[mug shot] <n. phr.> A police photograph showing the arrested person's full face and profile. * /"Go over these mug shots," Sergeant O'Malley said, "and tell me if you find the person who held up the liquor store!"/
[Muhammad] See: IF THE HILL WON'T COME TO MUHAMMAD, THEN MUHAMMAD MUST COME TO THE HILL.
[mull over] <v. phr.> To consider; think over. * /He mulled over the offer for some time, but finally rejected it./
[mum is the word] You must keep the secret; keep silent; don't tell anyone. - Often used as an interjection. * /We are planning a surprise party for John and mum is the word./ * /"Mum is the word!" the robber captain told his men./
[murder] See: SCREAM BLOODY MURDER.
[muscle] See: MOVE A MUSCLE.
[muscle-bound] <adj.> Having your muscles large, hard, and tight from too much exercising; having muscles so developed that you can hardly move. * /Bob was big and strong, but he was muscle-bound, and Bill could beat him./ * /An athlete must train properly so as not to become muscle-hound./
[muscle in on] <v. phr.> To intrude; penetrate; force oneself into another's business or territory. * /The eastern Mafia muscled in on the western Mafia's turf and a shooting war was started./
[music] See: FACE THE MUSIC.
[musical chairs] <n. phr.> (Originally the name of a children's game.) The transfer of a number of officers in an organization into different jobs, especially each other's jobs. * /The boss regularly played musical chairs with department heads to keep them fresh on the job./
[music to one's ears] <n. phr.> Something one likes to hear. * /When the manager phoned to say I got the job, it was music to my ears./
[mustard] See: CUT THE MUSTARD.
[muster] See: PASS MUSTER.
[my God] or [my goodness] <interj.> Used to express surprise, shock, or dismay. * /My God! What happened to the car?/
[my lips are sealed] <informal sentence> A promise that one will not give away a secret. * /"You can tell me what happened, " Helen said. "My lips are sealed."/
N
[nail] See: HARD AS NAILS, HIT THE NAIL ON THE HEAD, TOOTH AND NAIL.
[nail down] <v. phr.>, <informal> To make certain; make sure; settle. * /Joe had a hard time selling his car, but he finally nailed the sale down when he got his friend Sam to give him $300./ * /The New York Yankees nailed down the American League Championship when they beat the Red Sox 3 to 0 on September 15./
[nail one's colors to the mast] <literary> To let everyone know what you think is right and refuse to change. * /During the election campaign the candidate nailed his colors to the mast on the question of civil rights./
[name] See: CALL NAMES, HANDLE TO ONE'S NAME, IN NAME, TAKE ONE'S NAME IN VAIN, TO ONE'S NAME.
[name calling] See: CALL NAMES.
[named after] <adj. phr.> Given the same name as someone. * /Archibald was named after his father./
[name day] <n.> The day of the saint for whom a person is named. * /Lawrence's name day is August 10, the feast of St. Lawrence./
[namedropper] <n. phr.> A person who is always mentioning well-known names. * /Since her move to Hollywood she has become a regular namedropper./
[name is mud] <informal> (You) are in trouble; a person is blamed or no longer liked. - Used in the possessive. * /If you tell your mother I spilled ink on her rug my name will be mud./ * /Your name will be mud if you tell the teacher about the bad thing we did./ Compare: IN THE DOG HOUSE.
[name of the game] <n.>, <informal> The crux of the matter; that which actually occurs under the disguise of something else. * /Getting medium income families to support the rest of society - that's the name of the game!/
[narrow down] <v. phr.> To limit within very strict margins. * /Of the numerous applicants, the list has been narrowed down to just a few./
[narrow escape] <n. phr.> An escape by a very small margin; a near miss. * /If the truck that hit his car had been coming faster, it would have killed him; it was certainly a narrow escape that he only had a broken arm!/
[narrow-minded] <adj. phr.> Limited in outlook; resistant to new ideas; bigoted. * /He is generally very open about everything, but when it comes to politics, he is terribly narrow-minded./
[nary a] <informal> Not a single; not one; never a. * /One afternoon a large dark cloud came in the sky. John thought it would rain so he took his raincoat - but nary a drop fell./ * /John went fishing but he caught nary a one./
[nasty-nice] <adj.> Unkind in a polite way; disagreeable while pretending to be gracious. * /The bus driver has a nasty-nice way of showing his dislike./
[natural] See: BIG AS LIFE or BIG AS LIFE AND TWICE AS NATURAL.
[natural-born] <adj.> 1. Being a (citizen) because you were born in the country. * /Mr. and Mrs. Schmidt came to the United States from Germany and are naturalized citizens but their children are natural-born citizens./ 2. Born with great ability to become (something); having great ability (as in a sport or art) almost from the start. * /Joe had never played baseball before trying out for the team but he showed that he was a natural-born pitcher and he became the best in the league./ * /Mozart was a natural-born musician. He could play the piano well when he was only six years old./
[nature] See: SECOND NATURE.
[naught] See: GO FOR NOTHING also GO FOR NAUGHT.
[near] See: FAR AND NEAR.
[near at hand] See: AT HAND.
[necessity] See: MAKE A VIRTUE OF NECESSITY, OF NECESSITY.
[neck] See: BREATHE DOWN ONE'S NECK, BREAK ONE'S NECK, CATCH IT IN THE NECK or GET IT IN THE NECK, PAIN IN THE NECK, SAVE ONE'S NECK, STICK ONE'S NECK OUT.
[neck and neck] <adj. or adv.>, <informal> Equal or nearly equal in a race or contest; abreast; tied. * /At the end of the race the two horses were neck and neck./ * /For months John and Harry seemed to be neck and neck in Alice's favor./ Compare: NIP AND TUCK.
[neck of the woods] <n. phr.>, <informal> Part of the country; place; neighborhood; vicinity. * /We visited Illinois and Iowa last summer; in that neck of the woods the corn really grows tall./ * /We were down in your neck of the woods last week./
[necktie party] <n.>, <slang> A hanging by a mob; lynching. * /Cattle thieves were stealing the rancher's cattle, but the cowboys caught them and had a necktie party./ Compare: STRING UP.
[ned] See: RAISE THE DEVIL.
[needle] See: ON PINS AND NEEDLES.
[needle in a haystack] <n. phr.>, <informal> Something that will be very hard to find. * /"I lost my class ring somewhere in the front yard," said June. Jim answered, "Too bad. That will be like finding a needle in a haystack."/
[neither fish nor fowl] also [neither fish, flesh, nor fowl] Something or someone that does not belong to a definite group or known class; a strange person or thing; someone or something odd or hard to understand. * /The man is neither fish nor fowl; he votes Democrat or Republican according to which will do him the most good./ * /Mrs. Harris bought a piece of furniture that was both a table and a chair. Mr. Harris said it was neither fish nor fowl./ * /The movie is neither fish nor fowl; it is a funny love story./
[neither here nor there] <adj. phr.> Not important to the thing being discussed; off the subject; not mattering. * /Perhaps you did stay up late finishing your homework. That's neither here nor there. You still must come to school on time./ * /The boys all like the coach but that's neither here nor there; the question is, "Does he know how to teach football?"/ Compare: BESIDE THE POINT. Contrast: HAVE TO DO WITH, COME TO THE POINT.
[neither hide nor hair] See: HIDE OR HAIR.
[neither rhyme nor reason] <n. phr.> No emotional or intellectual substance. * /As far as I am concerned, his proposal makes no sense; it has neither rhyme nor reason./