English Idioms - Alphabetical list E-F

	Idiom	Meaning
E	An eager beaver	The term eager beaver refers to a person who is hardworking and enthusiastic, sometimes considered overzealous. "The new accountant works all the time - first to arrive and last to leave -a real eager beaver!"
	In one ear and out the other	To say that information goes in one ear and out the other means that it is immediately forgotten or ignored. "I keep telling him about the risks but it goes in one ear and out the other. He never listens to anyone!"
	Keep your ear to the ground	If you keep your ear to the ground , you make sure that you are aware of all that is happening and being said
	Lend an ear	If you lend an ear to someone, you listen carefully and sympathetically.
	Music to your ears	To say that something is music to your ears, means that the information you receive makes you feel very happy.
	Turn a deaf ear	A person who turns a deaf ear to something such as a request or a complaint refuses to pay attention to it.
	Play it by ear	This expression means to improvise or act without preparation, according to the demands of the situation. Music : to play by remembering the tune, without printed music.
	Easier said than done	To say that something is easier said than done means that what is suggested sounds easy but it is more difficult to actually do it. "Put the TV aerial on the roof? Easier said than done!"
	Easy as pie	To say that something is easy as pie means that it is very easy to do. "How did the English test go? - No problem - it was easy as pie!"
	Eat one's words	If you eat your words, you have to admit that what you said before was wrong. "After predicting disastrous results, he had to eat his words with the success of the new product."
	On edge	A person who is on edge is anxious or nervous.
	Egg someone on	If you egg somebody on, you urge or strongly encourage them to do something. "She didn't really want to learn to drive but her children kept egging her on."
	Have all your eggs in one basket	If you have all your eggs in one basket, you depend on one plan or one source of income. "If you invest your savings in one bank, you'll have all your eggs in one basket."
	One over the eight	If a person has had one over the eight, they are slightly drunk. "Don't listen to him. You can see he's had one over eight!"
	Use elbow grease :	If you use elbow grease, you need energy and strength to do physical work such as cleaning or polishing. "It took a considerable amount of elbow grease to renovate the old house."
	In one's element	When you are in your element, you are doing something that you do well and you are enjoying yourself. "My brother, who is an estate agent, was in his element house-hunting for our parents."
	At the eleventh hour	If something happens at the eleventh hour, it happens when it is almost too late, or at the last possible moment. "Our team won after they scored a goal at the eleventh hour."
	Make ends meet	If you find it difficult to make ends meet, you find it difficult to pay for your everyday needs because you have very little money. "Anne's salary is so low she finds it hard to make ends meet."
	Every nook and cranny	Every nook and cranny refers to every possible part of a place. "She searched every nook and cranny of the old town looking for antiques."
	Every Tom, Dick and Harry	This expression means everyone or everybody. "Every Tom, Dick and Harry has a credit card these days!"
	The exception proves the rule	If something is different from a general belief or theory, it shows that the belief or theory is true. "Most teenagers love fast food, but Ben is the exception that proves the rule - he insists on healthy food."
	Explore all avenues	If you explore all avenues, you try out every possibility in order to obtain a result or find a solution. "We can't say it's impossible until we've explored all avenues."
	The apple of your eye	If somebody is the apple of your eye, this means that you like them very much : "My grandson is the apple of my eye".
	More than meets the eye	This expression means that something is more complicated or more interesting that it first appears. "They say it's just a little disagreement, but we think there's more to it than meets the eye."
	See eye to eye with someone	To see eye to eye with somebody means that you agree with them.
	Turn a blind eye	If you turn a blind eye to something, you ignore it intentionally.
	The eye of the storm	A person or organization who is in the eye of the storm is deeply involved in a difficult situation which affects a lot of people "The minister was often in the eye of the storm during the debate on the war in Iraq."
	Keep one's eyes peeled	To keep one's eyes peeled means to watch very carefully for something "I mislaid my wedding ring at home, so I asked my children to keep their eyes peeled."
	Eyes wide open	If you do something with your eyes open, you are fully aware of what you are doing. "I took on the job with my eyes wide open, so I'm not complaining."
	Look someone in the eyes	If you look someone in the eye, or eyes, you look at them directly so as to convince them that you are telling the truth, even though you may be lying.
