upright

an empty sack cannot stand upright

proverb One must eat in order to carry out one's duties. Have some dinner before you go back to your research. An empty sack cannot stand upright, you know.
See also: cannot, empty, sack, stand, upright

bolt upright

1. verb To suddenly sit or stand up from a reclining position. I bolted upright in bed when the phone rang in the middle of the night.
2. adjective Very erect in posture. The teacher instructed us to be bolt upright on the stage during the assembly.
See also: bolt, upright

dimber damber upright man

obsolete slang The leader of a band of thieves, miscreants, or gypsies. He walked through the town, this dimber damber upright man, quietly marking people as targets for his band of rogues who lurked in the shadows.
See also: man, upright

sit bolt upright

1. To have a very erect posture while sitting. The teacher demands that we all sit bolt upright during the lesson, scolding us should we begin to slouch. The seat of the train was so stiff that I ended up sitting bolt upright for nearly three hours.
2. To very suddenly or abruptly assume an erect posture while sitting. I awoke from the nightmare and sat bolt upright in my bed. We all sat bolt upright when the principal suddenly barged into class.
See also: bolt, sit, upright
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

An empty sack cannot stand upright.

Prov. A poor or hungry person cannot function properly. Sit down and have something to eat before you go back to work. An empty sack can't stand upright.
See also: cannot, empty, sack, stand, upright

sit bolt upright

to sit up straight. Tony sat bolt upright and listened to what the teacher was saying to him. After sitting bolt upright for almost an hour in that crowded airplane, I swore I would never fly again.
See also: bolt, sit, upright
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

bolt upright

Precisely perpendicular, erect in carriage, as in She sat bolt upright in her pew. This expression was used in slightly different form by Chaucer in the late 1300s: "She was ... long as a mast and upright as a bolt" ( The Miller's Tale).
See also: bolt, upright
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

bolt ˈupright

with your back very straight in an upright position: The noise woke her suddenly and she sat bolt upright in bed.
See also: bolt, upright
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

bolt upright

In a rigidly vertical position: sat bolt upright.
See also: bolt, upright
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition.
See also:
  • teach a man to fish
  • village
  • it takes a village
  • a cat in gloves catches no mice
  • cat in gloves catches no mice
  • chickens come home to roost
  • chickens come home to roost, one's
  • a good example is the best sermon
  • best defense is a good offense
  • all cats are gray after dark/at night
References in periodicals archive
"We believe Upright Lister and Upright Local can change the operations for secondhand resellers and save them time by consistently and efficiently listing their great inventory online," says CEO, David Engle.
Upright Labs Brings New Technology Solutions to Resale Industry
While the upright stance in gorillas is pretty rare, the difference is that other gorillas might walk upright "for a few seconds or a few steps," this 18-year-old can stroll around on his hind legs for an extended period and, in fact, seems to prefer to, especially during urgent times when it comes to protecting his snacks.
Gorilla Strolls Like A Human So He 'Doesn't Get His Hands Dirty'
Speaking on the trade mission Minister for Jobs Richard Bruton TD said: "This announcement by Instant Upright is very welcome and shows what is possible for Irish companies in this region.
SEC awards $1mn contract to Instant Upright
Typically you need 13 uprights although it depends on the design.
Protect your crop; Clive Edwards explains how to make a fruit cage
Sassaman, who begins as the model of the upright military officer, meets his fall in Balad and Samarra, Iraq during the winter of 2003.
Philoctetes in Iraq
Hamstring stretch: Standing upright, straighten your legs and bend forwards towards the ground, keeping your legs straight.
Golf Clinic
that the Laetoli prints represented a type of bipedal walking that was fully upright and driven by the front of the foot, particularly the big toe, much like humans today, and quite different to bipedal walking of chimpanzees and other apes."
We walked the walk much earlier
Yesterday Mr Upright, of Bedlington, Northumberland, joined deputy campaign manager for the EFVA, Sid West, along with campaign manager David Langham as they launched the North East group.
Vets in fight for pension rights
According to that premise, the expansion of savannas prompted our ape-like forebears to descend from trees and begin walking upright to find food more efficiently, or to reach other trees for resources or shelter.
Early humans lived in Savannas, not forests
It''s a bagless, cordless upright that can be used as a handheld cleaner for the car.
Zena says... TRICKS of the TRADE
A new study shows that women can reduce the length of their first stage of labor by as much as an hour by walking and remaining upright (e.g.
A new study shows that women can reduce the length of their first stage of labor by as much as an hour by walking and remaining upright (e.g. sitting, standing, kneeling, squatting, etc.) rather than lying down
Damage is common along an upright's first 6" to 12" of column from the floor due to fork truck impact, especially at end rows, tunnels, drive thrus and intersections, where maneuvering is tight.
Steel King announces Guard Dawg pallet rack protection
The Adjus SlatWall and UpRight System is incredibly durable and collectively serves as pegboard, slat wall, and bin rail.
System serves as pegboard, Slat Wall, and bin rail
Upright frames come in five different load capacities, six depths, and 33 standard heights.
Pallet rack