17-letter words starting with t

to know the ropes — If you know the ropes, you know how a particular job or task should be done.
to lick your lips — If you lick your lips, you move your tongue across your lips as you think about or taste something pleasant.
to little purpose — with little (or no) result or effect; pointlessly
to lose your grip — If you lose your grip, you become less efficient and less confident, and less able to deal with things.
to lose your mind — If you say that someone is losing their mind, you mean that they are becoming mad.
to make ends meet — If you find it difficult to make ends meet, you can only just manage financially because you hardly have enough money for the things you need.
to make good time — If you say that you made good time on a journey, you mean it did not take you very long compared to the length of time you expected it to take.
to make sth clear — If you make something clear, you say something in a way that makes it impossible for there to be any doubt about your meaning, wishes, or intentions.
to oil the wheels — If someone or something oils the wheels of a process or system, they help things to run smoothly and successfully.
to open your eyes — If something opens your eyes, it makes you aware that something is different from the way that you thought it was.
to open your mind — If something opens your mind to new ideas or experiences, it makes you more willing to accept them or try them.
to play it by ear — If you play it by ear, you decide what to say or do in a situation by responding to events rather than by following a plan which you have decided on in advance.
to play the field — If someone plays the field, they have a number of different romantic or sexual relationships.
to play with fire — If you say that someone is playing with fire, you mean that they are doing something dangerous that may result in great harm for them and cause many problems.
to prime the pump — To prime the pump means to do something to encourage the success or growth of something, especially the economy.
to push your luck — If you say that someone is pushing their luck, you think they are taking a bigger risk than is sensible, and may get into trouble.
to raise the roof — If a group of people inside a building raise the roof, they make a very loud noise, for example by singing or shouting.
to read sb's mind — If you can read someone's mind, you know what they are thinking without them saying anything.
to risk your neck — If you say that someone is risking their neck, you mean they are doing something very dangerous, often in order to achieve something.
to run its course — If something runs its course or takes its course, it develops naturally and comes to a natural end.
to say nothing of — You use to say nothing of when you mention an additional thing which gives even more strength to the point you are making.
to sea/out to sea — If you go or look out to sea, you go or look across the sea.
to see eye to eye — If you see eye to eye with someone, you agree with them and have the same opinions and views.
to settle a score — If you settle a score or settle an old score with someone, you take revenge on them for something they have done in the past.
to show your face — If you show your face somewhere, you go there and see people, although you are not welcome, are rather unwilling to go, or have not been there for some time.
to slip your mind — If something slips your mind, you forget it.
to stand a chance — If you say that someone stands a chance of achieving something, you mean that they are likely to achieve it. If you say that someone doesn't stand a chance of achieving something, you mean that they cannot possibly achieve it.
to steal a glance — If you steal a glance at someone or something, you look at them quickly so that nobody sees you looking.
to steal the show — If you say that someone steals the show, you mean that they get a lot of attention or praise because they perform better than anyone else in a show or other event.
to strike a chord — If something strikes a chord with you, it makes you feel sympathy or enthusiasm.
to take your time — If you take your time doing something, you do it quite slowly and do not hurry.
to test the water — If you test the water or test the waters, you try to find out what reaction an action or idea will get before you do it or tell it to people.
to the bitter end — If you say that you will continue doing something to the bitter end, especially something difficult or unpleasant, you are emphasizing that you will continue doing it until it is completely finished.
to the lighthouse — a novel (1927) by Virginia Woolf.
to the nth degree — If something is done to the nth degree, it is done to an extreme degree.
to throw a wrench — If someone throws a wrench or throws a monkey wrench into a process, they prevent something happening smoothly by deliberately causing a problem.
to win hands down — If you win hands down, you win very easily.
tolpuddle martyrs — six farm workers sentenced to transportation for seven years in 1834 for administering an unlawful oath to form a trade union in the village of Tolpuddle, Dorset
tone control knob — a round switch on a radio, record player, etc that is turned to alter the tone control
tongue-and-groove — the technique of making a joint between two boards by means of a tongue along the edge of one board that fits into a groove along the edge of the other board
too close to call — If something such as a competition or an election is too close to call, it is not possible to predict who will win because it seems likely to be won by only a very small margin.
toothbrush holder — a container or rack in a bathroom where toothbrushes are kept when not in use
top-security wing — a wing of a prison, mental hospital, etc that has a very high level of precautions against escape
topological group — a set that is a group and a topological space and for which the group operation and the map of an element to its inverse are continuous functions.
topological space — a set with a collection of subsets or open sets satisfying the properties that the union of open sets is an open set, the intersection of two open sets is an open set, and the given set and the empty set are open sets.
torricellian tube — a vertical glass tube partly evacuated and partly filled with mercury, the height of which is used as a measure of atmospheric pressure
tortoiseshell cat — a domestic cat, especially a female one, of variegated black, yellow, and white coloring.
touch a raw nerve — If you say that you have touched a nerve or touched a raw nerve, you mean that you have accidentally upset someone by talking about something that they feel strongly about or are very sensitive about.
tourette syndrome — a neurological disorder characterized by recurrent involuntary movements, including multiple neck jerks and sometimes vocal tics, as grunts, barks, or words, especially obscenities.
tower of strength — a building or structure high in proportion to its lateral dimensions, either isolated or forming part of a building.

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