[two-faced]{adj.} Insincere; disloyal; deceitful. •/Don’t confide too much in him as he has the reputation of being two-faced./ Compare: SPEAK WITH A FORKED TONGUE.
[two’s company; three’s a crowd] An informal way to express a situation when two people desire privacy and a third one is present. — A proverb. •/Beth and Carl wanted to be alone so when Maggie joined them they said, "Two’s company; three’s a crowd."/
[two strikes against one]{n. phr.}-From baseball. Two opportunities wasted in some undertaking, so that only one chance is left. •/Poor John has two strikes against him when it comes to his love for Frances: first, he is too fat, and, second, he is bald./
[two-time]{v.}, {slang} To go out with a second boy or girlfriend and keep it a secret from the first. •/Joan was two-timing Jim with Fred./ •/Mary cried when she found that Joe was two-timing her./ Compare: DOUBLE-CROSS.
[two to one] See: TEN TO ONE.
[two ways about it] See: NO TWO WAYS ABOUT IT.
[U.F.O.]{n. phr.} Unidentified Flying Object. •/Some people think that the U.F.O.s are extraterrestrial beings of higher than human development who pay periodic visits to Earth to warn us of our self-destructive tendencies./
[ugly duckling]{n.} An ugly or plain child who grows up to be pretty and attractive. •/Mary was the ugly duckling in her family, until she grew up./
[uh-huh] or [um-hum] {adv.}, {informal} Yes. — Used only in speech or when recording dialogue. •/Are you going to the Fair? Uh-huh./ •/We were in Alaska, um-hum, but that was long before the earthquakes./ •/When I asked for an appointment, the nurse said, "Um-hum, I have an opening at four o’clock on Friday."/ Contrast: HUH-UH.
[um-hum] See: UH-HUH.
[unbosom oneself]{v. phr.} To confess one’s personal thoughts or feelings; disclose private information to a confidante. •/Once she was at home with her mother, she unbosomed herself of all her troubles./
[uncertain] See: IN SO MANY WORDS(2). or IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS.
[uncle] See: SAY UNCLE also CRY UNCLE.
[under] See: CUT THE GROUND FROM UNDER, GO UNDER, OUT FROM UNDER, SNOW UNDER.
[under a bushel] See: HIDE ONE’S LIGHT UNDER A BUSHEL.
[under a cloud]{adj. phr.} 1. Under suspicion; not trusted. •/Joyce has been under a cloud since her roommate’s bracelet disappeared./ •/The butcher is under a cloud because the inspectors found his scales were not honest./ 2. Depressed, sad, discouraged. •/Joe has been under a cloud since his dog died./
[under age]{adj. phr.} Too young; not old enough; below legal age. •/He could not enlist in the army because he was under age./ •/Rose was not allowed to enroll in the Life Saving Course because she was under age./ Contrast: OF AGE(1).
[under arrest]{adj. phr.} Held by the police. •/The man believed to have robbed the bank was placed under arrest./ •/The three boys were seen breaking into the school building and soon found themselves under arrest./
[under construction]{adv. phr.} In the process of being built or repaired. •/It is a good idea to take the train to work while the expressway is under construction./
[under cover]{adv.} or {adj. phr.} Hidden; concealed. •/The prisoners escaped under cover of darkness./ •/He kept his invention under cover until it was patented./ Compare: UNDER WRAPS.
[under false colors] See: SAIL UNDER FALSE COLORS.
[under fire]{adv. phr.} Being shot at or being attacked; hit by attacks or accusations; under attack. •/The soldiers stood firm under fire of the enemy./ •/The principal was under fire for not sending the boys home who stole the car./
[under lock and key]{adv. phr.} Secured; locked up; well protected. •/Dad keeps all his valuables under lock and key./
[under one’s belt]{adv. phr.}, {informal} 1. In your stomach; eaten; or absorbed. •/Once he had a good meal under his belt, the man loosened his tie and fell asleep./ •/Jones is talkative when he has a few drinks under his belt./ 2. In your experience, memory or possession; learned or gotten successfully; gained by effort and skill. •/Jim has to get a lot of algebra under his belt before the examination./ •/With three straight victories under their belts, the team went on to win the championship./
[under one’s breath]{adv. phr.} In a whisper; with a low voice. •/The teacher heard the boy say something under his breath and she asked him to repeat it aloud./ •/I told Lucy the news under my breath, but Joyce overheard me./
[under one’s hat] See: KEEP UNDER ONE’S HAT.
[under one’s heel]{adv. phr.} In one’s power or control. •/If one marriage partner always wants to keep the other person under his or her heel, it is not a happy or democratic arrangement and may lead to a divorce./
[under one’s nose] or [under the nose of] {adv. phr.}, {informal} In sight of; in an easily seen or noticeable place. •/The thief walked out of the museum with the painting, right under the nose of the guards./ •/When Jim gave up trying to find a pen, he saw three right under his nose on the desk./
[under one’s own steam]{adv. phr.}, {informal} By one’s own efforts; without help. •/The boys got to Boston under their own steam and took a bus the rest of the way./ •/We didn’t think he could do it, but Bobby finished his homework under his own steam./
[under one’s skin] See: GET UNDER ONE’S SKIN.
[under one’s spell]{adv. phr.} Unable to resist one’s influence. •/From the first moment they saw each other, Peter was under Nancy’s spell./
[under one’s thumb] or [under the thumb] {adj.} or {adv. phr.} Obedient to you; controlled by you; under your power. •/The Jones family is under the thumb of the mother./ •/Jack is a bully. He keeps all the younger children under his thumb./ •/The mayor is so popular that he has the whole town under his thumb./ Compare: JUMP THROUGH THE HOOP.
