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rear
pain-in-the-rear
(used before a noun) Very irritating, aggravating, or obnoxious. I've still got a few pain-in-the-rear jobs to do around the ranch before I can call it quits for the day. We're having Mary over for dinner tomorrow night. I just hope her pain-in-the-rear husband doesn't come along as well.
pain in the rear
An especially irritating, aggravating, or obnoxious person, thing, or situation. You know, Jack, you may be my friend, but you can be a real pain in the rear sometimes! This calculus homework is a real pain in the rear. It's not that I don't understand it, it's just so tedious!
pain in the ass
rude slang A person or thing that is extremely annoying or inconvenient. I know I need to renew my license, but dealing with the lines at the DMV is such a pain in the ass.
at the rear of
At the back of something. Can you see my father? He's sitting at the rear of the train car. Those boxes should be at the rear of the attic.
at the rear of something
located at the back part of something. I keep my tools at the rear of my garage. There's a stream at the rear of my property.
bring up the rear
to move along behind everyone else; to be at the end of the line. (Originally referred to marching soldiers. Fixed order.) Here comes John, bringing up the rear. Hurry up, Tom! Why are you always bringing up the rear?
get off one's ass
and get off one's rear; get off one's buttSl. to get up and get busy; to stop loafing and get to work. (Caution with ass. Butt is also offensive to some people.) Get off your ass and get busy! It's time you got off your butt and started to work.
in the rear
located in the space or area behind someone or something. The waiter told me that the bathrooms were in the rear. All deliveries must be made in the rear.
pain in the ass
and a pain in the butt; a pain in the rearFig. a very annoying thing or person. (Crude. Potentially offensive. Use only with discretion. An elaboration of pain. Use caution with ass. Butt is less offensive. Rear is euphemistic.) That guy is a real pain in the ass. Things like that give me a pain in the butt.
rear back
1. Lit. [for a horse] to pull back and up onto its hind legs in an effort to move backwards rapidly or throw a rider. (See also
rear up.)
The animal reared back in terror. The horse reared back and almost threw its rider. 2. Fig. [for a person] to pull back and stand up or sit up straighter. He reared back in his chair and looked perturbed. Tom reared back in his chair, waiting for something else to happen.
rear its ugly head
Fig. [for something unpleasant] to appear or become obvious after lying hidden. Jealousy reared its ugly head and destroyed their marriage. The question of money always rears its ugly head in matters of business.
rear up
1. Lit. [for a horse] to lean back on its hind legs and raise its front legs, assuming a threatening posture or avoiding something on the ground such as a snake. (See also
rear back.)
The horse reared up suddenly, throwing the rider onto the ground. When the horse reared up, I almost fell off. 2. Fig. [for something, especially a problem] to raise up suddenly. A new problem reared up and cost us a lot of time. A lot of new costs reared up toward the end of the month.
rear its (ugly) head
to become a problem that has to be dealt with It was in the 1970s that the problem of violent soccer fans first reared its head in Britain.
bring up the rear
to be at the back of a group of people moving from one place to another They walked down the hall, with Ray bringing up the rear.
bring up the rear
to be at the back of a group of people who are walking or running Ceri was in the lead. Bringing up the rear, a mile or so down the road, was Simon.
See bring to heel, bring up with a startraise/rear its (ugly) head
if something unpleasant raises its ugly head, it becomes a problem that people have to deal with All over Europe, racism is rearing its ugly head once more.
rear-end something
(American) to cause an accident by hitting the back of the car in front of you His car was rear-ended while he was stopped at the light.
bring up the rear
Be last in a line or sequence, as in As a slow walker, I'm used to bringing up the rear, or In test results Tom always brought up the rear. This term almost certainly came from the military but the earliest citation given by the Oxford English Dictionary is from a 1643 religious treatise by Sir Thomas Browne: "My desires onely are . . . to be but the last man, and bring up the Rere in Heaven."
rear end
1. The back part of anything, especially a vehicle, as in There's a large dent in the rear end of the car.
2. The buttocks, as in I'm afraid these pants don't fit my rear end. The noun rear alone has been used in both these senses, the first since the late 1700s and the second since the mid-1900s. The addition of end occurred in the first half of the 1900s.
rear its ugly head
Appear. This phrase is used only of something undesirable or unpleasant, as in The interview went very well until a question about his academic record reared its ugly head . This expression was first recorded in slightly different form in Anthony Trollope's Barchester Towers (1857): "Rebellion had already reared her hideous head."
rear up
v.1. To rise on the hind legs, as of a horse: A rattlesnake slithered out from behind the bush, and the horse reared up.
2. To arise or appear suddenly or unexpectedly: We can handle any problems that rear up.
get off one’s rear
in. to get up and get busy. (Euphemistic for Get off my ass!) It’s time to get off your rear and get to work.
kick in the (seat of the) pants
and kick in the ass and kick in the butt and kick in the teeth and kick in the rear n. a strong message of encouragement or a demand. (Usually objectionable.) All he needs is a kick in the seat of the pants to get him going. A kick in the teeth ought to wake them up and get them moving.
kick in the rear
verbpain in the ass
and pain in the butt and pain in the rear n. a very annoying thing or person. (Usually objectionable. An elaboration of pain. Rear is euphemistic.) You are a pain in the ass! Things like that give me a pain in the butt.
pain in the rear
verbrear (end)
n. the tail end; the buttocks. (Euphemistic.) The dog bit her in the rear end.
rear
verbrear-ender
and back-ender n. an automobile wreck where one car runs into the?back of another. (see also
fender-bender.)
It wasn’t a bad accident, just a rear-ender. The rain caused a couple of “back-enders,” but there were no serious accidents. bring up the rear
To be the last in a line or sequence.