Nosy Nellie of the Office I Found Your Nose in My Business Again
OK. Wait at yourself!
I guess y'all can probably name near of the parts of your body that yous can see (and some of the ones yous can't see).
Merely how many idioms can you lot make from your body parts?
In English, there are LOTS of idioms that use parts of the trunk.
Here are 75 of the most common body idioms in English.
How many did you already know?
Trunk idioms: Parts of the head
Body idioms with "head"
To head off
This means "to offset a journey."
Perchance you're going on a curt trip:
"I'm merely heading off to the shops. Do you want anything?"
Or mayhap it's the biggest journey of your life!
"Nosotros're walking around the world! We're heading off on Tuesday!"
Off the pinnacle of my caput
This one'south very useful for politicians when they're being asked difficult questions in interviews.
We normally utilise information technology in sentences similar:
"That's an interesting question, but I tin can't tell you lot off the top of my caput."
Or
"I don't know off the top of my caput, but I call up that sales went upwards xx% in June and down twoscore% in August. But you'll have to check."
What does it mean?
It basically means "without checking."
Take your head in the clouds
You know this feeling.
When y'all're walking downwards the street, heedless and thinking near what yous might do if you lot won the lottery … you could travel the world and eat carrot cake whenever yous wanted and perchance yous could raise sensation for charity by swimming on each continent …
While y'all're having these thoughts, you don't notice the lamp post in front of yous and then, suddenly … bang! You lot walk correct into it!
So what does it mean?
When y'all take your head in the clouds, it ways that you lot're not paying attention to the earth around you, or the important issues, because yous're daydreaming.
Head over heels
There are two meanings for this 1. The literal one and the more idiomatic one.
If you recall about where your head is (at the top of your body) and where your heels are (at the lesser of your body — click hither for more than body vocab), when you become head over heels, you turn over in a forwards move — like a somersault:
Merely when nosotros say someone's caput over heels (or that they've fallen head over heels for someone), it means they've fallen madly in love.
In over your caput
This is when y'all're stuck in a difficult situation — a situation that you lot don't accept the power or the resources to escape.
In short, it'southward very bad news.
Examples? Sure!
"It was just later he'd started to borrow money from the local mafia that he realised he was in over his caput."
"I don't think I can practice this job! I've been here a week, and I have no idea what'southward going on. I recollect I'one thousand in over my caput."
Body idioms with "brain"
No-brainer
Some decisions are hard to make.
Like what to consume for dinner.
I discover that a nightmare. Every. Single. Time.
Only some decisions are really like shooting fish in a barrel.
Like "Would you prefer to travel the globe or piece of work in a shoe manufacturing plant for a week?"
Like shooting fish in a barrel — travel the world, right?
Or "You have to choose a superpower: A lifetime of existence able to wing or the ability to plow pages in a volume without touching them."
Easy! The volume thing!
No, just kidding. It's the flying. It's always the flying.
These easy decisions?
They're not usually called like shooting fish in a barrel decisions but no-brainers.
So when someone asks you to choose between a 1000 euros and a box of matches, all you need to say is, "That's a no-brainer!"
To selection your brain
Some people know more about stuff than other people.
For example, I'1000 pretty good at linguistic communication stuff.
So, when a friend of mine has some catchy questions about linguistic communication, they ask me.
On the other mitt, I'm admittedly terrible when it comes to choosing a bike to buy.
I love bikes, simply I know zippo nigh them.
That's when I ask my friend Martin virtually types of bikes and which ones are best for off-road and which ones look best in Instagram photos and so on …
In short, I pick his brains.
But non in a zombie kind of way.
More of an "I desire to acquire about this particular topic" kind of way.
A classic example?
OK, so:
"Can I buy you lot a coffee and pick your brain well-nigh Bitcoin investment?"
Torso idioms with "hair"
Out of your hair
Sometimes information technology'due south simply skillful to exit of people'due south fashion, right?
If you've got immature kids, this one will be familiar to you lot.
When yous've got work to do, it'south skillful to have the kids out of the house (or at least out of wherever y'all're working).
Maybe someone dainty can take them out to the park and get them out of your pilus.
And sometimes, we realise nosotros're kind of in other people's way.
That'due south a adept time to say, "Sad — I'll get out of your hair in a minute. I merely demand to make some tea."
To permit your pilus down
Work, work, work, work.
