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[old-timer] <n.> An old person who remembers bygone days, matters, and personalities. * /There was an old-timer at the party who told us interesting details about World War II./ Contrast: OLD GUARD, OLD HAND.

[old world] <n. phr.> Europe, the continent; a continental manner. * /Tom had an old world manner that thoroughly charmed all the ladies./ Compare: OLD COUNTRY.

[olive branch] <n. phr.> An overture; a symbol of peace. * /Tired of the constant fighting, the majority government extended an olive branch to the militant minority./

[on account] <adv. phr.> As part payment of a debt; to lessen the amount owed. * /John paid $10 down and $5 on account each month for his bicycle./

[on account of] <prep.> As a result of; because of. * /The picnic was held in the gym on account of the rain./ Compare: ON ONE'S ACCOUNT, OF ONE'S OWN ACCORD.

[on a dime] <adv. phr.>, <informal> In a very small space. * /Bob can turn that car on a dime./ * /Tom says his new sports car will stop on a dime./

[on-again, off-again] See: OFF-AGAIN, ON-AGAIN.

[on air] See: WALK ON AIR.

[on a limb] See: OUT ON A LIMB.

[on all four] See: HIT ON ALL FOUR.

[on all fours] <adv. phr.> 1. On all four legs; on hands and knees. * /Fido sat up to "beg" but dropped down on all fours to eat the dog biscuit Sam gave him./ * /Billy's father got down on all fours and gave the baby a ride./ 2. <informal> On a level of equality; of the same value. * /Wigs may be widely used, but they are still not on all fours with beautiful natural hair./

[on an average] or [on the average] <adv. phr.> In most cases; usually. * /On an average Dan's mother has to ask him three times before he helps with the dishes./ * /On the average, Mr. Blank trades in his car for a new one every three years./

[on and off] See: OFF AND ON.

[on an even keel] <adv. phr,>, <informal> In a well-ordered way or condition; orderly. * /When the football rally seemed almost ready to become a riot, the principal stepped to the platform and got things back on an even keel./

[on a pedestal] <adv. phr.> Lovingly honored and cared for. * /Mrs. Raymond's children served her breakfast in bed on Mother's Day and later took her out to dinner. She felt on a pedestal./ * /Bill is always waiting on his fiancee and bringing her flowers and candy. He has certainly put her on a pedestal./

[on approval] <adv. phr.> With the understanding that the thing may be refused. * /Mr. Grey bought his camera on approval./ * /The company offered to send a package of stamps on approval./

[on a scratched horse] See: PUT ONE'S MONEY ON A SCRATCHED HORSE.

[on a shoestring] <adv. phr.> With little money to spend; on a very low budget. * /The couple was seeing Europe on a shoestring./

[on a volcano] See: SIT ON A VOLCANO.

[on behalf of] See: IN BEHALF OP.

[on board(1)] <prep.> On (a ship). * /Joan was not on board the ship when it sailed./

[on board(2)] <adv.> or <adj. phr.> On a ship. * /The captain was not on board when the S.S. Flandre sailed./ * /A ship was leaving the harbor, and we saw the people on board waving./

[on borrowed time] See: LIVE ON BORROWED TIME.

[on call] <adj. phr.> 1. Having to be paid on demand. * /Jim didn't have the money ready even though he knew the bill was on call./ 2. Ready and available. * /This is Dr. Kent's day to be on call at the hospital./ * /The nurse is on call for emergency cases./

[once] See: AT ONCE, EVERY NOW AND THEN or EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE.

[once and for all] <adv. phr.> 1. One time and never again; without any doubt; surely; certainly; definitely. * /Let me say, for once and for all, you may not go to the party Saturday./ * /For once and for all, I will not go swimming with you./ 2. Permanently. * /Bill and Tom asked the teacher to settle the argument once and for all./ * /The general decided that two bombs would destroy the enemy and end the war once and for all./

[once bitten, twice shy] See: BURNT CHILD DREADS THE FIRE.

[once for all] See: ONCE AND FOR ALL.

[once in a blue moon] <adv. phr.> Very rarely; very seldom; almost never. * /Coin collecting is interesting, hut you find a valuable coin only once in a blue moon./ * /Once in a blue moon someone grows a very pale marigold, but no truly white marigolds have been raised./

[once in a while] <adv. phr.> Not often; not regularly; sometimes; occasionally. * /We go for a picnic in the park once in a while./ * /Once in a while the puppy would run away, but usually he stayed in the yard./ Syn.: AT TIMES, FROM TIME TO TIME, NOW AND THEN.

[once-over] <n.>, <slang> 1. A quick look; a swift examination of someone or something. - Usually used with "give" or "get". * /The new boy got the once-over from the rest of the class when he came in./ * /Bob gave his paper the once-over before handing it in./ 2. or [once-over-lightly] A quick or careless job, especially of cleaning or straightening; work done hastily for now. * /Ann gave her room a quick once-over-lightty with the broom and dust cloth./ * /"Just give my hair the once-over," Al said to the barber./ Compare: LICK AND A PROMISE.

