whistle\ in\ the\ dark

whistle\ in\ the\ dark
v. phr. informal
To try to stay brave and forget your fear.

Tom said he could fight the bully with one hand, but we knew that he was just whistling in the dark.

(From the fact that people sometimes whistle when walking in a dark, scary place to keep up their courage.)

Словарь американских идиом. — СПб., Изд-во "Лань". . 1997.

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  • whistle in the dark — {v. phr.}, {informal} To try to stay brave and forget your fear. * /Tom said he could fight the bully with one hand, but we knew that he was just whistling in the dark./ (From the fact that people sometimes whistle when walking in a dark, scary… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • whistle in the dark — {v. phr.}, {informal} To try to stay brave and forget your fear. * /Tom said he could fight the bully with one hand, but we knew that he was just whistling in the dark./ (From the fact that people sometimes whistle when walking in a dark, scary… …   Dictionary of American idioms

  • whistle in the dark — ► whistle in the dark pretend to be unafraid. Main Entry: ↑whistle …   English terms dictionary

  • whistle in the dark — phrasal : to keep up one s courage by or as if by whistling a series of optimistic statements and much whistling in the dark Rupert Emerson * * * whistle in the dark To do something to quell one s fear • • • Main Entry: ↑whistle * * * pretend to… …   Useful english dictionary

  • whistle in the dark —    If you whistle in the dark, you try to hide your fear in a scary or dangerous situation.     Bob looks confident but he s just whistling in the dark; he knows he s going to lose his job …   English Idioms & idiomatic expressions

  • whistle in the dark — try to stay brave and forget one s fear Although he felt very frightened he began to whistle in the dark which helped to calm him down …   Idioms and examples

  • whistle in the dark — in. to guess aimlessly; to speculate as to a fact. □ Am I close, or am I just whistling in the dark? □ She was whistling in the dark. She has no idea of what’s going on …   Dictionary of American slang and colloquial expressions

  • whistle in the dark — verb a) To make a show of bravery despite ones fears. b) To speak of something despite having little knowledge of it. Syn: whistle past the graveyard, talk through ones hat …   Wiktionary

  • whistle in the dark — pretend to be unafraid. → whistle …   English new terms dictionary

  • whistle in the dark — idi to try to remain brave in the face of danger or adversity …   From formal English to slang

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