Deadening isn't it?
Sometimes yous just want to exercise something crazy, like bungee jumping, spending the evening at the fairground or mayhap going clubbing.
It'south fourth dimension to let your pilus down!
Nosotros all deserve to let our hair down every now and once again.
To tear your hair out
You tear your hair out when you're going a bit crazy from frustration.
It might just be considering y'all've got a tight deadline, and you're tearing your hair out trying to complete the piece of work on fourth dimension.
You might likewise be tearing your hair out trying to cease that last folio of the novel you lot've been working on for three years.
You can likewise utilize the phrase "tear your hair out with worry":
"I'd better get abode earlier nighttime. Otherwise, my parents will be tearing their pilus out with worry."
To dissever hairs
When you split hairs, yous talk over tiny, tiny differences between things — differences so small that they don't actually matter.
Similar when the bill comes to 12.84 and the waiter gives you change for 12.85.
If you complain about that, then yous're splitting hairs.
Or when you say it's time to get out because information technology'due south five o'clock, but then Barry tells yous that it'due south really iii minutes to v.
What's Barry doing?
That's correct. He's splitting hairs!
So that'due south when you lot tin can say, "Don't divide hairs, Barry."
Body idioms with "eyebrows"
To raise eyebrows
Back in the by, it was much easier to shock people.
Things that are pretty normal these days would still raise a few eyebrows.
Perchance a woman becoming CEO of a company would raise eyebrows.
Or wearing jeans and a T-shirt for a dinner party would heighten eyebrows.
When something raises eyebrows, it slightly shocks people or catches their attention. It wouldn't be annihilation too extreme — simply enough to brand people end reading their newspaper and await up in surprise.
Body idioms with "eye"
An eye for detail
Then you want to become a journalist? Or a copy editor? Or an interior designer? Or a bomb disposal expert?
Then yous'll definitely demand an eye for item — you'll need to be able to find the pocket-sized things.
Middle on the brawl
And then you're running a political campaign to become president of the world?
Well, practiced luck!
Merely there's a lot of competition. You'll need to exist organised — very, very organised.
Y'all'll need to brand certain you're up-to-date with everything that's happening. All the time.
You lot won't be able to take a pause or brand a mistake. Not a single one. Non even a brusque suspension with coffee and no biscuits.
You lot'll demand to be focused every single 2d of the campaign.
In short, you'll demand to continue your eye on the brawl.
Stay focused!
See middle to center
Accept you been online in the terminal, say, 10 years?
It's crazy out in that location!
Everyone seems to accept a different opinion about everything. Everyone seems to exist arguing and fighting and well … it'due south non very pleasant sometimes.
People just don't seem to exist able to see centre to heart.
So what does it mean?
Well, it ways to agree with each other.
We unremarkably utilize this idiom when we're talking near a item topic.
And so you could say:
"Oh yes — Diara and I don't see middle to eye on this. I merely don't think nosotros should be spending the budget on a horizontal elevator. We but accept four offices in the building."
We also generally utilise this in the negative. It's kind of a diplomatic mode of saying you lot don't agree.
Eyes bigger than your stomach
When I was a child, nosotros went to Las Vegas and stayed in the second-biggest hotel in the globe. (The biggest ane was beyond the route — nosotros could run into it from our window.)
Las Vegas is a crazy place — the whole city seems to revolve around gambling. There are gambling machines everywhere.
Everyone wants you to spend your fourth dimension (and money) in their hotels/restaurants/bars/diners, etc., and then you'll spend coin on their machines.
As a result, the food was really, actually cheap in our hotel.
We got lunch one day from an "all-you lot-can-consume" buffet — all you lot can swallow for $3.50. Crazy cheap!
Of course, I put a small mount of food on my tray, including a whole pineapple (until my mother placed information technology back on the cafe).
And of form, I didn't swallow everything — in fact, I only ate about a quarter of what I'd taken.
Why?
Considering my eyes were bigger than my tummy.
Because I thought I could eat more than I really could.
To keep an eye on someone
This ways to watch or accept care of something or somebody to preclude damage or trouble.
"I'm simply going to the toilet — could you keep an eye on my bag?"
"Proceed an eye on him — I don't trust him."
"Keep an eye on the kids while they're on the climbing frame."
Body idioms with "ear"
To be all ears
"Hey! You're not really interested in this, are y'all?"
