209. Fixed Phrases with “and”

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English has numerous fixed expressions made by combining two words with “and”

DEFINITION AND IMPORTANCE OF FIXED “AND” PHRASES

The conjunction and is unusual in being able to link not just verb-based statements but also grammatically similar words or phrases. Fixed phrases with and tend to be of this latter sort. They are “fixed” in the sense that most fluent English speakers feel they are very common combinations; indeed, if presented with the first word(s) of one of these expressions plus and, they would normally be quite easily able to provide the rest. It would not be difficult, for example, to complete husband and… and far and… with, respectively, wife and wide.

This property of fixed and expressions makes them a type of “collocation”, or “word partnership” – an aspect of vocabulary that is almost as important to master as word meanings. For examples of other collocation types within this blog, see 164. Fixed Preposition Phrases,  173. “Do Research” or “Make Research”?,  180. Nouns that Count the Uncountable,  241. Some Common Figurative Phrases and 273, Verb-Object Collocations.

Collocations with and are surprisingly numerous. Most advanced English courses make reference to them and provide a few examples, but I have not seen them extensively surveyed and classified. This is what I aim to do here. My list, which has been gradually compiled over time, is probably not complete, but will still hopefully be useful. Readers who know examples not included here are invited to contribute them via the comment facility below.

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CATEGORIES AND EXAMPLES

The categorisation below is in terms of word classes. These are not of individual words within an expression but rather of the whole expression. For example, a pairing that is a “noun expression” is typically used in sentences in noun positions (subject, object, complement, etc.). Usually the words within the expression will reflect this word class, but not always.

A noticeable trend among the examples is that the word after and often has more letters than the one before, or at least the same length.

1. Noun Expressions

aches and pains
airs and graces
all and sundry
bits and pieces
bread and butter
carrot and stick
checks and balances
comings and goings
*cut and thrust
day and night (or night and day
doom and gloom
facts and figures
*give and take
heaven and hell
highways and byways
husband (or man) and wife
hustle and bustle
*ins and outs
law and order
life and death
part and parcel (of…)
pros and cons
*push and pull
*rise and fall
*rough and tumble
salt and pepper
spit and polish
sticks and stones
stresses and strains
toil and trouble
*toing and froing
trouble and strife
twists and turns
*ups and downs
wear and tear
*whys and wherefores

EXAMPLES

(a) Magazine sales are our bread and butter.

(b) Successful relationships involve give and take.

I have omitted many food combinations in this category because they are rare in formal writing. Bread and butter is included because it has a metaphorical meaning of “primary source of regular income”. It frequently follows a possessive adjective like our in (a).

The two words combined with and are usually nouns like the whole phrase. A few, indicated by *, seem like other word types but are still nouns. The noun-like use of verbs in their base form, as in cut and thrust and give and take is also found after HAVE (e.g. have a look – see 116. Rarer Uses of HAVE, #6) and in some preposition phrases (e.g. on the go in 164. Fixed Preposition Phrases).

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2. Verb Expressions

chop and change
come and go
compare and contrast
cut and run
done and dusted
give and take
huff and puff
read and write
rise and fall
stop and start

EXAMPLE

(c) When share prices fall, it is time to cut and run.

This seems to be quite a small category. Give and take is also usable like a noun. For an explanation of compare and contrast, see 94. Essay Instruction Words.

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3. Adverb Expressions

again and again
at (someone’s) beck and call
back and forth
by and by
*by and large
by/in leaps and bounds
day and night (or night and day)
down and out
every now and then
*far and away
far and wide
fast and furious(ly)
*first and foremost
here and there (or hither and thither)
home and away
in dribs and drabs
in fits and starts
in/by leaps and bounds
in this day and age
little and often
*lo and behold
nice and easy (informal)
nip and tuck
now and again
(every) now and then
off and on
out and about
over and over again
round and round
thick and fast
through thick and thin
*through and through
time and (time) again
*to all intents and purposes
to and fro
up and down
with care and attention

EXAMPLES

(d) Errors occur off and on in all contexts.

(e) It is wise to shop little and often.

