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[what's the big idea] or [what's the idea] What is the purpose; what do you have in mind; why did you do that; what are you doing; how dare you. - Often used to question someone or something that is not welcome. * /The Smith family painted their house red, white, and blue. What's the big idea?/ * /What's the idea of coming in here after I told you not to?/ * /I heard you are spreading false rumors about me, what's the big idea?/

[what's the idea] See: WHAT'S THE BIG IDEA.

[what's up] or [what's cooking] also [what's doing] What is happening or planned; what is wrong. - Often used as a greeting. * /"What's up?" asked Bob as he joined his friends. "Are you going to the movies?"/ * /What's cooking? Why is the crowd in the street?/ * /What's doing tonight at the club?/ * /Hello Bob, what's up?/ Compare: WHAT'S WITH.

[what's what] or [what is what] , 1. What each thing is in a group; one thing from another. * /The weeds and the flowers are coming up together, and we can't tell what is what./ 2. All that needs to be known about something; the important facts or skills. * /Richard did the wrong thing, because he is new here and doesn't yet know what's what./ * /When Bob started his new job, it took him several weeks to learn what was what./ * /When it comes to cooking, Jenny knows what's what./ * /Harold began to tell the teacher how to teach the class, and the teacher told him what was what./ Compare: WHICH IS WHICH, WHO'S WHO.

[what's with] or [what's up with] also [what's by] What is happening to; what is wrong; how is everything; what can you tell me about. * /Mary looks worried. What's with her?/ * /What's with our old friends?/ * /I'm fine. What's with you?/

[what with] Because; as a result of. * /I couldn't visit you, what with the snowstorm and the cold I had./ * /What with dishes to wash and children to put to bed, mother was late to the meeting./ Compare: ON ACCOUNT OF.

[wheel] See: BIG CHEESE or BIG WHEEL, GREASE THE WHEELS, PUT ONE'S SHOULDER TO THE WHEEL.

[wheel and deal] , To make many big plans or schemes; especially with important people in government and business; in matters of money and influence; handle money or power for your own advantage; plan important matters in a smart or skillful way and sometimes in a tricky, or not strictly honest way. * /Mr. Smith made a fortune by wheeling and dealing on the stock market./ * /The senator got this law passed by wheeling and dealing in Congress./ [wheeler-dealer] , A person with power and control. * /The biggest wheeler-dealer in the state has many friends in high places in business and government and is a rich man himself./

[wheelhorse] A reliable and industrious worker on whom one may depend. * /Jake is such a good worker that he is the wheelhorse of our tiny firm./

[when hell freezes over] , Never. * /I'll believe you when hell freezes over./ Contrast: UNTIL HELL FREEZES OVER.

[when it comes to] See: COME TO(4).

[when one's ship comes in] See: SHIP COME IN.

[when push comes to shove] A time when a touchy situation becomes actively hostile or a quarrel turns into a fight. * /Can we count on the boss' goodwill, when push comes to shove?/

[when the chips are down] , When the winner and loser of a bet or a game are decided; at the most important or dangerous time. * /Tom hit a home run in the last inning of the game when the chips were down./ * /When the chips were down, the two countries decided not to have war./ (From the fact that in gambling games, a person puts chips or money down in front of him to show that he is willing to risk an amount in a bet.)

[where] See: TELL ONE WHERE TO GET OFF or TELL ONE WHERE TO HEAD IN.

[wherefore] See: WHY AND WHEREFORE.

[where it's at] , That which is important; that which is at the forefront of on-going social, personal, or scientific undertakings. * /Young, talented and black, that's where it's at./ * /We send sophisticated machines to Mars instead of people, that's where it's at./

[where the shoe pinches] , Where or what the discomfort or trouble is. * /Johnny thinks the job is easy, but he will find out where the shoe pinches when he tries it./ * /The coach said he wasn't worried about any position except quarterback; that was where the shoe pinched./

[whether one is coming or going] See: KNOW IF ONE IS COMING OR GOING.

[whether --- or] or [whether --- or whether[] 1. Used to introduce an indirect question. * /You must decide whether you should go or stay./ * /I don't know whether Jack or Bill is a better player./ Compare: EITHER --- OR(2). Used to show a choice of things, or that different things are possible. * /Whether the bicycle was blue or red, it didn't matter to Frank./

[which] See: GAME AT WHICH TWO CAN PLAY.

[which is which] Which is one person or thing and which is the other; one from another; what the difference is between different ones; what the name of each one is. * /Joe's coat and mine are so nearly alike that I can't tell which is which./ * /Mr. Hadley hadn't seen his friend's daughters in such a long time that he couldn't remember which was which./ Compare: WHAT'S WHAT, WHO'S WHO.

[which was which] See: WHICH is WHICH.

[while] See: AFTER A WHILE or IN A WHILE, ALL THE TIME(1), EVERY NOW AND THEN or EVERY ONCE IN A WHILE, ONCE IN A WHILE.

[while ago] At a time several minutes in the past; a few minutes ago; a short time ago. - Used with "a". * /I laid mv glasses on this table a while ago; and now they're gone./ * /A while ago, Mary was tired and wanted to go home; now she's dancing with Bob as if she could dance all night./ Compare: JUST NOW(2).

[while away] To make time go by pleasantly or without being bored; pass or spend. * /We whiled away the time that we were waiting by talking and playing cards./ * /We whiled away the summer swimming and fishing./

[while back] At a time several weeks or months in the past. - Used with "a". * /We had a good rain a while back, but we need more now./ * /Grandfather is well now, but a while back he was in the hospital for three weeks./ See: CRACK THE WHIP.

