[look oneself] <v. phr.> To appear self-possessed and well; look or seem in full possession of your abilities and in good health; to appear all right or normal. * /Mary had had a long illness, but now she looked quite herself again./ * /It had been a big night, and Uncle John had been drinking freely, but he looked entirely himself after a night's sleep./ - Often used in the negative. * /What's wrong with Larry? He doesn't look himself./
[lookout] See: ON THE LOOKOUT.
[look out] or [watch out] <v.> 1. To take care; be careful; be on guard. - Usually used as a command or warning. * /"Look out!" John called, as the car came toward me./ * /"Look out for the train," the sign at the railroad crossing warns./ 2. To be alert or watchful; keep watching. * /A collector of antique cars asked Frank to look out for a 1906 gas head lamp./ Compare: EYE OUT, ON THE WATCH. 3. <informal> To watch or keep (a person or thing) and do what is needed; provide protection and care. - Used with "for". * /Lillian looked out for her sister's children one afternoon a week./ * /Uncle Fred looked out for his brother's orphan son until the boy was through college./ Compare: LOOK AFTER.
[look out for] <v. phr.> To watch out for; be on the alert. * /There were signs along the highway warning drivers to look out for deer crossing./
[look over] <v.> To look at and try to learn something about; look at every part or piece of or at every one of; examine; inspect; study. * /I looked hurriedly over the apples in the basket and took one that looked good./ * /Mrs. Jones spent the evening looking over the month's bills and writing checks./ * /When a new boy comes to school, the others usually look him over rather carefully./ * /We looked over several kinds of new cars before deciding./ Compare: ONCE-OVER, SIZE UP.
[look sharp] <v.> To be alert; be very attentive; keep a close watch. * /It pays to look sharp in traffic./ * /The guide told us to look sharp because there were rattlesnakes around./
[look small] See: FEEL SMALL.
[look to] <v.> 1. To attend to; get ready for; take care of. * /Plans had been prepared that looked to every possibility./ * /The president assigned a man to look to our needs./ 2. To go for help to; depend on. * /The child looks to his mother to cure his hurts./ 3. See: SEE TO.
[look to one's laurels] To make sure that your reputation is not spoiled; protect your good name; keep your record from being beaten by others. * /Tom won the broad jump, but he had to look to his laurels./ * /Look to your laurels, Joan. Betty says she is going to run against you for head cheerleader./
[look up] <v.> 1. <informal> To improve in future chances; promise more success. * /The first year was tough, but business looked up after that./ 2. To search for; hunt for information about; find. * /It is a good habit to look up new words in a dictionary./ 3. To seek and find. * /While he was in Chicago, Henry looked up a friend of college days./
[look upon] See: LOOK ON(1).
[look up to] <v.> To think of (someone) as a good example to copy; honor; respect. * /Mr. Smith had taught for many years, and all the students looked up to him./ * /Young children look up to older ones, so older children should be good examples./
[loop] See: KNOCK FOR A LOOP or THROW FOR A LOOP.
[loose] See: AT LOOSE ENDS, CAST OFF or CAST LOOSE, CUT LOOSE, FAST AND LOOSE, HAVE A SCREW LOOSE, LET LOOSE or SET LOOSE or TURN LOOSE, ON THE LOOSE.
[loose ends] <n.> 1. Parts or things that should be finished or put together. * /Mary's composition had many loose ends./ * /When George came home after a long trip, he started picking up the loose ends./ 2. See: AT LOOSE ENDS.
[lord it over] <v. phr.> To act as the superior and master of; dominate; be bossy over; control. * /John learned early to lord it over other children./ * /The office manager lorded it over the clerks and typists./
[Lord knows] See: GOD KNOWS.
[lose] See: HEADS I WIN, TAILS YOU LOSE.
[lose face] <v.> To be embarrassed or shamed by an error or failure; lose dignity, influence or reputation; lose self-respect or the confidence of others. * /Many Japanese soldiers were killed in World War II because they believed that to give up or retreat would make them lose face./ * /John's careless work made him lose face with his employer./ * /The banker lost face when people found out he bet on horse races./
[lose ground] 1. To go backward; retreat. * /The soldiers began to lose ground when their leader was killed./ Compare: GIVE GROUND. 2. To become weaker; get worse; not improve. * /The sick man began to lose ground when his cough grew worse./ * /When the Democrats are in power, the Republicans lose ground./ Contrast: GAIN GROUND.
[lose heart] <v. phr.> To feel discouraged because of failure; to lose hope of success. * /The team had won no games and it lost heart./ Contrast: TAKE HEART.
[lose one's balance] Contrast: KEEP ONE'S BALANCE.
[lose oneself] <v. phr.> 1. To go wrong; miss your way; become unable to find the right direction. * /Fred lost himself in the confusion of downtown Boston streets./ 2. To conceal yourself; hide. * /The pick-pocket lost himself in the crowd and escaped the police./ 3. To become deeply interested and forget yourself; become absorbed. * /Sometimes Harry would lose himself in a book for an afternoon at a time./ Compare: IN A WORLD OF ONE'S OWN.
