The term five senses is used to refer to the faculties of sight, smell, hearing, taste, and touch.

Today were
going to take a look at five idioms about each of the five senses and tell you what they mean.
Sight:
In the blink of an eye - in an instant
Out of sight, out of mind an expression used to suggest that one is likely to forget
someone/something when they are/it is no longer present/visible
The apple of someones eye a person whom someone admires very much
To see things eye to eye to agree on things
To turn a blind eye to pretend not to notice
Smell:
To follow your nose to follow your instincts
To smell a rat to suspect a trick/lie
To sniff around/out to investigate/discover something through investigation
To turn your nose up at something to show distaste for something in a way which implies it is beneath
you
Under someones nose directly in front of someone
Hearing:
Ears are burning to hear your name being talked about/to be subconsciously aware that you are
being criticised
Nothing between your ears not very clever (no brain)
Out on your ear disgraced and dismissed
To bend someones ear to talk to someone at length/to pester someone for a favour
To keep your ear to the ground to keep well informed on happenings and trends
Taste:
A bad taste in your mouth A strong feeling of disgust after an experience
An acquired taste a thing you come to like after a long period of time
In poor taste vulgar/offensive/thoughtless
To give someone a taste of their own medicine to treat someone badly in the same way they treated
you
To taste blood to achieve an initial success which leads you to wanting more
Touch:
Touch wood! a superstitious expression said after a confident statement to ward off bad luck
(usually while touching something that is made from wood)
To hit a nerve to upset/provoke someone by talking about a particular subject
To keep in touch to remain in contact
To touch base to briefly renew contact with someone to check that they are all right/show that you are
all right
Touch-and-go a phrase used to describe the uncertainty leading up to an outcome
Twenty Five Idioms about the Heart

With Valentines Day just days away, this week were looking at idioms that concern the heart. Click here to
read last years Valentines Day post.
1.Eat your heart out! an expression used to tell someone you think they will experience
jealousy, regret, or anguish
2.From the bottom of my heart with utmost sincerity (and usually regret)
3.Have a heart! Show some pity!, Try and be sympathetic!
4.Heart and soul energy, enthusiasm
5.In a heartbeat immediately
6.My heart bleeds for/goes out to I feel very sorry for/sympathetic towards
7.To find it in your heart to do something to summon up willingness to do something
8.To follow your heart to act according to your emotions and desires and not necessarily in the
most rational, sensible way
9.To get to the heart of something to understand the central, most essential aspect of something
10.To have a change of heart to change your mind
11.To have a heart of gold/stone to be generous and kind/cold and cruel
12.To have a heart to heart to have an intimate conversation
13.To have your heart miss/skip a beat to be startled or surprised
14.To have your heart in the right place to be well intentioned
15.To have your heart set against something to be against something
16.To have your heart set on something to want something very much
17.To know in your heart of hearts to know something as true despite not wanting to believe it
18.To know/learn something off by heart to know something from memory/to memorise
something
19.To lose heart to give up, to feel discouraged, to lose hope
20.To not have your heart in something to not really want to do something
21.To pour your heart out to vent your feelings
22.To take something to heart to take something seriously (and usually with offence)
23.To tug at someones heartstrings to appeal to someones emotions, to make someone feel
sad, guilty, and/or sympathetic
24.To wear your heart on your sleeve to openly express your feelings
25.With a heavy heart with sorrow and regret
Twenty Idioms for New Beginnings

January always feels like the perfect time of year to make some lifestyle changes last week we even
looked at five New Years resolutions to help you improve your spelling. Here are twenty idioms for new
beginnings:
1.a change is as good as a rest a change of occupation can be as relaxing as a break.
2.at the crossroads at the point where you must make the choice between two courses of action
with diverging consequences.
3.early bird catches the worm the person who takes the earliest opportunity to do something will
have an advantage over other people.
4.a breath of fresh air a refreshing or invigorating change.
5.new blood new members of a group (who usually bring with them fresh ideas about how the
group might run).
6.nothing ventured, nothing gained without taking risks, you cant expect to achieve.
7.to blaze a trail to innovate in a particular field and thus lead the way for others.
8.to blow away the cobwebs to refresh yourself from a state of sluggishness.
9.to break new ground to do something innovative in a particular field.
10.a new lease of life an occasion or circumstance that leads you to becoming more energetic
than you were previously.
11.to go back to square one to acknowledge that an idea has been unsuccessful and that you will
need to come up with a new one (see to go back to the drawing board).
12.to go back to the drawing board to acknowledge that an idea has been unsuccessful and that
you will need to come up with a new one (see to go back to square one).
13.to make a clean breast of it to admit to your mistakes.
14.to make headway to make progress.
15.to move mountains to go out of your way and to great efforts to achieve something that seems
impossible.
16.to pave way for to develop a situation or circumstance that enables something to happen.
17.to quit cold turkey to abruptly and completely give something up (i.e. drugs, alcohol, caffeine).
18.to shake things up to make significant changes to an already established system.
19.to start with a clean slate to put your (usually negative) past behind you and start over.
20.to turn over a new leaf to begin to behave in a more responsible manner.
Sixty Clothing Idioms: Part 1

