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

color man • man of color
color man —
1
. a dealer in paints: By the early 
1
770s … the
head colorman, Constantine Smith, had invented a dark,
semi-matt, over-glaze blue enamel of exceptional brilliance.
2. smb. who colors maps, prints, etc.: A Map of the Mediter-
ranean … is remarkable for the fact that the color man has
forgotten the alteration of the frontiers of Greece. 3. (TV) a
broadcaster who adds background information to commen-
tary: While he was a fantastic wrestler, his brief stint as a color
man seemed misguided.
man of color —(also: colored man) a person who belongs to
a race of people who do not have white skin: The man of color
in every French territory had to say “yes” or “no” to a contin-
ued relationship within the French community.
color vision • colored vision
color vision —perception of and ability to distinguish colors:
As soon as the results of experiments on the retinae of animals
were published, it was clear that a method was wanted for ob-
taining similar information with regard to the color vision of
man.
colored vision —a disturbance of vision (sometimes caused
by drugs) in which objects appear to have the wrong color:
Disturbed vision (double vision, colored vision) and tempo-
rary loss of hearing has been reported.
come a long way • go a long way
come a long way —make great progress; significantly improve
– 75 –
come a long way

---

over a period of time: Ideas about the educability of the masses
have come a long way during the past 
1
00 years.
go a long way —
1
. = come a long way: Technology has gone
a long way since the sixties both in diesel and gas engines. Cf.:
have a long way to go—be far short of some standard or achieve-
ment: Although we have got the vote, we women have a long
way to go before we get a positive square deal. 2. (of a stock of
provisions, money, etc.) be sufficient; last long: The more stu-
dents a school has, the more funds it receives. So what money
we get must go a long way. 3. notably assist in or promote
smth.: The regular maintenance of your installation can go a
long way towards reduced fuel bills. Cf.: go some way — con-
tribute to or assist in smth.: The study goes some way to ex-
plaining why some people burn more calories than others.