English Idioms and Idiomatic Expressions
ANIMALS - BIRDS - FISH - INSECTS, page 4
Idioms relating to animals, birds, fish or insects
from: 'till the cows come home'
to: 'crooked as a dog's hind leg'
- till the cows come home
- If you say 'till the cows come home'
you mean for a long time or forever.
"You can ask till the cows come home but I'm not buying you a scooter!"
- If you say 'till the cows come home'
you mean for a long time or forever.
- why buy a cow when you can get milk
for free?
- This refers to not paying for something
that you can obtain for free.
(Sometimes refers to a decision not to marry when you can have the benefits of marriage without any commitment.)
"Rent is high so Bobby is still living with his parents.
He says : why buy a cow when you can get milk for free?"
- This refers to not paying for something
that you can obtain for free.
- crocodile tears
- To shed
crocodile tears means to shed false
tears or show insincere grief.
"Caroline pretended to be sad but we all knew her tears were crocodile tears."
- To shed
crocodile tears means to shed false
tears or show insincere grief.
- eat crow
- If you eat crow, you admit that
you were wrong about something and apologize.
"He had no option but to eat crow and admit that his analysis was wrong."
- If you eat crow, you admit that
you were wrong about something and apologize.
- as the crow flies
- This expression refers to distance
measured in a straight line.
"It's two miles from here to the station as the crow flies, but of course it's much further by road."
- This expression refers to distance
measured in a straight line.
- like a deer/rabbit
caught in the
headlights
- When you are so surprised that you are
momentarily confused or unable to react
quickly, you are like a deer (or a
rabbit) caught in the headlights.
"Surprised by the journalist's question, he was like a deer caught in the headlights."
- When you are so surprised that you are
momentarily confused or unable to react
quickly, you are like a deer (or a
rabbit) caught in the headlights.
- (as)dead as a
dodo
- To say that something is (as) dead
as a dodo means that it is unquestionably dead or obsolete,
or has gone out of fashion.
(A dodo is a bird that is now extinct.)
"The floppy disk is an invention that is now (as) dead as a dodo."
- To say that something is (as) dead
as a dodo means that it is unquestionably dead or obsolete,
or has gone out of fashion.
- a dog's breakfast
- To describe something as a dog's
breakfast means that it is a complete mess.
"The new secretary made a dog's breakfast out of the filing system."
- To describe something as a dog's
breakfast means that it is a complete mess.
- a dog's life
- People use this expression when complaining about a situation
or job which they find unpleasant or unsatisfactory.
"It's a dog's life working in the after-sales department."
- People use this expression when complaining about a situation
or job which they find unpleasant or unsatisfactory.
- dog eat dog
- This expression refers to intense
competition and rivalry in pursuit of one's
own interests, with no concern for morality.
"The business world is tough today. There's a general dog-eat-dog attitude."
- This expression refers to intense
competition and rivalry in pursuit of one's
own interests, with no concern for morality.
- dog in the manger
- A person referred to as a dog in the
manger is someone who stops others from
enjoying something he/she cannot use or doesn't want.
"She hates the guitar so she won't allow her son to learn to play it - a real dog in the manger!"
- A person referred to as a dog in the
manger is someone who stops others from
enjoying something he/she cannot use or doesn't want.
- a dog and pony show
- A dog and pony show is a
marketing event or presentation which has
plenty of style but not much content.
- A dog and pony show is a
marketing event or presentation which has
plenty of style but not much content.
- (as) crooked as a dog's hind leg
- To say that someone is as crooked as
a dog's hind leg means that they are
very dishonest indeed.
"He can't be trusted - he's as crooked as a dog's hind leg."
- To say that someone is as crooked as
a dog's hind leg means that they are
very dishonest indeed.
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