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[no sooner --- than] As soon as; at once when; immediately when. * /No sooner did he signal to turn than the other car turned in front of him./ * /No sooner were the picnic baskets unpacked than it began to rain./

[no spring chicken] <n. phr.> A person who is no longer young. * /Even though she is no spring chicken anymore, men still turn their heads to look at her./

[no sweat(1)] <adj.>, <slang>, <informal> Easily accomplished, uncomplicated. * /That job was no sweat./

[no sweat(2)] <adv.> Easily. * /We did it no sweat./

[not a few] See: QUITE A FEW.

[not a leg to stand on] <n. phr.>, <informal> No good proof or excuse; no good evidence or defense to offer. * /The man with a gun and $300 in his pocket was accused of robbing an oil station. He did not have a leg to stand on./

[not a little] See: QUITE A LITTLE.

[not all there] <adj. phr.> Not completely alert mentally; absentminded; not together. * /Bill is a wonderful guy but he is just not all there./

[not at all] See: AT ALL.

[not bad] or [not so bad] or [not half bad] <adj.>, <informal> Pretty good; all right; good enough. * /The party last night was not bad./ * /It was not so bad, as inexpensive vacations go./ * /The show was not half bad./

[not by a long shot] See: BY A LONG SHOT.

[not by any means] See: BY NO MEANS.

[notch] See: TIGHTEN ONE'S BELT.

[note] See: COMPARE NOTES, TAKE NOTE OF.

[not for all the coffee in Brazil] or [not for all the tea in China] or [not for anything in the world ] or [not for love or money] See: NOT FOR THE WORLD.

[not for the world] or [not for worlds] <adv. phr.> Not at any price; not for anything. * /I wouldn't hurt his feelings for the world./ * /Not for worlds would he let his children go hungry./

[not half bad] See: NOT BAD.

[not have anything on] See: HAVE NOTHING ON.

[not have the heart to] <v. phr.> To not be insensitive or cruel. * /My boss did not have the heart to lay off two pregnant women when they most needed their jobs./

[nothing] See: GO FOR NOTHING, HAVE NOTHING ON, HERE GOES NOTHING, IN NO TIME or IN NOTHING FLAT, NOT TO MENTION or TO SAY NOTHING OF.

[nothing doing] <adv. phr.>, <informal> I will not do it; certainly not; no indeed; no. * /"Will you lend me a dollar?" "Nothing doing!"/ * /"Let's go for a boat ride!" "Nothing doing!"/ Compare: NO DEAL.

[nothing if not] <adv. phr.> Without doubt; certainly. * /With its bright furnishings, flowers, and sunny windows, the new hospital dayroom is nothing if not cheerful./

[nothing like] See: ANYTHING LIKE.

[nothing of the kind] <adv. phr.> On the contrary. * /"Did you quit your job?" he asked. "No, I did nothing of the kind," she answered./

[nothing short of] <adv. phr.> Absolutely; thoroughly; completely. * /Olivier's performance in Hamlet was nothing short of magnificent./

[nothing succeeds like success] Success in one thing makes success in other things easier; people like a successful person. - A proverb. * /The girls all like Bob because he is football captain. Nothing succeeds like success./

[nothing to it] <adj. phr.> Presenting no serious challenge; easily accomplished. * /Once you learn how to tread water, swimming is really easy; there is nothing to it./ Compare: EASY AS APPLE PIE, A CINCH, A PIECE OF CAKE.

[nothing to sneeze at] See: SNEEZE AT.

[notice] See: SIT UP AND TAKE NOTICE, TAKE NOTE OF or TAKE NOTICE OF.

[not in the least] <adv. phr.> Not at all. * /She was not in the least interested in listening to a long lecture on ethics./

[notion] See: HALF A MIND also HALF A NOTION, TAKE INTO ONE'S HEAD or TAKE A NOTION.

[not know which way to turn] or [not know which way to jump] <v. phr> To be puzzled about getting out of a difficulty; not know what to do to get out of trouble. * /When Jane missed the last bus home, she didn't know which way to turn./ * /After Mr. Brown died, Mrs. Brown had no money to pay the bills. When the landlord told her to pay the rent or move out, she didn't know which way to jump./

[not let any grass grow under one's feet] See: LET GRASS GROW UNDER ONE'S FEET.

[not one's cup of tea] See: CUP OF TEA.

[not one's scene] See: CUP OF TEA.

[not on your life] <adv. phr.>, <informal> Certainly not; not ever; not for any reason. - Used for emphasis. * /I wouldn't drive a car with brakes like that - not on your life./ * /Did he thank me for my advice? Not on your life./

[not see beyond one's nose] See: SEE BEYOND ONE'S NOSE.

[not so bad] See: NOT BAD.

[not so hot] or [not too hot] <adj. phr.> Ineffective; not very good. * /His plans to rebuild the house in a hurry obviously weren't so hot./

[not the only fish in the sea] <n. phr.> One of many; not the only one of the kind; not the only one available. * /He said he could find other girls - she was not the only fish in the sea./ Compare: NOT THE ONLY PEBBLE ON THE BEACH.

