the works

Idioms  

1. Everything, the full range of possibilities, as in He ordered a pizza with the works , or All right, tell me, give me the works on it . This usage derives from works in the sense of “a complete set of parts for a machine or mechanism.” [ Colloquial ; late 1800s]

2. A beating or other severe treatment. This usage is often put as give someone the works , as in They took him outside and gave him the works . [ Slang ; first half of 1900s]

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Example Sentences

The art on display—especially for this debut—is a little thin, at least in part because so many of the works are small.

From The Wall Street Journal

In November, Young Thug teased to TMZ he and the singer had another collaboration in the works.

From Los Angeles Times

Paris had already thrown a spanner in the works by calling this week for a delay to the vote, demanding robust safeguard clauses, tighter import controls and more stringent standards for Mercosur producers.

From Barron's

Ultimately, Quintrell says it's really important to open the story of Pride and Prejudice out, because growing up, she felt the works belonged to scholars and academics and that she was not allowed to "own" the texts.

From BBC

This thematically organized show—curated by Carlos Gollonet, chief curator of photography at the Spanish Fundación MAPFRE, which lent all the works in the exhibition—opens with a 1979 self-portrait in which the photographer has adorned her face with the traditional paint of the Seri people.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• all-inclusive
• broad
• complete
• encyclopedic
• exhaustive
• extensive
• far-reaching
• full
• global
• overall
• sweeping
• thorough