whole (redirected from in the whole wide world)

go the whole hog (British, American & Australian, American)

to do something as completely as possible. It was going to cost so much to repair my computer, I thought I might as well go the whole hog and buy a new one. I went whole hog and had a huge steak and French fries.

See also: hog

go the whole nine yards (American, informal)

to continue doing something dangerous or difficult until it is finished. The weather was terrible but I wanted to go the whole nine yards and get to the top of the mountain.

See also: nine, yard

make something up out of whole cloth (American, American)

if a story or excuse is made up out of whole cloth, it is not true. Yet the explanation was too strange for Joan to have made up out of whole cloth.

See also: cloth

the whole ball of wax (American, informal)

the whole of something, including everything that is connected with it. She started working on the project in '96 and within six months was running the whole ball of wax.

See also: ball, wax

the whole bit (American, informal)

the whole of something, including everything that is connected with it. And what a night it was - moonlight, wine, good food, soft music - the whole bit.

See also: bit

the whole (kit and) caboodle (informal)

the whole of something, including everything that is connected with it. I like everything about Christmas - the presents, the food, the carols - the whole caboodle.

See also: caboodle

the whole enchilada (informal)

the whole of something, including everything that is connected with it. We had the flowers, the speeches, the presents - the whole enchilada.

a whole new ball game

a completely different situation, often one which is difficult or which you know very little about. We'd done a lot of climbing in Scotland, but the Himalayas were a whole new ball game.

See also: ball, game, new

the whole nine yards (American, informal)

the whole of something, including everything that is connected with it. When I eat Mexican food, I like to have fajitas, bean dip, guacamole - the whole nine yards.

See also: nine, yard

the whole picture

the most important facts about a situation and the effects of that situation on other things. You're just taking into account Melissa's views of the situation but of course that's not the whole picture.

See also: picture

the whole shebang (informal)

the whole of something, including everything that is connected with it. The party's next week but my parents are organizing the whole shebang.

the whole shooting match (informal)

the whole of something, including everything that is connected with it. There are four projects at present and Gerry's in charge of the whole shooting match.

See also: match, shoot

your whole world came crashing down around you

if your whole world comes crashing down around you, something unpleasant happens in your life that suddenly makes you feel very upset or confused. Suddenly they weren't popular any more, nobody wanted to buy their records, and their whole world came crashing down around them. When I found out he'd had an affair, my whole world turned upside down.

See also: around, came, down, world

the (whole) works (informal)

everything that you might want or might expect to find in a particular situation. The bridegroom was wearing a morning suit, top hat, gloves - the works.

See also: work

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as a whole

considering all parts together. Unemployment here is much higher than for the country as a whole.

go whole hog

to do something as completely as possible. We decided the only way we could afford vacations is to go camping, so we went whole hog and got the tents and sleeping bags and everything else.

See also: hog

on the whole

in important ways. On the whole, I think my dinner party was a success.

(made up) out of whole cloth

to be completely invented. The whole article was a fairy tale, made up out of whole cloth.

See also: cloth

the whole ball of wax

everything. She started working on the project in 1999, and within six months she was responsible for the whole ball of wax.

the whole bit

See also: ball, wax

the whole bit

all of something, including everything connected with it. When I have a meeting I wear a suit and tie and the whole bit, but otherwise, it's old jeans and a T-shirt.

the whole ball of wax

See also: bit

the whole caboodleSee: the whole kit and caboodle

See also: caboodle

the whole kaboodleSee: the whole kit and caboodle

the whole kit and caboodle

everything. We had to pack up the whole kit and caboodle before the movers arrived.

Usage notes: also used in the shorter forms the whole kit or the whole caboodle, and sometimes spelled kaboodle

See also: caboodle, kit

the whole nine yards

all of something, including everything connected with it. When you join the gym, they show you all the equipment, tell you how to use it, the whole nine yards. They rushed him to the emergency room with lights flashing, sirens wailing, a police escort, the whole nine yards.

Usage notes: often used in the phrase go the whole nine yards: So we moved to the suburbs and went the whole nine yards — we had two cars, a pool in the back yard, even cookouts in the backyard.Edited & trf from nine; 19.7 spoken corpus; very high percentage justifies label--SL, 8/02 / 9/02 -cb

See also: nine, yard

the whole pictureSee at: get the picture

See also: picture

the whole shebang

all of something, including everything connected with it. We've got offices all over the world, and we're tying the whole shebang together with a high-speed computer network. Anderson has explored the black experience in America's intellectual, cultural, and political life — the whole shebang.