- sit idly by
- sit idly by & stand idly byto remain close, doing nothing to help. •
I do not intend to stand idly by while my children need my help.
•The wealthy man sat idly by while the poor people starved.
Dictionary of American idioms. 2013.
sit idly by
Look at other dictionaries:
sit (idly) by — (and (do something)) to take no action. I felt we simply couldn t sit by and see the peace process threatened. We can t afford to sit idly by while dangerous people threaten our way of life … New idioms dictionary
sit idly by — stand/sit/idly by phrase to see something bad happening without trying to prevent it The government was accused of standing idly by while unemployment soared. Thesaurus: to not act, or to not do somethingsynonym Main entry: idly … Useful english dictionary
sit idly by and do something — sit (idly) by (and (do something)) to take no action. I felt we simply couldn t sit by and see the peace process threatened. We can t afford to sit idly by while dangerous people threaten our way of life … New idioms dictionary
sit idly by and — sit (idly) by (and (do something)) to take no action. I felt we simply couldn t sit by and see the peace process threatened. We can t afford to sit idly by while dangerous people threaten our way of life … New idioms dictionary
sit idly by — sit and watch or rest while others work He sat idly by all morning while the others worked hard … Idioms and examples
sit by and do something — sit (idly) by (and (do something)) to take no action. I felt we simply couldn t sit by and see the peace process threatened. We can t afford to sit idly by while dangerous people threaten our way of life … New idioms dictionary
sit by and — sit (idly) by (and (do something)) to take no action. I felt we simply couldn t sit by and see the peace process threatened. We can t afford to sit idly by while dangerous people threaten our way of life … New idioms dictionary
sit — verb 1 on a chair, etc. ADVERB ▪ motionless, still ▪ Just sit still! ▪ quietly ▪ He would sit quietly and watch what was happening. ▪ … Collocations dictionary
idly — i|dly [ aıdli ] adverb 1. ) without any real purpose or reason: She sat in the waiting room, flicking idly through a magazine. 2. ) without doing anything: I lay idly on the rocks. stand/sit idly by to see something bad happening without trying… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
idly — UK [ˈaɪdlɪ] / US adverb 1) without any real purpose or reason She sat in the waiting room, flicking idly through a magazine. 2) without doing anything I lay idly on the rocks. • stand/sit idly by to see something bad happening without trying to… … English dictionary
sit by — verb be inactive or indifferent while something is happening (Freq. 1) Don t just sit by while your rights are violated! • Syn: ↑sit back • Hypernyms: ↑watch, ↑look on • Verb Frames … Useful english dictionary
