20-letter words containing a, e, t, o

three-dimensionality — having, or seeming to have, the dimension of depth as well as width and height.
three-quarter nelson — a hold in which a wrestler, from a kneeling position behind a prone opponent, applies a half nelson with one arm, passes the other arm under the opponent's body on the near side, and locks the arms at the fingers or wrist on the back of the opponent's neck.
three-thorned acacia — honey locust.
throw up one's hands — the terminal, prehensile part of the upper limb in humans and other primates, consisting of the wrist, metacarpal area, fingers, and thumb.
to be a one-man show — to be reliant on one person alone
to be a warning shot — to be a warning
to be at loggerheads — to be in conflict
to be walking on air — If you say that you are walking on air or floating on air, you mean that you feel extremely happy about something.
to bear the brunt of — To bear the brunt or take the brunt of something unpleasant means to suffer the main part or force of it.
to beat one's breast — If you say that someone beats their breast, you are emphasizing that they are very angry or upset about something, or that they are pretending to be very angry or upset about it.
to bring up the rear — If a person or vehicle is bringing up the rear, they are the last person or vehicle in a moving line of them.
to burst into flames — If something bursts into flames or bursts into flame, it suddenly starts burning strongly.
to catch your breath — If something makes you catch your breath, it makes you take a short breath of air, usually because it shocks you.
to clean up your act — If someone who has been behaving badly cleans up their act, they start to behave in a more acceptable or responsible way.
to clear your throat — If you clear your throat, you cough once in order to make it easier to speak or to attract people's attention.
to cost someone dear — If something that someone does costs them dear, they suffer a lot as a result of it.
to disturb the peace — If someone is accused of disturbing the peace, they are accused of behaving in a noisy and offensive way in public.
to do your damnedest — If you say that you will do your damnedest to achieve something, you mean that you will try as hard as you can to do it, even though you think that it will take a lot of effort.
to fall on deaf ears — If a request falls on deaf ears or if the person to whom the request is made turns a deaf ear to it, they take no notice of it.
to fall on your feet — If you say that someone always falls or lands on their feet, you mean that they are always successful or lucky, although they do not seem to achieve this by their own efforts.
to flog a dead horse — If you say that someone is flogging a dead horse, you mean that they are trying to achieve something impossible.
to get off sb's back — If you tell someone to get off your back, you are telling them angrily to stop criticizing you or putting pressure on you.
to get your bearings — to find out where one is or to find out what one should do next
to get your own back — If you get your own back on someone, you have your revenge on them because of something bad that they have done to you.
to gnash one's teeth — If you say that someone is gnashing their teeth, you mean they are angry or frustrated about something.
to go the extra mile — If you say that someone is willing to go the extra mile, you mean that they are willing to make a special effort to do or achieve something.
to have it in for sb — If someone has it in for you, they do not like you and they want to make life difficult for you.
to hit the headlines — Someone or something that hits the headlines or grabs the headlines gets a lot of publicity from the media.
to keep your balance — If you keep your balance, for example, when standing in a moving vehicle, you remain steady and do not fall over. If you lose your balance, you become unsteady and fall over.
to keep your hand in — If you do something to keep your hand in, you practise a skill or hobby occasionally in order to remain fairly good at it.
to land on your feet — If you say that someone always lands on their feet, you mean that they are always successful or lucky, although they do not seem to achieve this by their own efforts.
to leave your/a mark — If someone or something leaves their mark or leaves a mark, they have a lasting effect on another person or thing.
to live and let live — You say live and let live as a way of saying that you should let other people behave in the way that they want to and not criticize them for behaving differently from you.
to make up your mind — If you make up your mind or make your mind up, you decide which of a number of possible things you will have or do.
to overstep the mark — If someone oversteps the mark, they behave in a way that is considered unacceptable.
to push the boat out — If you push the boat out, you spend a lot of money on something, especially in order to celebrate.
to put an end to sth — To put an end to something means to cause it to stop.
to reach new heights — to become higher than ever before
to sb's disadvantage — If something is to your disadvantage or works to your disadvantage, it creates difficulties for you.
to scrape the barrel — If you say that someone is scraping the barrel, or scraping the bottom of the barrel, you disapprove of the fact that they are using or doing something of extremely poor quality.
to shake like a leaf — If you say that someone is shaking like a leaf, you mean that their body is shaking a lot, for instance because they are very cold or frightened.
to spread your wings — If you spread your wings, you do something new and rather difficult or move to a new place, because you feel more confident in your abilities than you used to and you want to gain wider experience.
to stick in the craw — to be unacceptable or displeasing to someone
to take years off sb — if you say that something such as an experience or a way of dressing has taken years off someone, you mean that it has made them look or feel much younger
to use shock tactics — to attempt to influence people by shocking them
to waste your breath — If someone says you are wasting your breath, they mean that the person you are talking to will not take any notice and so there is no point saying anything to them.
to wear the trousers — If one person in a couple, especially the woman, wears the pants, or in British English wears the trousers, they are the one who makes all the decisions.
to weather the storm — If someone weathers the storm, they succeed in reaching the end of a very difficult period without much harm or damage.
tom, dick, and jerry — a hot mixed drink containing rum, brandy, egg, nutmeg, and sometimes milk
toothbrush moustache — a short narrow moustache, resembling the filaments of a toothbrush

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