What's "straighten up" mean? When's it used?

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

"Straighten up" is a phrasal verb that means to make something tidy and organized, to stand in an upright position, or improve one's behavior or responsibility. You can use it when you're talking about tidying, organizing, one's posture, or talking about your or someone else's behavior. It's also commonly used as an imperative when talking about posture or behavior. Ex: Straighten up your back when you're doing push-ups. => posture Ex: You need to straighten up so that your grades can get better. => behavior Ex: I straightened up my bedroom before the guests came over. => cleaning

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Popular Q&As

12/02

1
What does "put one's faith in God's hands" mean?
To "put one's faith in God's hands" means to fully trust or have faith in God and allow him to be in control by trusting him and not doubting him. In the context of the movie, this is referring to his mother having a natural birth and allowing God to fully design her baby instead of choosing to genetic engineer her baby with the advancements of science.

2
What is the opposite of "gain weight"? Could you tell me more expressions related to "weight" if you can think of any?
The expression "lose weight" here is the opposite of "gain weight". The process of losing weight is referred to as "weight loss", and the process of gaining weight is called "weight gain." If you lose too much weight, you may become "underweight", whereas if you gain too much weight you might become "overweight". Ex: The doctor said she is underweight, but no matter how much I feed her, she won't gain any more weight. Ex: My dog is very overweight, he needs to exercise more so he can lose weight.

3
Is "smell" here a verb or noun? And what's the meaning?
Here, "smell" is a verb, as it means a quality in the air that people can detect with their noses. Usually, when the verb doesn't have an adjective after it, it means that it smells bad. It's not a nice smell! It's used a little metaphorically here to mean that Christmas is terrible and "stinks;" it's unpleasant. But it's used here because it rhymes with "bells!" Ex: The cake smells so nice! Ex: This room smells. = This room smell bad.

4
What does "dude" mean? Also, what's the origin of the word?
Good question! Today, "dude" is a word used to informally refer to a person who is a young man. Although it's not for certain, the word may be derived from the 18th-century word "doodle," related to the American expression "Yankee Doodle Dandy". In media in the late 19th century, "dude" was a new word for "dandy"—an "extremely well-dressed male", a man who paid particular importance to his appearance. Today, you can use "dude" to casually refer to any person who is a young man. Ex: Dude, that's sick! Ex: Look at that dude over there with the cool motorcycle.

5
What's "pull the rug" mean?
To "pull the rug" on something means to abruptly end/stop something, or to suddenly end support for something. Ex: My boss pulled the rug on my project. Ex: He pulled the rug on his wedding preparations. Ex: Don't pull the rug out from under me. Let me know in advance.

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