Idioms

roaring

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be a roaring success

To be extremely or triumphantly successful. For having such a limited budget, their play turned out to be a roaring success. My business was a roaring success in the 1980s and '90s, but the advent of the Internet rendered my services obsolete. I'm worried we're going to lose funding if our research project isn't a roaring success.
See also: roaring, success

be roaring drunk

To be exceptionally drunk, boisterous, and loud. Do you remember last night at all? You were roaring drunk. Once we were all roaring drunk, we went through the town singing and dancing. Hear all that commotion? All the fools who are roaring drunk have come spilling out of the bar, so it must be 2 AM.
See also: drunk, roaring

do a roaring trade

To sell something very successfully. It's been so hot lately that we've done a roaring trade in selling cold drinks. Stores that sell shovels and rock salt always do a roaring trade after the prediction of a snowstorm. You could do a roaring trade renting umbrellas this close to the beach.
See also: roaring, trade

falling-down drunk

Severely intoxicated from alcohol, to the point of being unable to stand upright. On his 21st birthday, Jeff's friends took him to every bar in town until he was falling-down drunk. I'm not surprised you don't remember last night at the bar at all—you were pretty much falling-down drunk. Help him get home, will ya? He started drinking whiskey, and now he's falling-down drunk.
See also: drunk

rip-roaring

Particularly vigorous, exciting, exhilarating, or successful. Ziplining is a rip-roaring good time! The bake sale was a rip-roaring success.

roar at (someone or something)

1. To utter a loud, fierce, guttural cry at someone or some animal. The little boy came up and roared at me. He was pretending to be a lion, apparently. The bear roared at the mountain lion to scare it away from her cubs.
2. To issue forth a loud prolonged cry in celebration of something. The crowd roared at the news that their candidate had won the election. The group of fans roared at the mention of the famous artist's name.
3. To laugh uproariously at some humorous person or thing. The entire audience was roaring at the stand-up comic, but I just didn't think he was that funny. It makes me happy to hear my kids roar at the slapstick of The Three Stooges.
See also: roar

roar away

1. To utter a loud, fierce, guttural cry in an unrestrained manner or for some prolonged period of time. The drunk stood on the corner roaring away, obviously incensed over something to which no one but himself was privy. We can always hear the lions roaring away whenever we walk past the zoo.
2. To depart at great speed while making a huge din. Typically said of a motor vehicle or someone riding within one. She called something out to me, but I couldn't quite make it out as the train roared away. The three burglars burst through the doors of the bank, their bags of money in tow, and roared away in a getaway car that was waiting for them in the alley.
See also: away, roar

roar back

To surge into a position of success after a period of time spent performing less favorably. The team, who fell to a 30–0 disadvantage in the first 20 minutes of play, roared back in the fourth quarter The company has been roaring back into a position of superiority this year, after seeing its share of the market dwindle over the last decade.
See also: back, roar

roar off

1. Of a motor vehicle or its driver, to leave very quickly while making lots of noise from the engine. Said either of the driver or the vehicle itself. She climbed aboard the motorcycle and roared off into the night. The car had roared off before I could make note of its license plate number.
2. To depart from or off of something in such a fashion. The astronauts hit the ignition switch, and the rocket ship roared off the launch pad. The F1 racers roared off the starting line.
3. To usher someone or some group off of some area, especially for a sporting event, with raucous cheering. In this usage, a noun or pronoun can be used between "roar" and "off." The stadium positively shook as 40,000 fans roared the home team off the field after their incredible victory.
See also: off, roar

roar on

To encourage or support someone or some group of people with raucous cheering. A noun or pronoun can be used between "roar" and "on." The stadium positively shook as 40,000 fans roared on the home team as they took to the field. We were nervous about playing in front of such a large audience, but the sound of our fans roaring us on filled us with confidence.
See also: on, roar

roar out

To call or shout something in a very loud, guttural, and prolonged cry. A noun or pronoun can be used between "roar" and "out." The crowd of protestors began roaring out demands for the political prisoner to be set free. The frustrated teacher roared the answer out with anger that the students all withdrew into stunned silence.
See also: out, roar

roar with laughter

To laugh loudly and heartily. The audience roared with laughter during the hilarious skit. Be quiet! If you two keep roaring with laughter like that, you're gonna wake the baby.
See also: laughter, roar

roaring drunk

Exceptionally drunk, boisterous, and loud. Do you remember last night at all? You were roaring drunk. We all got roaring drunk and went through the town singing and dancing.
See also: drunk, roaring

Roaring Twenties

The period between 1920 and 1929, especially in the United States, in which sudden economic growth led to an uninhibited social culture characterized by music, dancing, and alcohol. Often written as the "Roaring '20s." The frenzied growth of the economy in the 1980s, coupled with the inhibitions and party culture of society during that time, has led many to draw parallels between that decade and the Roaring Twenties. I love the aesthetic of the Roaring '20s—flapper dresses, panama hats, jazz music. I just find it all so chic and romantic!
See also: roaring, Twenty
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

