grindstone

have (one's) nose to the grindstone

To work hard and/or diligently on something. I'm so impressed by your grades, honey—you really had your nose to the grindstone this year, and it paid off! I have my nose to the grindstone because I really want to get this promotion.
See also: grindstone, have, nose

keep (one's) nose to the grindstone

To work hard and/or diligently on something. I'm so impressed by your grades, honey—you really kept your nose to the grindstone this year, and it paid off! I've got to keep my nose to the grindstone if I'm going to get this promotion.
See also: grindstone, keep, nose

nose to the grindstone

A phrase said of one who is working hard and/or diligently on something. Sometimes used as an imperative. I'm so impressed your grades, honey—you really put your nose to the grindstone this year, and it paid off! I've got to keep my nose to the grindstone if I'm going to get this promotion. We need to finish this project tonight! Nose to the grindstone, people!
See also: grindstone, nose

put (one's) nose to the grindstone

To work hard and diligently (on something); to put in a lot of time and effort (doing something). I'm so impressed by your grades, honey—you really put your nose to the grindstone this year, and it paid off! I've got to put my nose to the grindstone if I'm going to get this promotion.
See also: grindstone, nose, put
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

keep one's nose to the grindstone

Fig. to work hard and constantly. Son: I'll never get good grades. I might as well not even study. Mother: Don't give up yet. I'm sure that if you just keep your nose to the grindstone, you'll get the results you want. Mary kept her nose to the grindstone while her friends were out enjoying themselves.
See also: grindstone, keep, nose

put one's nose to the grindstone

Fig. to keep busy doing one's work. (Also with have and get, as in the examples.) The boss told me to put my nose to the grindstone. I've had my nose to the grindstone ever since I started working here. If the other people in this office would get their noses to the grindstone, more work would get done.
See also: grindstone, nose, put
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

nose to the grindstone, keep one's

Stay hard at work, as in We expect John to get good grades again, since he really keeps his nose to the grindstone. This expression, first recorded in 1539, alludes to a tool that must be sharpened by being held to a grindstone.
See also: keep, nose
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

keep your nose to the grindstone

If you keep your nose to the grindstone, you continue to work very hard and do not spend time on other things. I know if I keep my nose to the grindstone and work hard, things will work out. There is more to life than keeping your nose to the grindstone and saving for a rainy day. Note: You can also say that you put your nose to the grindstone, meaning that you start to work hard. If she focuses and puts her nose to the grindstone, I think she'll do extremely well. Note: A grindstone is a stone disc that moves around and is used to sharpen metal tools. The reference here is to a person bending over the grindstone while they are working, so that their nose is close to it.
See also: grindstone, keep, nose
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed.

keep your nose to the grindstone

work hard and continuously.
A grindstone was a thick revolving disc of stone on which knives and tools were sharpened. Appearing in various forms since the mid 16th century, this idiom originally referred to getting mastery over someone else by forcing them to work without a break.
See also: grindstone, keep, nose
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

keep your ˌnose to the ˈgrindstone

(informal) continue to work very hard: Keep your nose to the grindstone and you should pass the exam easily. OPPOSITE: put your feet up
A grindstone is a machine used for grinding, sharpening and polishing knives and tools.
See also: grindstone, keep, nose
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

put (one's) nose to the grindstone

To work in earnest.
See also: grindstone, nose, put
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition.

nose to the grindstone, have/keep one's

To work hard all the time. The image, transferred from tools that must continuously be sharpened, is a vivid one and has been used since the sixteenth century. “This Text holdeth their noses to hard to the grindstone, that it clean disfigureth their faces,” wrote John Faith (A Mirrour to Knowe Thyselfe, 1539).
See also: have, keep, nose
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • have (one's) nose to the grindstone
  • keep (one's) nose to the grindstone
  • keep nose to the grindstone
  • keep your nose to the grindstone
  • nose to the grindstone, keep one's
  • put (one's) nose to the grindstone
  • put nose to the grindstone
  • nose to the grindstone
  • hard at (something)
  • hard at it
References in periodicals archive
<BAbove, Workers producing grindstones at a Tyneside quarry
grindstone, ability, achievement, etc.) as a function of four main effects (gender of the applicant, gender of the recommender, ethnicity of the applicant, and course type) and three interactions terms (interaction between course type and the gender of the applicant, interaction between gender of the applicant and gender of the recommender, and interaction between the gender and ethnicity of the applicant).
Tjiwa clearly represent a more rudimentary grindstone technology than millstones: they are rarely trimmed or shaped prior to use; are only poorly curated; sustain less overall wear than millstones; and are much less efficient for grinding large quantities of seed.
Reps for Grindstone declined to comment, except to say that "Dying of the Light" does not currently have a confirmed release date.
With noses to the grindstone and eyes on the bottom line, it is easy for the region's IT players to end up in positions with plenty of customer service blind spots.
NEW Year seems but a distant memory and we are now all back to the grindstone in earnest.
The first single, called 'Ya Miskeen' (Poor You) will be out soon as the actress keeps her nose to the recording studio grindstone to complete the rest of the tunes.
WE AT DA KEEP OUR EARS TO THE GROUND AND OUR NOSES TO THE GRINDSTONE always looking for new stuff to keep you, our readers, well informed.
If we follow tradition and keep our noses to the grindstone some say we will always come out ahead.
The first entities were franchises, like USI; then came market access cooperatives like Grindstone Group (see page 24).
The rich history of coal mining and grindstone quarrying at Joggins, Nova Scotia, prior to Lyell's visit in 1842 is less well known than its subsequent history.
"There will be a bit of a party but its back to the grindstone on Wednesday," he said.
While others relax and unwind from the pressures of work, those millions will still have their noses firmly to the grindstone, according to research by first direct bank.
Friesleben said the chain this fall will raze the former Wal-Mart store, which closed earlier this year shortly before relocating with a Supercenter in the nearby Grindstone Plaza, with a tentative completion date scheduled for fall of 2008.
Like their counterparts at Ford, GM's design, engineering and manufacturing staffs have to keep their nose to the grindstone and build world-class cars and trucks.