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the works
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]
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]
Example Sentences
Plans for the event were in the works well before federal immigration raids set off protests in Los Angeles and other cities.
Clearly the attack, which began in the early hours Friday, had been in the works for months.
Over four days of concerts mostly in the rustic Libbey Bowl, the names of many of the works gave away the game.
Sefton Council and Liverpool City Region Combined Authority have both provided £2.5m for the project with the government allocating £5m to the works.
In March, Mr Rouillac brought the piece to the Comité Rodin, a research group dedicated to studying the works of Rodin, who confirmed its authenticity six weeks later.
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