get by the balls

English

Etymology

See balls (“testicles”).

Pronunciation

Audio (AU) (file)

Verb

get by the balls (third-person singular simple present gets by the balls, present participle getting by the balls, simple past got by the balls, past participle (UK) got by the balls or (US) gotten by the balls)

(slang, vulgar) To have complete control over someone, especially of a woman abusing a man's infatuation with her.
- 1974, Rolling Stones, Short And Curlies:
  Too bad she's got you by the balls.
If you’ve got them by the balls, their hearts and minds will follow.

(Theodore Roosevelt)

Synonyms

have by the short and curlies

Translations

to have complete control over someone

Italian: tenere per le palle
Russian: держа́ть за я́йца (deržátʹ za jájca)

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