make (one’s) bones
v.— «Business, for Puzo’s characters, is almost everything. Vito Corleone “made his bones” (first killing) in cold blood for dollars.» —“Persuasive Picture of Crime’s World” by Geoffrey Wolff Washington Post-Times Herald Mar. 8, 1969. (source: Double-Tongued Dictionary)
Further reading
After our conversation about towns with extremely short names, many listeners wrote to tell us about Why, Arizona. Others pointed out that there are towns called Ely in Iowa, Minnesota, and Nevada. Other super-short appellations include Rye, New...
Understanding the varieties of conversational styles can mean the difference between feeling you’re understood and being insulted. “High-involvement” speakers interrupt or talk along with someone else to signal their enthusiasm...
This citation was previously misattributed to the New York Times but was corrected on July 5, 2017. Thanks to Merrill Perlman for the correction.