himself

by herself and by himself 

1. with no one else present; alone. She hates to go to strange places by herself. He sat by himself at a table big enough for six people.

2. with the help of no one else. The two-year-old boy can get dressed by himself. Susan is unable to get there by herself.

Every man for himself (and the devil take the hindmost), and Devil take the hindmost

Prov. Everyone has to fight for his or her own survival. (You can use this to describe an extremely competitive situation.) At first we tried to help each other study for the exam, but soon it was every man for himself, and the devil take the hindmost. The inventors tried to collaborate, agreeing to share the profits from their invention, but they grew so suspicious of each other that each began to work separately, and devil take the hindmost. When the ship began to sink, it was every man for himself.

See also: every, man

Give someone enough rope and he'll hang himself

. Prov. If you give someone that you suspect of bad behavior the freedom to behave badly, eventually he or she will be caught and punished. Jill: I think Matilda's been stealing things out of my desk. Should I tell the boss? Jane: No; give her enough rope and she'll hang herself. One of these days she'll steal something important, the boss will find out for himself, and he'll fire her.

See also: and, enough, give, hang, rope

He who excuses himself accuses himself.

Prov. By apologizing for something, you admit that you did it. Maybe I should tell my boss I'm sorry for breaking the copy machine. On the other hand, he who excuses himself accuses himself.

See also: accuse, excuse, who

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It's every man for himself.

something that you say which means that everyone in a particular situation is trying to do what is best for themselves and no one is trying to help anyone else It might be a civilized place to shop at other times but come the January sales, it's every man for himself.

See also: every, man

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every man for himself

each person here should do what is best for themselves In the world of politics, it's every man for himself.

Usage notes: usually used with it's, as in the example

See also: every, man