also [look down upon] <v.> To think of (a person or thing) as less good or important; feel that (someone) is not as good as you are, or that (something) is not worth having or doing; consider inferior. * /Mary looked down on her classmates because she was better dressed than they were./ * /Jack looked down on Al for his poor manners./ * /Miss Tracy likes tennis but she looks down on football as too rough./
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