"What are y'all talking about? I'1000 all ears! I beloved hearing y'all describe the last furniture conference."
"OK. You simply looked bored."
So what does it mean?
Simple! If you say that you're all ears, it means that you're listening – listening carefully and giving the other person your full attention.
To play something past ear
Do y'all ever start planning a holiday, and and then y'all realise that also much depends on different things?
Similar, you plan a picnic on the town hill for lunch, just it might rain that day.
And you really wanted to go to the giraffe museum on the edge of town, only the public send might be unreliable.
So, with all these things that are out of your control, you might only desire to improvise.
Yous'll decide on the twenty-four hours whether you have plenty time for the giraffe museum.
And when the time comes for the picnic, you lot'll look at the sky and decide then whether yous think it'll rain or not.
You'll improvise!
In other words, y'all'll play it by ear.
Body idioms with "nose"
Nosy
We all have one, right?
A nosy neighbour.
Someone who keeps stopping y'all in the stairwell and request about your job, your relationship, your family …
No? OK. It's merely me, and so.
A nosy person is someone who just keeps asking you personal questions that are none of their business.
I really included this idiom in my book, 102 Little Drawings That Will Aid You Call up English Rules FOREVER (Probably).
To stick your nose in / To keep your nose out
And what exercise you say to a nosy person?
"Keep your nose out of my business!"
Or
"Finish sticking your olfactory organ into my life!"
But be conscientious. This is actually quite rude, and you'll only want to use it if yous're in friendly company or the other person is really, really annoying you.
Body idioms with "lips"
My lips are sealed
What's that? You've got a secret?
Don't worry — you can tell me. I won't tell anyone.
You did what?! Seriously?! With four tomatoes?
Don't worry. I won't tell anyone. My lips are sealed.
So what does information technology mean?
Well, it means what I just said: "I won't tell anyone."
To pay lip service
You know when some people pretend to exist in support of something, but they aren't really?
Similar when politicians pretend to be interested in getting more than people to visit museums by visiting a museum and talking about how much they dearest museums and how everyone should go to museums.
Then the next day they cut all the funding for the museums.
Or when your dominate keeps proverb that your thought to do the meetings in the park every Fri is great, only whenever you try to get him to make information technology official, he disappears.
These people are paying lip service — they're saying they agree with something, only that's it. They don't do anything to actually support it.
Body idioms with "teeth"
To sink your teeth into
Some work is boring. Information technology's irksome, it takes ages, and information technology'south unsatisfying.
Stuff like data entry or washing-upwards.
You merely do it and it happens, but naught in the world actually changes.
Yet, some work is fun and satisfying to do.
Not considering it's easy — but considering it's satisfying.
Like transforming your back garden from a big mess into a beautiful Japanese garden.
Sure, it's hard work, but information technology's something you can do, see the progress and enjoy.
It's a job you can really sink your teeth into.
"I'yard looking frontwards to getting my teeth sunk into the new project."
Teething bug
When something's new, you go certain kinds of problems.
Similar when a new business is starting, and you still need to design efficient processes earlier everything's running smoothly.
These are teething problems — little issues that happen when something is starting out.
Sweet molar
She's really into candy and chocolate and cake and eats a plate of sugar for breakfast every day?
She'south really got a sweet molar!
It ways she likes sweet things.
Torso idioms with "tongue"
On the tip of my tongue
"Oh, you have a problem with your horse? I know who you need to talk to! What'due south her proper noun … Oh — I usually know it. It's on the tip of my tongue! Cerry? Cirra? Something like that."
When something'south on the tip of your tongue, you're and then close to remembering it, but it'southward only not coming.
You know this feeling, right?
It happens with people's names, phrases and some words (specially if they're non in your kickoff language).
A tongue twister
Tongue twisters are fun.
Let'south try some!
Attempt saying these words again and again actually fast:
"Reddish lorry, yellow lorry, blood-red lorry, yellow lorry, …"
Difficult, right?
What about this one?
"She sells seashells on the seashore. The seashells she sells are seashells, I'm certain."
Also difficult, isn't it?
These are natural language twisters.
Do you accept any tongue twisters in your first language? Let me know in the comments.
Tongue in cheek
What if I told you that I really liked it when things go badly?
Would y'all think I was mad?
Or would you think I was but being funny … simply in an ironic way?
