call of nature






call of nature

used euphemistically to refer to a need to urinate or defecate.


Related Idioms :


call his bluff

challenge someone to carry out a stated intention in the expectation of being able to expose it as a false pretence.

In the game of poker (which was formerly also known by the name of bluff), calling someone's bluff meant making an opponent show their hand in order to reveal that its value was weaker than their heavy betting suggested.



call it a day

decide or agree to stop doing something, either temporarily or permanently.

This expression comes from the idea of having done a day's work. In the mid 19th century, the form was call it half a day.



call someone names

Insult someone verbally

Accuse someone by using different abusing words



call the shots = call the tune

take the initiative in deciding how something should be done

be in control – informal

Call the shots was originally an American phrase, first recorded in the 1960s. Call the tune comes from the saying he who pays the piper calls the tune, which dates from the late 19th century.

1996 - Sunday Telegraph - Britain is no longer run from Downing Street. It's Brussels that calls the shots.



Do not call us we will call you

used as a dismissive way of saying that someone has not been successful in an audition or job application – informal



good call = bad call

used to express approval (or criticism) of a person's decision or suggestion – informal

Originally good call and bad call referred to decisions made by referees or umpires in a sports match.



call a spade a spade

speak plainly or bluntly without avoiding issues which are unpleasant or embarrassing. A variation on this phrase, dating from the early 20th century and used for humorous emphasis, is call a spade a shovel.

1998 - Spectator - A man whom I might not agree with where politics are concerned, but one who calls a spade a spade.



too close to call

(of a contest, race, etc.) so evenly balanced that it is impossible to predict the outcome with confidence - Informal




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