1.a feather in ones cap an honour, an achievement to be proud of.

2.a handmedown an item that has been passed on to a person from someone else.
3.as tough as old boots very tough.
4.at the drop of a hat without hesitation, immediately.
5.below the belt unfair/disregarding the rules.
6.birthday suit naked.
7.bulging/bursting at the seams overflowing.
8.by the seat of ones pants by instinct rather than skill or knowledge.
9.cloakanddagger involving mystery and sometimes espionage.
10.cut from the same cloth similar.
11.downattheheels shabby in appearance.
12.dressed to kill dressed glamorously, often with the intention of making an impression.
13.dressed to the nines dressed smartly.
14.hand in glove with in close association with.
15.hot under the collar angry or embarrassed.
16.Ill eat my hat if ___ I think it is very unlikely that ___/ Ill be very shocked if ___.
17.if the cap/shoe fits, wear it since a general remark or criticism applies to someone, they should
accept i.t
18.in another persons shoes in another persons situation.
19.offthecuff without preparation.
20.old hat outdated.
21.out of pocket having lost money/paid for directly by someone.
22.the boot/shoe is on the other foot the situation has reversed, the person in the position of
advantage is now in a position of disadvantage.
23.to air ones dirty laundry/linen in public to discuss private problems in front of others.
24.to bet ones boots to bet all of ones possessions.
25.to buckle down to determinedly tackle a task.
26.to catch someone with their pants down to catch someone while they are unprepared (usually
when they are in an embarrassing or compromising position).
27.to come apart at the seams to be in an extremely poor condition/to be close to collapse.
28.to drag oneself up by ones bootstraps to improve oneself through ones own effort.
29.to fill someone elses shoes to (usually temporarily) take someones place.
30.to fit like a glove to fit perfectly.
to get along on a shoestring to manage on a small budget.

31.to get the boot/to give someone the boot to get fired from a job/to fire someone from a job.
32.to hang ones hat somewhere to settle down and live somewhere.
33.to hang up ones hat to retire.
34.to have a bee in ones bonnet to be preoccupied with or obsessed by a single thought.
35.to have a card up ones sleeve to have a secret strategy to gain advantage.
36.to have ants in ones pants to feel agitated or restless due to nervousness or excitement.
37.to have money burning a hole in your pocket to have money which you are eager to spend.
38.to have someone in ones pocket to have someone in ones control.
39.to have something up ones sleeve to have a secret plan or solution.
40.to keep ones hat/shirt on to keep calm/to keep from losing ones temper.
41.to keep something under ones hat to keep something secret/to keep something to oneself.
42.to laugh up ones sleeve to be quietly/inwardly amused.
43.to lick someones boots to be attentive to someone to an excessive, servile degree.
44.to line ones own pockets to make money (usually in a dishonest way, such as through
embezzlement or accepting bribery).
45.to pull a rabbit out of the hat to unexpectedly but effectively solve a problem.
46.to put a sock in it to stop talking.
47.to put on ones thinking cap to think over a problem.
48.to quake/shake in ones boots to tremble due to fear.
49.to ride on someones coattails to benefit (often undeservedly) from the perks of someone
elses success.
50.to roll up ones sleeves to prepare oneself for hard work.
51.to take ones hat off to someone/something to declare ones admiration for
someone/something.
52.to talk through ones hat to speak without understanding what you are talking about.
53.to wait for the other shoe to drop to be prepared for further complications to occur.
54.to wear more than one hat to have multiples roles/responsibilities.
55.too big for ones boots/britches to think that you are more important than you really are.
56.under ones belt in one`s experience.
57.willing to give someone the shirt off ones back willing to do almost anything to help someon.
58.with cap/hat in hand with humility (usually said before asking for a favour).
59.wolf in sheeps clothing someone or something that is hostile or threatening but appears to be
harmless
a grey area a situation or area which is not clearly defined (i.e. not black and white).
COLOUR BASED IDIOMS

1.a white lie a small (and supposedly harmless) lie.

