A dictionary of Confusable Phrases: More Than 10,000 Idioms and Collocations

white man
(white boy)
white money
(black money)
white nigger
(white negro)
white sale 
(black market)
white wedding 
(white marriage)
whiter than white 
(white as a sheet)
who will ring the bell 
(ring a bell)
whoever 
(who ever)
whole lot, the
(whole lot, a)
whole of mind and body
(be whole of
mind)
Wicked Bible, the (Unrighteous Bible,
the)
wide-open town 
(open town)
wide world, the 
(great world, the)
widely open 
(wide open)
widow-man
(widow’s man)
wildlife
(life in the wild)
win one’s way 
(lose one’s way)
win someone over
(win over someone)
win the peace
(achieve peace)
wind-breaker 
(wind-break)
windbag
(bag of wind)
windmills in the head 
(wind in the
head)
wing it
(take wing )
wipe something off the map 
(put
something on the map)
wipe something off the slate
(put some-
thing on the map)
wise as Solomon 
(wise as a Christian)
wise man 
(wise guy)
wise men of the East 
(wise men of
Gotham)
wise to something
(wise in something )
wise up to someone
(wise someone up)
with all one’s strength 
(at full
strength)
with an eye to something
(with an eye
for something )
with both hands 
(single-handed)
with both hands tied behind one’s
back 
(have one’s hands tied behind
one’s back)
with half an eye on something 
(see
something with half an eye)
with interest
(at interest)
with one eye closed
(with a single eye to
something )
with one eye on something
(with a
single eye to something )
with one hand tied behind one’s back
(single-handed)
with one’s eyes open 
(with one’s eyes
closed)
with respect to someone
(with all
respect to someone)
with safety
(in safety)
with sang-froid 
(in cold blood)
with the exception of something
(except for something )
with the view of something 
(at the
view of something )
with wide-open eyes 
(with one’s eyes
wide open)
with wings 
(on the wing )
with young
(with child)
within call
(at call)
within one’s grasp
(in one’s grasp)
within one’s rights
(in one’s own right)
within reason (with reason)
within touch
(in touch)
without blinking an eye 
(in the blink-
ing of an eye)
without color
(off color)
without limits 
(beyond limits)
without many words
(not in so many
words)
without taste
(out of taste)
witness to something 
(witness some-
thing )
wolf in sheep’s clothing
(mutton
dressed as lamb)
woman in the street
(street woman)
woman-man
(woman’s man)
woman of the town
(woman about
town)
women and children first 
(ladies first)
Wonderful Wizard of Oz, The
(Wiz-
ard of Oz, The)
woodman 
(man of the woods)
woodsman 
(backwoodsman)
word-book
(book of words)
word for word
(word by word)
work day 
(labor day)
work for a dead horse
(flog a dead
horse)
work hard 
(hardly work)
work horse
(job horse)
work like a dog 
(work like a beaver)
work of art
(art work)
work off the dead horse 
(beat a dead
horse)
Phrase Index
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374 –

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work on something
(work at some-
thing )
work one’s socks off 
(pull one’s socks up)
work one’s ticket 
(work off one’s ticket)
work oneself up to something
(work
oneself up into something )
work piece
(piece of work)
work something into something
(work something in with something )
work with someone 
(work in with
someone)
working bee 
(worker bee)
working girl 
(working man)
working load
(work load)
working papers
(working paper)
working place
(place of work)
workman
(working man)
world without end 
(great world, the)
worldly man 
(man of the world)
worlds apart 
(in a world apart)
world’s end
(end of the world, the)
worthwhile 
(worth while)
would-be someone 
(someone to-be)
wring someone’s hand 
(wring one’s
hands)
write off for something 
(write for
something )
write one’s own ticket 
(work off one’s
ticket)
write something off as 
(write some-
thing down as)
write the book on something 
(do a
book on something )
writing on water
(writing on the wall)
wrong-headed 
(wrong in the head)
yellow man
(yellow boy)
yellow newspaper 
(Yellow Book)
yellow nigger 
(yellow black)
yellow stripe rust
(yellow stripe disease)
yellow trumpet flower
(yellow trumpet)
yesterday’s man 
(not born yesterday)
you and yours 
(you and your)
you are a long time dead 
(you are a
dead man)
you bet
(do you want a bet)
you can say that again 
(can you say
that again)
you cannot make bricks without
straw 
(you cannot make an omelet
without breaking eggs)
you can’t fight city hall 
(you can’t win)
you can’t have it both ways 
(there are
no two ways about it)
you can’t talk 
(you can talk)
you can’t win ’em all 
(you can’t win)
you had to be there
(be there for me)
you may well say so 
(you don’t say so)
you name it
(give it a name)
you never know 
(there is no knowing )
you said it
(that’s what you say)
you shouldn’t talk 
(you should talk)
you tell ’em
(you tell me)
young person
(young man)
young turk 
(young tartar)
your barn door is open 
(close the barn
door after the horse gets out)
you’re a good one
(you’re a good man,
Charlie Brown)
you’re telling me
(you tell me)
yours truly 
(your actual)
zero day 
(zero hour)
zero time 
(zero hour)
– 375 –
Phrase Index

