idioms

IDIOMS FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE English Language 1123

IDIOMS FOR ENGLISH LANGUAGE

Idioms/Saying Explanation

To have ants in your pants.

For example:

“There’s a test tomorrow, and he can’t concentrate or keep still. He looks like he’s got

ants in his pants.”

To unable to keep still because you are very excited or worried about something

To badger someone

For example:

“Don’t let people badger you into having a drink”.

To pester someone into during something

To be like a bear with sore head

For example:

“My husband is like a bear with sore head before he gets his cup of tea in the morning.”

To be in bad mood

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

For example:

“I would stay with your current firm, rather than look for something better. After all, a bird in the

hand is worth two in the bush.”

Having something for certain is better than the possibility of getting something better.

The early bird catches the worm.

For example:

“I’ll go to work early tomorrow. After all, the early bird catches the worm.”

If you do something in a timely manner you will succeed.

A bird’s eye view

For example:

“If you look like at google Maps you can get a bird’s eye view of your street.”

The appearance of something seen from above

Birds of a feather flock together

For example:

“At the party, all the teenagers gathered in the kitchen. Birds of a feather flock together.”

People who have similar characters or similar interests will choose to spend time together.

To kill two birds with one stone


For example:

“I went to the dentist, and asked him to fill the molar, and remove the wisdom tooth at the same time. Might as well kill two birds with one stone.”

Two solve two problems with one single action

To be like a bull in china shop

For example:

“Don’t let him touch those glass baubles; he’s like a bull in a china shop.”

To be clumsy

A cat nap

For example:

“I always have a cat nap after lunch.”

A short sleep, during the day

To be like a cat on a hot tin roof

For example:

“She’s waiting for her boyfriend to call, and she’s been like a cat on a hot tin roof all day.”

To be nervous and unable to keep still

A fat cat

For example:

“Too many fat cats have made money out of the recession.”

Someone who is very rich and powerful

A scaredy-cat

For example:

“It’s only a little spider, don’t be such a scaredy-cat.”

Someone who is frightened for no reason

The cat’s whiskers

For example:

“She thought she was the cat’s whiskers when she got the party in the play.”

When someone thinks they’re better than everyone else

Has the cat got your tongue?

For example:

“Why are you being so quiet? Cat got your tongue?”

Said when someone isn’t saying anything


To let the cat out of the bag

For example:

“Everybody knows about the redundancies, someone let the cat out of the bag.”

To reveal a secret

To look like the cat that got the cream

For example:

“I guess you passed your exam. You look like the cat that got the cream.”

To look very pleased and a bit smug about something

To put a cat among the pigeons

For example:

“When the photos showed him kissing a young woman, it really put the cat among the pigeons”

To cause trouble

Not enough room to swing the cat

For example:

“In our old flat there wasn’t enough room to swing a cat.”

Used to describe a place that is very small

It’s raining cats and dogs!

For example:

“We had to run for shelter when it started raining cats and dogs.”

It’s raining very heavily

Look what the cat’s dragged in!

For example:

“Look what the cat’s dragged in! You look terrible!”

An insulting way of saying that someone has just arrived and they don’t look good

To be a chicken or To be chicken or To be chicken livered.

For example:

“She wouldn’t get on the waltzers, because she said they’re dangerous. She’s such a chicken.”

Someone who is cowardly

A cuckoo in the nest

For example:

Someone who is part of a group but is different and often disliked, or a problem that grows quickly

and crowds out everything else


“The new manager is a real cuckoo in the nest. He’s causing more problems than he’s solving.”

Living in cloud cuckoo land

For example:

“He thinks the recession won’t affect his business. He’s living in cloud cuckoo land.”

Used to describe someone who has ideas of plans that are completely unrealistic

A dog and pony show

For example:

“His campaign was a real dog and pony show, but he still didn’t win the election.”

A show or other event that has been organized in order to get people’s support or to persuade them

to buy something

A shaggy dog story

For example:

“The way he kept going on led me to suspect it was a shaggy dog story.”

A joke or story that’s obviously not true or has a silly ending

To be like dog with two tails

For example:

“When we found out we had won the contract, our manger was like a dog with two tails.”

To be very happy

To be dog-eared

For example:

“I won’t lend her any more books; the last one she gave back to me was dog-eared.”

If something is dog-eared, it is in bad condition

To be dog tired

For example:

“The party went on till 4am. I was dog tired the next day.”

To be exhausted

A dead duck

For example:

“The police admitted that they were giving up, the case was a dead duck.”

A failure

The elephant in the room

For example:

A problem or situation that everyone knows about nut no one mentions


“Her blindness was the elephant in the room.”

A cold fish

For example:

“Her husband is a real cold fish, it’s impossible to tell whether he’s happy or not.”

Someone who doesn’t dhow how they feel

A different kettle of fish

For example:

“Oh! They want to place an order? That’s a different kettle of fish. Of course I’ll talk to them”

A different matter or issue

To be as sly as a fox

For example:

“He managed to get all his money out before the bank collapsed. He’s a sly old fox.”

To be sneakily clever

To get someone’s goat

For example:

“The whole time I was singing she didn’t stop talking. She really got my goat.”

To upset someone

A dark horse

For example:

“I was surprised when he sat down to play the piano. I didn’t know he could! He’s a real dark

horse.”

A person who is secretive and often does something surprising

To close (shut) the stable door after the horse has bolted

For example:

“Giving the banks billions of dollars, is like closing

the stable door after the horse has bolted.”

To try to fix something after the problem has occurred

To eat like a horse

For example:

“He had two helpings of everything. He eats like a horse!”

