straighten out

straighten out
straighten out
1. to become straight. •

The road finally straightened out.

The train tracks straightened out on the plain.

2. to improve one's behavior or attitude. •

I hope he straightens out before he gets himself into real trouble.

Fred had better straighten out soon if he wants to get a job.

* * *
{v.} To correct a mistake; make you realize you are wrong. * /The teacher saw Jim's awkward sentence on the board and asked for volunteers to straighten it out./ * /Sometimes only a good spanking will straighten out a naughty child./ Syn.: SQUARE AWAY(2).

Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.

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  • straighten out — {v.} To correct a mistake; make you realize you are wrong. * /The teacher saw Jim s awkward sentence on the board and asked for volunteers to straighten it out./ * /Sometimes only a good spanking will straighten out a naughty child./ Syn.: SQUARE …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • straighten out — straighten (someone) out to cause someone s behavior or character to improve. I thought marriage would straighten him out but it hasn t. He plays the part of an uncle trying to straighten out a troubled teenager …   New idioms dictionary

  • straighten out — index arrange (methodize), disabuse, disentangle, fix (arrange), fix (settle), negotiate …   Law dictionary

  • straighten out — verb 1. settle or put right (Freq. 2) we need to iron out our disagreements • Syn: ↑iron out, ↑put right • Hypernyms: ↑better, ↑improve, ↑amend, ↑ …   Useful english dictionary

  • straighten out — phrasal verb Word forms straighten out : present tense I/you/we/they straighten out he/she/it straightens out present participle straightening out past tense straightened out past participle straightened out 1) [intransitive/transitive] same as… …   English dictionary

  • straighten out — 1) PHRASAL VERB If you straighten out a confused situation, you succeed in getting it organized and tidied up. [V P n (not pron)] He would make an appointment with him to straighten out a couple of things... [V n P] My sister had come in with her …   English dictionary

  • straighten out — verb a) To make straight. Straighten out your necktie and comb your hair. b) To correct or rectify. Then bring them to me, she said. And when the tinsmiths came, bringing with them all their tools in baskets, she inquired, Can you straighten out… …   Wiktionary

  • straighten\ out — v To correct a mistake; make you realize you are wrong. The teacher saw Jim s awkward sentence on the board and asked for volunteers to straighten it out. Sometimes only a good spanking will straighten out a naughty child. Syn.: square away(2) …   Словарь американских идиом

  • straighten out — phr verb Straighten out is used with these nouns as the object: ↑mess, ↑thing …   Collocations dictionary

  • straighten out — Synonyms and related words: accommodate, acculturate, adjust, admonish, advance, ameliorate, amend, arrange, better, boost, bring forward, bring to book, bring to terms, call to account, chastise, chide, civilize, close, close with, compose,… …   Moby Thesaurus

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