Christmas Idioms
A white Christmas It refers to the snow on the ground on Christmas day. Australians can never have a white Christmas. (= It almost never snows in Australia.) Christmas came early this year This...
Category: Idioms
Eye Idioms
Open someone’s eyes To open someone’s eyes is to make them discover something. It was an unpleasant experience but it opened my eyes to truth. In the blink of an eye If something happens...
Work Your Fingers To The Bone | English Speaking Lessons
To work your fingers to the bone is to work very hard for a long time. Because you have been putting in so much effort over a long period of time, your fingers have...
Weather Idioms
Here is a list of English idioms that use weather-related words and phrases. A face like thunder When you sport a face like thunder you look very angry. I’m fed up of my boss....
Three Dog Night | English Idioms
A three dog night is an extremely cold night. According to some scholars this idiom comes from Australia. During extremely cold nights, Australian aborigines used to keep themselves warm by hugging dogs. On a slightly...
Think Outside The Box | English Idioms
To think outside the box is to think freely and imaginatively. Compare this with think inside the box. When people think inside the box, their creativity is limited by the boundaries of the box. On the other hand, to...
Take Potshots At | English Idioms
To take potshots at somebody is to criticize them. This isn’t fair criticism, though. Pot shot means criticism that is rather unfair. The sole objective of taking pot shots at somebody is to make them feel bad. My...
Spill The Beans | English Idioms
To spill the beans is to reveal a secret unintentionally. This informal idiom is very common in American English. This expression has been in use since early twentieth century. I didn’t want anyone to know about...
Speak Of The Devil | English Idioms
You are talking about somebody and then that person suddenly appears. In such a situation a native English speaker might say speak /talk of the devil. Actually this is an incomplete phrase. The full forms...
As Sick As A Dog | English Idioms
When you are as sick as a dog, you are very ill and vomiting. Sam could not go to the party, because he was as sick as a dog. I have never been so ill in...