[make one tick] {v. phr.} To cause to operate; to motivate. * /He is so secretive that we are unable to figure out what makes him tick./ A Dictionary of American Idioms

check off

[check off] {v.} To put a mark beside (the name of a person or thing on a list) to show that it has been counted. * /The teacher checked off […] A Dictionary of American Idioms

bawl out

[bawl out] {v.}, {informal} To reprove in a loud or rough voice; rebuke sharply; scold. * /The teacher bawled us out for not handing in our homework./ Compare: [HAUL OVER […] A Dictionary of American Idioms

upset the applecart

[upset the applecart] or [upset one's applecart] {v. phr.}, {informal} To ruin a plan or what is being done, often by surprise or accident; change how things are or are […] A Dictionary of American Idioms

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Duncan Spaeth, Princeton professor

I know why the sun never sets on the British Empire: God wouldn't trust an Englishman in the dark.

come to the point

[come to the point] or [get to the point] {v. phr.} To talk about the important thing; reach the important facts of the […]

strike one funny

[strike one funny] {v. phr.} To appear or seem laughable, curious, ironic, or entertaining. * /"It strikes me funny," he […]

P.J. O'Rourke

(1947--) U.S. humorist Never wear anything that panics the cat.

Adminisphere

[Adminisphere] The rarified organizational layers above the rank and file that makes decisions that are often profoundly […]

around the clock

[around the clock] also [the clock around] {adv. phr.} For 24 hours a day continuously all day and all night. * /The factory […]

wear thin

[wear thin] {v.} 1. To become thin from use, wearing, or the passing of time. * /My old pair of pants has worn thin at the […]