out of one's system

out of (one's) system

1. Expelled or excreted from one's body after a period of time. Usually said of harmful or undesirable substances or foreign bodies. Once the toxins work their way out of your system, you should start to feel the nausea subside and your energy return. I actually feel much better now that I threw up—it got a lot of the booze out of my system.2. No longer occupying one's thoughts, attention, or desires, usually because one has done enough of it in the past. My parents actually encouraged me to date, drink, and party as much as possible in my first year of college. That way, they thought, I would get all the wild behavior out of my system and focus on my studies for the rest of my degree. Just let him scream, it's what toddlers do. As soon as it's out of his system, he'll come back to you looking for a cuddle and a kiss.See also: of, out, system

out of one's system

Out of one's thoughts or inclinations. It is often put as get something out of one's system, as in You need to get your ex-husband out of your system, or At the annual all-chocolate buffet I try everything, which gets it out of my system for at least a month , or Let him complain as much as he wants so he'll get it out of his system. This idiom uses system in the sense of "all one's physical and mental functions." [c. 1900] See also: of, out, system