Another instance could be with films. There are some films that are quite bad, but it'south because they're trying to be bad — it's like a large joke.
Extreme examples of this include films like Airplane and Hot Shots!, which are merely ridiculous and fun.
They're not only being weird — they're existence tongue in cheek.
They're ironic, but at the same time, you know it'southward a joke and y'all're in on the joke.
You lot might hear "tongue in cheek" in a judgement like this:
"Oh, you're non supposed to take it seriously! It'southward all tongue in cheek."
Body idioms with "face"
To face something
"I tin't face some other two weeks with those horrible kids! When are their parents coming dorsum?"
"I think he has to confront the fact that he won't make pure aureate out of chocolate."
When yous face something, it means you have to deal with something you don't want to.
Because of this, nosotros ordinarily utilize the phrase in the negative or with phrases similar "have to."
"Y'all have to face the truth!"
"I just can't confront another morning working in that weird room."
2-faced
Some people like gossiping.
And sometimes it's simply harmless fun.
Only sometimes information technology gets messy. Normally when someone's beingness ii-faced: They conduct nicely to someone, but as presently as that person isn't there whatsoever more, they start saying negative things about them.
We've all seen it — especially dorsum in school, right?
People who do this — who say one matter to one person and a different thing to some other — are 2-faced.
Poker face
Autonomously from a massively popular vocal by the awesomely weird Lady Gaga, a poker face is a confront that gives away no emotion.
You look at a poker face, and you take no thought what that person is thinking or feeling.
Which is a skillful thing when you lot're playing poker.
Trunk idioms with "chin"
Keep your mentum up! / Chin up!
Life can be tough sometimes, especially equally a teenager or during Covid and lockdowns … and definitely as a teenager during lockdown.
Information technology's easy to get a little sad and lose motivation.
If someone needs a bit of a positivity boost, it could exist nice to cheer them up past reminding them of something nice, like the fact their hair looks nifty or that they've just won a big house in Scotland.
"Chin up! You can move to Edinburgh as soon every bit the borders open once again!"
"I know it'southward tough, only you lot but need to practice it for i more week. Keep your chin up!"
"Mentum up" means "Cheer upwards!"
Have it on the chin
Take you seen the classic '80s film Ferris Bueller'due south 24-hour interval Off?
Such a neat film! If y'all haven't seen it, I strongly recommend that you do!
But if you won't, so here's a spoiler.
It's basically about a group of friends (Ferris, Sloane and Cameron) who skip schoolhouse, "borrow" Cameron's dad'southward Ferrari and have a great day hanging out in town.
At the end of the pic, they accidentally crash and destroy Cameron'south dad'southward Ferrari.
Big trouble, right!
Ferris, being the hero of the film, volunteers to take the arraign and tell Cameron's dad information technology was all his error. "He hates me anyway."
But Cameron says no.
Cameron decides to face his dad and accept it on the chin. He decides to take the bad things that are going to happen to him without complaining and with bravery.
Body idioms: Upper body
Trunk idioms with "neck"
To stick your neck out
"Well, someone has to tell the dominate that he's making a big fault. Only who'southward information technology going to be? Who'southward going to stick their neck out?"
If yous stick your neck out, you're doing something that might get y'all in problem — y'all're taking a run a risk.
Trunk idioms with "shoulder"
Shoulder to shoulder
A lot of the fourth dimension, specially in politics, people are non united.
You get lots of different opinions about how to exercise things and how to run the world.
But sometimes, there'due south something that brings people together.
During times of crisis, similar pandemics and wars and natural disasters, you lot see people working together who wouldn't unremarkably work together — people working shoulder to shoulder.
So what does it mean?
"Standing shoulder to shoulder" or "working shoulder to shoulder" means that people are united — usually working together to accomplish the same goal.
To shoulder the burden/arraign/responsibility/cost
"He was such a nightmare when he was young. He spent his whole iii years at academy just hanging out with his mates while we had to shoulder the cost of tuition. Oh, he drove me mad!"
If y'all shoulder a price or a burden or the blame, you lot take responsibility for it.
Nosotros usually utilize this idiom when it shouldn't really be your responsibility, but you have it anyway.
Someone might shoulder the blame for a friend (like in Ferris Bueller's Mean solar day Off, when Ferris offers to shoulder the blame for Cameron's dad'due south smashed-up Ferrari).
To rub shoulders with
Do you know anyone successful?