[under one’s wing]{adv. phr.} Under the care or protection of. •/Helen took the new puppy under her wing./ •/The boys stopped teasing the new student when Bill took him under his wing./ Compare: IN TOW.
[under orders]{adv. phr.} Not out of one’s own desire or one’s own free will; obligatorily; not freely. •/"So you were a Nazi prison guard? " the judge asked. "Yes, your Honor," the man answered, "but I was acting under orders and not because I wished to harm anyone."/
[under pain of] See: ON PAIN OF also UNDER PAIN OF.
[under protest]{adv. phr.} Against one’s wish; unwillingly. •/"I’ll go with you all right," she said to the kidnapper, "but I want it clearly understood that I do so under protest."/
[understand] See: GIVE ONE TO UNDERSTAND.
[under the circumstances] also [in the circumstances] {adv. phr.} In the existing situation; in the present condition; as things are. •/In the circumstances, Father couldn’t risk giving up his job./ •/Under the circumstances, the stagecoach passengers had to give the robbers their money./
[under the collar] See: HOT UNDER THE COLLAR.
[under the counter]{adv. phr.}, {informal} Secretly (bought or sold). •/That book has been banned, but there is one place you can get it under the counter./ •/The liquor dealer was arrested for selling beer under the counter to teenagers./ — Also used like an adjective, with hyphens. •/During World War II, some stores kept scarce things hidden for under-the-counter-sales to good customers./
[under the hammer]{adv. phr.} Up for sale at auction. •/The Brights auctioned off the entire contents of their home. Mrs. Bright cried when her pewter collection went under the hammer./ •/The picture I wanted to bid on came under the hammer soon after I arrived./
[under the nose of] See: UNDER ONE’S NOSE.
[under the sun]{adj.} or {adv. phr.} On earth; in the world. — Used for emphasis. •/The President’s assassination shocked everyone under the sun./ •/Where under the sun could I have put my purse?/
[under the table] See: UNDER THE COUNTER.
[under the thumb of] See: UNDER ONE’S THUMB.
[under the weather]{adv. phr.} In bad health or low spirits. •/Mary called in today asking for a sick day as she is under the weather./
[under the wire]{adv. phr.} With a narrow time limit; in the last minute. •/The journalist’s new lead article on Russia was due in press at 5 P.M., and he got it in at 4:57, just under the wire./
[underway]{adv. phr.} In progress; in motion. •/The yearly fund-raising campaign for the renovation of our university campus is already underway./
[under wraps]{adv.} or {adj. phr.} Not allowed to be seen until the right time; not allowed to act or speak freely; in secrecy; hidden. — Usually used with "keep". •/We have a new player, hut we are keeping him under wraps until the game./ •/What the President is planning will be kept under wraps until tomorrow./ •/The spy was kept under wraps and not allowed to talk to newspapermen./ Compare: UNDER COVER.
[unknown quantity]{n.} Someone or something whose value and importance are not known, especially in a certain situation, time or place; a new and untested person or thing. •/What we would find if we could fly to the moon is an unknown quantity./ •/The new player is still an unknown quantity. We’ll find out how good he is in the game./
[unseen] See: SIGHT UNSEEN.
[until all hours]{adv. phr.} Until very late at night. •/He is so anxious to pass his exams with flying colors that he stays up studying until all hours./
[until hell freezes over]{adv. phr.}, {slang} Forever, for an eternity. •/He can argue until hell freezes over; nobody will believe him./ Contrast: WHEN HELL FREEZES OVER.
[until the last gun is fired] See: TILL THE LAST GUN IS FIRED.
[unturned] See: LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED.
[up against]{prep. phr.} Blocked or threatened by. •/When she applied to medical school, the black woman wondered whether she was up against barriers of sex and race prejudice./
[up against it]{adj. phr.}, {informal} Faced with a great difficulty or problem; badly in need. •/The Smith family is up against it because Mr. Smith cannot find a job./ •/You will be up against it if you don’t pass the test. You will probably fail arithmetic./ Compare: HARD UP, END OF ONE’S ROPE, BACK TO THE WALL(2).
[up and about] or [around] {adv. phr.} Recovered and able to move about; once again in good health after an illness. •/My sister was ill for several weeks, but is now up and about again./
[up and at them] 1. {adv. phr.} Actively engaged in a task as if doing combat. •/"You want to know whether he will make a diligent worker?" Dick asked. "Well, I can tell you that most of the time he is up and at them like no one else I know."/ 2. {v. phr.} To become aggressively engaged in doing something; (useable as a command). •/Come on, up and at them, you guys. We still have a lot of work to get done./
[up-and-coming]{adj. phr.} Bound toward success; upwardly mobile; progressive; ambitious. •/The newly elected state senator is an up-and-coming young politician who is expected to be highly successful in national politics in the future./
[up a stump]{adj. phr.}, {slang} Stumped; blocked; mixed up or confused in what you are trying to do. •/Jimmy knows how to add and subtract but fractions have him up a stump./
[up a tree]{adv.} or {adj. phr.} 1. Hunted or chased into a tree; treed. •/The dog drove the coon up a tree so the hunter could shoot him./ 2. {informal} in trouble; having problems; in a difficulty that it is hard to escape or think of a way out of. •/John’s father has him up a tree in the checker game./ Compare: UP THE CREEK.
