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

daytime • time of day
daytime —the part of the day when there is natural light: In
the Tokyo area, users’ charges of electricity at nighttime are
rated lower compared to that in the daytime.
time of day —
1
. the hour shown on a clock: Perhaps it was
a student who committed suicide at this very time of day, on
this very day, in this very building? 2. a particular period dur-
ing the day: Birds are generally most active at this time of day
and most inactive in the early afternoon.
dead-alive • living dead
dead-alive —(also: dead and alive) 
1
. (of a place) spiritless or
boring: Do you think I could hold out a week in this dead-
alive place? Not me! 2. (of people) miserable; inactive and dull:
You will die in a home for old people surrounded by dead-
alive persons.
Note:
The expression does not correlate in meaning with the
phrase more dead than alive—(also: half dead) in a very poor
physical condition owing to illness, etc.: A policeman found him,
more dead than alive, in the street where he had been beaten
up.
living dead —
1
. (also: living corpse) smb. who seems com-
pletely unaware of what is happening around: I remember
reading that being a full blown addict is the “living dead.”
Being alive, but dead, how morose. 2. a vampire; a zombie: I
felt as if we were in the presence of a ghoul, the living dead.
dead and alive • half dead
dead and alive —(also: dead-alive) 
1
. (of a place) spiritless or
boring: This is rather a dead and alive place but I like the climate
for I have not known a sick day since I have been up here. 2. (of
people) miserable; inactive and dull: Part of my early days in
London I was familiar with what is called hyper–Calvinistic
Baptists … but I never was amongst such a dead-and-alive lot.
half dead —(also: more dead than alive) in a very poor phys-
ical condition owing to illness, etc.: I had identified the lati-
dark matter
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tude and the longitude of the place where he was, and there
they found him, half dead, but alive.