[lose one's grip] <v. phr.> To fail in control or command; lose your strength, force, or ability to lead. * /Mr. Jones began to lose his grip: he no longer wanted the hard jobs, and he left decisions to others./ * /When a locomotive engineer loses his grip, he is no longer trusted with express runs./
[lose one's head (over)] <v. phr.> 1. To panic. * /"Let's not lose our heads," the captain cried. "We have good lifeboats on this vessel."/ 2. To become deeply infatuated with someone. * /Don't lose your head over Jane; she is already married./ Contrast: KEEP ONE'S HEAD.
[lose one's heart] <v. phr.> To fall in love; begin to love. * /She lost her heart to the soldier with the broad shoulders and the deep voice./ * /Bill lost his heart to the puppy the first time he saw it./
[lose one's marbles] <v. phr.> To go mad; become crazed. * /Stan must have lost his marbles; he is hopelessly pursuing a happily married woman./
[lose one's shirt] <v. phr.>, <slang> To lose all or most of your money. * /Uncle Joe spent his life savings to buy a store, but it failed, and he lost his shirt./ * /Mr. Matthews lost his shirt betting on the horses./
[lose one's temper] <v. phr.> To lose control over one's anger; to get angry. * /He lost his temper when he broke the key in the lock./ Compare: BLOW A FUSE, FLY OFF THE HANDLE. Contrast: HOLD ONE'S TEMPER.
[lose one's tongue] <v. phr.>, informal To be so embarrassed or surprised that you cannot talk. * /The man would always lose his tongue when he was introduced to new people./ Compare: CAT GET ONE'S TONGUE.
[lose out] <v.> To fail to win; miss first place in a contest; lose to a rival. * /John lost out in the rivalry for Mary's hand in marriage./ * /Fred didn't want to lose out to the other salesman./ Compare: MISS OUT. Contrast: WIN OUT.
[loser] See: FINDERS KEEPERS or FINDERS KEEPERS LOSERS WEEPERS.
[lose sight of] <v. phr.> 1. Not to be able to see any longer. * /I lost sight of Mary in the crowd./ * /I watched the plane go higher and higher until I lost sight of it./ Contrast: CATCH SIGHT OF. 2. To forget; overlook. * /Johnny was so interested in the game he lost sight of the time./ * /No matter how rich and famous he became, he never lost sight of the fact that he had been born in the slums./
[lose touch] <v. phr.>, <informal> To fail to keep in contact or communication. - Usually used with "with". * /After she moved to another town, she lost touch with her childhood friends./ Compare: OUT OF TOUCH.
[lose track] <v. phr.> To forget about something; not stay informed; fail to keep a count or record. * /What's the score now? I've lost track./ - Usually used with "of". * /Mary lost track of her friends at camp after summer was over./ * /John lost track of the money he spent at the circus./ Compare: OUT OF TOUCH. Contrast: KEEP TRACK.
[loss] See: AT A LOSS, THROW FOR A LOSS.
[lost] See: GET LOST, NO LOVE LOST.
[lost cause] <n. phr.> A movement that has failed and has no chance to be revived. * /Communism in Eastern Europe has become a lost cause./
[lost upon] adj. Wasted. * /Tim's generosity is completely lost upon Sue; he can't expect any gratitude from her./
[lot] See: A LOT, CAST ONE'S LOT WITH, SAND LOT, THINK A GREAT DEAL OF or THINK A LOT OF, THROW IN ONE'S LOT WITH or CAST IN ONE'S LOT WITH.
[loud] See: ACTIONS SPEAK LOUDER THAN WORDS, FOR CRYING OUT LOUD, OUT LOUD, THINK ALOUD or THINK OUT LOUD.
[loud mouth] or [big mouth] <n.>, <slang> A noisy, boastful, or foolish talker. * /Fritz is a loud mouth who cannot be trusted with secrets./ * /When he has had a few drinks, Joe will make empty boasts like any other big mouth./
[loud-mouthed] or [big-mouthed] <adj.>, <slang> Talking noisily, boastfully, or foolishly. * /Fred was a loud-mouthed fellow, whose talk no one listened to./ * /If I were you, I would not listen to that loud-mouthed boy./
[lounge lizard] <n. phr.> A well-dressed male fortune hunter who sits around in bars and other public places, and attends many social events to try to pick up wealthy women through smart conversation. * /Harry has the reputation of being a lounge lizard; he is looking for a rich wife./
[louse up] <v.>, <slang> To throw into confusion; make a mess of; spoil; ruin. * /When the man who was considering John's house heard that the basement was wet, that was enough to louse up the sale./ * /Fred's failure in business not only lost him his business but loused him up with his wife./ * /The rain loused up the picnic./ See: MESS UP(2), FUCK UP.
[love] See: FOR LOVE OR MONEY, IN LOVE, LABOR OF LOVE, MAKE LOVE, NO LOVE LOST, PUPPY LOVE also CALF LOVE.
[love affair] <n.> A friendship between lovers; a romance or courtship. * /The love affair of Bob and Jane went on for months./ * /Harry had many love affairs, but he never married./
[love game] <n.> A game of tennis which is won without the opponent scoring. * /Britain took a love game on Songster's service./
[love-in] <n.>, <slang>, <informal> A festival or occasion to celebrate life, human sensuality, the beauty of nature, human sexuality, and universal love; affairs so conceived by some frequently deteriorate into obscenity and drug using sessions in parody of their stated purpose. * /The hippies gathered for a big love-in in the Halght-Ashbury district of San Francisco./