all wool and a yard wide

all wool and a yard wide

1. Of a person, very honorable. Of course Paul reported the crime he witnessed—he's all wool and a yard wide.
2. Of an object, high quality. That product already broke! It's not all wool and a yard wide, that's for sure.
See also: all, and, wide, wool, yard
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms.

all wool and a yard wide

Fig. trustworthy and genuinely good. (A description of good quality wool cloth.) Mary's a fine human being—all wool and a yard wide. I won't hear a word against Bill. He's all wool and a yard wide.
See also: all, and, wide, wool, yard
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs.

all wool and a yard wide

Genuine, not fake; of excellent quality; also, honorable. For example, You can count on Ned-he's all wool and a yard wide. This metaphorical term alludes to a length of highly valued pure-wool cloth that measures exactly a yard (and not an inch less). [Late 1800s]
See also: all, and, wide, wool, yard
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.

all wool and a yard wide

of excellent quality; thoroughly sound.
Literally, this expression refers to cloth of the finest quality.
1974 Anthony Gilbert A Nice Little Killing No one will ever catch her…with an alibi all wool and a yard wide.
See also: all, and, wide, wool, yard
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary

all wool and a yard wide

Genuine, not a sham. The expression comes from the yard-goods industry, where a seller would claim that a piece of cloth was 100 percent wool and measured fully a yard, in contrast to inferior material and short measures.
See also: all, and, wide, wool, yard
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer
See also:
  • all wool and no shoddy
  • mensch
  • kick around
  • paperweight
  • pull the wool over someone's eyes, to
  • be on a collision course
  • FOD
  • body English
  • a bit of crackling
References in periodicals archive
Now comes Hightower, all wool and a yard wide, who studied under the late Ralph Yarborough and other carriers of the true torch.