curl up

British  

verb

1. (intr) to adopt a reclining position with the legs close to the body and the back rounded

2. to become or cause to become spiral-shaped or curved

3. (intr) to retire to a quiet cosy setting

   to curl up with a good novel

4. informal to be or cause to be embarrassed or disgusted (esp in the phrase curl up and die )

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curl up Idioms  

1. Assume a position with the legs drawn up; settle down for sleep in this posture. For example, I love to curl up with a good book . [c. 1900]

2. curl up and die . Retreat, collapse, die, as in At first the horse was ahead but in the home stretch she curled up and died , or I'll just curl up and die if he shows up . This colorful expression for collapsing or dying is often used hyperbolically (second example). [Early 1900s]

3. curl someone up . Kill someone, as in The sheriff said he'd curl up that outlaw . This usage originated as cowboy slang in the second half of the 1800s.

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Example Sentences

Tonight, all she wanted was to curl up in her shared room in the house in Inkster-Faraday and not use language at all.

From Literature

Jonah was curled up against Mom, her arm around him.

From Literature

He could curl up beneath his quilt with a book from Deadwood Dump.

From Literature

The deportees wandered in the dark until they found a park, where Rodríguez spent the first of what would be many nights curled up on the ground, trying to sleep.

From Los Angeles Times

With surprising speed, she hacked out a hollow just big enough to take herself and her pack, if she curled up small.

From Literature

Related Words

• cluster
• confer
• consult
• converge
• crouch
• cuddle
• gather
• snuggle