temporarily wholly engaged in thinking, either because one is thinking carefully about sth or considering a problem

I became vividly aware of this disturbing phenomenon while I was sitting deep in thought on Hammersmith Bridge this afternoon.  BNCI

 My father could be seen standing by those four stone steps, deep in thought. BNCI

I saw in my mind Boullée in his room in Paris, deep in thought, his eyes on the horizon --; not your horizon or mine but a far more distant one. BNCI

only just suceed in doing sth

I always passed, but did it by the skin of my teeth.  google

 It was very tiring work but I did it by the skin of my teeth. Google

Through fear of failure and desperation I did it - by the skin of my teeth. Google

to make carefull preparations so that you know all you need to know about sth and are able to deal with it successfully

He aces all the tests and actually does his homework well, so he could easily get an A.  Google

You just need to do your homework well. Google

Take the time to do your homework. Google

turned-down corners on the pages of a book

Used books, with their well-worn covers dog ears, and faint mustiness, are even better than a crisp, new paperback right off the rack. WebC

Cut two long floppy dog ears from the brown paper bag to go on each side of the top of the can.  WebC

fail to obtain, learn or find sth one is searching for

 However, even if you draw a blank, it is always worth checking to see whether or not you can influence the external event that starts the sequence. BNCI

 Not only did I draw a blank about the pictures, but political events were moving so fast that the book I had begun to write had ceased, after the completion of the amount of text Faber's required, to be the one that needed to he written.  BNCI

over-use the names of celebrated or influential persons in order to impress others wth one's knowledge of them

Just because the guy can drop names we have all heard of and used to know Bruce McLaren doesn't give him the right to bore us every week.  BNCI

Interesting high-profile autobiographies that drop names like confetti: in Well, I Forget The Rest (Hutchinson, £17.99), Quentin Crewe, thrice-married, confesses: `;It has never taken me longer than a week-end to fall in love, usually less.';  BNCI