had thrown myself into his strong arms, pressed my face onto his well-muscled chest, and sobbed. I pleaded for him to stay. plead with someone— = plead for someone 3: They pleaded with him to stay, insisting he was the outstanding person for this difficult job. plug at something • plug away at something plug at something —(U.S. coll.) shoot at smth.: You can prac- tice with your gun by plugging at the tree. plug away at something —(coll.) work hard and steadily at smth.: If I plug away at painting the room, I may get it finished tonight. point at something • point to something point at something —show smth. by holding out one’s finger, etc.: All the boys went down to the beach and pointed at the great ship anchored there. point to something—1. indicate the position or direction of smth.: The needle of a compass points to the north. 2. = point at something: Pembeh touched him on the shoulder and pointed to a prayer rug spread at the threshold of the room. 3. be a sign of smth.; testify to smth.: Everything pointed to the probability of a French protectorate being proclaimed over Burma. 4. direct attention to smth.: Critics point to the con- tinuing instability of the company. point of no return • turning point point of no return —the point beyond which one must con- tinue on his current course of action, because turning back would be too expensive or dangerous: We have finally reached the point of no return where the drums for peace are now louder than the drums for war. turning point—a decisive moment at which a very significant change for better or worse occurs: The Chernobyl disaster was a turning point for the nuclear power worldwide. It demon- strated that nuclear power in parts of the world was not safe enough. pony up for something • pony up something pony up for something —(U.S. coll.) make a request for smth.: Actually, I’m reading the e-book, but I already know I will pony up for the print version as well. pony up something —(U.S. coll.) repay the money one owes: Tell him to defer enrollment for a year. Otherwise, he’s got to pony up the whole amount through a bank loan. poor boy • poor little boy poor boy—(U.S.) a large sandwich filled with a range of ingredients: Exploring Greenwich Village, I found Poor Boys , salami and cheese and chili peppers on great hunks of Italian bread. Cf.: poor girl—said of a smaller “poor boy”: The Briazz chain of lunch restaurants calls its entry the poor girl and packs it with salami, ham … and tomato. poor little boy—(pejor.) the ordinary individual; the “man in the street” (also: poor little guy): How about voting for me? I’m just a poor little boy who grew up in the neighborhood. pop music • popular music pop music—music that evolved out of the rock ‘n roll rev- olution of the 1950s and continues in a definable path to today: With extensive free distribution throughout the Internet, music videos are making a comeback as a promotional vehicle for pop music . popular music—a wide range of music (from vaudeville to heavy metal) that is most in line with the tastes of the urban middle class: Though his work was primarily in the fields of American popular music and jazz, Tormé had always loved classical music. pork chop • pork-chopper pork chop —(U.S. dated sl.) a Black person who is willing to accept a position inferior to that of his white peers: A pork chop has not lost traditional subservient ideology of the South. Note: The expression does not correlate in meaning with the phrase carry on like a pork chop—(Austral. sl.) behave in a foolish or outlandish manner: There was this slightly demented guy carrying on like a pork chop about how McDonald’s is poisoning everyone. pork-chopper —(U.S. dated sl.) a union official who is in the union for self-interested reasons: They feel contempt for the “pork-chopper ”—the former factory workers who have become full-time members of the union staff. possess oneself of something • possess something possess oneself of something—1. take possession of smth.: Div- ing below, he possessed himself of the money he had stowed away in his bundle when he came aboard. 2. appropriate smth. to one’s use, especially unlawfully or unfairly; By the aid of his brother who was bishop of Winchester, he possessed him - self of the royal treasure. possess something —have or own something: The young man spent his boyhood at Capri, where his father possessed a house near the residence of the emperor. possessed by something • possessed of something possessed by something—having one’s mind dominated by some strong emotion: We drop anchor and, possessed by a powerful craving for a cold beer, row to the fish-stained docks. possessed of something—1. being the owner of smth.: To dream that you are possessed of riches, denotes that you will rise to high places by your constant exertion and attention to your affairs. 2. being in possession of smth. such as a quality: The following document is written under the assumption that the reader is possessed of a sense of humor. post boat • post ship post boat—a ship conveying mail or travelers, especially on a regular route: We have the choice of the post boat tomorrow, which takes a limited number of passengers, or the bigger boat on Saturday. post ship—(UK hist.) a Royal Navy ship of not less than twenty guns: Every ship of twenty guns or more was a post- ship , and a man was ordinarily said to be posted, that is, appointed to command a ship. post box • post-office box post box —(UK) a box in a public place in which letters are deposited for dispatch: There is no way to retrieve a letter once it has been dropped into a post box . post-office box—a private box or pigeon hole in a post office where letters are kept until called for: The following evening Dillon found in his post-office box a letter of one line. See also: letter box / mailbox. Post Office, the • post office Post Office, the—the public department responsible for postal services: The government encouraged the Post Office to establish its own banking service. post office—a building where postal business is carried out: From the city post office he sent off two telegrams. post-office order • postal order post-office order—(UK) a money order in which the name of the payee does not appear, but is transmitted from the issu- ing to the paying post office: To procure a post-office order it is requisite to apply at an office and wait while certain forms are being filled up. postal order—(UK) a money order issued by a post office for plug at something – 270 –