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

see something with half an eye • with half an eye
on something
see something with half an eye —see or understand smth. very
clearly or easily: The teacher could see with half an eye that
Jim was going to have trouble with some boys who disagreed
with him.
with half an eye on something —(also: with one eye on some-
thing ) directing one’s attention only partly to smth. (while
preoccupied with smth. else): I spent the day putting in the
web pages with half an eye on the TV.
see stars • star-gaze
see stars —be dazed as a result of a blow on the head: She
fetched me a slap in the face that made me see stars.
Note: 
The expression does not correlate in meaning with the
phrase get stars in one’s eyes— be fascinated with smth.; be cap-
tivated by impractical ideas: I only hired people that got stars
in their eyes when they heard about the notebook computer
idea.
star-gaze —
1
. gaze intently at smth.: He could not remove
his eyes from my face. Lady Norfolk, observing it, asked him
whether he intended to sup, or to stargaze all night? 2. have
idle thoughts; daydream: It may well be that surgery will be
only reparative or replacement in nature. One can but star
gaze at present.
see the light • see the light of day
see the light—
1
. (of a book, etc.) be published: Christopher
Isherwood’s diaries are now at last to see the light. 2. realize
one’s mistakes; understand smth. after thinking about it: He
was waiting for me to beg him to forgive me and tell him that
I had seen the light. 3. believe that a difficult part of a situation
is finally over: Your company is well worth the time and effort
we are putting into this program. We can already see the light.
Note: 
The expression does not fully correlate in meaning with
the phrase see the light at the end of the tunnel—(also: see
light at the end of the tunnel) = see the light 3: An official said
he saw light at the end of the tunnel and firefighters said today
they welcomed a weekend weather forecast.
see the light of day —
1
. = see the light 
1
: I continued to write
and publish short stories but it was nearly twenty years before
my next book saw the light of day. 2. be born: When I was
born, the town was on the Czech-German border, now it is
on the Czech-Polish border, without moving from where it
was when I saw the light of day.