have a case on (someone)

have a case on (someone)

To have a romantic infatuation with someone, especially unbeknownst to that person. I've had a case on Tommy for years. Why are you always looking at Steph's SpaceBook page? Wait, do you have a case on her? So I have a case on her, so what? It's not like she'd ever be interested in a geek like me.

See also: case, have, on

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

have a case on

Also, have a crush on. Be infatuated with someone, as in He's had a case on her for years, or Teenage girls often have a crush on this teacher. The first slangy term dates from the mid-1800s; the second, a colloquialism, dates from the late 1800s.

See also: case, have, on

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.