knowing the ropes

There’s far more to bell-ringing than knowing the ropes.

The new crop comes to the show knowing the ropes and the stakes and regarding their predecessors as stars, tradition being established fast in TV time, and when you're nine.

Not knowing the ropes, we engaged a carriage at 100 piastres to take us from the city out to the plateau.

Here at Westminster and in the little half-decked boat commenced the healthy passion of Henty’s life, and he acquired something of the skill which enabled him through manhood to go to sea and feel no fear even in rough weather, strengthened as he was by the calm confidence that accompanied, in the broad sense of the term, “knowing the ropes.”

I teased her about knowing the ropes, yet giving me a difficult time.