own person, be one's
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Also, be one's own man or woman. Be independent, be responsible for oneself. For example, We can't tell Jerry what to do—he's his own person. Chaucer used this idiom in Troilus and Cressida: “I am my own woman, well at ease.” [Late 1300s]
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Words nearby own person, be one's
owner-operator, ownership, ownership flat, own goal, own medicine, own person, be one's, own up, Owosso, owse, owt, ox
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.