buttonhole

buttonhole (someone)

To confine or accost someone in or with conversation. Likened to holding onto someone by the lapels (on which the buttonhole used for a boutonniere is located). I tried to leave the office early, but Larry buttonholed me with a tedious conversation about weekend plans.
See also: buttonhole
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

buttonhole someone

Accost or detain a person in conversation. For example, The reporter tried to buttonhole the senator, but she got away. This term is a metaphor for literally grasping someone by a buttonhole on his or her clothing. [Mid-1800s]
See also: buttonhole, someone
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

buttonhole

tv. to accost someone; to make someone listen to one. (As if grabbing someone by the coat lapel to keep them from getting away.) The guy buttonholed me on my way out, and started asking me a lot of questions.
McGraw-Hill's Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions
See also:
  • accompany (one) on a/(one's) journey
  • accompany on a journey
  • a stranger to (someone or something)
  • be out of (one's) league
  • be out of somebody's league
  • be in bad with (someone)
  • (one) puts (one's) pants on one leg at a time
  • bargain
  • bargain for (someone or something) with (someone)
  • brief (someone) about (someone or something)
References in periodicals archive
Buttonhole needling of ateriovenous fistulae: a randomized controlled trial.
Along the seamline, mark 3" from the upper edge, and then every 3" from the first mark the entire length or until you reach six marks; designate as the buttonhole centers.
* Stitch horizontally across the placket between buttonholes three and four, through the three layers and beginning and ending 1/4" from the placket long edges.
Buttonhole cannulation in hemodialysis: Improved outcomes and increased expense--Is it worth it?
Miwa et al.'s paper, "Causes and Solutions of the Trampoline Effect" clearly explains the reasons behind this frequent barrier to the buttonhole method (pp.
The neckline is bound in a bias strip of linen, and 12 buttons and buttonholes are spaced evenly down the front edge (10 for flank companies).
Thus was born the boutonniere, the French word for buttonhole.
Son rapport d'etude s'intitule Buttonhole cannulation in hemodialysis: Improved outcomes and increased expense--Is it worth it?
Like Kevin Ott of the Rubber Manufacturers Association wrote in our January issue, if you own a business, now is the time to buttonhole your office-seeking officials to let them know your stance.
As the founder of the Animal Behavior Clinic at Tufts Veterinary School, Dodman has seen just about every outlandish and disturbing habit a pet could exhibit, from a dog that always arranges exactly six pieces of kibble in the buttonhole depressions in a couch to a cat that exhibits stress by pulling its hair out in clumps.
Every evening there were "happy hours," allowing guests the opportunity to chat informally or, alternatively, attempt to buttonhole buyers and festival directors.
When you said you'd be interested to hear more about The Buttonhole, my mind became a patchwork of memories.
The chisel-tipped laser fiber creates a small opening, called a "buttonhole." Then, tissue (including the muscle controlling urinary voiding) is cut or burned away to produce a permanently open channel that allows drainage in spinal-cord-injured men who can no longer control their bladder.
Sew the existing buttonhole closed and sew the button on top of it.
Use contrasting buttons and turn construction constraints into design elements with an in-seam buttonhole encased in the waist seam.