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

one’s time of life • time of one’s life
one’s time of life —
1
. is used with reference to a person’s age,
specifically middle age: The ignorant will be apt to think it
an occupation ill suited to my time of life. 2. (euph.) meno -
pause in women: Aidan has already threatened me with psy-
chiatrists. He says it is “my time of life.”
time of one’s life —
1
. a particular period in a person’s life:
She told me about Oxford. It evidently was the pleasantest
time of her life. 2. (in the phrase “have the time of one’s life”) a
period of exceptional enjoyment: We will design a program
that is so much fun that you will have the time of your life.
See also: lifetime / time of life.
only child, an • only child, the
only child, an —a child without any brothers or sisters: I
was an only child and he was an only child. For those basic
reasons, I’ve always felt a connection to him.
only child, the —
1
. = only child, an: He was missing all the
attention that was coming his way when he was the only child.
2. a single child involved in a situation: I remember Sumitro
because he was the only child with parents from India.
open a book on something • open book, an
open a book on something —(Bookmakers) take bets on certain
contests: There is a good deal of interest in the outcome of
this ballot, so I thought it might be fun to open a book on
the event.
open book, an —used of a person or thing that can be readily
examined or understood: He kept to himself personally, but
his military life was an open book.
See also: close the book on something / close the books on some-
thing.
open a can of worms • open up a can of
whoop-ass
open a can of worms —create a situation that will cause much
trouble or scandal: The investigation into how these expensive
trips were paid for opened a can of worms. Cf.: open a whole
new can of worms — expose a lot of new serious problems: They
aren’t saying that it is immutable, but that if you start changing
it you open a whole new can of worms.
open up a can of whoop-ass —(U.S. sl., usually used as a threat)
punish or hurt smb. verbally or physically: Well, don’t make
me worry ever again or I’ll open up a can of whoop ass!