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[walk away with] or [walk off with] <v.> 1. To take and go away with; take away; often: steal. * /When Father went to work, he accidentally walked off with Mother's umbrella./ * /How can a thief walk off with a safe in broad daylight?/ 2. To take, get, or win easily. * /Jim walked away with all the honors on Class Night./ * /Our team walked off with the championship./

[walking dictionary] <n. phr.> A person highly knowledgeable in matters of language use. * /If you want to know what "serendipity" means, ask my Uncle Fred. He is a professor of English and is also a walking dictionary./

[walking encyclopedia] <n. phr.> A polymath; a person very well versed in a number of different disciplines. * /My uncle is a veritable walking encyclopedia when it comes to the history of World War II./ Contrast: WALKING DICTIONARY.

[walking papers] or [walking orders] also [walking ticket] <n.>, <informal> A statement that you are fired from your job; dismissal. * /The boss was not satisfied with Paul's work and gave him his walking papers./ * /George is out of work. He picked up his walking ticket last Friday./

[walk off with] See: WALK AWAY WITH.

[walk of life] <n. phr.> Way of living; manner in which people live. * /Many rich people have yachts; people in their walk of life can afford them./ * /The banker did not want his son to marry a girl in a different walk of life./ * /People from every walk of life enjoy television./ Compare: THE TRACKS.

[walk on air] <v. phr.>, <informal> To feel happy and excited. * /Sue has been walking on air since she won the prize./ * /His father's compliment left Jed walking on air./ Compare: ON CLOUD NINE, ON TOP OF THE WORLD.

[walk on eggs] <v. phr.> To act with utmost caution due to being in a precarious position. * /Tom has been walking on eggs ever since he started working for a new boss in Cincinnati./

[walk out] <v.> 1. To go on strike. * /When the company would not give them higher pay, the workers walked out./ 2. To leave suddenly; especially to desert. * /He didn't say he wasn't coming back; he just walked out./ - Often used informally with "on". * /The man walked out on his wife and children./ Compare: LEAVE FLAT, LEAVE IN THE LURCH.

[walk over] or [walk all over] or [step all over] <v. phr.> <informal> To make (someone) do whatever you wish; make selfish use of; treat like a slave; impose upon. * /Jill is so friendly and helpful that people walk all over her./ * /We wanted the man's business, so we let him step all over us./ Compare: TAKE ADVANTAGE OF.

[walk the chalk] or [walk the chalk line] or [walk the chalk mark] To act exactly as you are supposed to; behave properly; obey. * /That new teacher really makes the students walk the chalk./ * /In some classes the students play and talk, but Mr. Parker makes them walk the chalk./ * /That theater owner wants his place to be orderly, and if boys and girls don't walk the chalk, he puts them out./ (From the fact that sailors used to be asked to walk a chalk line along the deck of the ship to prove they were not drunk.) Compare: TOE THE MARK.

[walk the floor] <v. phr.> To walk one direction and then the other across the floor, again and again; pace. * /Mr. Black walked the floor, trying to reach a decision./ * /The sick baby had his mother walking the floor all night./ * /Mrs. Black's toothache hurt so much that she got up and walked the floor./

[walk the plank] <v. phr.> 1. To walk off a board extended over the side of a ship and be drowned. * /The pirates captured the ship and forced the crew to walk the plank./ 2. <informal> To resign from a job because someone makes you do it. * /When a new owner bought the store, the manager had to walk the plank./

[wall] See: BACK TO THE WALL, BEAT ONE'S HEAD AGAINST A WALL, CLIMB THE WALL, FORWARD WALL, HANDWRITING ON THE WALL, HOLE-IN-THE-WALL, STONE WALL or BRICK WALL, TO THE WALL.

[wallflower] <n.> A girl who has to sit out dances because nobody is asking her to dance. * /"I used to be a wallflower during my high school days," Valerie complained, "but my luck changed for better once I got into college."/

[wallop] See: PACK A PUNCH or PACK A WALLOP.

[walls have ears] Sometimes one's most confidential conversations are overheard. * /"Be careful what you say," he whispered. "Remember that walls have ears."/

[want ad] <n.> A small advertisement on a special page in a newspaper that offers employment opportunities and merchandise. * /"You want a temporary job?" he asked the recent arrival in town. "Go and look at the want ads!"/

[war] See: COLD WAR, TUG OF WAR.

[war baby] <n.>, <informal> A person born during a war. * /War babies began to increase college enrollments early in the 1960s./ * /The war babies forced many towns to build new schools./

[ward off] <v. phr.> To deflect; avert. * /Vitamin C is known to ward off the common cold./

[warmer] See: BENCH WARMER.

[warm one's blood] <v. phr.> To make you feel warm or excited. * /When the Bakers came to visit on a cold night, Mr. Harmon offered them a drink to warm their blood./

[warm the bench] <v. phr.>, <informal> To act as a substitute on an athletic team. * /Bill has been warming the bench for three football seasons; he hopes that the coach will let him play this year./ [bench warmer] <n.>, <informal> A substitute player. * /Last year Ted was only a bench warmer, but this year he is the team's star pitcher./

[warm up] <v.> 1. To reheat cooked food. * /Mr. Jones was so late that his dinner got cold; his wife had to warm it up./ * /When the children had left for school, their mother warmed up the breakfast coffee./ 2. To become friendly or interested. * /It takes an hour or so for some children to warm up to strangers./ * /As he warmed up to his subject, Tom forgot his bashfulness./ 3. To get ready for a game or other event by exercising or practicing. * /The dancers began to warm up fifteen minutes before the performance./ * /The coach told us to warm up before entering the pool./

[warm-up] <n.> A period of exercise or practice in preparation for a game or other event. * /During the warm-up the baseball players were throwing the ball around and running up and down the side of the field./ * /Before the television quiz program, there was a warm-up to prepare the contestants./

[warpath] See: ON THE WARPATH.

[warrant] See: SIGN ONE'S OWN DEATH WARRANT.

[wash and wear] <adj.> Not needing to be ironed.
– Refers especially to synthetic and synthetic blend fabrics. * /Dick bought three wash and wear shirts to take on his trip./ * /Sally's dress is made of a wash and wear fabric./