*drunk as a lord

 and *drunk as a skunk
very drunk. (*Also: as ~.) After his fifth cocktail, Michael was as drunk as a lord. Judy bought herself a case of beer and proceeded to get as drunk as a skunk.
See also: drunk, lord

roar away

to speed away, making a loud clamor. The car roared away into the night with tires screeching. The train roared away, carrying Andy to Canada.
See also: away, roar

roar something out

to bellow something out loudly. Walter roared his protest out so everyone knew how he felt. Jane roared out her criticism.
See also: out, roar
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

drunk as a lord

Also, drunk as a fiddler or skunk ; falling-down or roaring drunk . Extremely intoxicated, as in He came home drunk as a lord. The three similes have survived numerous others. The first was considered proverbial by the mid-1600s and presumably alludes to the fact that noblemen drank more than commoners (because they could afford to). The fiddler alludes to the practice of plying musicians with alcohol (sometimes instead of pay), whereas skunk, dating from the early 1900s, was undoubtedly chosen for the rhyme. The most graphic variant alludes to someone too drunk to keep his or her balance, as in He couldn't make it up the stairs; be was falling-down drunk. And roaring drunk, alluding to being extremely noisy as well as intoxicated, was first recorded in 1697. Also see dead drunk.
See also: drunk, lord
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

drunk as a lord (or skunk)

extremely drunk.
See also: drunk, lord

do a roaring trade (or business)

sell large amounts of something; do very good business. informal
See also: roaring, trade
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

(as) drunk as a ˈlord

(British English) (American English (as) drunk as a ˈskunk) (informal) very drunk: I eventually found them in a bar, both as drunk as skunks. OPPOSITE: (as) sober as a judge
See also: drunk, lord

do a roaring ˈtrade (in something)

(informal) sell something very quickly or do a lot of business: Toy stores do a roaring trade at this time of year.
See also: roaring, trade

ˌroaring ˈdrunk

extremely drunk and noisy: They came home roaring drunk again last night. OPPOSITE: stone-cold sober
See also: drunk, roaring

a ˌroaring sucˈcess

(informal) a very great success: The band was such a roaring success that they have been asked to stay for an extra week.His movies haven’t exactly been a roaring success, have they?
See also: roaring, success
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

roar back

v.
To have great success after a period of weak performance; make a dramatic recovery: The tennis player lost the first set but roared back to win the match.
See also: back, roar
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs. Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

falling-down drunk

1. mod. alcohol intoxicated; very drunk. Poor Fred is falling-down drunk and has no way to get home.
2. n. a drunken person who falls down. One more falling-down drunk in this neighborhood will not be anything new.
See also: drunk
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

drunk as a lord

Extremely drunk. Members of the nobility could afford to keep quantities of wine, beer, and liquor on hand, and as much out of envy as stating a fact, the common folk described anyone, titled or not, who had a load on by that phrase. In these more egalitarian times, “drunk as a skunk” and, less elegantly, “shit-faced drunk” have replaced “drunk as a lord.”
See also: drunk, lord
Endangered Phrases by Steven D. Price Copyright © 2011 by Steven D. Price
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References in periodicals archive
"No matter where you live in the Roaring Fork, we are all linked together by the threat of extreme wildfires," explained Eagle County Wildfire Mitigation Coordinator Eric Lovgren.
The life enrichment team at GreenFields had reached out to Roaring Robotics earlier this spring to see if they'd maybe like to show off their work for the residents at the retirement community.
According to the company, consolidating its carbonless paper manufacturing, rewinding and sheeting to the Roaring Spring area will help position the company for long-term success by increasing the efficiencies of its manufacturing and logistics operations.
Roaring was arrested at Zahra Store in Barangay Bukal after he claimed the amount past noon Sunday.
Lisa Dillon cuts a cool figure as cross-dressing feminist icon Moll Cutpurse, based on real-life "roaring girl" Mary Frith.
Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service chief fire officer Dan Stephens said: "Exercise Roaring Lion simulated the scale of devastation faced by emergency workers when major incidents occur.
Los Angeles, CA, February 14, 2013 --(PR.com)-- Roaring Lion energy drink is proud to announce the launch of their new line of resealable Bottles and they are marking the occasion by unveiling two new products to the public, "Au Natural" & "Zero".
The Roaring Refreshers drink program achieved all of those goals.
BANKING AND CREDIT NEWS-November 5, 2012--Monarch Bank named to 'Roaring 20' list(C)2012 M2 COMMUNICATIONS http://www.m2.com
So notorious were his exploits that he became known across the region as "Roaring
"Roaring is similar to what a baby sounds like when it cries," says speech scientist Ingo Titze, executive director of the National Center for Voice and Speech, which is administered by the University of Utah.
Global Banking News-November 8, 2011--Monarch Bank named to Roaring 20 list(C)2011 ENPublishing - http://www.enpublishing.co.uk
We came to a high plateau, tied up the horses and set out on foot, glassing meadows, creek bottoms and ridge lines, hearing more stags roaring in the distance.
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