Not super famous or powerful or anything — but someone who knows super famous and powerful people.
They sometimes get invited to elite parties with politicians and film stars.
They're non friends, just they run across them from time to time. They might fifty-fifty accept a phone number or two.
Well, that person is rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous.
They're not in the inner circle, but they're kind of close — like a satellite in orbit.
By the way, in U.Southward. English, this idiom is "rub elbows."
Body idioms with "arm"
To cost an arm and a leg
Some things are reasonably priced.
I mean — have you seen the price of DVDs these days? Amazing!
But some things are crazy expensive.
Like a house in Malibu, a holiday in Monaco or getting yourself cryogenically frozen.
These things are just too expensive. They price an arm and a leg.
Torso idioms with "elbow"
To elbow somebody out
Sometimes business organization is like war!
You're constantly in contest with the other people for the peak chore.
Some people get really aggressive and fight dirty to get someone's task.
If the worst finally happens, and you lose your chore because someone managed to supervene upon you — possibly they took the boss out for dinner or something — and then y'all got elbowed out.
This happens in politics a lot.
In fact, sometimes you see politicians quitting their jobs before they get elbowed out.
Body idioms with "wrist"
Slap on the wrist
Wow!
He stole a car, crashed it into the police chief'southward house, stole his domestic dog, drove for hours chased past half the police, blew upwardly a MacDonald'due south AND fabricated a horrible joke most the Queen of Sweden in court?
And he just got a $10 fine? That'south merely a slap on the wrist!
And then what does it mean?
If you get a slap on the wrist, you lot get a much, much smaller punishment than you deserve.
Body idioms with "hand"
To give someone a mitt
"Hey! That looks heavy! Can I give yous a hand?"
When you're conveying too much, or you're doing all the cooking, or you have a really difficult slice of paperwork to do, then you might want someone to aid yous out a fiddling.
Or in other words, yous might want someone to give y'all a paw.
Claret on your hands
OK. Time for a dark 1.
Some people kill.
Sometimes it's an accident, similar a car crash.
And sometimes it's deliberate, similar when politicians first wars.
Either mode, if someone is responsible for someone'south expiry, so nosotros say that they have blood on their hands.
This idiom is often used as a fashion of accusing someone.
To have a hand in something
At one school I went to (I went to eight!), every year the whole school took a calendar week off lessons, got together and fabricated something large.
The yr that I was there, we all built a massive BMX rails — with jumps and stuff.
The twelvemonth before I was at that place, the whole schoolhouse managed to brand a lake — a proper large lake with reeds and ducks and everything.
When I think virtually that BMX rails, it always makes me feel skillful that I had a manus in it — that I was involved in something productive.
Information technology'south corking to be part of a team, right?
By the manner, this can exist used negatively, also:
"Barry! I knew you'd had a mitt in creating this mess!"
To wash your hands of something
Nosotros've just been talking a flake about responsibility — like the responsibleness of being part of a big project.
Merely sometimes things get wrong … and yous don't want to exist responsible for something whatsoever more.
Maybe you start off setting upwards a reading group, but it grows and grows and before you know information technology you're part of a group total of cabbage farmers who want to burn all the carrot farms in your neighbourhood.
That's when you decide to launder your hands of the reading grouping.
You cut your connection to it so you lot're no longer responsible for all those burned carrots.
Body idioms with "finger"
Green fingers
Practice you like gardening?
You know — planting flowers and trees and grass and stuff?
Some people, like me, are really terrible at this.
We let things die. We plant things at the incorrect time of year. Nosotros forget to feed and water them. We plant the incorrect things adjacent to each other so they consume each other or beat each other up or whatever information technology is that plants do when they don't go on with each other.
But other people are really adept at information technology.
Everything grows and grows and blooms and all the plants are happy, and they end upward with the best gardens.
These people have green fingers — they're good at gardening.
Past the way, in the U.S. and Australia, they use "a green thumb" instead of "green fingers."
Body idioms with "chest"
To get something off your chest
Humans worry likewise much.
We walk effectually stressing about things that nosotros have no control over, or we stay up all night, anxious near all sorts of things.
1 way to stop worrying about something?
Talk to someone about it!
Go information technology off your chest!
Equally soon as you offset talking about things, they become more manageable.
It's similar you lot're removing some of the problem simply by talking most it.
So what does it mean?
