spirit (redirected from in spirit)

in good spirits

Fig. happy and cheerful; positive and looking toward the future, despite unhappy circumstances. The patient is in good spirits and that will speed her recovery. Tom wasn't in very good spirits after he heard the bad news.

See also: good

spirit someone or something away (somewhere)

to sneak someone or something away to another place. The police spirited the prisoner away before the crowd assembled in front of the jail. They spirited away the celebrity.

See also: away

spirit someone or something off (to some place)

to hurry someone or something away, presumably unnoticed, to another place. Aunt Jane spirited the children off to bed at half-past eight. She spirited off the leftover roast beef.

That's the spirit!

That is the right attitude and preferred evidence of high motivation. A: I am sure I can do it! B: That's the spirit!

The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

Prov. People cannot always do what they know they ought to do.; People are not always physically capable of doing what they are willing to do. (Biblical.) Alan: Have you started the diet your doctor recommended? Fred: The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.

See also: but, flesh, weak

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a free spirit

someone who does what they want and does not feel limited by the usual rules of social behaviour His brothers describe Nick as something of a free spirit, unconventional and adventurous.

See also: free

a guiding light/spirit

someone who influences a person or group and shows them how to do something successfully She was the founder of the company, and for forty years its guiding light.

See also: guide, light

as/when the spirit moves you   (humorous)

if you do something when the spirit moves you, you only do it when you want to He'll cook now and again, when the spirit moves him.

See also: move

enter/get into the spirit of something

to show that you are happy to be at a social event by talking to a lot of people, dancing, or wearing special clothes 'Hey, I like your hat!' 'Well, I thought I'd better enter into the spirit of things.' I'm afraid I was feeling too ill to really get into the spirit of the evening.

See also: enter

the moving spirit  (literary)

someone who starts an important organization or course of action (often + behind ) Born in Nkroful, Ghana, he was the moving spirit behind the Charter of African States.

See also: moving

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(when) the spirit moves you

when you want to or feel ready to When the spirit moved her, she would work through the night. Public opinion can take a sharp turn any time the spirit moves them.

See also: move