Read Webster's New World American Idioms Handbook Online
Authors: Gail Brenner
The highest form of audience appreciation and respect is a
standing ovation
— applause with the audience standing. By contrast, if a performer seriously offends the audience, they might hiss or
boo him
or
her off the stage
(shout “
Boo
” until the performer leaves the stage). Generally, however, a dissatisfied audience will either give a weak applause or
walk out
(leave before the performance is finished).
Theater
At plays, musicals, dance concerts, and other stage performances you might encounter some of these idioms:
one act
(n)
a short play consisting of just one act ♦
The poster says that the student theater group will present “An Evening of
One Acts
” on Friday night.
♦
I enjoy
one acts,
but I prefer a longer play.
curtain time
(n)
literally when the curtain goes up; when the show starts ♦
At
curtain time
one of the actors hadn’t arrived!
♦
Hurry! We don’t want to miss
curtain time.
curtain call
(n)
when performers come out on stage after the performance to take their bows and receive applause ♦
It was a fabulous play. They had six
curtain calls. ♦
Okay, everyone backstage, let’s get ready for
curtain call.
take one’s bow
(v)
to bow to the audience at the end of a performance; to receive praise, applause, and congratulations for an excellent performance ♦
Some of the children who acted in the school play were too shy to
take their bow. ♦
The audience cheered wildly when the dancers
took their bow.
go on
1.
(v)
to have one’s turn on the stage; to enter the stage to perform. Also to
come on.
♦
He
went on
too soon, but no one in the audience knew.
2.
(v)
for a production to happen, to be performed ♦
The play
went on
despite technical problems.
backstage
(n)
any area off the stage where performers dress, prepare themselves, or wait, and where the crew works ♦
We waited nervously
backstage
for our turn to go on.
♦
After the performance, we’ll go
backstage
to congratulate the performers.
in the wings
(pp)
off the stage on either side, just behind the side curtains ♦
She waited
in the wings
for her cue to go on.
♦
Parents stood
in the wings
to help their children with their costumes.
understudy
(n)
a substitute performer who learns a performer’s part or role in case the performer is ill or unable to perform ♦
She is now
understudy
to one of the company’s principal dancers.
♦
The
understudy
took the lead part on Sunday when the lead actress was sick.
Live Concert
Some common idioms, especially for bands and solo musicians, are the following:
headliner
(n)
the lead or main attraction. Also said as the verb
headlining.
♦
It should be a great concert with The Chieftains as the
headliner. ♦
The African musician Habib Koite is
headlining
at the Rio Theater tonight.
opening act
(n)
the band that performs before the main attraction. Sometimes called
the warmup act
or
the supporting act.
♦
Let’s go to the concert a little later; I don’t care about seeing the
opening act. ♦
We thought the
opening act
was better than the headliner. What did you think?
lineup
(n)
the list of different performers for one show ♦
You have to get tickets to this show. You should see the fantastic
lineup! ♦
We’re featuring a great
lineup
of jazz musicians for our New Year’s Eve program. So, don’t miss it.
sit-down show
(n)
a show, usually at a small venue, where the audience sits and does not stand and dance ♦
I wonder why it’s a
sit-down show;
they’re a great dance band.
♦
At our age, we prefer
sit-down shows.
open seating
(n)
means “seats are not reserved”; people can choose any seat that is available ♦
It’s
open seating
for this event, so sit wherever you like.
♦
It’s not our policy to reserve seats in this club; it’s always
open seating.
scalper
(n)
someone who tries to make a quick profit by reselling tickets at a higher price than the box office price, especially when an event is sold out or tickets are hard to get. Also used as a verb,
to scalp.
♦
Naturally, there were plenty of
scalpers
outside the Faith Hill concert.
♦ Scalpers
were asking four times the ticket price, but people paid it.
Comedy
Comedy clubs and other nightspots feature comedy teams and
stand-up
comedy
acts (a performance, often by a solo comedian, involving jokes, satire, and humorous monologues). Comedians often start a joke by saying
“Have you heard the one about. . . .”
Comedians, funny people, and anyone else who wants to share humor might
tell a joke
(tell a funny story with a
punch line)
or
crack a joke
(make a spontaneous funny comment). For example:
A comedian (or
comedienne,
a term sometimes used for a female comedian) might be called one of these names:
funny girl
funny man
joker
jokester
The
straight man
or
straight woman
is the person in a comedy team who stays serious and gives lines to the comedian or serves as the object of the joke.
The following idioms and expressions relate to comedy, humor, and laughing:
punch line
(n)
the surprise last line of a joke that carries the point of the joke ♦
Hmm. I didn’t get that
punch line.
Why is it funny?
