big house

Definition:     Prison, particularly a maximum security federal prison (or jail).
Example:     1) After he got caught robbing a bank, Ted was sent to the big house for 20 years.
Etymology:     A ‘house’ is where people live, and a prison is quite large (or ‘big’), home to hundreds of criminals. This phrase became popular in the early 1900’s, when organized crime and large scale prisons developed in the United States.
Synonyms:     up the river, under glass, behind bars

head doctor

Definition:     A psychiatrist; a doctor who helps people with mental problems.
Example:     1) I’ve been seeing a head doctor for several years.

2) You seem emotionally disturbed. Maybe you ought to see a head doctor?
Etymology:     Psychiatrists are medical doctors who treat the mind, which is related to the brain, which is in the head.
Synonyms:     shrink

downsize

Definition:     To reduce the number of workers in a company; to fire large numbers of employees.
Example:     1) The new corporate president said he would downsize relentlessly in order to save money and raise the stock price of the firm.

2) I was downsized in April, and I’ve been looking for work ever since.
Etymology:     This term emerged in the 1980s, when many large companies eliminated employees in order to increase their stock prices.

wimp

Definition:     A weak or fearful person; someone who lacks courage.
Example:     1) I was too much of a wimp to play sports in high school.

2) Don’t be such a wimp — riding a bike can’t hurt you!
Etymology:     A ‘whimper’ is a small cry of pain or fear. Someone who whimpers a lot and is afraid of getting hurt is a thus a ‘wimp’.
Synonyms:     sissy, wuss, chicken

hired gun

Definition:     A temporary employee hired to do a difficult task.
Example:     1) Greedie Corp. is using some hired guns to handle the latest round of layoffs.

2) The defense attorneys brought in a hired gun to help question the key witness.
Etymology:     In the 1800s, a ‘hired gun’ was an armed man paid to protect a town from thieves and bandits in the American West. In the 1920s, ‘hired gun’ came to mean ‘hit man’ or ‘assassin’ among American gangsters. Now the term is used in corporations to describe specialists who are typically very aggressive or responsible for unpleasant, high-level tasks.

hoodlum

Definition:     A criminal or gangster.
Example:     1) The streets are a lot safer now that the police have cracked down on those hoodlums.
Etymology:     The origins of this word are unknown – any ideas?

buck

Definition:     An American dollar.
Example:     1) The new U2 CD costs about fifteen bucks.

2) A cup of coffee used to cost a nickel. Now it’s a buck.
Etymology:     On the American frontier, animal skins were sometimes used as money. A male deer is called a ‘buck’, and buck skins were a particularly valuable commodity. By the 1850’s, ‘buck’ was used to refer to both the animals and the money they produced.
Synonyms:     moola

icky

Definition:     Displeasing, disgusting, unappealing.
Example:     1) Your kitchen is so icky! Why don’t you bother to clean it up?
Etymology:     The word may be dervied from ’sticky’, which describes something that attaches itself to you in an unwanted and unpleasant way.
Synonyms:     gross

bang for the buck

Definition:     Value for money being spent; high relative worth.
Example:     1) The new Mars exploration rocket gives researchers good bang for the buck.

2) I really like those new Toyota sports cars — they give you a lot of bang for the buck.
Etymology:     This phrase dates back to World War II, when it referred to weapons that were cheap but destructive.

on one’s plate

Definition:     Work one must do.
Example:     1) I can’t take on a new project. I already have too much on my plate.
Etymology:     This phrase compares work that must be done to food that must be eaten.

zone out

Definition:     To lose all concentration; to slip out of normal consciousness, and have nothing on your mind.
Example:     1) After working on a document for four hours straight, I zoned out in front of my computer screen.
Etymology:     A ‘zone’ is an area or place. If you ‘zone out’, you mentally drift away from the place you are currently, and go off into empty, dreamy space.
Synonyms:     space out

think outside the box

Definition:     To think creatively; to approach a situation or problem in a new way.
Example:     1) To solve this problem, we’re going to have to think outside the box.

2) I like to hire people who can think outside the box.
Etymology:     This popular phrase is relatively recent. ‘The box’ refers to the normal, boring way of doing things. When you think ‘outside the box’, you create new ideas and methods for doing things.

squeaky clean

Definition:     Something that is very clean and free from dirt; as clean as possible.
Example:     1) Mary washes her kitchen floors until they are squeaky clean.
Etymology:     Probably associated with the squeaky sound that is produced when one rubs a finger across a greaseless, untarnished surface.
Definition:     Extremely good and moral; innocent.
Example:     1) The Olsons are such a squeaky clean family.
Etymology:     When applied to people, this phrases refers to a spiritual state.
Synonyms:     spotless, spic and span

win-win situation

Definition:     A situation where everyone involved benefits or wins.
Example:     1) The merger between the two food companies was a win-win situation all around.

2) Our new partnership with France Telecom is really a win-win situation.
Etymology:     This phrase comes from business slang, and is frequently used by sales and public relations people to convince others that a new course of action will benefit everyone.

zone out

Definition:     To lose all concentration; to slip out of normal consciousness, and have nothing on your mind.
Example:     1) After working on a document for four hours straight, I zoned out in front of my computer screen.
Etymology:     A ‘zone’ is an area or place. If you ‘zone out’, you mentally drift away from the place you are currently, and go off into empty, dreamy space.
Synonyms:     space out

knuckle sandwich

Definition:     A punch in the face.
Example:     1) If you don’t stop bothering me, you’re going to get a knuckle sandwich.

