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 upA 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
- 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