Well, "get something off your chest" ways to talk most something and then that you don't stress so much nearly it.
Body idioms with "heart"
I haven't got the center
OK. This 1's ordinarily used in the negative.
"She really wanted me to go her a pony. She looked so sad, and I didn't accept the heart to say no. Now I'one thousand paying about l,000 euros a year for that thing."
Or
"I was going to tell Barry that his auto had been stolen, but I simply didn't have the center to."
So what does it mean?
Well, if you don't have the heart to do something, it means that y'all just can't practise something that requires you to injure someone or to be unkind.
To cry your heart out / sing your heart out
We've all seen Wayne's Earth, correct?
So we all know that classic scene.
If you haven't, then scout this:
If you can't watch information technology, then let me very quickly describe what'south going on.
Information technology's v guys in a automobile singing their hearts out to Queen'south "Bohemian Rhapsody."
That'due south it.
Somehow, that became one of the virtually iconic scenes of '90s movie theatre.
And so what does information technology hateful?
"Sing your eye out" means to sing with ALL the passion!
You tin also weep your heart out or cry your eyes out, pregnant "to cry passionately."
To learn past heart
Here's something that I find a little annoying.
When you go to a bar or a café (remember those?) and at that place's a rock band.
OK — so far, so skillful.
But then you find that the band hasn't bothered to learn any of the songs — they're using a book and are reading the music equally they play the songs.
Classical music? No problem — sheet music is fine.
Jazz music? Also fine — read the notes. No problem!
Only rock? Come up on! Information technology'due south supposed to be raw!
It's besides quite easy to play — so it's non difficult to learn the songs past heart.
So what does information technology hateful?
"To acquire by heart" ways to memorise.
Body idioms with "breadbasket"
I don't have the tum for …
This one is quite similar to "I haven't got the center."
Simply instead of non being able to do something because it might touch on other people negatively, this one's more personal.
We use it when we tin't do something because it'southward either icky or painful or only generally horrible.
Some people can't stomach horror films.
Some people tin't tum getting a tattoo (because of the pain).
And some people just can't stomach my weird humour. Information technology's OK. I forgive yous.
And if y'all can stomach something, then you've got the tummy for it.
Collywobbles in the tum
That feeling just before an exam or before a get-go appointment, or when you lot're sitting on a roller coaster just before it's near to start …
That nervous feeling in your stomach?
That feeling that feels like there are butterflies flying around down there?
That's collywobbles in your stomach.
Basically, it ways that you lot're nervous — but maybe also kind of excited.
Trunk idioms with "guts"
Have a gut feeling
Do yous ever get that feeling when your body tells yous something before your encephalon does?
Some people just call information technology intuition.
Similar when you have to interview someone, and you just know they're going to exist the right person for the job before they've even said much.
Or when yous know something bad's going to happen … just yous don't know what or why.
You're working on a very basic feeling.
That's when yous take a gut feeling.
At that place's also the phrase "I'k going to become with my gut," significant I'm going to make the determination that feels right (and not necessarily the rational or logical one).
Please don't practise this when you're voting.
To have the guts
The very scary human has some pasta stuck in his beard. Who's got the guts to tell him?
Would you?
Would you tell a scary man that he'due south got nutrient in his beard?
He's scary — maybe he'll shout at you. Or worse!
Only if you lot have the guts to do that, and so well done!
So what does it mean?
Well, "have the guts to exercise something" means "have the courage to do something scary."
That's it! But being brave enough for a specific thing.
Trunk idioms: Back and lower body
Body idioms with "dorsum"
Go off my back!
When someone is always telling you what to do or constantly asking you whether you've finished that project yet or just non leaving you lot lonely for some reason or another, then that person is on your dorsum.
And you lot need to tell them to get off your back!
In other words, to go out you solitary.
Pat on the back
When you do something helpful or useful, it's squeamish to get a bit of recognition, right?
Something like a "Well done!" or a "Hey, good work!" or merely someone to smile and point at you.
Like this:
via GIPHY
Whenever you get a bit of recognition like this, someone's giving you a pat on the dorsum.
It'southward like a small "congratulations."
To go backside someone'southward back
Imagine the java car at your office is awful and one-time and doesn't even offer cappuccinos. Everyone hates it, and you all want to get a new one.
So you ask your managing director, who immediately says no.
