HOLD YOUR HORSES

If you are asked to hold your horses, it means that you should wait.

Ruby: Come on! Let's go!
Michelle: Hold your horses. I'm coming in a minute.

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DRIVE YOU UP THE WALL

If someone or something drives you up the wall, it makes you very angry or  frustrated.

Mike: Louis is always late. Waiting for him drives me up the wall! 

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A BLACK SHEEP

We often say someone is a "black sheep," if he or she is the odd or disreputable member of a group (usually in a family). 

Example: Jason is the black sheep in the family. While his older brother became a doctor like their father, Jason is trying to make it as a rock star. 

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WOLF DOWN

When you wolf your food down, you devour it voraciously - eat it quickly and without manners.

Example: After the long hike, he was so hungry that he wolfed his dinner down.

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HAVE A BALL

When you have a ball, you have a lot of fun/enjoy yourself very much.

For example: 

Michael: Did you have fun at the wedding?

Dan: Oh, yeah. I had a ball.



This "ball" is probably not the one used in playing sports. A ball is also an old-fashioned party where formally dressed people dance.

It’s Anyone’s Call

It’s anyone’s call is an idiom which means that the result or outcome is difficult to judge or predict in a game, contest or election.

CRACK ME UP

If something cracks you up, it makes you laugh suddenly and very hard. 

To crack means to break, like a vase or a glass. Do you ever laugh so much that you feel you might crack?

MY CUP OF TEA

"CUP OF TEA" is something that someone enjoys or does really well.
It is an idiom often used in the negative sense:

I don't like playing cards. It's not my cup of tea.

TRAFFIC JAM

When there is a lot of traffic, we say the traffic is heavy. Yes, a bit strange indeed since we do not weigh traffic. An idiomatic and commonly used expression for this is a "traffic jam." 

When something is jammed, it is stuck. For example, paper in a printer can get jammed. So, when there is a lot of traffic, you get stuck in the traffic jam. 

This usually happens during rush hour, which is the time of the day when people are commuting from home to work and vice versa. 

When was the last time you got stuck in a traffic jam?

IT DAWNED ON ME

If something "dawns on" you, it means that you suddenly understood or realized something.

Dawn is sunrise, the first appearance of sunlight in the morning. So you suddenly see the light, or rather the truth or situation clearly.

For example: Just after I left my apartment, it dawned on me that I locked my keys inside.

BITE OFF MORE THAN YOU CAN CHEW

If you bite off more than you can chew, you are trying to do more than you are able to.

Example: Sam registered for 5 classes this semester. On top of that she is also working part-time at the bookstore and signed up for the chess club. She is beginning to realize that she bit off more than she can chew.

CALL THE SHOTS

Calling the shots means making the decisions or being in charge.

Example: Hey, it's your party. You can invite whomever you want. You're calling the shots.

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Carp about someone or something

Carp about someone or something means to complain about someone or something. 

Example: "Tom, you are always carping about all your problems, but never listen to me."

The hand that rocks the cradle rules the world

The idiom "the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world" means that mothers are the most influential people in the world because they shape the character of the future generations.

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IN THE SAME BOAT

When someone says: "I'm in the same boat," he or she means that he or she is in the same, usually negative, situation.

Max: "I'm so broke. Can I borrow $10?"
James: "Sorry, but I'm in the same boat. I've only got $5 myself and not getting paid until tomorrow."

PUT ONE'S FACE ON

To put one's face on means to apply makeup.





                                                 

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Example: May never leaves the house before she puts her face on.

CAT GOT YOUR TONGUE

We ask people: "What's the matter, cat got your tongue?", when they are unusually silent.

IT IS HIGH TIME THAT

When we say that "it is high time that," we mean that something should have already happened a long time ago.

For example: "It is high time that they introduced themselves. They moved next door three weeks ago."

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EVERY DOG HAS ITS DAY

When we say that "every dog has its day," we mean that everyone gets his or her chance to succeed to do something eventually.

Example: He will get that promotion some day. Every dog has its day.

GOT TO SPLIT

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When people say they've "got to split," means that they have to leave right away.

For example:
"Ok Michael. Was good seeing you. I've gotta split now. Bye!"

PLAIN AS DAY

If something is "plain as day," it is obvious or very clear.

For example:
It was plain as day that he was not enjoying the movie. He was yawning and looking at his watch the whole time.