To eat a lot

Straight from the horse’s mouth

For examples:

To hear something interesting from someone


“The rumor is true, the company will announce a large contract today, I heard it straight from the horse’s mouth; the managing director told me.”

actually involved

Mutton dressed (up) as lamb

For example:

“She’s over fifty and should really stop wearing miniskirts if she doesn’t want to look like mutton

dressed as lamb”

Used to describe a woman who is dressed in a style that is more suitable for much younger

woman

To put cat among pigeons

For example:

“When the photos showed him kissing a young woman, it really put the cat among the pigeons”

To cause trouble

A dog and pony show

For example:

“His campaign was a real dog and pony show, but he still didn’t win the election”

A show or other event that has been organized in order to get people’s support to persuade them to

buy something

To be like a rabbit in headlights

For example:

“As I walked into the exam room, I was like a rabbit in the headlights”

To be so frightened or surprised that you cannot move or think

To pull the rabbit out of the hat

For example:

“He really pulled a rabbit out of the hat by getting those orders”

To Surprise everyone by suddenly doing something clever

A wolf in sheep’s clothing

For example:

“I wouldn’t borrow any money off him if I were you. He’s a real wolf in sheep’s clothing”

Someone who is dangerous, but pretends to be harmless

Even a blind Squirrel can find a nut once in a while

For example:

“I was surprised when he came up with the solution, I didn’t think he was that clever. I guess that even a blind

squirrel can find a nut once in a while”

Sometimes people can be correct just by being lucky


To have a tiger by the tail

For example:

“Trying to deal with the problem of drugs on the streets is like grabbing a tiger by the tail”

To have become associated with something powerful and potentially dangerous

To talk turkey

For example:

“We need to solve this problem and the only way we’ll do it is to talk turkey”

To speak frankly and openly

To cry wolf

For example:

“Don’t take any notice of him, he’s always crying wolf”

To raise a false alarm about something

The early bird catches the worm

For example:

“I’ll go to work early tomorrow. After all, the early bird catches the worm”

If you do something in a timely manner you will succeed

To knock one’s head against a brick wall

For example:

“I have been knocking my head against a brick wall trying to solve this week’s Mind Bender”

To waste time trying to do something with little or no success

To bank on something / someone

For example:

“You can always bank on friends to help you”

Something or Someone you can be sure of

To lock the barn door after the horse has bolted

For example:

“Buying a burglar alarm after the break in was like locking the barn door after the horse had bolted”

To be careful or try to make something safe when it is too late

To be banging/hitting your head against a brick wall

For example:

“Trying to get them to do their homework is like

banging my head against a brick wall”

To keep asking someone to do something which they never do


Like a ton of bricks

For example:

“The news of the accident hit me like a ton of bricks”

To be affected strongly or forcefully by Something

You can’t make bricks without straw

For example:

“It’s no good trying to build a website if you don’t know any html, you can’t make bricks without a

straw”

You cannot do something correctly without the necessary materials/knowledge

To burn your bridges

For example:

“When he handed in his resignation he had burnt his bridges.”

To do something that makes it impossible for you to change your plans and go back to the situation

you were in before.

Rome wasn’t built in a day

For example:

“It’s taken me years to build this site, and I’m still not finished! Still, Rome wasn’t built in a day.”

It takes a long time to do an important job

Castles in the air

For example:

“She is always building castles in the air and is very unrealistic”

To have day dreams

To be in doghouse

For example:

“He was really in the doghouse after borrowing his father’s car without permission”

To be in trouble

To hold the fort

For example:

“He has been holding the fort at his company while his boss is on vacation”

To cope in an emergency, often by acting as a temporary substitute

Close to home

For example:

“What the fortune teller said about my past life hit

To be near to someone’s personal feelings, wishes or interests


close to home, it was uncanny”

Make oneself at home

For example:

“I always make myself at home when I visit my in-laws”

To act as if you were at home

House of cards

For example:

“The peace agreement between the two countries was like a house of cards and quickly fell apart”

Something badly put together and easily knocked down, a poorly thought out plan/action

On the house

For example:

“The club was celebrating its anniversary so the drinks were on the house”

Something provided free by a business especially in a bar or restaurant

Put one’s own house in order

For example:

“The government should put its own house in order before it tells others what to do”

Organize one’s own private affairs

To bring the house down

For example:

“The last act was so good they brought the house down”

To cause a lot of applause or laughter

People who live in glass house shouldn’t throw stones

For example:

“He was always telling people to be honest and then he stole the money; he should know that

people who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones.”

Do not complain about other people if you are as bad as they are

Run-of-the-mill

For example:

“Nothing extraordinary happened the whole day was very run-of-the-mill”

Something that is ordinary or usual

To go through the mill


For example:

“Since his divorce he was really gone through the mill”

To experience a difficult situation

To go through the roof

For example:

“When she saw how dirty his clothes were, his mother went through the roof”

To become very angry, go into a rage

To hit the roof

For example:

“He hit the roof when he found out that his son had wrecked the family car.”

To become very angry, go into a rage

The elephant in the room

For example:

“Her blindness was the elephants in the room”

A problem or a situation that everyone knows about but no one mentions

To be a tower of strength

For example:

“He has been a real tower of strength all through the divorce”

Someone who gives strong and reliable support

A hole in the wall

For example:

1) “We went for a drink at a little hole in the wall near the university last night”

2) “I went to the hole in the wall to get some cash”

1) A small place to live, stay or work in

2) A cash Machine

To climb the wall

For example:

“The journey was so boring she was soon climbing the wall”

To be so bored that you become anxious and frustrated

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