visit from the stork idiom meaning

Idioms – Definition & List of 1100+ Examples

In the whimsical world of English idioms, you’ll find cats and dogs raining, needles in haystacks, and no stones left unturned. Sounds chaotic, doesn’t it? Don’t worry, our comprehensive list of idioms tames this chaos and unscrambles the fascinating world of these quirky phrases.

What Are Idioms?

An idiom is a word or phrase whose meaning can’t be understood outside its cultural context. These expressions are usually figurative and would be nonsensical if read literally. For instance, break a leg isn’t a sadistic wish for someone to fracture a limb. It’s actually an idiom, meaning to wish someone good luck before a performance!

So, What’s an Idiomatic Expression?

An idiomatic expression is just another way of saying idiom . These expressions usually emerge from cultural or societal observations and experiences, embedding themselves into our everyday language over time.

The Most Common Idioms

There are countless idioms in the English language, but some have stood the test of time. Some popular idioms like the ball is in your court , kick the bucket or beat around the bush are popular phrases you might hear or use in daily conversation.

Four Types of Idioms

After taking a dip in the idiom waters, let’s dive a little deeper. Idioms come in so many shapes and sizes, but here are four common types:

• Pure Idioms: These bear no logical relation to their literal meanings. If you kick the bucket , you’re not giving a pail a good punt—you’re, well, expiring!
• Binomial Idioms: These are idioms that have two key elements usually connected by a conjunction. An example would be odds and ends, which refers to miscellaneous items.
• Partial Idioms: With these idioms, only part of the expression is non-literal. Lend a hand doesn’t involve the actual lending of appendages; it’s just offering assistance.
• Prepositional Idioms: These use prepositions in unique ways. In the nick of time doesn’t refer to any specific nick but means just in time .

Idiom vs. Cliché: Let’s Compare

An idiom is a figurative expression, while a cliché is an overused phrase or idea. While all clichés might not be idioms, all idioms , when overused, can become clichés . So, if you’re avoiding it like the plague , you’re using a cliché , but it’s still very much in the realm of idioms!

Idiom vs. Proverb: What’s the Diff?

A proverb is meant to be a short, traditional saying that offers wisdom or advice, like two heads are better than one . But an idiom is a phrase with a non-literal meaning, like barking up the wrong tree . Not all idioms are proverbs , but some proverbs can be idioms .

Idiom vs. Euphemism: A Look at Differences

While a euphemism is a mild or indirect expression used to convey something unpleasant or embarrassing, an idiom is a figurative phrase.

Pass away is a euphemism for dying, but if you say someone has kicked the bucket , that’s an idiom for the same thing. Like proverbs and clichés , not all idioms are euphemisms , but some euphemisms can be idioms .

How to Use Idioms

Most idioms can add a dash of color to everyday speech and writing. They can inject humor, emphasize a point, and make your language more relatable and engaging. So, let’s slip right in and explore some of these idiom examples, featuring an eclectic list of idioms that I’ll break down and demonstrate in use.

All bark and no bite : Someone who sounds threatening but is harmless.

Example : For all his loud complaints, my boss is all bark and no bite.

All sizzle and no steak : Something that fails to live up to its hype.

Example : The movie had a spectacular trailer but was all sizzle and no steak.

Backseat driver : A person who criticizes from the sidelines.

Example : My brother is such a backseat driver, always telling me how to do my job.

Beyond the pale : Behavior that is unacceptable or beyond the bounds of decency.

Example : I can handle criticism, but personal insults are beyond the pale.

Bring home the bacon : To earn a living, particularly for one’s family.

Example : Both parents work long hours to bring home the bacon.

Can’t hold a candle to : To not compare favorably to someone or something.

Example : This year’s model can’t hold a candle to the last one.

Cast the first stone : When you’re the first person to criticize or accuse someone.

Example : Before you cast the first stone, remember that nobody is perfect.

Deer in the headlights : To be paralyzed by fear, unable to act or think.

Example : When I asked him about the missing money, he was like a deer in the headlights.

Dollars to doughnuts : Used when you are completely sure about something.

Example : I’ll bet dollars to doughnuts that it’s going to rain tomorrow.

Easier said than done: Something seems like a good idea but would be difficult to carry out.

Example : Getting into shape is easier said than done.

Fight fire with fire : Responding to aggression with aggression.

Example : They’re spreading rumors about us, but I refuse to fight fire with fire.

Get a word in edgewise : The difficulty of breaking into a conversation because it is too hectic.

Example : During the debate, it was hard to get a single word in edgewise.

Handle with kid gloves : To handle a situation, or a person, delicately and gently.

Example : She’s been through a lot recently, so handle her with kid gloves.

If the shoe fits: If something applies to you, then accept it.

Example : I wasn’t directly naming anyone, but if the shoe fits…

Jump the gun : To start something too early.

Example : The eager salesman jumped the gun and presented the product before understanding the customer’s needs.

Keep a stiff upper li p: To stay resolute and unemotional in the face of adversity.

Example : No matter how bad the situation gets, Brits are known to keep a stiff upper lip.

Land of milk and honey : It’s a place of abundance and prosperity.

Example : If you’re launching a tech start-up, Silicon Valley is the land of milk and honey.

Mad as a hatter : Completely crazy.

Example : After working on his thesis for 12 hours straight, he was as mad as a hatter.

Nosebleed section : The cheapest, highest seats in a theater or stadium.

Example : We couldn’t afford better seats, so we’re in the nosebleed section.

One-horse town : A small, insignificant town.

Example : After living in New York, everything else feels like a one-horse town.

Paint the town red : When you go out and have a lively, fun time.

Example : It’s my birthday weekend, and I plan to paint the town red.

Raining cats and dogs : Raining very heavily.

Example : I forgot my umbrella, and it’s raining cats and dogs outside.

Read between the lines : To infer something beyond what is explicitly stated.

Example : The email seemed polite, but reading between the lines, I sensed some hostility.

Salt of the earth : A very good, honest and hardworking person.

Example : Mr. Smith is the salt of the earth; he’s always willing to help those in need.

Scraping the bottom of the barrel : Using the last and often worst of the resources.

Example : By the end of the trip, we were scraping the bottom of the barrel for things to do.

Take no prisoners : To do something thoroughly and ruthlessly.

Example : In business, she’s known to take no prisoners.

The blind leading the blind : Inexperienced people trying to guide or lead others equally inexperienced.

Example : When it comes to cooking, we’re the blind leading the blind.

Under someone’s thumb : To be under someone’s control or influence.

Example : He’s got the entire council under his thumb.

Waiting in the wings : Ready to take action as soon as the opportunity arises.

Example : The understudy was waiting in the wings, ready to take over at a moment’s notice.