COME OUT OF LEFT FIELD

In English there are many idioms referencing baseball.
We say something came out of left field, when it (especially a problem) occurred unexpectedly.

The customer seemed really happy with his dinner and the service, so his complaint to the restaurant manager came out of left field.

ONCE IN A BLUE MOON

If something happens once in a blue moon, it happens rarely.

Example:
Dan: Hey, do you want some potato chips?
Frances: No thanks. I am very careful about what I eat. I eat junk food only once in a blue moon.

PULLING ONE'S LEG

To be pulling one's leg means to be teasing someone by saying something that cannot possibly be true.

It is often used to express disbelief.

Mike: I started taking yoga classes.
Janice: No way, Mike! You are pulling my leg!

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Eighty-Six

We say something is Eighty Six (86) when it is no longer available or when it needs to be thrown away.

In a restaurant, a chef to a waiter: "86 on the beef special. That went fast!"

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YOU CAN LEAD A HORSE TO WATER (BUT YOU CAN'T MAKE IT DRINK)

The idiom "you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink" means that you can offer someone an opportunity to do something in order to succeed, but you cannot force him or her to actually take advantage of this opportunity.

Max: "John's aunt offered him a summer job at her store, but John never called her back. I thought he was really trying to make some money for college."

Jane: "Well, you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink."

ALL IN THE SAME BOAT

When we are "all in the same boat," it means that we are all facing the same challenges.

For example:
Mary: Can you lend me 20 dollars? I'm so broke this week.
Tom: I'm sorry. I'm in the same boat. I don't have any money either.

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(IT) SUITS ME (FINE)

People say "it suits me" or "it suits me fine" to express that they are agreeable to an idea.

For example:

- "When do you want to meet for lunch? How about Wednesday at 1pm?"

- "That suits me fine."

On the other hand, you can also show displeasure by saying something doesn't quite suit you.

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FLY BY THE SEAT OF YOUR PANTS

To fly by the seat of your pants means to do something difficult without the necessary experience and/or ability.

For example, in the movie "Catch Me If You Can," Leonardo DiCaprio plays a con artist who artfully impersonates an airline pilot, a lawyer, and a doctor. However, once he realizes that a life is at risk because he is only flying by the seat of his pants when pretending to the be a doctor, he decides to quit.

A DROP IN THE BUCKET

When we say that something is a drop in the bucket, it means that it's just a small and/or unimportant amount.

For example: The company was praised for donating a million dollars to charity last year, but that's just a drop in the bucket compared to what they earn.

A WILD-GOOSE CHASE

If you send someone on a wild-goose chase, it means that he or she is looking for something useless or unattainable, so it is a waste of time.

Example: Trying to buy croissants in the afternoon in this small French village is impossible. She sent us on a wild-goose chase when she asked us to do that.

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HAVE MONEY TO BURN

The idiom "to have money to burn" means to have a lot of money, more money than is needed.

For example: They must have money to burn. They just bought another expensive car and a sailboat.

A TOSS UP

We say something is a toss up when the result is still uncertain and can go either way.

This expression probably came to be because we flip, or toss, a coin when making a decision.

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TO LET SLEEPING DOGS LIE

The idiom "to let sleeping dogs lie" means that a person should not do or say something to another person that would disturb that other person and possibly start trouble. 

For example: Don't ask him when he's finally going to get a new job when we go to dinner tonight. You know that will upset him. Just let sleeping dogs lie. 

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COUCH POTATO

A couch potato is someone who spends too much time sitting on the couch, watching TV, and eating junk food, such as potato chips and popcorn.

How do you think this idiom came to be? Is it because potato chips are a common junk food? Is it because when you are idle and eat too much unhealthy food, you start looking like a round potato? Or is there another reason?

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OUT OF THE BLUE

When something happens out of the blue, it happens suddenly, without warning, by surprise, etc.

For example: Their daughter's decision to quit law school and become a painter came out of the blue. She had never been interested in art before.

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TO BE IN THE RED/BLACK

To be in the red means you don't have enough money to pay all your bills.

To be in the black you have enough money to pay all your bills.

How about you? Are you in the black or in the red?

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TO EAT LIKE A BIRD

When we say someone eats like a bird, it means that he or she eats very little.

What is the idiom for someone who eats a lot?

Here's a hint: 

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