keep oneself to oneself, to
keep oneself to oneself
to remain aloof. He does tend to keep himself to himself. Keep yourself to yourself, and you'll be all right there.
See also: keep
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.
keep oneself to oneself
see under keep to oneself.
See also: keep
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
keep oneself to oneself, to
To be reserved and aloof, avoiding the company of others. Samuel Richardson used this phrase in Clarissa (1748), and it was repeated by numerous writers, some of whom pointed out that it was a quintessentially English form of behavior. “He kept, in popular parlance, himself to himself. Like many policemen, Dunday thought,” wrote British novelist Robert Barnard (Death and the Chaste Apprentice, 1989).
See also: keep
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
- keep (something) under wraps
- keep (one's) eyes on (someone or something)
- keep (one's) eye(s) out (for something or someone)
- keep eye out
- keep by
- keep (something) by
- earn its keep
- keep away
- keep away (from someone or something)
- be looking for trouble