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

be bad form • be in bad form
be bad form —(of manners or behavior) be improper as judged
by accepted social standards: It is considered bad form to arrive
too early at a dinner party.
be in bad form —(Sport) be in bad condition of health and
training: Even when Henin is in bad form, you need to have
real smart strategy to beat her.
be beat • be beaten
be beat—(coll.)
1
. (also: be dead-beat) be very tired; be utterly
exhausted: I am beat from all this packing and moving of stuff.
2. be defeated in a competition: His team was beat because it
failed to execute properly during the most critical moments of
the game.
be beaten — = be beat 2: The moment was really amazing
because Brazil, the champion, was beaten badly.
be bent on doing something • have a bent for
something
be bent on doing something —be determined to do smth.;
have the mind set on smth.: There is always a proportion of
the crowd bent on harrying the speaker.
have a bent for something —have a natural interest and ability
in a particular area: James, who had a bent for figures, took
care of the financial end of the business.
be beside the mark • be off the mark
be beside the mark— be not relevant to the subject under
discussion: We were discussing working conditions; his re-
marks about high rents were beside the mark.
be off the mark —
1
. (also: be wide of the mark) be inaccurate
or erroneous in one’s judgment: Sometimes he was off the
mark. A lot of times he was just misunderstood. 2. starting
smth. in response to a situation: The dog-breeder and poultry
farmer were quick off the mark in using the new therapy.
Note: 
Neither expression correlates in meaning with the phrase
fall short of the mark
—(also: come short of the mark) fail to
attain some desired object: Gilbert’s efforts to amuse her often
fell short of the mark.