Idiom
give someone the business
Meaning
To treat someone harshly or in a wrongful manner, such as by abusing, deceiving, or manipulating.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Examples
“The boss gave him the business for being late again.”
“After I made a small mistake, my coworkers gave me the business for the rest of the afternoon.”
“The detective gave the suspect the business, relentlessly questioning him until he finally admitted to his involvement in the crime.”
Examples
simple
“The boss gave him the business for being late again.”
contextual
“After I made a small mistake, my coworkers gave me the business for the rest of the afternoon.”
complex
“The detective gave the suspect the business, relentlessly questioning him until he finally admitted to his involvement in the crime.”
Key words
Related idioms
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