her

Could I tell him who's calling? and Can I tell her who's calling?; May I tell him who's calling?

a question asked by people who answer the telephone to find out politely who is asking for someone. (Him or her can be replaced by a person's name or by a plural pronoun.) Mary (on the phone): Hello. Could I speak to Bill Franklin? Sally: Could I tell him who's calling? Mary: It's Mary Peters. Sally: Oh yes, he's expecting your call. I'll get him for you.

See also: could, him, tell

Give it the gun. and Give her the gun.

Fig. to make a motor or engine run faster; to rev up an engine. (The her is often pronounced "er.") Bill: How fast will this thing go? Bob: I'll give it the gun and see. Hurry up, driver. Give 'er the gun. I've got to get there immediately.

See also: give, gun

give the devil his due and give the devil her due

Fig. to give your foe proper credit (for something). (This usually refers to a person who has been evil-like the devil.) She's very messy in the kitchen, but I have to give the devil her due. She bakes a terrific cherry pie. John is a bit too nosy, but he keeps his yard clean and is a kind neighbor. I'll give the devil his due.

See also: devil, due, give, his

Let her rip! and Let it roll!

Inf. Let it go!; Let it start! Time to start. Let her rip! There's the signal! Let it roll!

See also: let

what's his face and what's his name

Sl. someone whose name has been forgotten; someone whose name is being avoided. Was what's his name there? I never can remember his name. I can't remember what's his face's name either.

See also: face, his

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a man of his word  also a woman of her word

someone you can trust because you know they will do what they say they will do Rae was a woman of her word - if she said she'd be here on Friday, she'd be here on Friday.

See also: his, man, word

get her claws into somebody   (informal)

if a woman gets her claws into a man, she manages to start a relationship with him, often because she wants to control him or get something from him If she gets her claws into that young man she'll ruin his political career.

See also: claw, get

God rest her/his soul.  (old-fashioned)

something that you say when you are talking about someone who is dead, to show that you respect them My old father - God rest his soul - now he could drink a pint or two.

See play God, think are God's gift to women, God help

See also: god, rest, soul

he/she doesn't have a [jealous, mean, unkind etc.] bone in his/her body

something that you say in order to emphasize that someone is not jealous, mean, unkind etc. He'd never deliberately hurt someone's feelings - he doesn't have a mean bone in his body.

See be cut to the bone, chill to the bone, be chilled to the bone

See also: body, bone, have, his

I can't put a name to her/him.

something that you say when you cannot remember someone's name I can picture his face exactly but I can't put a name to him.

See also: name, put

in his/her/their (infinite) wisdom  (humorous)

something that you say when you do not understand why someone has done something and think that it was a stupid action The council, in their wisdom, decided to close the library and now the building stands empty.

See also: his, wisdom

what's his/her face  (informal)

a way of talking about someone whose name you have forgotten Have you seen the new Bond film with Pierce Brosnan and what's her face, that model?

See fly in the face of, laugh in face, look in the face, lose face, save face, set face against, show face, stuff face, throw back in face, Shut face!, be staring in the face, have a face like thunder

See also: face, his

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a man of his word

a man who tells the truth and keeps promises He's always been a man of his word, that I must say.

See also: his, man, word

let it rip also let her rip

1. to make a vehicle or machine move very fast He would get up early Sunday mornings, fire up the lawnmower, and let her rip.

Usage notes: the pronoun her is often used to refer to a machine

2. to do something with energy and enthusiasm Hendrix would walk into a recording studio, turn on his amp, and let it rip while the tape recorder rolled.

See also: let, rip

what's his face (spoken) also what's her face

a person whose name is forgotten or not known They were thinking about hiring what's his face, the guy with the yellow shirt.

See also: face, his