by the book

1. According to established rules: “The inspector will be visiting the factory today, so let's make sure we do everything by the book.”

Idioms and Phrases

Strictly according to the rules, as in Our trip leader is going by the book, allowing us to wander off only for short periods . Shakespeare already used the term figuratively in Romeo and Juliet (1:5): “You kiss by the book.” Also see by the numbers .

Example Sentences

It would have been playing things by the book, in a year the Dodgers successfully improvised at every other step.

From Los Angeles Times

I was really moved by the book for sure.

From Salon

Contra claims that the inquiry was “by the book,” he said that there was no book upon which to rely: every step of the investigation was dictated by the Trump White House.

From Salon

That leads into an exploration of the ways sheriffs exercise and expand their authority, which sets the stage for the theme suggested by the book's subtitle: how the sheriff's office perpetuates inequality in a many areas, especially regarding violence against women, traffic enforcement and immigration.

From Salon

The series was created by the book’s author, Charles Yu, who has worked on shows such as “Westworld,” “Legion” and “American Born Chinese,” and the cast includes Jimmy O. Yang, Ronny Chieng, Chloe Bennet, Lisa Gilroy, Sullivan Jones, Archie Kao and Diana Lin.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• behavior
• fashion
• law
• manner
• method
• mode
• practice
• process
• regulation
• rule
• style
• way