nail somebody to the wall (informal)

[Theseus]

nail somebody to the wall (informal)
to punish or hurt someone severely because you are very angry with them:-
-- I didn't care about why they did it, I just wanted to nail the guys that robbed me to the wall.
--I was so angry, I just wanted to nail the crooks to the wall.:angry:

 

[Hellegennes]

Κολλάω κάποιον στον τοίχο.

In Greek, it's used both metaphorically and literally:

Είχε αρκετά ενοχοποιητικά στοιχεία για να τον κολλήσει στον τοίχο*.
Ήθελε να τον κολλήσει στον τοίχο και να τον αρχίσει στις γρήγορες.


* also, τυλίγω σε μια κόλλα χαρτί.

 

[Theseus]

Ήθελε να τον κολλήσει στον τοίχο και να τον αρχίσει στις γρήγορες. I can't understand this sentence even with dictionary help. Does it mean 'He wanted to nail him to the wall and start τον (why ?τον) it immediately? στις γρήγορες isn't in any dictionary I have.
* also, τυλίγω σε μια κόλλα χαρτί. What does the phrase in bold mean? On a sheet of paper? Thanks!

 

[Hellegennes]

Κόλλα χαρτί is a sheet of paper, yes.

Αρχίζω στις γρήγορες means to beat someone up, without giving him space to breathe. One possible translation of the sentence, could be:

He wanted to nail him to the wall and punch the hell out of him before he had time to react.

We usually imply punching or slapping, when saying this.

 

[drsiebenmal]

For αρχίζω στις γρήγορες see also θα στις βρέξω in Lexilogia.

Ghits for αρχίζω στις γρήγορες.

 

[Palavra]

Κολλάω κάποιον στον τοίχο.

We need to clarify that when you say κολλάω στον τοίχο and use it as a metaphor, it only means you've won an argument.
ΛΚΝ:κολλάω κπ. στον τοίχο, τον κάνω να μην μπορεί να αντιμετωπίσει τα επιχειρήματά μου.

If you need a metaphor that means nail sb to the wall and not just mean beat sb up, you might want to go with ήθελα να τους κάνω να το πληρώσουν ακριβά, i.e. I wanted to make them pay for it.

* also, τυλίγω σε μια κόλλα χαρτί.

I think that this means something different; when you wrap somebody up in a piece of paper, you confuse them in order to have them do your bidding. The difference lies in the fact that you don't use force or coercion, you just use your wits in order to confound the other person.
ΛΚΝ: τυλίγω κπ. σε μια κόλα χαρτί: β. ξεγελώ κπ., τον πείθω εύκολα να κάνει κτ. που εγώ θέλω.

 

[nickel]

If you need a metaphor that means nail sb to the wall and not just mean beat sb up, you might want to go with ήθελα να τους κάνω να το πληρώσουν ακριβά, i.e. I wanted to make them pay for it.

I like this one, and I might add the less idiomatic:
Ήθελα να τους κάνω να μετανιώσουν.

An expression that requires the reason for the payback:
Ήθελα να τους κάνω να βλαστημήσουν την ώρα και τη στιγμή που [με έκλεψαν κ.λπ.].

 

[Hellegennes]

I think that this means something different; when you wrap somebody up in a piece of paper, you confuse them in order to have them do your bidding. The difference lies in the fact that you don't use force or coercion, you just use your wits in order to confound the other person.
ΛΚΝ: τυλίγω κπ. σε μια κόλα χαρτί: β. ξεγελώ κπ., τον πείθω εύκολα να κάνει κτ. που εγώ θέλω.

Yes, that's exactly. I only want to clarify that this is done with the aid of the law -or whatever rules apply. It's usually said of someone who was tricked or was naive enough to sign a legal paper which made him lose stuff or made him confess something he did or didn't do. Lawyers usually do that. Example:

Όταν ο Ντίσνεϋ, το 1928, αποφάσισε να πάρει τα δικαιώματα του Όσβαλντ, του τυχερού λαγού, και να συνεχίσει χωρίς την Universal, έφαγε την μεγαλύτερη σφαλιάρα της ζωής του. Ανακάλυψε ότι η Universal τον είχε τυλίξει σε μια κόλλα χαρτί και είχε πάρει τα δικαιώματα του χαρακτήρα για τον εαυτό της.

It's similar to the phrase in question, as well as similar to "τον έστειλε αδιάβαστο". The only difference is that it implies fooling the person with the help of legal shenanigans. All three phrases have slightly different meanings but they may be used for the same situation, context permitting.