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

have one’s day off • have one’s off day
have one’s day off —have a day free; have a day off duty: She
doesn’t go to work on Thursdays: she has her day off.
have one’s off day —
1
. said of a day when one does not per-
form as well as usual: Otto Becker, normally used to win, had
his off day with both horses. 2. = have one’s day off: I could
have had a long weekend since I have my off day on Fridays
and Saturdays.
have one’s fingers in the till • hold the purse
strings
have one’s fingers in the till —steal money from the place
where one works: Sally was outraged when she found that one
of her salesclerks had his fingers in the till.
hold the purse strings —control the spending of a family’s or
an organization’s money: Maudie is the one who holds the
purse strings and Moth finds ingenious ways of making her
part with them!
have one’s hands tied behind one’s back • with
both hands tied behind one’s back
have one’s hands tied behind one’s back —(also: have one’s
hands tied) be prevented from doing smth.; be restricted in
one’s freedom to act: The only reason it took a year was I had
my hands tied behind my back because we had signed a con-
tract.
with both hands tied behind one’s back —(also: with one hand
tied behind one’s back) 
1
. do smth. very easily or without effort:
Jos is a phenomenal driver who could beat me on any track
with both hands tied behind his back. 2. = have one’s hands
tied behind one’s back: They don’t know the rules of evidence.
They expect lawyers to defend lawsuits with both hands tied
behind their back and for discount fees.
have one’s mind on something • have something
on one’s mind
have one’s mind on something —(also: keep one’s mind on some-
thing ) give all one’s attention to smth.: It’s hard to work when
you’ve got your mind on other things.
have something on one’s mind —think of smth. causing worry
or concern: I knew my aunt sufficiently well to know that she
had something of importance on her mind.