2.black and blue badly bruised.
3.black and white two clearly defined opposing principals (i.e. not a grey area).
4.black market a trade in illegal goods.
5.black sheep a member of a group who is regarded as a disgrace to it/the odd person out.
6.blue-collar work/workers manual work/workers.
7.green-eyed monster the personification of jealousy.
8.in someones black books in disfavour with someone.
9.local colour unique customs/features which add to the character of an area.
10.off colour unwell/uneasy.
11.out of the blue without warning/unexpectedly.
12.pitch black totally dark.
13.red herring a misleading/distracting clue.
14.red hot - exciting/passionate/popular.
15.someone with a green thumb/green finger someone with gardening skills.
16.the golden boy a very popular/successful man.
17.the grass is always greener on the other side other peoples situations always seem better
than your own.
18.the pot calling the kettle black a person who criticises or accuses someone for something that
they are also guilty of doing themselves.
19.to black out to lose consciousness.
20.to blacklist someone to exclude someone due to their previous unacceptable/inappropriate
behaviour.
21.to catch someone red-handed to catch someone in the act of doing something wrong.
22.to feel blue to feel sad/depressed/discontented.
23.to give someone the green light/to get the green light to give someone permission to go ahead
with something/to receive permission to go ahead with something.
24.to look through rose tinted glasses to look at something (usually in the past) in an overly
flattering light.
25.to paint the town red to go out and enjoy oneself (usually in an extravagant, flamboyant
manner).
26.to pass with flying colours to pass with excellent results.
27.to see red to become very angry.
28.to show ones true colours - to reveal ones real (and usually dishonourable)
character/intentions.
29.white-collar work/workers office work/workers.
Halloween!

a Jekyll and Hyde someone who alternates between displaying good and evil personalities.

a skeleton in the closet - a shameful secret from someones past.

afraid of ones own shadow easily frightened.
dead man walking a person in a doomed situation.
Frankensteins monster something that has turned against the person who made it.
ghost town a deserted town.
graveyard shift a work shift that is in the early hours of the morning.
green-eyed monster the personification of jealousy.
heebie jeebies a state of nervousness.
in cold blood ruthlessly, without mercy.
out for someones blood determined to seek revenge.
Over my dead body! I completely oppose this!.
scared out of ones wits extremely frightened.
scared stiff extremely frightened.
to break out in a cold sweat to sweat due to fear or anxiety.
to dance with death/the devil to behave in a risky manner.
to freak out to act in a dramatic manner due to fear or excitement / to frighten someone.
to get the jitters to feel very nervous.
to have bats in ones belfry to be batty/mad/eccentric.
to jump out of ones skin to be startled.
to look daggers at to glare angrily at.
to make someones blood boil to infuriate someone.
to make someones blood run cold to horrify someone.
to scare the living daylights out of to severely frighten someone.
to smell a rat to suspect a trick/lie.
to spirit away to sneakily or mysteriously move someone or something from a place.
to stab in the back to betray someone.
to twist the knife to make someones suffering worse.
witch hunt to campaign against/punish a person/group with unorthodox/unpopular/threatening
views.
witching hour the time of night when supernatural beings are said to appear, midnight.
Thirty Five Idioms about Money