[whip hand] See: UPPER HAND.

[whipping boy] The person who gets punished for someone else's mistake. * /"I used to be the whipping boy during my early days at the company," he musingly remembered./

[whip up] , 1. To make or do quickly or easily. * /Mary whipped up a lunch for the picnic./ * /The reporter whipped up a story about the fire for his paper./ 2. To make active; stir to action; excite. * /The girls are trying to whip up interest for a dance Saturday night./ Compare: STIR UP, WHOOP IT UP(2).

[whispering campaign] The spreading of false rumors, or saying bad things, about a person or group, especially in politics or public life. * /A bad man has started a whispering campaign against the mayor, saying that he isn't honest./

[whistle] See: BLOW THE WHISTLE ON, WET ONE'S WHISTLE.

[whistle a different tune] See: SING A DIFFERENT TUNE.

[whistle for] , To try to get (something) but fail; look for (something) that will not come. * /Mary didn't even thank us for helping her, so the next time she needs help she can whistle for it./

[whistle in the dark] , To try to stay brave and forget your fear. * /Tom said he could fight the bully with one hand, but we knew that he was just whistling in the dark./ (From the fact that people sometimes whistle when walking in a dark, scary place to keep up their courage.)

[whistle-stop] A small town where the trains only stop on a special signal. * /President Truman made excellent use of the whistle-stop during his 1948 campaign for the presidency./

[white] See: BLACK AND WHITE, IN BLACK AND WHITE.

[white around the gills] See: GREEN AROUND THE GILLS.

[white-collar workers] Workers employed in offices and at desks as opposed to those who work as manual workers; the middle class. * /It is a well-known fact that white-collar workers are less well organized than unionized manual workers./ Contrast BLUE-COLLAR WORKERS.

[white elephant] Unwanted property, such as real estate, that is hard to sell. * /That big house of theirs on the corner sure is a white elephant./

[white lie] An innocent social excuse. * /I am too busy to go to their house for dinner tonight. I will call them and tell a little white lie about having the flu./

[white sale] The selling, especially at lower prices, of goods or clothing usually made of white cloth. * /Mother always buys many things at the January white sale to save money./

[whitewash] , A soothing official report that attempts to tranquilize the public. * /Some people believe that the Warren Commission's report on the Kennedy assassination was a whitewash./

[whitewash something] , To explain a major, national scandal in soothing official terms so as to assure the public that things are under control and there is no need to panic. * /Many people in the United States believe that President Kennedy's assassination was whitewashed by the Warren Commission./ See: WHITEWASH.

[whiz] See: GEE WHIZ.

[who] See: SAYS WHO.

[whodunit] A detective story; a murder story; a thriller. * /Agatha Christie was a true master of the whodunit./

[who is who] See: WHO'S WHO.

[who laughs last laughs best] See: HE LAUGHS BEST WHO LAUGHS LAST.

[whole] See: ALL THE WAY or THE WHOLE WAY, GO THE WHOLE HOG, ON THE WHOLE, WITH A WHOLE SKIN or IN A WHOLE SKIN.

[whole cheese] or [whole show] , The only important person; big boss. * /Joe thought he was the whole cheese in the game because he owned the ball./ * /You're not the whole show just because you got all A's./ Compare: BIG CHEESE.

[whole hog] See: GO THE WHOLE HOG.

[whole lot] See: A LOT.

[whole show] See: WHOLE CHEESE.

[whoop it up] , 1. To make a loud noise; have a noisy celebration; enjoy yourself noisily. * /The team whooped it up after winning the game./ 2. To praise something enthusiastically; encourage enthusiasm or support. - Often used with "for". * /Father wanted to go to the country, but the children whooped it up for the beach./

[who's who] or [who is who] 1. Who this one is and who that one is; who the different ones in a group of people are or what their names or positions are. * /It is hard to tell who is who in the parade because everyone in the band looks alike./ * /It took the new teacher a few days to remember who was who in the class./ Compare: WHICH IS WHICH. 2. Who the important people are. * /John didn't recognize the champion on television. He doesn't know who is who in boxing./ * /After about a year, Mr. Thompson had lived in this town long enough to know who was who./ Compare: WHAT'S WHAT.

[why and wherefore] The answer to a question or problem. Usually used in the plural. * /Father told him not to always ask the whys and wherefores when he was told to do something./

[wide] See: FAR AND WIDE, GIVE A WIDE BERTH.

[wide-eyed] See: ROUND-EYED.

[wide of the mark] or 1. Far from the target or the thing aimed at. * /James threw a stone at the cat but it went wide of the mark./ 2. Far from the truth; incorrect. * /You were wide of the mark when you said I did it, because Bill did it./ Contrast: HIT THE BULL'S-EYE, HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD.

[widow] See: GOLF WIDOW.

[wiener roast] or [hot dog roast] A party where frankfurters are cooked and eaten over an outdoor fire. * /For his birthday party, John had a wiener roast in his backyard./ * /Mary's Girl Scout troop had a hot dog roast on their overnight hike./

[wig] See: BIG CHEESE or BIG WIG.

[wild] See: RUN WILD, SOW ONE'S WILD OATS.

[wildcat strike] , A strike not ordered by a labor union; a strike spontaneously arranged by a group of workers. * /The garbage collectors have gone on a wildcat strike, but the union is going to stop it./

[wild goose chase] An absurd and completely futile errand. * /I was on a wild goose chase when I was sent to find a man who never really existed./