	Not bat an eyelid	To say that somebody does not bat an eyelid means that they do not seem shocked or surprised, nor are they nervous or worried. They show no emotion.
F	Face the music	If you have to face the music, you have to accept the unpleasant consequences of your actions. "He was caught stealing. Now he has to face the music!"
	Have a poker face.	If you have a poker face, you show no emotion at all. In spite of the repeated details of the events, the criminal kept a poker face.
	Keep a straight face	If you keep a straight face, you look serious although you really want to laugh.
	Fair-weather friend	Someone who acts as a friend when times are good, and is not there when you are in trouble, is called a fair-weather friend. "I thought I could count on Bill, but I've discovered he's just a fair-weather friend."
	Fall from grace	To say that someone has fallen from grace means that they have done something wrong, immoral or unacceptable, and as a result have lost their good reputation. "The Finance Minister fell from grace as a result of a sex scandal."
	Fall off the back of a lorry	If you buy goods that have fallen off the back of a lorry, they are stolen goods. "Judging by the price of that camera, it must have fallen off the back of a lorry!"
	Fall on one's sword	If you fall on your sword, you take responsibility for, or accept the consequences of an unsuccessful action. "The organizer of the referendum resigned when the poor results were announced. It was said that he 'fell on his sword'."
	A feather in one's cap	To describe someone's achievement as "a feather in their cap" means that it is something they can be proud of. The overwhelming victory of the team was a "feather in the cap" for the new manager.
	Feather your nest	To say of someone that they are feathering their nest is to say that they are taking advantage of their position in order to obtain money so as to have a comfortable life.
	Feel the pinch	When someone feels the pinch, they begin to suffer from a lack of money. "With the drop in tourism, hotels and restaurants are beginning to feel the pinch."
	Few and far between	Items, places or events which are few and far between are rarely found or do not happen very often. "Restaurants in this part of the country are few and far between."
	Flea in one's ear	After an attempt at something, if you are sent away with a flea in your ear, you are angrily reprimanded or humiliated. "When he tried to put the blame on Pete, he was sent away with a flea in his ear."
	Fly in the ointment	The expression a fly in the ointment refers to someone or something that prevents a situation from being completely satisfactory. "Tony's poor English was a fly in the ointment when he applied for the job."
	Fly on the wall	This expression is used to describe a person who watches a situation without being noticed. "I'd like to be a fly on the wall when the management discusses my project."
	Fly by the seat of your pants	If you fly by the seat of your pants, you do something without knowledge or experience, using only your instinct and hoping that you will succeed. "Without any formal training, he decided to fly by the seat of his pants and try his luck in New York."
	Foam at the mouth	Someone who foams at the mouth is extremely angry about something. "The director was foaming at the mouth when he saw a picture of his children in the newspaper."
	A foot in the door	If you say that someone has a foot in the door, you mean that they have a small but successful start in something and will possibly do well in the future. "With today's unemployment, it's difficult to get a foot in the door in any profession."
	Put one's foot down	To put one's foot down means to exert authority to prevent something from happening.
	Back on your feet	If you are back on your feet, after an illness or an accident, you are physically healthy again.
	Drag one's feet	If you say that a person is dragging their feet, you think they are unnecessarily delaying a decision which is important to you.
	Find your feet	To say that someone in a new situation is finding their feet means that they are learning what to do and gaining self-confidence.
	Get cold feet	If you get cold feet about something, you begin to hesitate about doing it; you are no longer sure whether you want to do it or not.
	Have itchy feet	A person who has itchy feet is someone who wants to move somewhere new or do something different.
	Keep one's feet on the ground	A person who keeps their feet on the ground continues to act in a sensible and practical way, even if they become successful.
	Think on one's feet	A person who thinks on their feet is capable of making good decisions without previous thinking or planning. "Good lawyers need to be able to think on their feet when pleading a case."
	Rushed off your feet.	If your are rushed off your feet, your are extremely busy. "I'd love to have lunch with you but we're rushed off our feet at the moment at the office."
	Fiddling while Rome burns	If you say that somebody is fiddling while Rome burns, you mean that they are doing unimportant things while there are serious problems to be dealt with "His visit to the trade fair was 'fiddling while Rome burns' according to the strikers."
