tear a strip off someone
English
Alternative forms
Pronunciation
Audio (AU): (file)
Verb
- (slang) To scold vigorously.
- 1952, New Zealand Parliament, Parliamentary Debates[1], volume 295, page 116:
- Last night the honourable member for Miramar was going to tear a strip off the Minister of Works; […] .
- 2012, Kimberley Rose Dawson, Carousel: The Relapse: Spinning Out of Control[2], page 260:
- But before Debra went out the door behind her she proceeded to tear a strip off both Miguel and Anna Maria.
- Miguel ended up phoning Liz at home and tearing a strip off her for telling Debra to tell him off.
- 2013, Lorraine Bateman, Paul Cole, Blue Days and Fair, page 211,
- No doubt Mother tore a strip off him last night. She will never forgive him for turning away a suitor.
Synonyms
- (scold vigorously): excoriate, give someone a dressing-down, haul someone over the coals, rake someone over the coals, read someone the riot act, tell someone off
Translations
scold vigorously
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