2) Sabah gave Peter a knuckle sandwich when she caught him looking at other girls.
Etymology:     A ’sandwich’ is an assortment of food between two pieces of bread, and ‘knuckles’ are the bones in your hand. So a ‘knuckle sandwich’ is a fist that goes straight toward your mouth.

payoff

Definition:     A final payment or reward.
Example:     1) What’s the payoff for finishing school? There are no good jobs even if you have your degree.
Definition:     A bribe or illegal contribution of money to another; to bribe someone.
Example:     1) I wonder how much of a payoff the policeman got for not writing him a speeding ticket. 2) You can’t trust anyone these days–everyone has been paid off in one way or another.
Synonyms:     kick back

tripping

Definition:     To be under the influence of hallucinogenic drugs such as LSD.
Example:     1) The sky looks red? Dude, are you tripping?
Etymology:     In the 1960s, many people used mind-altering drugs, and some people referred to their drug experiences as ‘trips’ (or journeys). Today the word is usually used in jest, to describe a foolish statement. When someone says something stupid or silly, you might say to them ‘You must be tripping’.

catch on

Definition:     To understand something new.
Example:     1) Sabah is a good student. She catches on quickly.

2) Until someone catches on, they will keep cheating their customers forever.
Synonyms:     figure out, get

bad egg

Definition:     A troublemaker; someone who has a bad attitude and causes trouble.
Example:     1) Emily is a real bad egg — she’s always starting fights and causing trouble.

2) We have to get rid of the bad eggs in the accounting department.
Etymology:     In this phrase, ‘egg’ means ‘person’ or ‘individual’. This is probably because the human head looks a lot like an egg. A bad egg, then, is a simply a bad person. There is a similar phrase to describe a good person – a ‘good egg’.

one foot in the grave

Definition:     Close to death; a person who is or appears to be nearly dead.
Example:     1) Ma says Pa has one foot in the grave, so we probably should start planning his funeral.

2) Benron Corp. has had one foot in the grave ever since the accounting scandal came to light.
Etymology:     This phrase dates back to the 1600s, and its meaning is fairly straightforward. Your ‘grave’ is where you are buried when you die, and if you have ‘one foot’ already in the grave, then you must be very close to the end of your life.

all of your eggs in one basket

Definition:     Having all of your resources in one place; putting your money or hopes or future into one thing.
Example:     1) You don’t want to keep all of your eggs in one basket. You might lose everything!

2) Tom had all of his eggs in one basket — Yoyodyne.com stock — and when the stock market crashed he was bankrupt.
Etymology:     ’Eggs’ are delicate, and if all of your eggs were in one container, and that container was damaged, you might lose all of your eggs in one quick and painful moment.

in the slammer

Definition:     In jail; behind the locked doors of a prison.
Example:     1) Tomas spent a few years in the slammer for robbing a grocery store.
Etymology:     The phrase refers to the closing of a door. When a door is ’slammed’ it means that it was closed with great force.
Synonyms:     behind bars, up the river, under glass

climb the corporate ladder

Definition:     To move up in the hierarchy of a corporation.
Example:     1) You have to work very hard if you want to climb the corporate ladder.
Etymology:     A ‘ladder’ is a device with steps used to ‘climb’ (or move) up and down, so the ‘corporate ladder’ is the series of steps people go through as they gain more power in a corporation and ‘rise to the top’ – from file clerk up to president.

walking on eggshells      

Definition:     To be in a delicate situation; to be on the edge of danger or ruin.
Example:     1) Ever since I smashed their car, I’ve been walking on eggshells with my parents.

2) We’re walking on eggshells with our landlord — she told us that if we have one more loud party, she’s going to kick us out of our apartment.
Etymology:     An ‘eggshell’ is the thin, white outer coating of an egg. The shell is very thin and breaks easily. So if you are ‘walking on eggshells’ you are in a situation where you could break something (or get in trouble or ruin everything) very easily.
Synonyms:     walking on thin ice

blow chunks

Definition:     To vomit; to be sick.
Example:     1) I feel really sick — I could blow chunks right here!
Synonyms:     puke, spew
Definition:     Something that is not good, or a major disappointment.
Example:     1) That movie blew chunks! I can’t believe I paid $9 to see it.

pirate

Definition:     Illegal, usually in reference to an illegal copy of a CD or video or software (adjective); to make an illegal copy (verb).
Example:     1) The pirate copies of the new Stallone movie aren’t very good quality.

2) People are already pirating the new Microsoftie program.
Etymology:     A ‘pirate’ is someone who robs ships at sea. So pirate software or a pirate CD has been stolen from its proper owners and sold without license.
Synonyms:     bootleg

have eyes for

Definition:     To desire; to find someone physically attractive.
Example:     1) I think my boyfriend has eyes for another woman.
Etymology:     You see with your ‘eyes’, and when you ‘have eyes for’ somebody, you really like what you see.

in the hot seat

Definition:     In trouble; in a very uncomfortable situation.
Example:     1) The analysts who promoted the dot-bomb stocks are now in the hot seat with the SEC.

2) Andrew was really in the hot seat after his girlfriend caught him lying to her.
Etymology:     ’Hot seat’ is American prison slang for the electric chair (a method of execution). The phrase ‘in the hot seat’ has come to refer to any kind of bad situation.
Synonyms:     in hot hot water