[once upon a time] <adv. phr.> Sometime before now, long ago. * /Once upon a time she was thought to be the most talented actress in the country./ - Often used at the beginning of fairy stories. * /Once upon a time there lived a king who had an ugly daughter./

[on cloud nine] <adj. phr.>, <slang> Too happy to think of anything else; very happy. * /Ada has been on cloud nine since the magazine printed the story she wrote./ * /We were on cloud nine when our team won the state championship./ Compare: ON TOP OF THE WORLD, WALK ON AIR.

[on condition that] <conj.> Providing that; if. * /I will lend you the money on condition that you pay it back in one month./ * /She agreed to act in the play on condition that she could keep her costumes./

[on deck] <adv.> or <adj. phr.> 1. On a floor of a ship open to the outdoors. * /The passengers were playing shufflehoard on deck./ * /The sailors kept busy cleaning and painting on deck./ 2. <informal> Ready to do something; present. * /The scout leader told the boys to be on deck at 8:00 Saturday morning for the hike./ * /Dick was at bat, and Bob was on deck./

[on deposit] <adv. phr.> In a bank. * /I have almost $500 on deposit in my account./ * /The children save their pennies and each month place them on deposit./

[on duty] <adj. phr.> Doing one's job; supervising. * /Two soldiers are on duty guarding the gates./ * /There is always one teacher on duty during study hour./ Contrast: OFF DUTY.

[one] See: AT ONE, FOR ONE, GO IN ONE EAR AND OUT THE OTHER, HANG ONE ON, HOLE IN ONE, KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE, NUMBER ONE, SIX OF ONE AND HALF-A-DOZEN OF THE OTHER, SLIP ONE OVER ON, TEN TO ONE, TWO TO ONE, WORDS OF ONE SYLLABLE.

[one and the same] <adj. phr.> The same; identical. * /Erle Stanley Gardner and A.A. Fair are one and the same person./ * /The spider lily and the Peruvian Daffodil are one and the same./

[one-armed bandit] <n.>, <slang> A slot machine, like those used in Las Vegas and other gambling places. * /Joe was playing the one-armed bandit all day - and he lost everything he had./

[on earth] See: IN THE WORLD.

[on easy street] <adj. phr.>, <informal> Having enough money to live very comfortably; rather rich. * /After years of hard work, the Grants found themselves on easy street./ * /Jim's novel was a success and put him on easy street./ Compare: IN CLOVER, IN THE CHIPS, WELL-TO-DO.

[one damn thing after another] or [ODTAA] (pronounced owed-tay) <n. phr.> If there is one problem, there will be more. * /First I lost my wallet, then a kid broke the window, and, lastly, my car refused to start. It was just one damn thing after another!/ Compare: IF IT'S NOT ONE THING IT'S ANOTHER.

[on edge] <adj. phr.> Excited or nervous; impatient. * /The magician kept the children on edge all through his show./ * /We were all on edge as we listened to the TV for news of the election results./ * /Father was on edge after driving home through the heavy holiday traffic./ See: SET ONE'S TEETH ON EDGE. Contrast: AT EASE(2).

[one eye on] <informal> Watching or minding (a person or thing) while doing something else; part of your attention on. - Used after "have", "keep", or "with". * /Jane had one eye on the baby as she ironed./ * /Bill kept one eye on his books and the other on the clock./ * /Chris tried to study with one eye on the TV set./ Compare: KEEP AN EYE ON.

[one foot in the grave] <n. phr.> Near to death. * /The dog is fourteen years old, blind, and feeble. He has one foot in the grave./ * /Grandfather has never been sick a day in his life, but Mother cares for him as if he had one foot in the grave./

[one for the books] <n, phr.>, <informal> Very unusual; a remarkable something. * /The newspaper reporter fumed in a story that was one for the books./ * /Their trip through the Rocky Mountains was one for the books./

[one-horse] <adj. phr.> Insignificant; modest; provincial. * /Arnold's business is a one-horse operation; he never had a single employee./

[one man's meat is another man's poison] What is good for one person is not necessarily good for another. - A proverb, * /Even though Jeff likes to swim in ice cold water, his brother Tun hates it. This is understandable, however, because one's man's meat is another man's poison./ Contrast: WHAT'S SAUCE FOR THE GOOSE IS SAUCE FOR THE GANDER.

