Be had


be had

verb phrase

to become a partner in the s-x act (1594+)
to be duped or cheated; be victimized: you practically need a finance degree to know that you are being had (1805+)

be outwitted; also, be cheated, deceived. for example, this lawyer is a real shyster; you’ve been had, or i’ve become very cautious about these schemes; it’s too costly to be had more than once. this expression employs the verb to have in the sense of getting someone in one’s power or at a disadvantage. [ ; early 1800s ]
be bribed or influenced by dishonest means. for example, our senator’s incorruptible; he cannot be had. [ ; early 1800s ]

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    not soft; solid and firm to the touch; unyielding to pressure and impenetrable or almost impenetrable. firmly formed; tight: a hard knot. difficult to do or accomplish; fatiguing; troublesome: a hard task. difficult or troublesome with respect to an action, situation, person, etc.: hard to please; a hard time. difficult to deal with, manage, control, […]

  • Behead

    to cut off the head of; kill or execute by decapitation. geology. (of a pirate stream) to divert the headwaters of (a river, stream, etc.). contemporary examples when khaled saad answers his phone there is often a voice on the other end threatening to behead him. battle for the sinai sophia jones july 14, 2013 […]

  • Beheld

    simple past tense and past participle of behold. to observe; look at; see. look; see: and, behold, three sentries of the king did appear. contemporary examples upon their arrival in rockaway on friday, the sisters were stunned by the destruction they beheld. sandy’s rockaway victims pause to vote, press on with recovery efforts michael daly […]

  • Behest

    a command or directive. an earnest or strongly worded request. contemporary examples jackson declined to comment on the case, saying it was at the behest of his lawyer. prof: mit hospitalized me for ferguson tweets nina strochlic december 10, 2014 or the time he ran and hid—at his mother’s behest—during the battle of the blackwater. […]

  • Be in for

    (used to indicate inclusion within sp-ce, a place, or limits): walking in the park. (used to indicate inclusion within something abstract or immaterial): in politics; in the autumn. (used to indicate inclusion within or occurrence during a period or limit of time): in ancient times; a task done in ten minutes. (used to indicate limitation […]


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