	Field day	A field day refers to a day, period or time of great excitement and activity. "Journalists will have a field day with the latest political scandal"
	Fight a losing battle	If someone is fighting a losing battle, they are trying to do something even when there is little chance of succeeding. "The headmaster is fighting a losing battle trying to ban mobile phones at school."
	Fight tooth and nail	If you fight tooth and nail for something, you fight with all your energy. "The Transport Minister fought tooth and nail to have to have the proposed road safety law accepted."
	A finger in every pie	If someone has a finger in every pie, they are involved in many activities "For information about the town development project, you should talk to John Brown. He has a finger in every pie."
	Fish in troubled waters	If you fish in troubled waters, you try to gain advantages for yourself from a disturbed state of affairs. "Between the declaration of independence and the first elections, some people were accused of fishing in troubled waters."
	Fish out of water	If you feel like a fish out of water, you feel uncomfortable because of an unfamiliar situation or unfamiliar surroundings. "As a non-golfer, I felt like a fish out of water at the clubhouse."
	Have other fish to fry	If you have other fish to fry, you have more important things to do. "I don't think he'll attend the office party; he's got other fish to fry."
	Neither fish nor fowl	This is said to describe people or things that are difficult to classify, that are neither one thing nor another. "Interns are neither fish nor fowl. They are neither students nor fully qualified practitioners."
	Fit as a fiddle	If you are fit as a fiddle, you are active and healthy. "My grandfather is still fit as a fiddle at the age of 90."
	In fits and starts	If you do something in fits and starts, you do it in an irregular manner, often stopping and starting again. "You'll never make progress in English if you work in fits and starts."
	Five-finger discount	If somebody gets a five-finger discount, they take something without paying. In other words, they steal. "How could he afford that watch?" "Who knows - perhaps with a five-finger discount!"
	There are no flies on him!	To say that there are no flies on someone means that they understand quickly and cannot be tricked or deceived easily. "It's better to tell him all the facts. There are no flies on him."
	Fly off the handle	A person who flies off the handle becomes suddenly very angry. "Dad flew off the handle when I told him I had damaged his new car."
	A fly on the wall	This expression is used to describe a person who watches a situation without being noticed. "I'd like to be a fly on the wall when the management discusses my project.
	With flying colours	To achieve something with flying colours means to do it very successfully. "My daughter passed the entrance exam with flying colours. I'm so proud of her!"
	Follow one's nose	If you follow your nose, you go straight ahead (also: follow your instinct in life). "The station is at the end of the road - just follow your nose."
	Follow in someone's footsteps	If you follow in someone's footsteps ( for example a parent), you lead a similar life or do the same job. "Lily followed in her mother's footsteps and became a teacher."
	Follow suit	If you follow suit, you do the same as somebody else has just done. The first robber held up his hands. The other two followed suit.
	Food for thought	If something gives you food for thought, it makes you think very hard about something. "The documentary on poverty in the world really gave me food for thought."
	Get (or start) off on the right/wrong foot	This expression means to start a relationship well or badly. "I was looking forward to working with Julie but we seem to have started off on the wrong foot."
	Footloose and fancy-free	A person who is footloose and fancy-free has few responsibilities or commitments of any kind and feels free to do as they please. "John will never get married. He says he prefers to be footloose and fancy-free."
	Forewarned is forearmed	This expression means that if you know something is going to happen, you can be prepared for it. "The Chairman is going to attend the meeting tomorrow. Your presentation had better be good. Forewarned is forearmed.!"
	Freudian slip	This refers to a mistake made by a speaker which is considered to reveal their true thoughts or feelings. "So you got the job - I'm so sad - sorry, I mean glad!"
	Have a frog in one's throat	A person who has a frog in their throat is unable to speak clearly because their throat is sore, or because they want to cough.
	Front runner	In a contest, race or election, the front runner is the person who seems most likely to succeed or win. "Who are the front runners in the coming elections?"
	Out of the frying pan and into the fire.	This expression means to go from one difficult situation to another, usually even worse. "The flight was delayed because of snow. When the plane eventually took off, it had to turn back because of engine trouble - out of the frying pan into the fire!"
	In full swing	When something, such as an event, gets into full swing, it is at its busiest or liveliest time. "When we got back to the office, the Christmas party was in full swing."