[on end] <adj. phr.> Seemingly endless. - Used with plural nouns of time. * /Judy spent hours on end writing and rewriting her essay./ * /During July and August there was no rain for weeks on end./

[one-night stand] <n. phr.> 1. A single performance given by a traveling company while on a tour. * /After they went bankrupt in the big cities, the traveling jazz quartet played one-night stands in the country./ 2. A brief affair or sexual encounter. * /"With AIDS all around us?" said Jane. "Nobody is having one-night stands anymore."/

[one of these days] or [some of these days] <adv. phr.> Someday; sometime soon. * /One of these days Herbert will be famous./ * /I'm going to do that sewing some of these days./

[one on the city] <n.>, <slang> A glass of water (which is provided free of charge, as a free gift from the city). * /What will you have? - Oh, just give me one on the city./

[one's money's worth] <n. phr.> A fair return on one's money spent or invested. * /I wouldn't say that the trip was a great bargain, but I feel that we got our money's worth./

[one's own row] See: HOE ONE'S OWN ROW.

[one-two] <n.> 1. A succession of two punches, the first a short left, followed by a hard right punch, usually in the jaw. * /Ali gave Frazir the one-two./ 2. Any quick or decisive action which takes the opposition by surprise, thereby ensuring victory. * /He gave us the old one-two and won the game./

[one up] <adj. phr.> Having an advantage; being one step ahead, * /John graduated from high school; he is one up on Bob, who dropped out./ * /The Platters are one up on their neighbors. They own the only color television set in their neighborhood./

[one-upmanship] <v.>, <informal> Always keeping ahead of others; trying to keep an advantage. * /No matter what I do, I find that Jim has already done it better. He's an expert at one-upmanship./ * /Jack took the news to the principal while we were still talking about it. He's very quick to practice one-upmanship./ Compare: ONE UP. (The word one-upmanship was made up by a British humorist, Stephen Potter, on the pattern of such words as sportsmanship and workmanship.)

[on faith] <adv. phr.> Without question or proof. * /He said he was twenty-one years old and the employment agency took him on faith./ * /He looked so honest that we accepted his story on faith./

[on file] <adv. phr.> Placed in a written or electronic file; on record. * /We are sorry we cannot hire you right now but we will keep your application on file./

[on fire] See: SET THE WORLD ON FIRE.

[on foot] <adv.> or <adj. phr.> 1. By walking. * /Sally's bicycle broke and she had to return home on foot./ 2. Being planned. * /The reporter said that a civil rights demonstration was on foot./ * /Plans have been set on foot for a party for Miss Jackson, because she is retiring./

[on guard] <adj. phr.> Watchful; watching. * /The police warned people to he on guard for pickpockets during the Christmas rush./ * /Two men are on guard at the door./ Contrast: OFF GUARD.

[on hand] <adv. phr.> 1a. Nearby; within reach. * /Always have your dictionary on hand when you study./ 1b. Here. * /Soon school will end and vacation will be on hand./ 2. Present. * /Mr. Blake's secretary is always on hand when he appears in public./ 3. In your possession; ready. * /The Girl Scouts have plenty of cookies on hand./ * /Tim had no cash on hand to pay for the gas./ Compare: IN STORE.

[on high cotton] See: ON TOP OF THE WORLD also SITTING ON HIGH COTTON.

[on hold] <adv. phr.> 1. Left waiting while making a telephone call. * /"Sorry sir," the secretary said, "I'll have to put you on hold for a minute."/ 2. Waiting; temporarily halted. * /"Put your marriage plans on hold, son, and wait until after graduation," his father said seriously./

[on ice] <adv.> or <adj. phr.>, <slang> 1. The same as won; sure to be won. * /The score was 20-10 in the last inning, and our team had the game on ice./ 2. Away for safekeeping or later use; aside. * /You will have to put your vacation plans on ice until your debts are paid./ * /The senator was voted out of office. He is on ice until the next election./

[on in years] See: ALONG IN YEARS.

[onion] See: KNOW ONE'S WAY AROUND(2).

[only] See: HAVE EYES ONLY FOR, IF ONLY.

[on occasion] <adv. phr.> Sometimes; occasionally. * /We go to New York on occasion./ * /On occasion we feel like celebrating and have a party./ Compare: ONCE IN A WHILE, FROM TIME TO TIME.

[on one hand] <adv. phr.> Looking at a thing in one of two possible ways; from one point of view. - Usually used with "on the other hand". * /John wants to be a printer or a teacher; on one hand, printing pays better; on the other hand, schools need good teachers./

[on one's account] <adv. phr.> For your good; because you want to help or please someone. * /Barry studied hard on his mother's account./ * /I hope you didn't bring tea to the picnic just on my account./ * /The teacher stayed in school a little late on Tom's account./ Compare: OF ONE'S OWN ACCORD, ON ACCOUNT OF.

[on one's back] <adj. phr.>, <informal> Making insistent demands of you; being an annoyance or bother. * /My wife has been on my back for weeks to fix the front door screen./ * /I can't get any work done with the children on my back from morning until night./ * /Jim could do a better job if his boss weren't on his back so often./ Contrast: OFF ONE'S BACK.

[on one's bad side] or [on the bad side of one] <adj. phr.>, <informal> Not liked by someone; not friendly with a person. * /Sally's boyfriend got on Father's bad side by keeping Sally out too late after the dance./ Contrast: ON ONE'S GOOD SIDE.