[not the only pebble on the beach] <n. phr.> Not the only person to be considered; one of many. * /George was acting pretty self-important and we finally had to tell him that he wasn't the only pebble on the beach./ Compare: NOT THE ONLY FISH IN THE SEA.

[not the thing] <n. phr.> Not the accepted form of action; something socially improper. * /It is simply not the thing to wear blue jeans to the opera./

[not to get to first base] <v. phr.> To fail to make initial progress; have no success at all. * /I tried various ways to make Mary interested in me as a potential husband, but I couldn 't even get to first base./

[not to give one the time of day] <v. phr.>, <slang>, <informal> To dislike someone strongly enough so as to totally ignore him. * /Sue wouldn't give Helen the time of day./

[not to give quarter] <v. phr.> 1. To be utterly unwilling to show mercy; not to allow a weaker or defeated party the chance to save themselves through escape. * /The occupying foreign army gave no quarter - they took no prisoners, shot everyone, and made escape impossible./ 2. To argue so forcefully during a negotiation or in a court of law as to make any counter-argument or counter-proposal impossible. * /The District Attorney hammered away at the witnesses and gave no quarter to the attorney for the defense./

[not to know one from Adam] <v. phr.> To not know a person; be unable to recognize someone. * /I have no idea who that guy is that Jane just walked in with; I don't know him from Adam./

[not to know the first thing about] <v. phr.> To be totally ignorant about a certain issue. * /Al assured us that he didn't know the first thing about Mary's whereabouts./

[not to know what to make of] <v. phr.> To be unable to decipher; be unable to identify; not know how to decide what something really is. * /I got a mysterious letter asking me to meet Santa Claus at 6 P.M. at the supermarket. Is this a joke? I don't know what to make of it./

[not to know whether one is coming or going] <v. phr.> To be completely confused. * /He was so perplexed he didn't know whether he was coming or going./ Compare: AT SEA(2).

[not to lift a finger] <v. phr.> To not help in the slightest degree. * /"My husband won't lift a finger to help me," she complained, "although we have 12 people coming for dinner."/

[not to mention] or [not to speak of] or [to say nothing of] Without ever needing to speak of; in addition to; besides. - Used to add something to what you have said or explained. * /Dave is handsome and smart not to mention being a good athlete./ * /They have three fine sons, not to speak of their two lovely daughters./ * /Sally takes singing and dancing lessons to say nothing of swimming and tennis lessons./ Compare: LET ALONE, TO SPEAK OF.

[not to speak of] See: NOT TO MENTION.

[not to touch (something) with a ten-foot pole] <v. phr.> To consider something completely undesirable or uninteresting. * /Some people won't touch spinach with a ten-foot pole./ * /Kids who wouldn't touch an encyclopedia with a ten-foot pole love to find information with this computer program./

[not worth a dime] See: NOT WORTH A TINKER'S DAMN.

[not worth a hill of beans] See: NOT WORTH A TINKER'S DAMN.

[not worth a red cent] See: NOT WORTH A TINKER'S DAMN.

[not worth a tinker's damn] or not [worth a tinker's dam] <adj. phr.>, <informal> Not worth anything; valueless. * /As a bricklayer he was not worth a tinker's damn./ * /I am not familiar with the subject so my opinion would not be worth a tinker's dam./

[no two ways about it] <n. phr.> No other choice; no alternative. * /The boss said there were no two ways about it; we would all have to work late to finish the job./

[no use] <n.> 1. No purpose; no object; no gain. * /There's no use in crying about your broken bicycle./ * /Bob said, "Let's try again." Dick answered, "It's no use."/ 2. Bad opinion; no respect; no liking. - Usually used after "have". * /He had no use for dogs after a dog bit him./ * /Jimmy had no use for arithmetic because it was hard for him./

[no use crying over spilled milk] or [no use crying over spilt milk] See: CRY OVER SPILLED MILK.

[now] See: EVERY NOW AND THEN or EVERY NOW AND AGAIN, HERE AND NOW, JUST NOW.

[now and then] or [now and again] <adv. phr.> Not often; not regularly; occasionally; sometimes. * /Now and then he goes to a ball game./ * /The maid broke a dish now and then./ Syn.: AT TIMES, FROM TIME TO TIME, ONCE IN A WHILE. Compare: EVERY NOW AND THEN, OFF AND ON.

[nowhere] See: OUT OF NOWHERE.

[nowhere near] See: ANYTHING LIKE.