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abortion 
(do an abortion; have an abortion)
about 
(just about; out and about; up about something; up
and about)
above 
(cut above someone, a)
accident 
(fatal accident; fateful accident)
account 
(by one’s own account; keep accounts; keep an
account; of no account; on account; on no account; on
one’s own account; render an account for something;
render an account of something; take account of some-
thing; take an account of something)
achilles 
(english achilles, the)
acid 
(put the acid on someone)
act 
(black act, the; black acts, the; get one’s act together;
hard act to follow; in act to do something; in the act of
doing something; privacy act, the; privacy protection
act, the; ritual act; ritualistic act; tough act to follow)
action 
(in action; man of action; out of action)
activity 
(shadowy activities; shady activities)
actor 
(comic actor; comical actor; straight actor)
actual 
(your actual)
adam 
(old adam; old as adam)
admiral 
(lord admiral; white admiral)
admiralty 
(lord of the admiralty)
advance 
(make advances; make an advance)
advantage 
(have the advantage of someone; have the
advantage of something; have the advantage over some-
thing; take advantage of someone; take someone at
advantage)
affair 
(interfere in someone’s affairs)
affect 
(speak without affect)
affinity 
(have an affinity for something; have an affinity
with something)
afraid 
(be afraid, be very afraid)
africa 
(south africa; southern africa)
afternoon 
(in the afternoon)
again 
(again and again; as much again; every now and
again; feel one’s old self again; now and again; off again,
on again; on again, off again; once again; once and
again; over again; over and over again; same again;
something else again; think again; time and again)
age 
(act one’s age; carry one’s age; dark age; dark ages, the;
golden age; hold the age; middle age; middle ages; of a
certain age; of age; of an age; of one’s age; show one’s
age)
agency 
(employment agency; news agency; press agency)
agent 
(book agent; booking agent; intelligence agent; intel-
ligent agent; press agent)
agentry 
(press agentry)
agreement 
(break an agreement; break off an agreement)
aground 
(run something aground)
air 
(by air; come up for air; dance on air; dreamlike air;
dreamy air; give oneself airs; give someone the air; go on
the air; go up in the air; in the air; in the open air; live
in the air; live in the open air; live on air; on the air;
over the air; take air; take the air; up in the air; vanish
into thin air; walk on air)
alive 
(dead and alive; eat someone alive; look alive)
all 
(after all; after all is said and done; all in all; and all;
and all that; any and all; at all; damn all; damn it all;
first of all; if at all; in all; know it all; man of all work;
that’s all she wrote)
alley 
(silicon alley)
alone 
(leave alone; leave someone alone; leave well alone;
let alone; let well alone)
along 
(all along; string along with someone; string some-
one along)
aloud 
(speak aloud)
amendment 
(make amendments to something)
amends 
(make amends for something)
american 
(first americans; first-generation americans;
native americans; native-born americans)
anchor 
(put down anchors; throw out the anchors)
angel 
(act as angel; act like an angel; be on the side of the
angels; city of angels; join the angels)
animal 
(clean animals; cleanly animals; domestic animals;
domesticated animals)
another 
(ask another; ask me another)
answer 
(definite answer; definitive answer; know all the
answers)