[beside the point] or [beside the question] {adj.} or {adv.phr.} Off the subject; about something different. •/What you meant to do isbeside the point; the fact is you didn’t do it./ •/The judge told thewitness that his remarks were beside the point./ Compare: BEAT AROUND THEBUSH, NEITHER HERE NOR THERE.

[best] See: AS BEST ONE CAN, AT BEST, FOR THE BEST, GET THE BETTER OF orGET THE BEST OF, HAD BETTER or HAD BEST, HE LAUGHS BEST WHO LAUGHS LAST, MAKETHE BEST OF, PUT ONE’S BEST FOOT FORWARD, SECOND BEST, TO THE BEST OF ONE’SKNOWLEDGE, WITH THE BEST or WITH THE BEST OF THEM.

[best bib and tucker] or [Sunday best] or [Sunday go-to-meetingclothes] {n. phr.}, {informal} Best clothes or outfit of clothing.•/The cowboy got all dressed up in his best bib and tucker to go to thedance./ •/Mary went to the party in her Sunday best and made a hit with theboys./ Compare: GLAD RAGS.

[best man]{n.} The groom’s aid (usually his best friend or a relative)at a wedding. •/When Agnes and I got married, my brother Gordon was my bestman./

[best seller]{n.} An item (primarily said of books) that outsellsother items of a similar sort. •/Catherine Neville’s novel "The Eight" hasbeen a national best seller for months./ •/Among imported European cars,the Volkswagen is a best seller./

[bet] See: YOU BET or YOU BET YOUR BOOTS or YOU BET YOUR LIFE.

[be the making of]{v. phr.} To account for the success of someone orsomething. •/The strict discipline that we had to undergo in graduate schoolwas the making of many a successful professor./ •/The relatively low costand high gas mileage are the making of Chevrolet’s Geo Metro cars./

[bet one’s boots] or [bet one’s bottom dollar] or [bet one’s shirt]{v. phr.}, {informal} 1. To bet all you have. •/This horse will win.I would bet my bottom dollar on it./ •/Jim said he would bet his boots thathe would pass the examination./ 2. or [bet one’s life]. To feel verysure; have no doubt. •/Was I scared when I saw the bull running at me? Youbet your life I was!/

[bet on the wrong horse]{v. phr.}, {informal} To base your planson a wrong guess about the result of something; misread the future; misjudge acoming event. •/To count on the small family farm as an important thing inthe American future now looks like betting on the wrong horse./ •/Heexpected Bush to be elected President in 1992 but as it happened, he bet on thewrong horse./

[better] See: ALL BETTER, DISCRETION IS THE BETTER PART OF VALOR, FORBETTER OR WORSE, FOR THE BETTER, GET THE BETTER OF, GO --- ONE BETTER, HADBETTER, HALF A LOAF IS BETTER THAN NONE or HALF A LOAF IS BETTER THAN NO BREAD,SEE BETTER DAYS, THINK BETTER OF.

[better half]{n.}, {informal} One’s marriage partner (mostly saidby men about their wives.) •/"This is my better half, Mary," said Joe./

[better late than never] It is better to come or do something late thannever. •/The firemen didn’t arrive at the house until it was half burned, butit was better late than never./ •/Grandfather is learning to drive a car."Better late than never," he says./ Compare: HALF A LOAF IS BETTER THAN NONE.

[better than]{prep. phr.} More than; greater than; at a greater ratethan. •/The car was doing better than eighty miles an hour./ •/It isbetter than three miles to the station./

[between] See: BETWIXT AND BETWEEN, COME BETWEEN, PEW AND FAR BETWEEN.

[between a rock and a hard place] See: BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUESEA.

[between life and death]{adv. phr.} In danger of dying or beingkilled; with life or death possible. •/He held on to the mountainside betweenlife and death while his friends went to get help./ •/The little sick girllay all night between life and death until her fever was gone./

[between the devil and the deep blue sea] or {literary} [between twofires] or [between a rock and a hard place] {adv. phr.} Between twodangers or difficulties, not knowing what to do. •/The pirates had to fightand be killed or give up and be hanged; they were between the devil and thedeep blue sea./ •/The boy was between a rock and a hard place; he had to gohome and be whipped or stay in town all night and be picked up by thepolice./ •/When the man’s wife and her mother got together, he was betweentwo fires./ Compare: COMING AND GOING(2), IN A BIND.

[between the eyes] See: HIT BETWEEN THE EYES.

[between the lines] See: READ BETWEEN THE LINES.

[between two fires] See: BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA.

[between two shakes of a lamb’s tail] See: BEFORE ONE CAN SAY JACKROBINSON.

[be up to no good]{v. phr.}, {informal} To be plotting andconniving to commit some illegal act or crime. •/"Let’s hurry!" Susan said toher husband. "It’s dark here and those hoodlums obviously are up to nogood."/

[be up to something]{v. phr.}, {informal} 1. To feel strong enoughor knowledgeable enough to accomplish a certain task. •/Are you up toclimbing all the way to the 37th floor?/ •/Are we up to meeting thedelegation from Moscow and speaking Russian to them?/ 2. Tendency to dosomething mischievous. •/I’m afraid Jack is up to one of his old tricksagain./

[beyond measure]{adj.} or {adv. phr.}, {formal} So much thatit can not be measured or figured without any limits. •/With her parentsreunited and present at her graduation, she had happiness beyond measure./•/No one envied him for he was popular beyond measure./

[beyond one’s depth]{adj.} or {adv. phr.} 1. Over your head inwater; in water too deep to touch bottom. •/Jack wasn’t a good swimmer andnearly drowned when he drifted out beyond his depth./ 2. In or into somethingtoo difficult for you; beyond your understanding or ability. •/Bill decidedthat his big brother’s geometry book was beyond his depth./ •/Sam’s fatherstarted to explain the atom bomb to Sam but he soon got beyond his depth./•/When Bill played checkers against the city champion, Bill was beyond hisdepth./ Compare: OVER ONE’S HEAD(1).

[beyond one’s means]{adj. phr.} Too expensive, not affordable.•/Unfortunately, a new Mercedes Benz is beyond my means right now./

[beyond one’s nose] See: SEE BEYOND ONE’S NOSE.

[beyond question(1)]{adj. phr.} Not in doubt certain; sure. — Used inthe predicate. •/People always believe anything that Mark says; his honestyis beyond question./ Contrast: IN QUESTION.

[beyond question(2)] or [without question] {adv. phr.} Withoutdoubt or argument; surely; unquestionably. •/Beyond question, it was thecoldest day of the winter./ •/John’s drawing is without question the bestin the class./

[beyond reasonable doubt]{adv. phr.}, {formal and legal} Virtuallycertain; essentially convincing. •/The judge instructed the jurors to come upwith a verdict of guilty only if they were convinced beyond a reasonable doubtthat Algernon was the perpetrator./

[beyond the pale]{adv.} or {adj. phr.} In disgrace; with no chanceof being accepted or respected by others; not approved by the members of agroup. •/After the outlaw killed a man he was beyond the pale and not evenhis old friends would talk to him./ •/Tom’s swearing is beyond the pale; noone invites him to dinner any more./