thread (redirected from hangs by a thread)

common thread (to all this)

Fig. a similar idea or pattern to a series of events. All of these incidents are related. There is a common thread to all this.

See also: common

hang by a hair and hang by a thread 

1. Lit. to hang by something very thin, such as a thread or a hair. The tiniest part of the mobile hung by a thread, the rest are on plastic cords.

2. and hang on by a hair; hang on by a thread Fig. to depend on something very insubstantial; to hang in the balance. Your whole argument is hanging by a thread. John isn't failing geometry, but his passing grade is just hanging by a hair.

See also: hair, hang

thread one's way through something

Fig. to make a path for oneself through a crowded area; to make one's way carefully through a crowded area. The spy threaded his way through the crowd. The bicyclists threaded their way through the cars stopped in traffic.

See also: through, way

thread through something

Fig. to travel through a crowded area; to move carefully through an area where there are many obstacles. The spy threaded through the crowd at the palace. The joggers threaded through the shoppers on the sidewalks.

See also: through

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hang by a thread

if something hangs by a thread, it is likely to fail in the near future Peace and democracy hang by a thread in this troubled country.

See also: hang

lose the thread

to stop understanding something someone says or something you are reading because it is too complicated or because you cannot concentrate When he started quoting Martin Luther King, I completely lost the thread of his argument.

See also: lose

pick up the threads of something

to try to start something again, especially after problems prevented you from continuing it In '97, I came out of prison and tried to pick up the threads of my life.

See also: pick, up

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hang by a thread

to be in danger of having something unlucky or bad happen Roberta was told that her job hung by a thread, and she needed to be more serious about it. For several days after the accident, his life hung by a thread.

See also: hang

lose the thread (of something)

to not be able to understand what someone is saying because you are not giving it all your attention Jeb wasn't listening at all and lost the thread of what his father was saying.

See also: lose