Wait for the other shoe to drop : Times when you’re waiting for the inevitable next step or the outcome of a situation.

Example : After the initial allegations, everyone was waiting for the other shoe to drop.

Check Out More Idioms!

Idioms are a super cool part of our language, offering a glimpse into cultures, history and human nature. They add richness and depth to our conversations and help us express complex thoughts and feelings in memorable and vivid ways.

Below is a list of all our posts on idioms.

• Above one’s pay grade
• According to Hoyle or According to Cocker – Origin & Meaning
• Ace in the Hole – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Achilles’ heel
• Acid Test vs. Litmus Test – Idiom & Meaning
• Across the Board – Origin & Meaning
• Adam’s off ox
• Add fuel to the fire
• Add Insult to Injury – Origin & Meaning
• Ahead of the Curve or Ahead of the Curb – Origin & Meaning
• Albatross Around My Neck – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• All Bark No Bite – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• All Dressed Up and Nowhere to Go – Origin & Meaning
• All Hands on Deck – Origin & Meaning
• All sizzle and no steak
• All Systems Go – Origin & Meaning
• Always a bridesmaid, never a bride
• Another string in your bow
• Another think coming
• An Arm and a Leg – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Apple of My Eye – The One Cherished Above All Others
• Apple-pie order
• Apple-Polish – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• April Fool’s or April Fools’
• Asking For a Friend – Origin & Meaning
• Asleep at the Wheel or Asleep at the Switch – Idiom & Meaning
• As crook as Rookwood
• As pleased as Punch
• As the Crow Flies – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• As Thick As Thieves – Meaning & Origin
• At All Costs or At Any Cost – Idiom & Meaning
• At a loose end
• At Face Value – A Blind Belief Or Unquestioned Acceptance?
• At loggerheads
• At Sixes and Sevens – Origin & Meaning
• At the Drop of a Hat – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• At the End of the Day – Usage & Meaning
• At Wits End – Meaning, Origin and Correct Spelling
• Axe to Grind – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• A Bed of Roses – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• A Big Ask – Idiom & Meaning
• A Blessing in Disguise – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• A cat may look at a king
• A Close Shave – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• A day late and a dollar short
• A Dime a Dozen – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• A Far Cry From – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• A Fate Worse Than Death—The Hidden Phrase for ‘Too Horrible to Bear’
• A Feather in Your Cap – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• A Fishy Story – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• A Fish Out of Water—A Simple Idiom for Feeling Awkward
• A Lick and a Promise – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• A Light at the End of the Tunnel – Meaning, Origin & Examples
• A Lot On My Plate – How To Express Heavy Workload In English
• A Man of Letters – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• A means to an end
• A New Lease on Life – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• A Piece of Work – Meaning & Examples
• A Pound of Flesh – Origin and Meaning
• A Shot in the Arm – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• A Shot in the Dark – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• A Slap In The Face – Meaning & Examples
• A Slap on the Wrist – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• A Stone’s Throw—A Simple Phrase for Short Distance
• A Taste of Your Own Medicine or Dose of Your Own Medicine
• A Visit From The Stork – Idiom & Meaning
• A watched pot never boils
• Babe in the Woods – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Backseat Driver – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Back in the day
• Back in the Saddle – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Back the Wrong Horse or Bet on the Wrong Horse
• Back to Square One – Origin & Meaning
• Bad Apple – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Baptism by Fire or Baptism of Fire – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Bare Bones – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Barking Up the Wrong Tree – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Bark Is Worse Than One’s Bite – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Basket case
• Bated Breath or Baited Breath – Meaning and Origin
• Batten Down the Hatches – Meaning and Origin
• Batting cleanup
• Bean Counter – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Beating a Dead Horse—An Idiom Explaining Futile Efforts
• Beat Around the Bush – Origin & Meaning
• Beat Me to the Punch – Origin and Meaning
• Beat Swords into Plowshares—The Promise of Peace
• Been around the block
• Bee in Your Bonnet – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Beg Off – Origin & Meaning
• Behind the Eight Ball – Meaning and Origin
• Bells and Whistles – Origin and Meaning
• Bell the Cat (or To Bell the Cat) – Idiom & Meaning
• Below the belt and hit below the belt
• Better Late Than Never – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Between a Rock and a Hard Place – Origin and Meaning
• Beyond the pale
• Be My Guest – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bigwig – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Big Fish in a Small Pond – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Big Kahuna – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Big League and Bush League – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bill and Coo – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bill of goods
• Bite Off More than You Can Chew – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bite the Bullet – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bite Your Tongue – Idiom, Origin & Examples
• Black Sheep Idiom – Meaning & Origin
• Blah Blah Blah – Origin & Meaning
• Blaze a Trail – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Blind Leading the Blind – Origin & Meaning
• Blowing a Raspberry or Bronx Cheer – Origin & Meaning
• Blowing up one’s phone
• Blow a Gasket vs. Blow a Fuse – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Blow Hot and Cold – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Blow off steam and let off steam
• Blow Someone’s Cover – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Blow the Whistle – Origin & Meaning
• Blow-By-Blow Account – Idiom, Origin & Meanin
• Bob’s Your Uncle Meaning and Origin
• Bold as brass
• Bone of contention
• Bone to pick
• Booby hatch
• Boots on the Ground – Origin & Meaning
• Born with a Silver Spoon – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Bottom Line – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bought the Farm vs. Gone for a Burton – Origin & Meaning
• Bowl Over or Bowled Over – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Breadcrumbs, breadcrumb trail and trail of breadcrumbs
• Break a Leg – Origin & Meaning
• Break the Bank – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Break the Ice—Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Break the Mold or Broke the Mold – Origin & Meaning
• Bring Home the Bacon – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bring one’s A-game
• Brown-nose and brownnose
• Buckle Up – Origin & Meaning
• Buffaloed – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Building castles in the air
• Bully pulpit
• Bull in a China Shop – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Bum-rush vs bum’s rush
• Bundle of Joy – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Bunk, bunkum, buncombe
• Bun in the Oven – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Burning the Candle at Both Ends – Origin & Meaning
• Burning the Midnight Oil – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Burn One’s Boat or Burn One’s Bridges – Origin & Meaning
• Burst Your Bubble or Pop Your Bubble – Origin & Meaning
• Bury The Hatchet – Origin & Meaning
• Bury Your Head in the Sand – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Busman’s Holiday – Origin and Meaning
• Busting Your Chops – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Butterflies in My Stomach – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Butter wouldn’t melt in his mouth
• Butt of a joke
• Butt (Bump) Heads—The Challenge of Conflict
• Buy a lemon
• By and by vs. by the by
• By hook or by crook
• By the Same Token – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• By the Skin of My Teeth – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Cabin Fever – Origin & Meaning
