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

at one’s command • under one’s command
at one’s command —
1
. at smb.’s word or phrase by which an
order is given: He presented, at her command, a rose that he
gathered. 2. ready to be used; at one’s disposal: Never was his
inventive force more flexible and more at his command.
under one’s command —under smb.’s charge or control: The
editorial policy of the Daily Mail was under his total com-
mand.
at one’s fingertips • to one’s fingertips
at one’s fingertips —(of facts, information, etc.) readily avail-
able thanks to thorough knowledge (also: at one’s finger-ends):
Thanks to an excellent filing system, he has all the figures at
his fingertips.
to one’s fingertips —(also: to one’s finger-ends) completely;
thoroughly: Frank was a gentleman to his fingertips. He was
always good to meet and has a word for one and all.
at one’s risk • at risk
at one’s risk —accepting responsibility; agreeing to make no
claims: The consumer shall, at his risk, install and retain con-
trol over the equipment.
at risk —exposed to danger; subject to hazard: The initiative
aims at developing techniques for identifying individuals at
risk for heart attacks.
at one’s time of life • in one’s lifetime
at one’s time of life —at one’s age (especially middle age): If
I can’t bear a bit of pain at my time of life I’m no sports-
woman.
in one’s lifetime —for the duration of one’s life; while a per-
son is alive: In my lifetime, four things have happened to rev-
olutionize farming.
at one’s worst • at the worst
at one’s worst—said of smb. in the worst or most undesirable
state: Glennie was at her worst: still unchanged, wearing her
dirty forenoon wrapper.
at the worst—in the worst possible case: If a man played
long enough he was sure to win at last, or at the worst, not to
come off a loser.