[now --- now] <coord. adv.> Sometimes... sometimes; by turns; at one time... then at another. - Often used with adjectives that are very different or opposite, especially to show change. * /The weather changed every day; it was now hot, now cool./ * /The band played different songs, now fast, now slow; now soft, now loud./ * /Billy ran so quickly he seemed to be all over the field; he was now here and now there./

[no way] <adv.> Not at all; never; under no circumstances. * /Do you think I will do the house chores alone? No way!/

[no wonder] also [small wonder] <adj.> Not surprising; to be expected. * /It is no wonder that the children love to visit the farm./ * /The Browns didn't go to the fair. Small wonder - they dislike large noisy crowds./

[now or never] <adv. phr.> Exclusively at the present time. * /Mike said, "Now that Paul has resigned, there is a perfect place for you. It is now or never!"/

[now that] <conj.> Since; because; now. * /Now that dinner is ready, wash your hands./ * /You came early, but now that you're here, take off your coat./ Syn.: INASMUCH AS.

[nth] See: TO THE NTH DEGREE.

[nuisance] See: PUBLIC NUISANCE.

[nuke] <v.> To fix any meal in a microwave oven. * /When we are in a hurry, we nuke some beef./

[nuke a tater] <v. phr.> 1. To bake a potato in a microwave oven. * /"We have no time for standard baked potatoes in the oven," she said. "We'll just have to nuke a tater."/

[null and void] <adj.> Not worth anything; no longer valid. * /Both the seller and the buyer agreed to forget about their previous contract and to consider it null and void./

[number] See: A NUMBER, ANY NUMBER, DAYS ARE NUMBERED, GET ONE'S NUMBER, HOT NUMBER, QUITE A FEW or QUITE A NUMBER.

[number among] <v. phr.> Consider as one of; consider to be a part of. * /I number Al among my best friends./

[number one(1)] or [Number One(1)] <n. phr.>, <informal> Yourself; your own interests; your private or selfish advantage. Usually used in the phrase "look out for number one". * /He was well known for his habit of always looking out for number one./

[number one(2)] <adj. phr.> 1. Of first rank or importance; foremost; principal. * /He is easily America's number one golfer./ 2. Of first grade; of top quality; best. * /That is number one western steer beef./

[nurse] See: VISITING NURSE.

[nurse a drink] <v. phr.>, <informal> To hold a drink in one's hand at a party, pretending to be drinking it or taking extremely small sips only. * /John's been nursing that drink all evening./

[nurse a grudge] <v. phr.> To keep a feeling of envy or dislike toward some person; remember something bad that a person said or did to you, and dislike the person because of that. * /Torn nursed a grudge against John because John took his place on the basketball team./ * /Mary nursed a grudge against her teacher because she thought she deserved a better grade in English./

[nursing home] See: CONVALESCENT HOME.

[nut] See: HARD NUT TO CRACK or TOUGH NUT TO CRACK.

[nut case] <n. phr.> A very silly, crazy, or foolish person. * /I am going to be a nut case if I don't go on a vacation pretty soon./

[nuts about] See: CRAZY ABOUT.

[nuts and bolts of] <n. phr.> The basic facts or important details of something. * /"Ted will he an excellent trader," his millionaire grandfather said, "once he learns the nuts and bolts of the profession."/

[nutshell] See: IN A NUTSHELL.

[nutty as a fruitcake] <adj. phr.>, <slang> Very crazy; entirely mad. * /He looked all right, as we watched him approach, but when he began to talk, we saw that he was as nutty as a fruitcake./

O

[oak] See: GREAT OAKS FROM LITTLE ACORNS GROW.

[oars] See: REST ON ONE'S OARS.

[oath] See: TAKE OATH.

[oats] See: FEEL ONE'S OATS, SOW ONE'S WILD OATS.

[obey the call of nature] See: ANSWER THE CALL OF NATURE.

[occasion] See: ON OCCASION.

[occupy oneself] <v. phr.> To make oneself busy with. * /Having retired from business, he now occupies himself with his stamp collection./

[oddball] <n.>, <slang>, <informal> An eccentric person; one who doesn't act like everyone else. * /John is an oddball - he never invites anyone./

[odd jobs] <n. phr.> Work that is not steady or regular in nature; small, isolated tasks. * /Dan does odd jobs for his neighbors, barely making enough to eat./

[odds] See: BY ALL ODDS.

[odds and ends] <n. phr.> Miscellaneous items; remnants. * /After the great annual clearance sale there were only a few odds and ends left in the store./

[odds are against] <v. phr.> The likelihood of success is not probable; the chances of success are poor. * /The odds are against her getting here before Monday./

[odds-on] <adj.>, <informal> Almost certain; almost sure; probable. * /Ed is the odds-on choice for class president, because he has good sense and good humor./

[of age] <adj. phr.> 1a. Old enough to be allowed to do or manage something. * /Mary will be of driving age on her next birthday./ Contrast: OVER AGE, UNDER AGE. 1b. Old enough to vote; having the privileges of adulthood. * /The age at which one is considered of age to vote, or of age to buy alcoholic drinks, or of age to be prosecuted as an adult, varies within the United States./ 2. Fully developed; mature. * /Education for the foreign born came of age when bilingual education was accepted as a necessary part of the public school system./