• Caddy-Corner, Kitty-Corner or Catty-Corner
• Call a Spade a Spade – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Call My Bluff – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Call on the carpet
• Call the Shots (or Calling the Shots) – Idiom & Meaning
• Calm Before the Storm – Origin & Meaning
• Canary in the coalmine
• Can of worms vs pandora’s box
• Can’t Hold a Candle to – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Can’t Make Heads or Tails – Meaning and Origin
• Carry a Torch for Someone—Journey Through Unrequited Love
• Case in Point or Case and Point – Meaning & Difference
• Cash in one’s chips
• Cash on the Barrelhead—A Simplified Expression for Immediate Payment
• Cast Aspersions—Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Cast a wide net
• Cast the First Stone—An Important Lesson in Judgement
• Cast-Iron Stomach—How to Eat Anything and Not Feel Sick
• Catbird Seat: Idiom Of Power And Advantage
• Catching Some Rays – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Cat Got Your Tongue – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Caught in the Crosshairs – Targeted Scrutiny or Unwanted Blame?
• Caught Red-Handed – Origin & Meaning
• Center around or center on
• Chalk up vs. chock
• Champing at the Bit vs. Chomping at the Bit – Meaning and Origin
• Change tack
• Chase one’s own tail
• Chatty Cathy – Origin & Meaning
• Checkered Past or Chequered Past – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Check Kiting – Meaning and Examples
• Cheek by jowl
• Cheshire Cat Smile – An Innocent Grin or a Smug?
• Chewed Out – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Chew the Fat – Origin & Meaning
• Chickens Come Home to Roost – Origin and Meaning
• Chicken and Egg Situation – Idiom, Meaning & Examples
• Chills down the spine
• Chip off the Old Block—A Simple Resemblance Idiom
• Chip on Your Shoulder – Origin and Meaning
• Clam Up – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Clean Slate – An English Idiom for New Beginnings
• Clean Your Clock – Origin & Meaning
• Cloak-and-Dagger – Origin and Meaning
• Close Ranks – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Coast Is Clear – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Cock and bull story
• Cog In The Wheel Or Cog In The Machine – Origin and Meaning
• Coin a phrase
• Cold Feet – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Cold Shoulder – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Cold Turkey – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Color outside the lines
• Come Hell Or High Water – An Expression Of Perseverance
• Come What May – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Come-to-Jesus moment and come-to-Jesus meeting
• Coming Down the Pike vs. Coming Down the Pipe
• Comparing Apples to Oranges – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Connect the Dots—A Simple Idiom for Analysis
• Cook the Books – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Cooler Heads Prevail – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Cool as a Cucumber – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Cover all the bases
• Crack the Whip – Origin & Meaning
• Cream of the crop
• Crème De La Crème—Origin & Meaning
• Crossing the Rubicon – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Cross the Line – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Cross to Bear – Origin & Meaning
• Crying Over Spilled Milk Idiom—Meaning, Uses, Examples & Origin
• Cry All the Way to the Bank – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Cry Wolf – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• Curate’s Egg – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Curl One’s Hair—From Fear to Fascination
• Curry Favor—An Idiom Behind the Mix-Up
• Cute as a Button – Origin and Meaning
• Cut and dried
• Cut off your nose to spite your face
• Cut the Mustard – Meaning and Origin
• Cut to the Chase – Meaning & Origin
• Cut to the quick
• Cut Your Losses – Origin & Meaning
• Damning With Faint Praise – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Damn the Torpedoes – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Dance on someone’s grave
• Davy Jones’s locker
• Dawned on Me – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Dead as a Doornail – Origin and Meaning
• Dead End – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Dead Man Walking – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Dead Meat – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Dead to Rights – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Deciphering The ‘Movers And Shakers’ Idiom: A Full Guide
• Decoding Under the Radar—From Unnoticed to Understood
• Deer in the Headlights – Origin & Meaning
• Dent vs dint
• Devil Take the Hindmost—A Reflection of Human Nature
• Devil’s Advocate—How to Argue Effectively
• Diamond in the rough
• Die on the Vine – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Different from, different than, different to
• Dingo’s breakfast
• Dirty Pool – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Dodged a Bullet – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Doesn’t Hold Water (or Do Not Hold Water) – Origin & Meaning
• Does Stick to Your Guns Imply Refusal to Compromise in English?
• Doggy Bag Idiom—More Than Just a Takeout Term
• Dog and Pony Show – Origin & Meaning
• Dog Whistle – Idiom, Origin & Meaning in English
• Dollars to doughnuts
• Don’t borrow trouble
• Don’t Give Up the Ship – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Don’t Hold Your Breath – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Don’t Let the Door Hit You on the Way Out – Origin & Meaning
• Don’t Rain on My Parade – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Don’t Shoot the Messenger—The Ultimate Blame Game
• Double-edged sword
• Down at the Heels – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Down in the Dumps – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Down in the Mouth – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Down the Hatch – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Down the Rabbit Hole—Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Down the Road – Meaning & Synonyms
• Down to the Wire – Meaning & Origin
• Do a Houdini and pull a Houdini
• Do a 180 or do a 360
• Do right by
• Do the Math – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Dragging Feet & Heels—Navigating the Nuances
• Draw a Bead on – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Draw a Blank – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Draw a line in the sand
• Dredge up and dig up
• Dribs and drabs
• Drink the Kool-Aid
• Dropping Like Flies – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Drop a Dime (or Dropping Dimes) – Origin & Meaning
• Drop a Line – Meaning & Origin
• Drop in the Bucket – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Drop the Ball – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Drop-dead vs drop dead!
• Drown Your Sorrows – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Dry Run – Meaning & Origin
• Ducks in a Row – Meaning and Origin
• Dyed in the wool
• Eager Beaver – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Easier Said Than Done – Meaning & Origin
• Easy On the Eyes – Origin and Meaning
• Easy pickings
• Eating Out of Your Hand – Meaning & Origin
• Eat Crow – Meaning & Origin
• Eat One’s Words – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Egging Someone On—Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Elbow grease
• Elbow Room – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Elephant in the Room – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Elvis Has Left the Building – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• End All Be All—The Pursuit of Ultimate Goals
• End of the Line – Meaning & Origin
• End on a high note and go out on a high note
• End Run – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Enfant Terrible – Meaning & Origin
• Even Keeled or Even Keel – Usage & Meaning
• Even Steven or Even Stevens – Meaning & Origin
• Everybody Who’s Anybody – Meaning & Origin
• Every Nook and Cranny – Meaning & Origin
• Eyeteeth – Meaning, Idiom & Origin
• Face the Music – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Faint of heart
• Fair Dinkum – Meaning & Origin
• Fall From Grace – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Fall on one’s sword
• Fall Through the Cracks or Slip Through the Cracks
• Famous Last Words – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Feeding Frenzy – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Feeling My Oats – Meaning & Origin
• Feet of Clay – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Fell Into My Lap—When Life Surprises You
