haul somebody over the coals
- haul somebody over the coals
-
To express
anger with someone in no uncertain terms when they do something wrong.
The teacher hauled him over the coals for smoking in the toilets.
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haul somebody over the coals — haul sb over the ˈcoals idiom (BrE) (NAmE rake sb over the ˈcoals) to criticize sb severely because they have done sth wrong • I was hauled over the coals by my boss for being late. Main e … Useful english dictionary
rake somebody over the coals — rake sb over the ˈcoals idiom (NAmE) (BrE haul sb over the ˈcoals) to criticize sb severely because they have done sth wrong Main entry: ↑rakeidiom … Useful english dictionary
haul — ▪ I. haul haul 1 [hɔːl ǁ hɒːl] verb [transitive] 1. TRANSPORT if a train or truck hauls goods, it takes them from one place to another: • The freight train hauled the load of 240 tons with ease. • Union Pacific hauls garbage from Seattle to a … Financial and business terms
haul — haul1 [ho:l US ho:l] v [T] [Date: 1200 1300; : French; Origin: haler to pull ] 1.) to pull something heavy with a continuous steady movement haul sth off/onto/out of etc sth ▪ She hauled her backpack onto her back. ▪ the steam locomotive which… … Dictionary of contemporary English
tear a strip off somebody — verb To scold vigorously. The boss tore a strip off him for arriving late to the meeting. Syn: excoriate, give somebody a dressing down, haul somebody over the coals, give somebody a telling off, read somebody the riot act, tell somebody off … Wiktionary