coil
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coil around (someone or something)
To twist around someone or something. A reflexive pronoun can be used between "coil" and "around." The explorer froze when he felt the snake coil itself around his leg. That vine is now coiling around the tree—is there any way I can move it? I nearly panicked when I felt something coil itself around my ankle, but it was just an untied shoelace, thank goodness.
coil up
To curl oneself or something into a small, compact position. A noun or pronoun can be used between "coil" and "up." The snake coiled itself up and began hissing at us. Coil up that hose when you're done with it. It's so cold in here that the cat has coiled up in a ball while she desperately waits for the radiator to heat up.
coil up into (something)
To curl oneself or something into a certain shape. A noun or pronoun can be used between "coil" and "up." Unfortunately, the yarn in this basket is all coiled up into a ball—it'll take some time to untangle it. It's so cold in here that the cat has coiled up into a ball while she desperately waits for the radiator to heat up. You need to coil this up into a more compact size if you want to smuggle it into the movie theater.
shuffle off
1. Literally, to leave or depart while dragging or sliding one's feet. The child shuffled off after being scolded by his parents. We all shuffled off back to our desks after the lunch break ended.
2. To leave or depart, especially slowly, gradually, or reluctantly. The party carried on into the night, and people didn't start shuffling off until nearly dawn. The student shuffled off dejectedly out of class after finding out she'd gotten a D on her test.
3. To dispose, get rid, or divest oneself of something, especially in a hasty or evasive manner. A noun or pronoun can be used between "shuffle" and "off," in which case it is usually followed by "(on)to (someone or something)." The politician has been shuffling off his investments in the company to avoid public perception of corruption. We've been shuffling these tasks off to our smaller teams to allow our bigger teams to focus on our more important projects.
4. To avoid, evade, or neglect something, especially some duty or responsibility. A noun or pronoun can be used between "shuffle" and "off," in which case it is usually followed by "(on)to (someone or something)." We all shuffled off classes for the day and took the train out to Coney Island. It came to light that Bill had been shuffling his reports off onto his secretary so that he could go out drinking.
shuffle off this mortal coil
To die. An allusion to a line in Shakespeare's Hamlet, in which Hamlet muses on what happens to the spirit after death. I've been giving my money away to my children over the past few years—I don't want them squabbling over it when I shuffle off this mortal coil. I heard that Jenkins shuffled off this mortal coil over the weekend.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
coil (itself) around someone or something
[for something or an animal] to wrap itself around someone or something. The monkey's tail coiled itself around the branch. The huge python coiled around poor Roger.
coil (itself) up
[for something] to wrap or roll itself into a coil. The snake coiled itself up, trying to hide. It coiled up, ready to strike.
coil (itself) up into something
[for something] to wrap or twist itself into a particular shape. The frightened snaked coiled itself up into a knot. The spring coiled up into its original shape.
coil something up
to roll or twist something into a coil. Maria coiled the strip of stamps up and put them in the little dispenser. Please coil up the rope.
shuffle off this mortal coil
Euph. to die. (Often jocular or formal euphemism. Not often used in consoling someone.) Cousin Fred shuffled off this mortal coil after suffering a heart attack. When I shuffle off this mortal coil, I want to go out in style—bells, flowers, and a long, boring funeral.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
shuffle off
1. Get rid of, act evasively, as in They've tried to shuffle off public inquiries about the safety of their planes. This usage, dating from about 1600, also appears in the oft-quoted shuffle off this mortal coil, from Shakespeare's Hamlet (3:1), where it means "become freed from the turmoil of life," that is, "die."
2. Move away reluctantly, dragging one's feet, as in The prisoners shuffled off to their work detail. [Late 1500s]
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.
shuffle off this mortal coil
die. literaryShuffle off this mortal coil is a quotation from Shakespeare 's Hamlet. This mortal coil is sometimes used independently to mean ‘the fact or state of being alive’, with the suggestion that this is a troublesome state, since coil retains here its archaic sense of ‘turmoil’.
1986 Dudley Moore Off-Beat He was just one of a number of distinguished composers who have shuffled off their mortal coil in a variety of unusual ways.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
shuffle off this mortal ˈcoil
(old-fashioned or humorous) die: They believe that when they shuffle off this mortal coil their souls will become stars.This expression comes from Shakespeare’s play Hamlet.Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
shuffle off
v.
1. To go with short sliding steps, without or barely lifting the feet: The sleepy children shuffled off to bed.
2. To leave; depart: Toward the end of the evening, the guests shuffled off one by one.
3. To rid oneself of something; dispose of or relocate something: I have not been able to shuffle off my embarrassment. The computer program automatically shuffles the outdated files off to another disk.
4. To evade or shirk something, such as a responsibility: He shuffled off his responsibilities and went to the beach. She shuffled her work off onto others because she wasn't feeling well.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Phrasal Verbs. Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
shuffle off this mortal coil
Die. This phrase that appears in Hamlet combines the archaic meaning of two words. “Shuffle” meant “rid,” while “coil” meant “troubles.” As Shakespeare put it, “What dreams may come / When we have shuffled off this mortal coil / Must give us pause.”
Endangered Phrases by Steven D. Price Copyright © 2011 by Steven D. Price