Only fortunately, y'all're on very expert terms with the CEO, and then next time you're hanging out and playing golf game, you just ask her.
She says, "Yeah! Of course!"
And you become the new coffee car the adjacent day.
Now, was this a good idea?
I judge yous could say it was a skilful thought from one signal of view. I mean, you got the new coffee automobile, right?
But on the other mitt, your human relationship with your director isn't going to be nifty now, correct?
And why?
Because you went behind his back. You got something done without his permission.
To put your back into something
"Come up on! Come on! Work harder! Put your back into it!"
I'chiliad imagining this is what people were saying when the pyramids were existence built:
What does it mean?
Information technology means "Work harder! Make an attempt!"
You know — all the sorts of things that ancient Egyptian pyramid constructing people would probably say.
Body idioms with "arse"
Hooray! It'southward that point when nosotros talk about a rude function of the torso.
Now, usually at Clark and Miller HQ, we don't like using words that aren't rubber for piece of work.
But here'southward the skillful news. Unlike its American cousin, the give-and-take "arse" isn't that rude. You can even hear information technology on UK tv earlier 9 p.m.
And, another reason to include this very Anglo Saxon word is that there are lots of nifty idioms with it.
Don't know your arse from your elbow
If you lot desire to call someone stupid, yous could simply say "He'southward stupid."
Simply that's not much fun, is information technology?
And what'due south more, information technology doesn't comprise the give-and-take "arse."
So you could say "He doesn't know his arse from his elbow."
Which means "He'south really, really stupid."
To work your arse off
These days people work too much.
We're using our telephone to work over breakfast, and we're still at it when we go to bed at dark.
In short, we all piece of work our arses off, pregnant, we work SO much.
Here'due south my communication — don't piece of work your arse off, and endeavor to get some piece of work-life remainder going.
Pain in the arse
Kids are great and everything, but sometimes …
Well, sometimes they tin be a pain in the arse, right?
Why?
Well, they keep asking questions all the fourth dimension … and I mean ALL the time.
Then, the next minute they're using pots and pans for their makeshift drum kit.
At 3 a.chiliad.
And I get information technology — they need to. It's how they learn about the world around them.
But they can really be a pain in the arse, pregnant that they can really be annoying.
Sometimes nosotros use this idiom to talk about people:
"I had to sit next to Barry at the work dinner. He's such a pain in the arse!"
And sometimes we employ this idiom to talk nearly work and tasks:
"I missed out a sentence and had to print out the whole document again — such a pain in the arse!"
Trunk idioms with "leg"
Leg it!
"Quick! The constabulary are coming! Time to finish spray painting this bank and run away! Come on! Let'southward leg it!"
OK. That's probably not how graffiti artists normally talk. I mean — why would they say what they're doing when they're already doing it?
But you get the meaning, right?
"Leg information technology" ways "Run away!"
To pull your leg
When I lived in Istanbul, I had a friend called Russel who was an excellent practical joker — he loved playing tricks on people.
Once he had a friend visiting him from Scotland. The guy hadn't really travelled much and had never been to a Muslim country.
Earlier they got in the taxi from the drome, Russel told him that y'all accept to have your shoes off whenever yous enter someone's house AND when you enter their auto. Including taxis.
Then as before long as they got in the taxi, his friend started taking off his shoes. The taxi driver thought he was mad, and when Russel told his friend it was just a joke, he felt like a full fool.
Simply that's Russel for you — always pulling your leg.
Or in other words, always playing tricks on y'all.
If you pull someone's leg, it could be a really elaborate flim-flam, similar Russel's, or it could just be something small, similar telling someone that you lot're going to quit your job and walk around the globe. Or that you like the moving picture Titanic when you don't. (Such a terrible motion picture.)
If you think someone's lying to you, or if you just desire to express surprise at what they're telling you, you can say, "Are you pulling my leg?"
Trunk idioms with "pes"
To foot the pecker
I'm not a big fan of pubs where yous don't pay for your drinks when you get them, but instead y'all pay the bill when yous leave.
If you're in a minor group, that's fine. But if you're in a large group of people, and you're the last one to leave, you always stop up basis the bill.
What does it hateful?
When you foot the bill, you have to pay a large neb — probably i that you shouldn't have to pay.
Back on your feet
"What's that? Barry's in the hospital? Is he OK?"
"He's fine. He merely fell in the river and got too cold. He'll be back on his anxiety before long."
