hold someone's feet to the fire

== English == === Etymology === From the implied threat of physical harm by burning. === Pronunciation === === Verb === hold someone's feet to the fire (third-person singular simple present holds someone's feet to the fire, present participle holding someone's feet to the fire, simple past and past participle held someone's feet to the fire) (idiomatic) To maintain personal, social, political, or legal pressure on someone in order to induce them to comply with one's desires; to hold someone accountable for their actions. 2005 Dec. 19, Julia Keller, "Today's journalists don't know Jack—but ought to" (obituary for Jack N. Anderson), Chicago Tribune (retrieved 17 Apr. 2009): He kept tabs on presidents, monitored members of Congress, held bureaucrats' feet to the fire.