• Fell Off the Back of a Truck – Origin & Meaning
• Fiddle While Rome Burns – Meaning & Origin
• Fight Fire With Fire – Origin and Meaning
• Fine Tooth Comb – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Fingers Crossed – Origin & Meaning
• Finger Pointing or Pointing Finger – Meaning and Examples
• Firing on All Cylinders – Meaning and Origin
• Fish or Cut Bait – Meaning, Synonym and Origin
• Fit the Bill or Fill the Bill – Meaning and Origin
• Fit To Be Tied – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Flap one’s gums
• Flash in the pan
• Flatten the curve
• Flavor of the Month – Meaning and Origin
• Flesh and Blood – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• Flip one’s lid vs. flip one’s wig
• Flotsam and jetsam
• Fly in the Ointment – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Fly the Coop – Meaning & Origin
• Fly-by-night
• Foaming at the Mouth – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Fold one’s tent
• Follow Suit – Meaning & Origin
• Food for Thought – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Footloose and Fancy-Free — Meaning and Origin
• Foot in the Door — Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Foot the Bill – Meaning, Idiom & Origin
• Forbidden Fruit – Idiom, Meaning & Examples
• Foregone Conclusion – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Fortune Favors the Bold and Fortune Favors the Brave
• Forty Winks – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• For Crying Out Loud – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• For God’s sake
• For the birds
• Four-Flusher – Meaning & Origin
• Fox guarding the hen house
• Free for All – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Friends With Benefits – Origin & Meaning in English
• Frog in the Throat – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• From Pillar to Post – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• From Soup to Nuts – Meaning, Origin and Examples
• From the Bottom of My Heart – Meaning & Origin
• Full of Beans – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Full of Yourself – Meaning & Origin
• Full-Court Press – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Gaiety or mirth
• Game Changer – Origin and Meaning
• Game the system
• Garbage In, Garbage Out—Impact on Productivity
• Getting Hitched – Origin and Meaning
• Get a Handle On – Meaning & Origin
• Get a Word in Edgewise or Edgeways – Meaning & Origin
• Get back on the horse
• Get in on the Ground Floor – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Get one’s act together
• Get one’s dander up or get one’s dandruff up
• Get one’s back up
• Get out of Dodge
• Get religion
• Get Someone’s Goat – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Get the Ball Rolling – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Get the Lead Out – Meaning & Origin
• Get the Scoop or Inside Scoop – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Get the skinny
• Get up in one’s grill
• Get Your Hands Dirty – Meaning & Origin
• Gilding the Lily—An Idiom from Florals to Fables
• Gin Up or Ginned Up – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Gird Your Loins – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Give it the old college try
• Give up the ghost
• Give Yourself Away – Meaning & Origin
• Gloves Are Off and Take the Gloves Off — Meaning & Origin
• Going Against the Grain – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Going Bananas – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Going Dutch or Dutch Treat — Meaning & Origin
• Gold Digger – Origin and Meaning
• Gone to Pot – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Goody Two Shoes – Origin & Meaning
• Good enough for government work and close enough for government work
• Good Riddance – Meaning & Origin
• Goose Is Cooked — Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Go Big or Go Home – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Go down a treat
• Go for a song
• Go for Broke – Meaning & Origin
• Go for the Jugular—Zero In on One’s Weakness
• Go great guns
• Go Haywire – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Go into a tailspin and send someone into a tailspin
• Go off half-cocked and go off at half-cock
• Go pear-shaped
• Go the Distance — Meaning & Origin
• Go The Extra Mile – Idiom, Meaning & Examples
• Go to ground
• Go to Seed – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• Go to the Dogs – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Go to the Mat—A Metaphor for Resilience
• Go with the Flow – Origin & Meaning
• Grasping at straws or clutching at straws
• Gravy Train – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Grease the Palm – Idiom, Meaning & Sentence Examples
• Green Around the Gills – A Simple Illness Expression
• Green light
• Green Thumb or Green Fingers — Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Green-Eyed Monster – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Ground zero
• Guinea Pig — Meaning, Idiom & Expression Origin
• Gussied Up—Meaning & Origin
• Hair of the Dog – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Hamming It Up – Meaning & Origin
• Ham-Fisted and Ham-Handed – Meaning and Origin
• Hand Over Fist—Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Hand to Mouth – Idiom, Meaning & Sentence Examples
• Hang on like grim death and hang on for grim death
• Hang Out To Dry – Definition & Examples
• Hats Off (to You) – Idiom & Meaning In English
• Have a beef
• Have a Cow – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Have a target on one’s back
• Have one’s ears pinned back vs pin one’s ears back
• Have your cake and eat it too
• Having a Field Day – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Heads Will Roll – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Head on the chopping block and on the chopping block
• Head Over Heels – Origin & Meaning
• Head someone off at the pass and cut someone off at the pass
• Hear vs. Here – Difference, Examples and Worksheet
• Heavens to Murgatroyd – Idiom, Definition and Origin
• Heavy-Handed – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Hedge Your Bets – Meaning & Origin
• Hell for Leather and Hell-Bent for Leather – Meaning & Origin
• Highbrow vs. Lowbrow – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• High Horse – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• High on the hog
• High-Handed – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Hit a Brick or Hit a Wall – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Hit It Off – Meaning and Origin
• Hit Pay Dirt – Origin and Meaning
• Hit the bricks
• Hit the Deck – Meaning and Origin
• Hit the Ground Running—Origin & Meaning
• Hobson’s Choice – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• Hogwash – Origin & Definition
• Hold My Beer – Origin, Meaning and Usage
• Hold someone’s feet to the fire
• Hold Your Horses – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Hold (Down) the Fort – Responsibility or Just a Simple Task?
• Home In and Hone In—Navigating Nuances
• Hop, Skip, and Jump – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Horse of a Different Color—Symbolizing a New Topic
• Hot Potato – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Hot to Trot – Origin and Meaning
• House of Cards – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• How the Tables Have Turned – A Complete Reversal
• How to Correctly Use “Beck and Call” in Your Conversations
• How to Use Cannot See the Forest for the Trees Correctly
• How to Use Get Down to Brass Tacks (Tax?) Correctly
• How to Use Hit the Hay and Hit the Sack – Comparing Sleep Idioms
• How to Use Learn the Ropes Effectively – Decoding the English Idiom
• How to Use Pay Your Dues to Express Hard Work and Experience
• How’s it going
• Hump Day – Origin & Meaning
• Hunker Down – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Icing on the Cake – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• If It Ain’t Broke, Don’t Fix It – Meaning and Origin
• If need be or if needs be
• If the Shoe Fits, Wear It – Meaning and Origin
• Indian Giver – A Simple Phrase or a Cultural Dilemma?
• Inside baseball
• Inside track
• In Any Way, Shape or Form – Meaning and Origin
• In a Bind – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• In a Heartbeat – Meaning, Synonyms and Origin
• In a manner of speaking
• In a Nutshell – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• In a Pickle – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• In a Vacuum – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• In Clover – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• In Fine Fettle—Origin & Meaning
• In High Cotton—Exploring an Idiom of Wealth and Success
