(as) sound as a bell
(as) sound as a bell
In particularly good health or condition. I was pretty run down with the flu for a while there, but I'm sound as a bell now. A quick sanding and a fresh coat of paint will make this old chair as sound as a bell.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
*sound as a bell
in perfect condition or health; undamaged. (*Also: as ~.) The doctor says that the old man's heart's as sound as a bell. I thought the vase was broken when it fell, but it was sound as a bell.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
sound as a bell
In excellent condition, as in Now that the brakes have been relined, the car is sound as a bell, or The surgery went well and now he's sound as a bell. This simile rests on the assumption that the bell in question is not cracked (which would make it useless). First recorded in 1565, it has survived numerous other similes ( sound as a top or roach or dollar), probably owing to its pun on "sound."
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.
sound as a bell
OLD-FASHIONEDIf someone or something is as sound as a bell, they are very healthy or in very good condition. My knees aside, I'm as sound as a bell. The basic structure of the building is as sound as a bell. Note: `Sound' in this expression means whole and undamaged. A bell that has a crack in it will not ring clearly.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
(as) sound as a ˈbell
(informal) in perfect condition: There’s nothing wrong with her. She’s been examined and she’s sound as a bell.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
sound as a bell
In excellent condition. Although this simile no doubt rests on the assumption that a cracked bell is useless, it may have outlived many others—among them sound as a top, roach, dollar, and the Bank of England— because of the pun it embodies. In any event, it has been around since at least 1565, when Thomas Newton, the translator of Touchstone of Complexions, wrote, “They be people commonly healthy, and as sound as a Bell.”
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer