worm out of

worm out of
ˌworm ˈout of [transitive] [present tense I/you/we/they worm out of he/she/it worms out of present participle worming out of past tense wormed out of past participle wormed out of] phrasal verb
to gradually get information from someone who does not want to give it to you

I eventually managed to worm a few details out of him.

Thesaurus: to persuade someone to tell you somethingsynonym to find out informationsynonym
Main entry: worm

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worm out of [phrasal verb]
informal
1 worm (something) out of (someone) : to get (information) from (someone) by asking many questions, by using clever methods of persuasion, etc.

We're still trying to worm it out of him.

She finally wormed the truth out of him. [=she finally got him to tell her the truth]

2 worm out of (something) or worm (your way) out of (something) : to avoid doing (something) in usually a clever or dishonest way

He always managed to worm his way out of doing the dishes.

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Main Entry:worm

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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  • worm out of — phrasal verb [transitive] Word forms worm out of : present tense I/you/we/they worm out of he/she/it worms out of present participle worming out of past tense wormed out of past participle wormed out of worm something out of someone to gradually… …   English dictionary

  • worm out of — Synonyms and related words: alibi, alibi out of, apologize for, arouse, bring forth, bring out, bring to light, call forth, call out, call up, catechize, cover with excuses, creep out of, deduce, derive, drag out, draw forth, draw out, educe,… …   Moby Thesaurus

  • worm out of — Verb. To evade or escape an unpleasant situation by undignified behaviour. E.g. She attempted to worm out of the arrangement by saying she had to wash her hair …   English slang and colloquialisms

  • worm out — transitive verb Etymology: worm (II) + out 1. : to push or force out by subtle pressure or undermining is trying to worm his partner out of the business 2. : to dispossess or take from by subtle or deceptive means …   Useful english dictionary

  • worm out of — PHRASAL VERB If you worm information out of someone, you gradually find it out by constantly asking them about it. [V n P P n] It took me weeks to worm the facts out of him... [V P P n n (not pron)] It didn t take long before she d wormed out of… …   English dictionary

  • worm out of — (Roget s IV) v. Syn. squirm out of, evade, get out of, slip out of; see avoid , escape …   English dictionary for students

  • worm out — Find out (as a secret) …   New dictionary of synonyms

  • worm out a secret — obtain secret information by deception, cheat someone into revealing a secret …   English contemporary dictionary

  • worm — ► NOUN 1) an earthworm or other creeping or burrowing invertebrate animal having a long slender soft body and no limbs. 2) (worms) intestinal or other internal parasites. 3) a maggot regarded as eating dead bodies buried in the ground. 4)… …   English terms dictionary

  • worm — v. 1) (d; tr.) to worm into (how did they worm their way into the meeting?) 2) (d; intr., tr.) to worm out of (to worm out of an obligation; to worm information out of smb.) 3) (misc.) to worm one s way into smb. s confidence * * * [wɜːm] (misc.) …   Combinatory dictionary

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