1.a penny for your thoughts? what are you thinking about?
2.a pretty penny very expensive
3.a quick buck money which was easy to make
4.cash cow a business/product which generates a stable flow of income/profit
5.daylight robbery obvious, unfair overcharging
6.from rags to riches from poverty to wealth
7.he who pays the piper calls the tune the person who provides the money should choose how it
is spent
8.I dont have two nickels/pennies to rub together I am very poor
9.if I had a nickel/penny for every time this happened this happens a lot
10.in for a penny, in for a pound involved in seeing an undertaking through no matter how much
money, time, or effort it requires
11.mint condition perfect condition
12.money doesnt grow on trees money isnt easy to acquire
13.on the money right about something/someone
14.one mans trash is anothers treasure what is worthless to one person might be valuable to
another
15.other side of the coin/two sides of the same coin an opposing view/two people with opposing
views
16.penny pincher a frugal person
17.strapped for cash short of money
18.ten a penny/dime a dozen very common
19.to cash in your chips to die/ to sell something to gain whatever profit you can because you
suspect its value will fall
20.to cut your losses to abandon a plan/project which is clearly going to be unsuccessful before
circumstances become worse
21.to earn a living to make money enough money to live comfortably
22.to feel the pinch to experience financial hardship
23.to foot the bill to pay for everyone
24.to get off scot free to escape punishment/injury
25.to give someone a run for their money to be a challenging competitor
26.to go bust to become bankrupt
27.to have money burning a hole in your pocket to have money which you are eager to spend
28.to have the penny drop to finally realise/understand something
29.to make big bucks to make a lot of money
30.to spend a penny to go to the toilet
 31.to struggle to make ends meet to struggle to survive on the money you earn
32.to take someone to the cleaners to cheat someone out of their money/possessions
33.to turn up like a bad penny to turn up where you are not wanted
34.two cents an opinion on an issue
35.worth their/its weight in gold to be extremely useful/valuable

FOOD IDIOMS

a bad apple/egg a bad influence/someone who brings trouble

1.a couch potato an idle person
2.a hard nut to crack a difficult person to understand/a difficult problem to solve
3.a piece of cake easy
4.a smart cookie a clever person
5.big cheese an important person
6.bread and butter the necessities
7.doesnt cut the mustard doesnt meet the required standard
8.food for thought worth considering
9.gone pear-shaped gone unexpectedly wrong
10.in a nutshell simply put
11.in a pickle in trouble/mess
12.like chalk and cheese opposites
13.like two peas in a pod very similar
14.not my cup of tea not the type of thing I usually enjoy
15.selling like hot cakes selling quickly and in large quantities 17) the apple of my eye the
person I adore
16.the cream of the crop the best
17.the icing on the cake something quite bad that happens in an already very bad situation
18.to be handed something on a (silver) platter to acquire something easily, usually without any
effort on the receivers part
19.to bring home the bacon to earn the income
20.to butter someone up to flatter someone in the hopes of receiving special treatment
21.to cry over spilt milk to get upset over something that has already happened and cannot be
changed 24) to eat humble pie to apologise and accept humiliation
22.to egg someone on to urge someone to do something foolish
23.to go bananas/to go nuts to lose control as a result of being extremely excited/annoyed
24.to have a bun in the oven to be pregnant
25.to spill the beans to reveal (usually secret) information
26.to take something with a pinch of salt to accept that a piece of information is probably
exaggerated
27.you cant have your cake and eat it (too) you cant have something both ways/you cant have
 the best of both worlds/you cant have the two mutually exclusive things you desire at once

across the board applying to all

1.at this stage of the game at this point during the activity/event
2.ball is in your court - it is up to you to make the next move
3.ballpark figure an approximate guess
4.blow-by-blow detailed step-by-step description
5.down for the count defeated
6.down to the wire at the very last moment
7.fighting chance a fair chance of success
8.get one's feet wet to begin an activity for the first time
9.in deep water in trouble
10.neck and neck even/level in a race or competition
11.off to a running start a favourable beginning
12.out of left field unexpected
13.out of ones depth beyond ones ability
14.safe bet certain to succeed
15.to back the wrong horse to make the wrong choice/to support the wrong thing
16.to bounce off to test ideas on someone
17.to call the shots to be in control
18.to clear a hurdle to overcome an obstacle
19.to cover all bases to prepare for all outcomes/situations
20.to dive in headfirst/to dive right into to do something impulsively/to do something without
hesitation
21.to drop the ball to make a mistake/mishandle something
22.to jump off the deep end to become deeply involved in something before you are fully
prepared
23.to jump the gun to get ahead of yourself/to start something before youre supposed to
24.to set the pace to lead in something at a rate which others attempt to match
25.to sink or swim to fail or succeed
26.to test the water to judge whether a plan will be successful before taking further action
27.to toe the line to accept the authority and rules of a person/group, usually unwillingly
28.to win by a neck/nose to succeed by a small amount
29.too close to call too difficult to predict an outcome (usually because the competitors are so
evenly matched)