• In Hot Water – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• In Like Flynn – Meaning and Origin
• In My Element Idiom Explained—Defining Comfort
• In One Ear and Out the Other – Meaning, Origin and Examples
• In Over My Head – An Overwhelming Challenge
• In point of fact or in fact or as a matter of fact
• In Spades—Origin & Meaning
• In the Ballpark—Accuracy in Approximation
• In the doldrums
• In the hopper
• In the Nick of Time – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• In the Offing – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• In the Pink – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• In the Red – Meaning, Origin, and Examples
• In the Weeds – Meaning, Origin and Synonyms
• Is It At the End of My Rope or At the End of My Tether?
• Is It Backhanded Compliment or Left-Handed Compliment?
• Is It Hail Mary Pass or Hail Mary Play? – Meaning Explained
• Is Run of the Mill Really About Being Just Plain Average?
• It Ain’t Over Till the Fat Lady Sings – Origin & Meaning
• It Is What It Is – Origin & Meaning
• It Takes a Village – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• It Takes One to Know One – Meaning, Origin and Examples
• It’s a Wash – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• It’s curtains for you
• It’s not rocket science
• It’s Raining Cats and Dogs – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Ivory Tower – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• I can live with that
• I Could Care Less – Usage & Meaning
• I Rest My Case—From Courtrooms to Conversations
• I Smell Something Fishy – An Idiom For Indicating Suspicion
• I Wasn’t Born Yesterday – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• I’ve Got Your Number – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• I’ll eat my hat
• Jaundiced eye
• Johnny on the Spot – Origin & Meaning
• Johnny-Come-Lately – Meaning, Origin, and Examples
• Joined At The Hip – How To Use This Phrase Accurately
• Jump on the Bandwagon—The Art of Conformity
• Jump Ship – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Jump the Gun – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Jump the Shark – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Jump Through Hoops – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Junkyard Dog – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Kangaroo Court – Origin and Meaning
• Keeping My Head Above Water—The Essence of Surviving Challenges
• Keeping Up with the Joneses—Peer Pressure in Disguise
• Keep an Ear to the Ground – Meaning, Origin and Examples
• Keep at Bay – Meaning and Origin
• Keep it under your hat
• Keep Me Posted – Origin and Meaning
• Keep Your Chin Up – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Keep Your Eyes Peeled (Skinned) – Expressing Alertness and Focus
• Keep your shirt on and keep your hair on
• Keyed Up – Meaning and Origin
• Kick over the traces
• Kick the can down the road
• Kid Gloves – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Kill Them With Kindness – Meaning and Origin
• King of the Hill—Defining Dominance
• King’s Ransom – Meaning and Origin
• Kiss Off – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Kiss of Death – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Kiss the Ring – Meaning and Origin
• Knee-high to a grasshopper
• Knee-Slapper – Origin and Meaning
• Knight in Shining Armor – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Knocked for a loop and thrown for a loop
• Knock Me Down with a Feather—The Art of Amazement
• Knock one for six
• Knock on wood and touch wood
• Knock Yourself Out – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Knock Your Socks Off – Meaning and Origin
• Knock ‘Em Dead – How to Wish Someone Good Luck
• Know where the bodies are buried
• Know which side your bread is buttered on
• Knuckle down and buckle down
• Knuckle sandwich
• Knuckle under vs knuckle down
• Kodak Moments – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Land of Milk and Honey – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Land on one’s feet
• Lap of Luxury—Origin & Meaning
• Last Laugh – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• Last Resort – Origin & Meaning
• Laugh up one’s sleeve
• Laundry list
• Laying It on Thick – Meaning, Origin and Examples
• Lead-pipe cinch
• Leap of Faith – Origin & Meaning
• Leave No Stone Unturned – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Leave someone holding the bag
• Left in the Lurch – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Let one’s guard down and drop one’s guard
• Let the chips fall where they may
• Let Your Hair Down – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Level playing field and level the playing field
• Lick one’s wounds
• Lightning in a Bottle – Origin & Meaning
• Lightning Rod – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Like a bump on a log
• Like Clockwork – Describing a Perfect Plan
• Like gangbusters
• Like Oil and Water – Meaning, Origin and Synonyms
• Like taking candy from a baby
• Lion’s Share – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Litmus test
• Little to No or Little to None – Meaning, Uses and Examples
• Live off the fat of the land
• Living the Dream – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Living The Life Of Riley (Reilly)
• Loaded for Bear – Meaning, Idiom and Origin
• Lock, Stock, and Barrel – Idiom, Meaning, and Origin
• Lone Wolf – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Long in the tooth
• Long Story Short – The Removal of Unnecessary Details
• Looking Over Your Shoulder – Meaning and Sentence Examples
• Looks Good on Paper – Meaning and Origin
• Lose face and save face
• Lose one’s marbles
• Lose one’s shirt
• Lose the plot
• Lost in the Shuffle – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Lovers’ Lane – Meaning and Origin
• Love Me, Love My Dog – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Lower the boom
• Lowkey or Low-Key – Subtlety in Spotlight
• Low man on the totem pole
• Low-Hanging Fruit – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Lo and Behold or Low and Behold
• Luck of the Draw – Meaning and Origin
• Madder Than a Wet Hen – Used To Express Extreme Anger
• Mad as a hatter
• Make a clean breast of it and come clean
• Make Ends Meet or Make Both Ends Meet – Idiom & Meaning
• Make or break and make or mar
• Man of the Cloth
• Mark My Words – Meaning and Origin
• Mealy-mouthed
• Meaning of Binomials in English – With Examples
• Melting Pot – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Men in White Coats – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Mickey Finn – A Simple English Phrase or a Hidden Danger?
• Might as Well – Usage & Meaning
• Mince words
• Monday Morning Quarterback – A Remarkable Display of Guesswork
• Money Is No Object – Meaning and Origin
• Monkey On Your Back – Meaning and Origin
• Mop the Floor (With Someone) — Meaning, Uses, and Examples
• More bang for one’s buck and bigger bang for one’s buck
• Motherhood and apple pie and mom and apple pie
• Mother lode
• Mother of all and granddaddy of all
• Movable feast
• Move Heaven and Earth – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Move the needle
• Muddy the Waters – Idiom, Meaning, and Origin
• Mum’s the Word – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Murderers’ row
• My Cup Runneth Over – Meaning, Origin and Examples
• My dogs are barking
• My Name Is Mud – Meaning and Origin
• My Way or the Highway – Meaning and Origin
• Naked as a jaybird
• Name-Calling – Definition and Examples
• Neat as a pin
• Necktie party
• Neck and Neck Meaning and Examples
• Neck of the Woods – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• New York Minute – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Nickel-and-Dime – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Nip in the Bud – Origin & Meaning
• Nosy Parker
• Nothing to sneeze at and not to be sneezed at
• Not All It’s Cracked Up to Be – Meaning and Origin
• Not By A Long Chalk (Shot) – Far From Its Literal Mark
• Not My Cup of Tea – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Not playing with a full deck
• Not worth a plugged nickel and not worth a plug nickel
• No Bones About It – A Direct Statement or a Gentle Confirmation?
• No Guts, No Glory – Meaning and Origin
• No Holds Barred – Meaning and Origin
• No horse in the race and no dog in the fight
• No News Is Good News – Origin and Meaning
• No Two Ways About It – Meaning and Origin
• Off the cuff
• Off the Hook—More Than Just an Escape
• Off the Rack (Peg)—A Simple Phrase for ‘Ready-to-Wear’
• Off The Wagon and On The Wagon – Meaning & Examples
• Off the Wall – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Off Your Rocker—Idioms of Eccentricity
• Old as Methuselah
• Old chestnut
• Olive branch
