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Phrase(s): *drawn and quartered
Fig. to be dealt with very severely. (Now fig. except in historical accounts; refers to a former practice of torturing someone guilty of treason, usually a male, by disembowling and dividing the body into four parts. *Typically: be ~; have someone ~. Fixed order.) • Todd was practically drawn and quartered for losing the Wilson contract. • You were much too harsh with Jean. No matter what she did, she didn’t need to be drawn and quartered for it!
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs