burn the midnight oil
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To stay awake late at night to work or study: “Jill has been burning the midnight oil lately; I guess she has a big exam coming up.”
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Words nearby burn the midnight oil
Burns, Robert, Burnsville, burnt, burnt almond, burn the candle at both ends, burn the midnight oil, burn to a cinder, burnt offering, burnt shale, burnt sienna, burnt-tip orchid
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
How to use burn the midnight oil in a sentence
Other Idioms and Phrases with burn the midnight oil
burn the midnight oil
Stay up late working or studying, as in The semester is almost over and we're all burning the midnight oil before exams. This expression alludes to the oil in oil lamps. [Early 1600s]
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.