screw
Audio Help [skroo] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
Audio Help [skroo] Pronunciation Key –noun
–verb (used with object)
–verb (used without object)
—Verb phrases
—Idioms
| 1. | a metal fastener having a tapered shank with a helical thread, and topped with a slotted head, driven into wood or the like by rotating, esp. by means of a screwdriver. |
| 2. | a threaded cylindrical pin or rod with a head at one end, engaging a threaded hole and used either as a fastener or as a simple machine for applying power, as in a clamp, jack, etc. Compare bolt1 (def. 3). |
| 3. | British. a tapped or threaded hole. |
| 4. | something having a spiral form. |
| 5. | screw propeller. |
| 6. | Usually, screws. physical or mental coercion: The terrified debtor soon felt the gangster's screws. |
| 7. | a single turn of a screw. |
| 8. | a twist, turn, or twisting movement. |
| 9. | Chiefly British.
|
| 10. | British Informal. salary; wages. |
| 11. | Slang. a prison guard. |
| 12. | Slang: Vulgar.
|
| 13. | to fasten, tighten, force, press, stretch tight, etc., by or as if by means of a screw or device operated by a screw or helical threads. |
| 14. | to operate or adjust by a screw, as a press. |
| 15. | to attach with a screw or screws: to screw a bracket to a wall. |
| 16. | to insert, fasten, undo, or work (a screw, bolt, nut, bottle top with a helical thread, etc.) by turning. |
| 17. | to contort as by twisting; distort: Father screwed his face into a grimace of disgust. |
| 18. | to cause to become sufficiently strong or intense (usually fol. by up): I screwed up my courage to ask for a raise. |
| 19. | to coerce or threaten. |
| 20. | to extract or extort. |
| 21. | to force (a seller) to lower a price (often fol. by down). |
| 22. | Slang. to cheat or take advantage of (someone). |
| 23. | Slang: Vulgar. to have coitus with. |
| 24. | to turn as or like a screw. |
| 25. | to be adapted for being connected, taken apart, opened, or closed by means of a screw or screws or parts with helical threads (usually fol. by on, together, or off): This top screws on easily. |
| 26. | to turn or move with a twisting or rotating motion. |
| 27. | to practice extortion. |
| 28. | Slang: Vulgar. to have coitus. |
| 29. | screw around, Slang.
|
| 30. | screw off, Slang.
|
| 31. | screw up, Slang.
|
| 32. | have a screw loose, Slang. to be eccentric or neurotic; have crazy ideas: You must have a screw loose to keep so many cats. |
| 33. | put the screws on, to compel by exerting pressure on; use coercion on; force: They kept putting the screws on him for more money. |
[Origin: 1375–1425; late ME scrwe, screw(e) (n.); cf. MF escro(ue) nut, MD schrûve, MHG schrûbe screw
]
] —Related forms
screw·a·ble, adjective
screwer, noun
screwless, adjective
screwlike, adjective
—Synonyms 20. wring, wrest, force, exact, squeeze.
| Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006. |
put the screws on
To learn more about put the screws on visit Britannica.com
| © 2008 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. |
| put
Audio Help (pŏŏt) Pronunciation Key
v. put, put·ting, puts v. tr.
v. intr.
n.
adj. Informal Fixed; stationary: stay put. Phrasal Verbs: put about Nautical To change or cause to change direction; go or cause to go from one tack to another. put across
Phrasal Verb(s): put about Nautical To change or cause to change direction; go or cause to go from one tack to another. put across
To save for later use: "Some crops were so abundant they could even be put by" (Carole Lalli). put down
To propose for consideration: put forward a new plan. put in
To head for shore. put together To construct; create: put together a new bookcase; put together a tax package. put up
To impose on; overburden: He was always being put upon by his friends. Idiom(s): put an end/a halt/a stop to To bring to an end; terminate. Idiom(s): put down roots To establish a permanent residence in a locale. Idiom(s): put in an appearance To attend a social engagement, especially for a short time. Idiom(s): put it to (someone) Slang
Idiom(s): put (one) in mind To remind: You put me in mind of your grandmother. Idiom(s): put (oneself) out To make a considerable effort; go to trouble or expense. Idiom(s): put (one's) finger on To identify: I can't put my finger on the person in that photograph. Idiom(s): put (one's) foot down To take a firm stand. Idiom(s): put (one's) foot in (one's) mouth To make a tactless remark. Idiom(s): put paid to Chiefly British To finish off; put to rest: "We've given up saying we only kill to eat; Kraft dinner and freeze-dried food have put paid to that one" (Margaret Atwood). Idiom(s): put (someone) in (someone's) place To lower the dignity of (someone); humble. Idiom(s): put (someone) through (someone's) paces To cause to demonstrate ability or skill; test: The drama coach put her students through their paces before the first performance. Idiom(s): put (someone) up to To cause to commit a funny, mischievous, or malicious act: My older brother put me up to making a prank telephone call. Idiom(s): put something over on: To deceive, cheat, or trick. Idiom(s): put the arm/bite/squeeze on Slang To ask another for money. Idiom(s): put the finger on Slang To inform on: The witness put the finger on the killer. Idiom(s): put the make/moves on Slang To make sexual advances to. Idiom(s): put the screws to/on Slang To pressure (another) in an extreme manner. Idiom(s): put the skids on Slang To bring to a halt: "Sacrificing free speech to put the skids on prurient printed matter is not the correct path, the courts said" (Curtis J. Sitomer). Idiom(s): put to bed Informal
Idiom(s): put to it To cause extreme difficulty for: We were put to it to finish the book on time. Idiom(s): put to sleep
Idiom(s): put two and two together To draw the proper conclusions from existing evidence or indications. Idiom(s): put up or shut up Slang To have to endure (something unpleasant) without complaining or take the action necessary to remove the source of the unpleasantry. Idiom(s): put up with To endure without complaint: We had to put up with the inconvenience. [Middle English putten, back-formation from Old English *pūtte, past tense of pȳtan, to put out.] |
| The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. |
put the screws on
to use force or pressure in dealing with a person
Example: If he won't give us the money, we'll have to put the screws on (him).
See also: be/get screwed, screwdriver, have a screw loose, screw, screw up, screw up one's courage, "put the screws on" in any languageExample: If he won't give us the money, we'll have to put the screws on (him).
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| Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary, © 2000-2006 K Dictionaries Ltd. |
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