• Once in a Blue Moon – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• One Fell Swoop – Origin and Meaning
• One For the Books – Origin and Meaning
• One Size Fits All – An Idiom For Every Situation
• One’s eyes are bigger than one’s stomach
• One-Horse Town – Meaning & Origin
• One-Trick Pony – Meaning and Origin
• On a Tear – Meaning and Origin
• On a Wing and Prayer – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• On Cloud Nine – Origin & Meaning
• On pins and needles
• On tenterhooks
• On the back burner
• On the Back Foot – Meaning, Origin and Synonyms
• On the Ball—A Deep Dive into Competence
• On the Bubble – Meaning and Origin
• On the Clock – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• On the Fence – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• On the Fly – Meaning and Origin
• On the fritz
• On the House – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• On the Rocks – Meaning and Origin
• On the Ropes – Expressing Helplessness or Instigating Fight Back
• On the Same Page – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• On the stump and stump speech
• On the up and up
• On the wrong foot and on the right foot
• Open and shut case
• Open Secret – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Other fish to fry and bigger fish to fry
• Out and out
• Out of Left Field – Meaning and Origin
• Out of Pocket – Meaning, Origin, & Definition
• Out of the blocks and off the blocks
• Out of the blue vs out of the woodwork
• Out of the Blue – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Out of the Loop (In the Loop) – Indicating Ignorance or Knowledge?
• Out of the Woods – Idioms for Overcoming Difficulties
• Out of whole cloth
• Over a Barrel – Origin & Meaning
• Over the Hump – Meaning and Origin
• Own Up – Meaning, Usage and Examples
• Paint The Town Red – How To Let Loose And Have Some Fun
• Pale in comparison
• Pan Out – Origin & Meaning
• Paper Tiger – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Pardon My French – A Polite Excuse or a Veil for Obscenity?
• Parting Shot – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Part and parcel
• Par for the Course – Meaning and Origin
• Passing strange
• Passing the Torch – How To Properly Transfer Responsibilities
• Pass muster
• Pass muster vs pass mustard
• Pass with flying colors
• Pay Lip Service – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Pay the Piper – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Pay Through the Nose – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Pecking Order – Origin and Meaning
• Perfect Storm – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Phoning It In or Phone It In – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Piece of Cake – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Pie in the Sky – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Pigeon Hole – Origin & Meaning
• Pig in a Poke – Meaning and Origin
• Pipe Down – A Polite Request for Silence
• Pitch-perfect and picture-perfect
• Plain sailing, smooth sailing, and clear sailing
• Plan B – Idiom & Meaning
• Playing Russian roulette
• Playing With Fire – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Play By Ear – Meaning and Usage
• Play cat and mouse and play a game of cat and mouse
• Play Fast and Loose – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Play for Keeps – Meaning and Origin
• Play hardball
• Play one’s cards right
• Play possum
• Play Second Fiddle – Playing A Less Important Role
• Point of no return
• Poker Face – Meaning and Definition
• Pooh-poohed
• Poor-mouth vs bad-mouth
• Pop one’s clogs
• Pop the question
• Pork barrel
• Pour cold water on and throw cold water on
• Practice What You Preach – Origin & Meaning
• Prank call or crank call
• Preaching to the Choir – Meaning and Origin
• Press the flesh
• Price gouging
• Prime the Pump – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Primrose Path—A Metaphor for Easy But Risky Choices
• Proof is in the pudding
• Pulling one’s leg
• Pulling Out All the Stops – Meaning and Origin
• Pulling Teeth – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Pull one’s punches
• Pull one’s weight
• Pull strings
• Pull the Plug – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Pull the rug out from under
• Pull Up Stakes or Up Sticks – Origin & Meaning
• Pure as the Driven Snow – Origin and Meaning
• Purple prose
• Pushing Up Daisies – Meaning & Origin
• Push My Buttons—Invoking Strong Emotional Reactions
• Push the Envelope—A Simple Phrase for Going Beyond
• Putting the Cart Before the Horse – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Putty in one’s hands
• Put a damper on
• Put a flea in someone’s ear vs put a bug in someone’s ear
• Put one’s best foot forward
• Put one’s cards on the table and lay one’s cards on the table
• Put One’s Finger on Something—An Idiom of Precise Understanding
• Put on heirs or airs
• Put on Hold – Idiom, Meaning and Examples
• Put On Ice – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Put something on the map
• Put though the wringer vs put through the ringer
• Put Two and Two Together – Drawing an Obvious Conclusion
• Put Up or Shut Up – Meaning and Origin
• Put up with
• Put up your dukes
• Put words in someone’s mouth
• Que Sera Sera – A Universal Expression of Fate
• Rack one’s brain
• Rain Check – Idiom, Slang & Meaning
• Raise One’s Hackles or Get One’s Hackles Up
• Raise the Bar – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Rake over the coals and haul over the coals
• Ramrod straight and ramrod through
• Rap on the Knuckles – Idiom, Meaning and Sentence Examples
• Rat Race – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Read Between the Lines – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Read the fine print and read the small print
• Read the Riot Act – Meaning and Origin
• Read the Room – Origin & Meaning
• Red Flag – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Red herring
• Reinvent the Wheel – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Rest on one’s laurels
• Rhetorical question
• Ride roughshod and run roughshod
• Riding Coattails—Success by Association
• Riding Shotgun — Meaning, Uses, Examples & Origin
• Right as Rain – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Right Off the Bat – Meaning and Origin
• Ringside Seat – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Ring a Bell- Meaning, Uses, Examples & Origin
• Rip-off or rip off
• Road rash and gravel rash
• Robbing Peter to Pay Paul – Meaning and Origin
• Rock the Boat – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Roll Up Your Sleeves – Meaning, Uses, Examples & Origin
• Rose Colored Glasses – An Idiom Of Optimism Or Ignorance
• Rub someone the wrong way and rub someone up the wrong way
• Rub someone’s nose in it
• Ruffle someone’s feathers
• Rule of thumb
• Running on empty and running on fumes
• Run It Up the Flagpole — Meaning, Uses, Examples and Origin
• Run Out the Clock – Origin & Meaning
• Run rings around someone and run circles around someone
• Run the Gauntlet – A Risky Situation or Corporal Punishment?
• Sackcloth and ashes
• Said the Actress to the Bishop – Meaning & Origin
• Salt of the Earth – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Same Difference – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Same old same old
• Saved By the Bell – Meaning, Uses, Examples and Origin
• Save For A Rainy Day – An Idiom For Financial Advice
• Save one’s bacon
• Sawing Logs – An Innocent Phrase for Snoring
• Say one’s peace vs piece
• Scorched earth policy
• Scraping the Bottom of the Barrel—How to Express Poor Quality
• Scratch the surface
• Sea Change – A Slight Alteration or a Complete Transformation
• Second string
• Second that emotion or notion or motion
• Seen Better Days – Meaning & Origin
• See a Man About a Horse—A Classic Excuse
• See Eye to Eye – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Selling like hotcakes
• Set in Stone, Carved in Stone or Written in Stone
• Shaggy-dog story
• Shake a Leg – Meaning, Uses, Examples and Origin
• Shape up or ship out
• Share and share alike vs per stirpes
• Sharp as a Tack—An Idiom for Being Mentally Alert
• Shell-shocked
• Ships passing in the night
• Shoestring Budget – A Creative Expression for Limited Money
• Shooting Fish in a Barrel – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Shoot the Breeze – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Shoot Yourself in the Foot—An Expression of Self-Destruction 
• Shop till you drop
• Short End of the Stick or Wrong End of the Stick
• Short Fuse – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Short Leash – Meaning and Origin
• Short shrift
• Shotgun approach and scattershot approach