♦
I couldn’t tell jokes, because I always forgot the
punch line.
the butt of jokes
(n)
the object (or the topic) of a joke that ridicules or makes fun of someone or something ♦
An unpopular politician is often
the butt of jokes. ♦
A comedian may frequently be
the butt of
his or her own
jokes.
make fun of
(v)
to tease or make jokes about someone or something ♦
Don’t
make fun of
me. I hate it!
♦
That stand-up comedian
made fun of
everybody in the audience; no one was safe from his jokes.
poke fun at
(v)
to tease or to playfully
make fun of
someone or something ♦
Comedians sometimes
poke fun at
people sitting in the front row of the audience.
♦
My friends
poke fun at
me for liking the old music from the 1940s, but I don’t care.
razz
(v)
(slang) to tease, ridicule, heckle ♦
The comedian
razzed
John when he got up to go to the bathroom.
♦
If someone
razzes
you too much, it stops being funny.
play a joke on (someone)
(v)
to trick someone in a funny or lighthearted manner, though the object of the joke might not think it’s funny ♦
On the last day of school, the kids
played a joke on
their teacher.
♦
The guys
played a joke on
their housemate and put all his underwear in the refrigerator.
Note:
People often play jokes on others on April Fool’s Day, which is the first day of April.
take a joke
(v)
to accept teasing and joking when one is the object of it; to allow teasing at one’s own expense. Often put in the negative,
can’t take a joke.
♦
He’s so serious. He just can’t
take a joke. ♦
Ha! You played a good joke on me. Lucky for you, I can
take a joke.
Types of Jokes
Some jokes fall into one of these categories:
a practical joke:
a trick or joke played on someone, especially one designed to cause embarrassment or discomfort
a dirty joke:
an obscene or vulgar joke
a sick joke:
a joke that is in very bad taste or socially inappropriate
an ethnic/racial/sexist joke:
a joke aimed at a specific ethnic, racial, social or gender group, considered disrespectful and inappropriate unless aimed at one’s one group
a standing joke:
an established joke among friends or family members that continues to be funny long after the initial funny situation
an inside joke:
a private or secret joke among friends, family, or peers
Just Plain Funny
These expressions are commonly used in place of the words
funny
and
humorous.
They can be used to describe people, movies, events, and so on.
Verb forms
make you laugh
♦
That joke really
made me laugh.
crack you up
♦
When I told him what you said, it
cracked him up.
tickle your funny bone
♦
The funny things little kids say can
tickle your funny bone.
Noun forms
a riot
♦
Have you seen Rowen Atkinson’s new movie? It’s
a riot.
a scream
♦
Amy Chu’s stand-up routine is
a scream.
a crack up
♦
It’s really
a crack up
watching their new kitten playing.
a knee slapper
(an old expression) ♦
That’s a great joke!
A
real
knee slapper.
a laugh a minute
♦
That guy is
a laugh a minute;
he’s always cracking jokes.
[See to
crack up,
later in this chapter.]
Comparative forms
funnier than heck
(also said as
funny as heck
) ♦
This author is
funnier than heck,
you should read this book.
funnier than all get out
(also said as
funny as all get out
) ♦
He’s
funnier than all get out,
always making people laugh.
Ha Ha Ha! — Laughing
Everyone loves to laugh, and an old adage says
Laughter is the best medicine
— the best way to feel better and stay healthy. Perhaps that’s why laughing has inspired so many idioms and expressions. The following verbs are often used to add emphasis and color to the word
laugh
and the concept of laughter:
burst out laughing
♦
When she told the punch line, everyone
burst out laughing.
fall out laughing
♦
When we saw his impersonation of the mayor, we
fell out laughing.
fall out of our seats
♦
The kids’ comedy act was so funny we nearly
fell out of our seats.
roll in the aisles
♦
Everyone was
rolling in the aisles
by the time he finished his act.
laugh till one’s sides ache/burst
♦
We
laughed till our sides ached
watching that movie.
laugh one’s head off
♦
He was so mean to the waitress, I
laughed my head off
when they made him leave the restaurant in the middle of his meal.
split a gut
or
bust a gut
♦
She’s going to
split a gut
when you tell her that story.
can’t stop laughing
♦
I
can’t stop laughing
about the funny incident that happened at work yesterday.
die laughing
♦
We just about
died laughing
when we heard the story.
crack up
♦
You’ll
crack up
when you read the comics in today’s paper.
bust up
♦
He
busted
everyone
up
at the party with his funny antics.
Here are a few expressions to describe lots of laughter:
fits of laughter
♦
We were in
fits of laughter
over that funny article.
peals of laughter
♦
She’s such a funny teacher,
peals of laughter
are always coming from her classroom.