all bark and
no bite
full of talk but no action or substance
all came out
in the wash
to be revealed, usually publicly
all eyes and
ears
to be attentive
all hell
broke loose
total chaos came about, extreme disorder
all in a
day's work
to understate an important achievement
all over the
shop
to be in a chaotic state, or out of control
all that jazz
all that which could be related to a subject
B
Idiom examples list B
ball breaker
someone who is unreasonable and excessively difficult to have dealings
with
balls-up
a vulagar term for mess,failure or disaster
barrel of
laughs
someone or something who or which is very entertaining
be glad to see the back of
to be happy that someone has gone away
bite off
more than one can chew
to be overly ambitious, to take on more than is possible to deal with
blow it
to make a mess of something, to fail, to ruin one's chances
bowl over
to totally surprise or overwhelm
C
Idiom examples list C
cheat on
be unfaitful to
cheese off
to really annoy
city slicker
someone who is "at home" in the city and not comfortable in the country
cold shoulder
to be rude, to ignore blatently and disrespectfully
cop on
to stop being silly, to act like an adult, grow up, behave properly
crack up
to laugh almost uncontrollably
crocodile
tears
to cry (with tears) that are not sincere
cruising for
a bruising
to behave in a manner that is likely to bring about bodily harm in the
form of injury inflicted by others
cut one's
coat according to one's cloth
live within your capabilities
cut the
mustard
to be adequate, to be sufficiently effective
D
dash off
to hurry away
diamond in
the rough
a person who appears to be unpleasant or rude but who in fact has good
positive qualities
deadweight
someone or something of little use but which gets in the way
don't get me
started
an invitation to refrain from starting a conversation about which the
person has a lot of negative things to say
double dutch
totally impossible language (or concept) to understand
ie. twice as difficult to understand as Dutch
do a bunk
to disappear without explanation, to escape
drink from a
firehose
to access an enormous quantity in order to take (or find) a very small amount ie. the source is so vast that it is difficult to find what you search for
E
Idiom examples list E-H
every nook
and cranny
everywhere, in every spot
everything
but the kitchen sink
practically everything including that which is not necessary
eye of the
beholder
beauty is subjective and depends on the perception of the individual
who sees
eye up
to look in an exagerated fashion, either (usually) as flirt or to
express disapproval
F
fair play
to behave correctly, also used to congratulate or express approval
fall by the
wayside
to be abandoned, work undone due to lack of commitment or interest
fall for
to fall in love
or
to be tricked or fooled
feel one's
oats
to be full of energy, fuelled up
G
get up on
the wrong side of the bed
to be grumpy, to be irritable or in a bad mood
gift of the
gab
the natural skill to chat to anyone about anything in a convincing
manner
give over
to stop behaving in an annoying fashion
give
somebody a hand
to offer help to someone
give someone
a hard time
make a situation difficult for someone
give someone
the cold shoulder
to dismiss someone's presence, rudely, disrespectfully
give
somebody the slip
to manage to get away from someone
goose is
cooked
this is the end, there is no hope of succeeding
greatest
thing since sliced bread
some sort of new gadget, or invention that will have a significantly positive impact on someone's life.
Also to sarcastically describe a person with a very big ego who
believes to be superior and in demand
H
hair of the
dog
a taste of the alcoholic drink that caused the hangover taken in the morning to relieve symtoms
handle with
kid gloves
to be extremely delicate and careful with someone
hard pressed
finding it difficult or impossible to complete a task
hatchet job
to be critical of someone or something with the sole intent to distroy or cause grave harm to a reputation
heebie-jeebies
feeling of anxiety, fear discomfort
or
emotional excitement in a positive delightful sense
hit someone
for six
to be devastated by unexpected news
hit the big
time
to achieve huge success
hot on
somebody's heels
to follow closely
I
Idiom examples list I-L
if the shoe
fits
if all indicators imply something then it is likely to be so
ignorance is
bliss
sometimes it is better to not have knowledge of something
in a jiffy
very quickly
inside track
an advantaged position
iron out
to
solve a problem, resolve an issue
it's no skin
off my back
it's not a problem for me, it doesn't bother me
itchy
trigger finger
someone who often does things hastily
ivory tower
an unrealistic perspective based on unrealistic reasoning demonstrating lack of connection to reality
J
jack of all
trades
someone capable of doing varied tasks but not any one in a
spectacularly effective manner
join the
club meaning
"I understand your problem and sympathise"