• Shotgun Wedding – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Shot Across the Bow – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Show one’s cards and tip one’s hand
• Show one’s true colors
• Shrinking Violet – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Shuffle off This Mortal Coil—Exploring the Afterlife
• Shut or close the barn door after the horse has bolted
• Sight for Sore Eyes – Origin & Meaning
• Silver lining
• Silver-tongued
• Sing for one’s supper
• Sitting Duck – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Sitting on a powder keg
• Sit at the feet of someone
• Six of One, Half a Dozen of the Other – Breaking Down Similarity
• Six ways from Sunday
• Skating on thin ice and on thin ice
• Skeleton in the closet and skeleton in the cupboard
• Skid row vs skid road
• Slave driver
• Sleep like a top
• Sleep with the Fishes—A Helpful Idiom or a Trouble Spot
• Sleight of hand
• Slip of the Tongue—Origin & Meaning
• Small Potatoes – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Smarty-pants and smarty-boots
• Smell a rat
• Smoke and Mirrors – Meaning and Origin
• Snake in the Grass – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Snake oil, snake-oil salesman
• Something has legs
• Sounding Board – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Sound like a broken record
• Sour Grapes – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Sow wild oats
• Speak for yourself
• Speak of the Devil—From Phrase to Folklore
• Speak with a forked tongue
• Spend a penny
• Spill the beans
• Spin a Yarn – Origin & Meaning
• Spitballing – Meaning and Origin
• Spit and Image, Spitting Image, or Splitting Image
• Spruce Up – Origin and Meaning
• Spur of the Moment – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Square meal
• Stabbed in the Back – Uncovering Betrayal
• Stalking Horse – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Stand one’s ground and hold one’s ground
• Stand the test of time
• Starry-eyed and stars in one’s eyes
• Start from scratch
• Stay on top of
• Steal someone’s thunder
• Stem-winder or stemwinder
• Step into the breach
• Step up to the Plate – Assuming the Challenge
• Sticker shock
• Sticks and stones
• Sticky fingers
• Stick a fork in it
• Stick one’s neck out
• Stick out like a sore thumb
• Stick-in-the-Mud – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Stiff Upper Lip – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Stir the Pot or Stirring the Pot – Meaning and Origin
• Stir up a hornets’ nest and stir up a hornet’s nest
• Stock-still
• Stomping ground and stamping ground
• Stonewall – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Stop and Smell the Roses — Meaning, Uses, Examples and Origin
• Storm in a Teacup – Excessive Enthusiasm or Unnecessary Fuss?
• Straight and Narrow – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Straight A’s – Scoring the Highest Grades
• Straight from the horse’s mouth
• Straight from the shoulder
• Straight Shooter – An Idiom For Being Straightforward
• Straw man and man of straw
• Strike While the Iron Is Hot – Meaning and Origin
• Sugar Daddy – A Symbol of Wealth or an Expression of Companionship
• Swanning around and swanning about
• Sweep something under the rug and sweep something under the carpet
• Sweeten the pot
• Sweet Tooth – Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Swing for the Fences—Idiomatic Power Play
• Sword of Damocles
• Tail Wagging the Dog – Idiom, Meaning and Examples
• Taken Back or Taken Aback – Which One to Use?
• Take a back seat
• Take a Bath – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Take a Gander – Meaning & Examples
• Take a Hike – Meaning and Origin
• Take a knee
• Take a powder
• Take a shine to
• Take a Shot—Encouraging Bold Moves
• Take a toll and take its toll
• Take for granted or take for granite
• Take it or leave it
• Take It With A Grain (Pinch) Of Salt – Behind The Skepticism
• Take No Prisoners – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Take someone for a ride
• Take That to the Bank—A Guide to Teaching Reliable Statements
• Take the bull by the horns and grab the bull by the horns
• Take the cake
• Take the mickey out of someone
• Take the reins
• Take to the cleaners
• Talk a blue streak and curse a blue streak
• Talk Is Cheap – Know The Difference Between Words and Action
• Talk of the Town – Origin & Meaning
• Talk to the Hand – Origin & Meaning
• Talk turkey
• Tar and feather
• Teacher’s Pet—From Classroom to Culture
• Technicolor yawn
• Tell It to the Marines – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Tempus Fugit – Origin & Meaning in English
• Testing the Waters – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Them’s the breaks or brakes
• The Ball Is in Your Court—A Phrase of Responsibility or Challenge
• The Best of Both Worlds – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• The big picture
• The Clock Is Ticking or Time Is Ticking – Origin & Meaning
• The Devil Is in the Details – Origin & Meaning
• The fair sex and the fairer sex
• The genie is out of the bottle
• The Goose That Laid the Golden Eggs — Meaning & Origin
• The handwriting on the wall or the writing on the wall
• The Hill You Want to Die On – Meaning and Origin
• The Jig Is Up – A Surprising Insight into English Deceptions
• The jury is out
• The Meaning of Step on Toes and How to Offend Someone
• The nature of the beast
• The penny dropped
• The pick of the litter
• The pot calling the kettle black
• The quick and the dead
• The Road Less Traveled – Daring to be Different
• The Straw That Broke The Camel’s Back – Series Of Unpleasant Events
• The Third Degree – Meaning, Idiom & Origin
• The whole megillah
• The World Is Your Oyster—Exploring Unlimited Possibilities
• The worm has turned
• The $64,000 question
• Think on one’s feet
• Think outside the box
• Third Time’s the Charm—The Power of Persistence
• Third Wheel and Fifth Wheel – Meaning & Origin
• This Ain’t My First Rodeo – From Novice To Veteran
• Thorn in the Flesh—More Than a Painful Idiom
• Three Sheets to the Wind – Navigating the ‘Drunk’ Language
• Three-Ring Circus – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Throwing In The Towel – The Symbol of Surrender
• Throwing Shade – Origin, Meaning & Examples
• Throw a curveball and throw a curve
• Throw good money after bad
• Throw or toss someone a bone
• Throw the baby out with the bathwater
• Thumb one’s nose and cock a snook
• Tickled Pink—Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Tide Someone Over vs. Tied Someone Over – Origin & Definition
• Tiger by the Tail – Idiom, Origin and Meaning
• Till the Cows Come Home – From Now to Infinity
• Tilting at windmills
• Time waits for no man
• Tinker’s damn and tinker’s dam
• Tip of the iceberg
• Tip one’s hat and tip one’s cap
• Tit for Tat – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• Toe the line
• Toffee-Nosed – Origin & Meaning
• Tomayto, tomahto and potayto, potahto
• Tongue-in-Cheek – Meaning, Origin and Examples
• Tongue-tied
• Tooth and Nails – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Toot Your Own Horn or Blow Your Own Horn — Meaning and Examples
• Too big for one’s britches or breeches and too big for one’s boots
• Too Many Irons in the Fire – Beyond Multitasking
• Too much of a good thing
• Touch and go
• Tough row to hoe
• Tourist trap
• To Cool One’s Heels – Idiom, Origin & Meaning
• To Fan the Flames – Idiom, Meaning & Sentence Examples
• To Get Wind of — Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• To Harp On – The Persistence of Complaint
• To hear crickets
• To say the least and to say the least of it
• To the bitter end
• To the hilt
• To the nines
• Trial By Fire—Idiom, Meaning & Origin
• Trick or treat vs trick-or-treat
• Tried and True – Meaning and Origin
• Trip the Light Fantastic—From Dance Floor to Language
• Trouper vs. Trooper – Meaning, Difference & Examples
• Turn a blind eye
• Turn heads and turn one’s head
• Turn the Other Cheek – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Twiddle one’s thumbs
• Twist one’s arm
• Two can play at that game
• Two Shakes of a Lamb’s Tail – Origin and Meaning
• Ugly duckling
• Understanding “Lay of the Land” – Your Ultimate Guide
• Under false pretenses and under false pretences
• Under My Skin – Meaning & Origin
• Under one’s belt
• Under one’s nose
• Under one’s breath
• Under someone’s thumb
• Under the auspices of
• Under the table
• Under the Weather – Idiom, Meaning and Origin
• Under Wraps Meaning – When and How To Convey Secrets
• Unknown quantity
• Until one is blue in the face
• Until the last dog is hung
• Upper Hand (or Have the Upper Hand) – Meaning & Origin
• Upset the applecart
• Up and at ‘em vs up and Adam or atom
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visit from the stork Idiom, Proverb

