- Home
- Idioms
- shout
shout
shout (one's) head off
To shout or yell very loudly and lengthily. Suzy shouted her head off when I told her she couldn't have an ice cream cone. The stadium was packed with fans shouting their heads off for the popular band. Don't bother listening to the crazies who stand on street corners and shout their heads off at passersby.
wouldn't shout if a shark bit him
Cheap, miserly. In Australia, "to shout" is to buy someone something, usually a drink. Primarily heard in Australia. You expect Steve to buy you a drink? Ha! That guy wouldn't shout if a shark bit him!
shouting match
A bitter argument in which two or more people shout at one another, often simultaneously. At first I thought we were just going through a rough patch in our relationship, but lately it seems like every night Janet and I get into a shouting match with each other. It might be time to end things.
be nothing to shout about
To be not especially remarkable or noteworthy; to be rather dull, mediocre, uninteresting, or unimportant. A: "Have you eaten in that new sushi restaurant yet?" B: "Yeah, I went there last week. It was OK, but it's nothing to shout about." His performance has been nothing to shout about so far. To be honest, we were expecting much more from him when we recruited him.
It's all over but the shouting.
Fig. Cliché It is decided and concluded.; It is essentially decided and finished. (Meaning that though there may be more to some process, the outcome is clear. An elaboration of all over, which means "finished.") The last goal was made with only 4 seconds to go in the game. "Well, it's all over but the shouting," said the coach. Tom worked hard in college and passed his last test with an A. When he saw the grade, he said, "It's all over but the shouting."
shout about someone or something
1. to yell about someone or something. Alice is shouting about Tom, the guy who stood her up. What are you shouting about?
2. to show one's pride or enthusiasm about someone or something. (Usually with the object shifted to the front of the sentence.) That's really something to shout about. She's something to shout about.
shout someone or something down
to overwhelm someone or something by shouting. Mary was trying to speak, but Sally shouted her down. Ann brought up a very important suggestion, but Bob shouted it down. The lecturer had to shout down the entire audience to be heard.
*something to shout about
Fig. something that causes one to show pride or enthusiasm about someone or something. (*Typically: be ~; have ~.) Getting into med school is really something to shout about. she's something to shout about.
within hailing distance
and within calling distance; within shouting distanceclose enough to hear someone call out. When the boat came within hailing distance, I asked if I could borrow some gasoline. We weren't within shouting distance, so I couldn't hear what you said to me.
shout something from the rooftops
also scream something from the rooftops to tell people about something that excites you Alex was so happy, he wanted to shout the news from the rooftops.
a shouting match
(British, American & Australian) also a slanging match (British & Australian) an argument where people shout at each other If your child says something rude or unpleasant to you, don't get into a shouting match with them, just leave the room. The debate turned into a slanging match.
be nothing to shout about
also not be much to shout about to not be especially good or exciting The pay rise wasn't much to shout about, but I suppose it's better than nothing.
shout something from the rooftops
if you say you want to shout some news from the rooftops, you mean that you want to tell everyone about it because you are so excited When I discovered I was pregnant, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops.
It's all over bar the shouting.
(British & Australian) something that you say when the result of an event or situation is certain The Italian team played superbly, and by half-time it was all over bar the shouting (= it was certain they would win).
See a shouting matchall over but the shouting
The outcome is a certainty, as in When Jim hit the ball over the fence, it was all over but the shouting. The term's first use in print, in 1842, was by Welsh sportswriter Charles James Apperley, but some authorities believe it originated even earlier in the United States for a close political race. Today it is applied to any contest. A common British version is all over bar the shouting.
shout down
Overwhelm or silence by yelling or jeering, as in The audience went wild and shouted down the speaker. [c. 1920]
shout from the rooftops
Announce publicly, as in Just because I won first prize you needn't shout it from the rooftops. This term alludes to climbing on a roof so as to be heard by more people. A similar phrase, using housetops, appears in the New Testament (Luke 12:3): "That which ye have spoken ... shall be proclaimed upon the housetops." [c. 1600]
shout down
v. To overwhelm or silence someone by shouting loudly: The crowd shouted down the speaker. The protestors shouted the candidate down.
shout out
v.1. To say something loudly and generally; announce something: The student shouted out the answer to the question. The counselors shouted instructions out as the campers hiked through the woods.
2. To utter a loud strong cry: The survivors of the earthquake shouted out in hopes of being rescued.
shout
n. an exclamation point. (see also
screamer,
shriek.)
Put a shout at the end of the line. Make this dull story more sexy. shout
/proclaim from the housetops To make known publicly.