sharp as a wet noodle—(U.S. ironic) very dull, stupid: You can tell from the things he says that he’s about as sharp as a wet noodle . ship company • ship’s company ship company—(also: shipping company) commercial com- pany engaged in transporting passengers and cargo by ship: The day of building tramp steamers by means of money raised from single ship companies has passed away. ship’s company—the whole crew of any ship: It was certainly a good run ashore for the ship’s company , with the Principality of Monaco granting free admission to many places of inter- est. shipmaster • shipping-master shipmaster —(also: master of the ship) captain or commander of a vessel: No shipmaster is permitted to use an anchor which has not been tested and stamped with a government mark. shipping-master —an official supervising the signing-on and discharging of seamen: When the crew is first engaged, the agreement shall be signed in duplicate, and one part shall be retained by the shipping master . ship’s clerk • shipping clerk ship’s clerk—1. an officer responsible for accounts and stores in a passenger liner: He appears to have been a somewhat humorless person, very dedicated to his profession as ship’s clerk . 2. (U.S. Navy) an officer supervising records, reports, etc.: The torpedoman, ship’s clerk , photographer and aerog- rapher entered the warrant ranks during WWII. shipping clerk —a clerk who checks merchandise and attends to the shipment of goods: Shipping clerks are record keepers responsible for all outgoing shipments. ship’s mate • shipmate ship’s mate—an officer on a merchant ship ranking imme- diately below the captain: Big Jim was the ship’s mate on the Bloody Moon, a ship owned by Captain Morgan. shipmate —a person belonging to the same crew: Before Pete experienced any kamikaze attacks, he and his shipmates used to discuss the safest place on a ship. shoot a bolt • shoot one’s bolt shoot a bolt—send a bolt of a door, etc. into its fastening: The frame into which the bolts shoot is made of great strength. shoot one’s bolt—(coll.) do all that one is capable of; exhaust all of one’s resources: The home players had shot their bolt , and in thirty minutes the Birmingham team added two goals. shoot a goal • shoot at the goal shoot a goal—(Sport) score a goal: The ball had come in from the right, and McLuckie killed it, and shot a goal . shoot at the goal —1. (Sport) kick the ball, etc. in an attempt to score a goal: In the last hockey game, Mike Modano shot at the goal several times. 2. have smth. in mind as an object; strive for smth.: When it is achieved there will be other goals for them to shoot at . shoot a star • shoot for the stars shoot a star—(Nautical) take the star’s meridional altitude so as to get the position of the ship: It takes several minutes to find and shoot a star . Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the phrase shooting star—(also: falling-star) a meteor that darts across the sky: Another gale-warning often is given by shooting stars . shoot for the stars—(also: shoot for the moon) be extremely ambitious; try to do smth. very difficult or impossible: “We want to shoot for the stars ,” Green said before the game. shoot for the moon • shoot the moon shoot for the moon—(also: shoot for the stars) be extremely ambitious; try to do smth. very difficult or impossible: It is better to succeed in changing your diet gradually, than to shoot for the moon and then give up. shoot the moon —(sl.) leave rented accommodation by night without paying the rent: I told him who were responsible ten- ants; I warned him when shooting of moons seemed likely. shoot someone down • shoot someone down in flames shoot someone down—1. kill a person by a shot (usually implying merciless cruelty): I have witnessed several of their battles, and it appears to be the first object to shoot down , or otherwise kill a man. 2. bring down an aircraft (hence a pilot) by shooting: His father believes he is still alive fifteen years after he was shot down over Germany. shoot someone down in flames—1. = shoot someone down 2: Ernie had a memorable experience in this operation when he was shot down in flames and rescued in a few hours. 2. bring about smb.’s downfall: Let’s wait until he’s gone too far to draw back, and then we can produce our evidence and shoot him down in flames . 3. overcome a person in argument: She herself had been a little shocked by his answer, but had secretly enjoyed seeing Eileen shot down in flames . shoot the cat • shoot the sitting duck shoot the cat—(UK sl.) be sick; vomit, especially as a result of excessive drinking: I’m cursedly inclined to shoot the cat . shoot the sitting duck—do smth. with guaranteed success; defeat smb. who is an easy prey: I don’t like enemies who aren’t formidable. There’s no fun in shooting sitting ducks . shoot the crow • stone the crows shoot the crow —(sl.) 1. depart hurriedly; make off: There’ll only be his mother in the house. His father shot the crow years ago. 2. sneak off without paying: A canny Scot was sentenced to ten days’ hard for shooting the crow —ordering whiskey and neglecting to pay. stone the crows—(sl., also: stone me) is used as an exclamation of surprise, etc.: “Stone the Crows !,” shouted Peter Grant, when he first heard this splendid young Scottish band roaring into action. shoot-up • upshot shoot-up —1. a furious exchange of shooting; a gun battle: Munn was nearly killed in a shoot-up in the streets of Montreal on the very day of his landing. 2. (of prices, etc.) a quick or sudden rise: We haven’t seen the shoot-up in prices like other areas have, and that’s helped quite a bit. 3. (sl.) a drug injec- tion: They looked like a couple of drug addicts meeting for a shoot-up in a condemned building. upshot—the end result or conclusion of some course of action: We had a talk, and the upshot was that if I couldn’t feel better through prayer, it was my fault because my faith wasn’t strong enough. short arm • short hand short arm—a small inlet of a river: There are overnight mooring available in the short arm on east bank immediately above Diglis Lock. short hand—1. a quick way of writing which uses signs instead of letters or words: I was confronted with an old copy of the Academy, with some shorthand notes on the margin. 2. the hand of a clock or watch which indicates the hours: When it is one o’clock the hour hand, the short hand , is point- ing towards the number one. Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the adjectival compound short-handed—(of an organization, etc.) – 295 – short arm