A Brief Look At Idioms

Idioms are tough because they are from English pop culture, history, and folklore. It's hard to really get their meaning by just looking at them. The best way to get the meaning is to look at the situations they are used in, and the "image" they put in your mind.

Straight From The Horse's Mouth

This is one of the oldest idioms in English. It's more commonly used by older people (such as myself). 

Let's look at "straight from the horses mouth" in a conversation. 

Hassan: Yuka, I've heard some bad news about the company.

Yuka:  What's happened?

Hassan: Sales are down. Management is going to begin laying people off in two months.

Yuka: Really? Are you sure about that?

Hassan:  Yes, positive. I got it straight from the horse's mouth. The information is good.

straight from the horses mouth means you hear information from a person who has personal knowledge about it. You can read about the origin of the idiom here.

Now, let's do an easy one...

Blow One's Top

When I saw my tax bill, I blew my top. It was so high.

 

Of course, this means to get angry. In fact, there are other idioms that have the same meaning. For example.

go through the roof

hit the ceiling

lose it

Exercise

Read the passages below. Guess the meaning of the idioms in bold using the context, the situation. There are no pictures for this exercise, so you must use your imagination. Be careful: some options may seem good, but aren't the best answers.

 1/

 Marko: There's the car I want. The Honda RX7.

Salesman: Good choice sir. What sort of options would you like?

Marko: Power seats, power windows, GPS, leather seats - the whole nine yards.

the whole nine yards means,

a) go very far

b) the complete package, everything

c) a nine-yard car

d) a large discount.

2/

 My friend, Shoko, loves shark diving. She says it's safe and exciting, but I think it's over the top. I only want to see sharks on tv or from a boat.

over the top means

a) dangerous

b) very difficult

c)  too expensive

d) crazy

3/

Luisa: Grampa, you smoke cigars? I've never seen you smoke cigars before.

Grampa: That's because I only smoke cigars once in a blue moon, sweetheart.

     

once in a blue moon means

a) seldom

b) often

c) when the moon is blue

d) once a day 

4/

I don't enjoy rock music very much. But, the  music of Jimi Hendrix...well, that's a horse of another colour. I could listen to his music all day.

a horse of another colour means,

a) the same

b) terrible

c) different

d) fantastic


5/ 

Ellen: Damn it..,

Mika: What's wrong, Ellen?

Ellen: I didn't get the job at the bank. I've been to so many interviews...

Mika: Chin up, Ellen. You'll find something soon.

Ellen: Yeah, I just have to hang in there. 

Chin up means...

a) exercise

b) be quiet

c) cheer up

d) shave

Hang in there means...

a) hang your laundry to dry

b) give up

c) do something else

d) keep trying, don't give up


If you're interested in learning more idioms and how they are used, I recommend:

You can order it here.

Below are "body" idioms. Look up the meanings, then try to use at least three in a short paragraph.