What does information technology mean?
When yous're dorsum on your feet, you've recovered from an affliction or an blow.
To put your foot in it
Hither'south a part of the classic '90s motion-picture show Four Weddings and a Funeral:
Charles: How's your gorgeous girlfriend?
John: She's no longer my girlfriend.
Charles: Ah, dearest. I wouldn't get too gloomy about it. Rumour has it she never stopped sleeping with Toby de Lisle in example y'all didn't work out.
John: She's now my wife.
Charles: Excellent. Congratulations.
Come across what happened there?
Charles only put his foot in information technology: he said something that embarrassed or upset someone by blow.
Common cold feet
Sometimes I don't really think about "future me" enough.
I make decisions now that don't affect me — they affect futurity me.
Like when I agreed to go bungee jumping. It seemed similar a proficient idea at the time.
But when I was at that place at the top of the crane looking down at 100 metres of free autumn, I got cold feet. I became scared and inverse my mind.
By the manner, that didn't actually happen — but it'south exactly the sort of thing I might've done.
Another (more classic) example is weddings.
People plan to get married. They spend weeks … months … spending money and making plans.
Then the solar day comes and i of them decides that he's admittedly terrified of commitment and changes his listen at the terminal minute.
In brusque — he gets cold anxiety.
And some very aroused family members.
Itchy feet
At the fourth dimension of writing this, nosotros're in the center (or hopefully towards the finish) of the Covid fiasco.
We're all stuck at home, and travelling and going on holiday is definitely out of the question.
I'm certain we're all getting itchy anxiety — nosotros're all impatient to start travelling again and get a change of scene.
This idiom tin can be used for travelling generally, but we can also use it when nosotros've been sitting at the café besides long and desire to move on, for case.
Torso idioms with "toes"
On your toes
When I was in my twenties, I decided to alive in a famously unsafe part of Istanbul.
Why? Well, the hire was incredibly inexpensive!
I was only nearly a two-infinitesimal walk from the main road and safety, simply whenever I was walking home, I had to exist on my toes for that whole two minutes — I had to be alert and fix for anything to happen.
Really, that identify was crazy.
Body idioms: "Body" and "blood"
Body idioms with "body"
Torso of work
She wrote so many books, by and large about giraffes. She really loved giraffes.
That's right! Her body of work consists of books virtually giraffes.
So what does information technology mean?
"Body of work" means either all or almost all of someone's creative or bookish work.
Information technology tin be used to talk nigh writing, art, academic papers, music or anything that a person produces.
"His body of work spans several decades."
Over my dead trunk
What's that? You program to take my bike and bicycle it to Budapest where yous plan on giving it away to the biggest Titanic fan yous find?
Over my dead body!
It means "No way!" or "You'll have to kill me first!"
I actually like my bike, and I really don't similar Titanic.
Body idioms with "blood"
Flesh and claret
We use this idiom when we desire to emphasise the humanness of someone.
Nosotros can besides employ the phrase "my own flesh and blood" to emphasise how we're related to someone:
"How can y'all do this to me? My own flesh and claret!"
Which brings the states to …
Claret is thicker than water
In that location's probably a skilful reason that all those mad dictators out at that place like putting members of their family in powerful positions.
OK, they want to give them something to do so they don't merely sit effectually on their yachts beingness unpleasant to the staff.
But it'due south too because the bonds betwixt family are stronger than the bonds between friends.
Why? Considering blood is thicker than water.
Make your blood eddy
When the internet was new, nosotros thought that all this information would make us improve informed and meliorate society.
How wrong we were!
Instead, information technology's full of cats (awesome!) and links to strange websites talking nearly things that are designed to make people angry.
And not just angry — the sorts of links that get the most clicks and appointment are things that brand people's blood boil. They make them and then aroused that they're ready to explode into a cloud of CAPS LOCK AND EXCLAMATION MARKS!!!!!!
Are you still here?
Well done! Yous made it to the cease of what might be the longest Clark and Miller mail service ever written.
Congratulations!
Before you lot leave, why not leave a annotate and answer these fun questions:
- What makes your blood boil?
- Can you call back a fourth dimension when yous really put your foot in information technology?
- Do you take any tongue twisters in your language? What are they?
- Whose brain would you lot actually like to pick?
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Source: https://www.clarkandmiller.com/body-idioms-in-english/
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