A appointment from the stork, visit from the stork.

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• What is the origin of the idiom 'the stork brought the baby home'?

What is the origin of the idiom 'the stork brought the baby home'?

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a visit from the stork

• Thread starter andrefan
• Start date Apr 11, 2013
• Apr 11, 2013

why does this expression mean a new born baby? thanks!  

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• visit from stork

noun as in birth

Strongest matches

Strong matches

• childbearing
• parturition

Weak matches

• blessed event

noun as in lying-in

• accouchement

Discover More

Related words.

Words related to visit from stork are not direct synonyms, but are associated with the word visit from stork . Browse related words to learn more about word associations.

noun as in becoming alive

On this page you'll find 40 synonyms, antonyms, and words related to visit from stork, such as: beginning, childbirth, creation, delivery, bearing, and birthing.

From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.

keep the stork flying

Visit from the stork, common names:.

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Definition of stork noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

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Meaning of stork in English

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stork | American Dictionary

Examples of stork, translations of stork.

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any of the rods that join the edge of a wheel to its centre, so giving the wheel its strength

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What is the translation of "a visit from the stork" in Chinese?

"a visit from the stork" in chinese, a visit from the stork {noun} [idiom].

• volume_up 婴儿的诞生

Translations

Context sentences, english chinese contextual examples of "a visit from the stork" in chinese.

These sentences come from external sources and may not be accurate. bab.la is not responsible for their content.

• open_in_new Link to source
• warning Request revision

Monolingual examples

English how to use "a visit from the stork" in a sentence.

• a useful act of kindness
• a useless scrap of paper
• a variety of
• a vast expanse of water
• a velvet glove
• a velvet paw
• a very long time
• a vicious circle
• a vicious spiral
• a violation of
• a visit from the stork
• a voice in the wilderness
• a walk of life
• a walking dictionary
• a walking skeleton
• a warm corner
• a way of escape
• a wealth of
• a weight off my shoulders
• a wet blanket

In the Norwegian-English dictionary you will find more translations.

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