The kinds of words that help make these adverb phrases are not all the same. Nouns are common, usually with a starting preposition, the typical means of putting nouns in adverb positions (see 84. Seven Things to Know about Prepositions, #2); otherwise, one tends to find adverbs, including ones that elsewhere might be prepositions, such as by (see 120. Six Things to Know about Adverbs, #5).

Nevertheless, there are some exceptions. We find two verbs in lo and behold and nip and tuck, while time and again combines a noun with an adverb. Time and again means “regularly”; now and again means “occasionally”.

Day and night, which also appears in the noun list above, and could have by in front when an adverb, is usable without it like this:

(f) Background radiation was the same in all directions day and night.

It seems that day and night breaks the preposition rule in the same way as various other time nouns do (cp. every Sunday, next week). There is a similar situation with home in home and away, the “understood” preposition being at.

Nice and easy is an informal expression that also appears in the adjective list below. It is usable as an adverb because the individual words that make it do not have to add -ly to become adverbs in informal contexts (see 120. Six Things to Know about Adverbs, #6).

The adverb uses of the above-listed expressions are not all the same. Saying something about a verb is possible for all except those marked *. Of these latter, by and large, first and foremost and to all intents and purposes may describe a sentence or adverb, or a complement as in …was by and large a success. Through and through is only usable in this last way, and must also, like enough, follow the complement (e.g. …is honest through and through). Lo and behold and by and by only describe sentences (an adverb use detailed in these pages in 121. Sentence-Spanning Adverbs); while far and away is only a “degree” adverb, and only possible with a superlative adjective or adverb (far and away the easiest).

In addition to the above-listed expressions, there are many involving a repeated comparative adverb, such as better and better or more and more rapidly. Practically any comparative adverb seems able to make such an expression, some more “fixed” than others. Other common fixed ones include higher and higher, harder and harder, more and more successfully and more and more often. The meaning is always a gradual increase in the manner indicated by the adverb.

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4. Adjective Expressions

belt and braces
black and blue
black and white
bright and early
cheap and nasty
dead and buried (A)
*down and out (A)
few and far between (A)
+ first and foremost
free and easy
hard and fast (B)
high and dry
high and mighty
hit and miss
home and dry
+nice and easy
+nip and tuck (A)
*off and on (or on and off)
*out and about (A)
out and out (B)
pure and simple (A)
safe and sound (A)
spick and span
such and such
swings and roundabouts (A)
touch and go (A)
tried and tested
up and coming
*up and down
willing and able

EXAMPLES

(g) Safety is first and foremost among our priorities.

(h) There are no hard and fast rules for making friends.

Like adjectives in general, the above phrases are not all able to go in both of the common adjective positions, before their noun and after it with a link verb like BE in between (see 184 Adjectives with Limited Mobility). Those that can only go before their noun are marked (B), while those that can only follow it have (A).

The phrases marked * and + appear additionally in the earlier adverb list. Those with * resemble single preposition-like words that have both an ordinary adverb use, e.g. went up and an adjective-like one after BE, e.g. was up (see 154. Lone Prepositions after BE).

The phrase pure and simple is often placed directly after its noun with no verb in between, e.g. an adjective pure and simple. This gives it the special meaning “and nothing more needs to be said”. Black and white is often used metaphorically to mean “clearly defined” (see 278. Colours), while black and blue usually means “extensively bruised”.

It will be seen that most of the adjective expressions are made with two ordinary adjectives, or two preposition-like ones. Exceptions are out and out (two adverbs meaning “complete”, as in an out and out failure), nip and tuck (two verbs), hit and miss (two verbs), touch and go (two verbs), belt and braces, (two nouns), swings and roundabouts (two nouns), home and dry (noun + adjective), and up and coming (adverb + participle).

Like adverbs, most adjectives in their comparative form can be repeated with and in order to express a gradual increase. Examples of a more fixed kind are better and better, stranger and stranger, more and more worrying and more and more important.

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5. Preposition Expressions

A small number of and expressions work as multi-word prepositions (see 221. Multi-Word Prepositions). They are all made with two prepositions of the ordinary kind:

in and around
above and beyond
over and above