20 English Idioms to Make You Laugh | Idiomatic Expressions in English

If someone tells you to hold your horses or if  you've been running around like a headless chicken   you may even be asked to keep your eyes peeled yes  these idioms and many more can often sound rather   disgusting bemusing confusing and well quite funny  actually yes idioms in english are really really   varied we've got idioms connected to animals to  disgusting things and to just weird objects in   general like the kitchen sink now as frustrating  as it can be to learn these idioms it is also   great fun once you get there and understand them  because this is a great way to boost your english   level instantly using idiomatic expressions  like the 20 i'm going to share with you in   just a minute will help you sound a lot more  natural and native in english and importantly   help you understand native english speakers so are  you ready let's get on with the lesson okay hold   your horses before we get started i want to make  sure that you have clicked that subscribe button   and of course the notifications bell so that you  are notified when we upload new lessons you can of   course follow us on instagram and facebook check  us out there for more english expressions idioms   and to learn a little bit more about sabra and  me right so hold your horses did you understand   that expression from the context in which i used  it if you guess that it's something like weight   then you are correct essentially hold  your horses doesn't literally mean   hold your horses no it means slow down wait a  moment right hold your horses i am not paying   for dinner you said it was your turn right hold  your horses i am not ready yet we can go out in   half an hour number two staying with the theme  of animals an elephant an elephant in the room   if someone says we're avoiding the elephant in  the room then essentially you are avoiding a   problem that everyone is aware of but no one  really wants to or knows how to deal with it   everyone is refusing to talk about this problem  for example we can't carry on in this relationship   i want to get married and you don't i think it's  time we address the elephant in the room when   you address something it means you face it and  deal with it so an extra little bit of vocab for   you there now number three everything but the  kitchen sink everything but the kitchen sink   this is referring to everything imaginable  even the unnecessary things so often we would   say when someone is packing for a holiday  and maybe has a very large case or even two   you're only going away for a weekend it looks like  you're packing everything but the kitchen sink   so everything including unnecessary things  things you probably won't need what did   you buy at the supermarket it looks like  you've got everything but the kitchen sink   right number four to keep your eyes peeled now  we usually refer to peel the verb when we talk   about carrots or apples removing the skin so this  potentially could sound a little bit disgusting   so essentially we're not asking you to peel your  eyes no but to basically pay attention to look out   for something right the street we need to turn  down is just coming up so keep your eyes peeled   now on the same theme as eyes eyeballs  to be up to your eyeballs in something   now essentially this means that you have too much  of something more than you want so often we would   use this expression when talking about work i  am up to my eyeballs in emails i can't believe   how many people email me in one week while i'm on  holiday you can also use it to talk about daily   life i am up to my eyeballs in dirty laundry i've  got so much washing to do now if someone wants to   pick your brain no they are not a zombie they  simply want to know your opinion what you   think on a subject the knowledge you have on  something particular do you mind if i pick your   brain about this new project i just want to get  your opinion on a few things i want to know what   you think maybe you want to pick my brain about  grammar or pronunciation in fact a lot of you do   in the comments section below so in fact why not  ask me a question about idiomatic expressions   is there an idiom in english that you would like  to pick my brain over let me know comment below   now number seven if you make a lot of effort doing  something particularly if you're doing something   for someone else to make them happy perhaps you  want to invite your mother-in-law for dinner and   you clean the house and you cook and you make  everything perfect by her flowers you're bending   over backwards for her bending over backwards  now if you imagine bending over backwards it's   pretty uncomfortable unless you're particularly  good at yoga so when you bend over backwards for   someone or doing something you're making a massive  effort working very very hard so when was the last   time you bent over backwards for somebody and did  they appreciate it now number eight i have to say   i'm pretty good in the mornings usually i'm  quite bright breezy awake happy especially   after a coffee but some people they just always  wake up the wrong side of the bed yes to wake up   the wrong side of the bed is bizarre it's strange  because there really isn't a right or a wrong side   to get out of the bed but essentially it means  that someone has woken up in a bad mood they're   not particularly happy they're grumpy they're  miserable maybe they didn't get a good night's   sleep or maybe it's just how they are in the  mornings right guys the boss seems to have gotten   up out of the wrong side of the bed so i suggest  avoiding him for the first hour this morning we'll   try plying him with some coffee and see if that  helps now number nine teeth we've gone away from   eyes and we're now thinking about these things by  the skin of your teeth by the skin of your teeth   now the origins are actually biblical i won't get  into them now but it's a pretty old expression   essentially it means narrowly barely or by a small  margin so just about for example she passed that   exam by the skin of her teeth it was only two  marks off fail so when you get through something   by the skin of your teeth you've essentially  just about avoided something or done something   now a strange expression just check a minute yeah  um went behind the ears if you describe someone   as being wet behind the ears that essentially you  are saying they're immature and inexperienced now   this actually comes from farm animals from when  a lot of animals are born in their amniotic fluid   bit gross okay they're all wet and gooey but the  mummy will lick them make sure they're clean but   they usually miss their ears so their ears  the back of them are quite wet this is just   a bizarre expression but you get the idea it's  referring to a baby animal an inexperienced   immature baby animal wet behind the ears so what  do you think about the new girl at work lovely   but a bit wet behind the ears i don't think she's  ever had a job before now number 11 a wet blanket   a wet blanket again you can see i'm trying to  somehow connect these idioms essentially if you   describe someone as being a wet blanket they are  boring they create a situation where everyone's   having fun and then they do something to make it  a lot less fun essentially we're referring to a   wet blanket putting out a fire or flames of some  sort so this is someone who dampens who makes wet   everyone's enthusiasm or excitement for something  they were all celebrating his birthday but she   came in and was a real wet blanket just sat there  sulking all day i think she wanted the attention   number 12 this is pretty horrid and if any of you  are vegetarian this probably justifies why to run   around like a headless chicken yes the thought of  a chicken without a head is not particularly nice   and especially as they're running around now  apparently some of you guys can let me know   if this is correct when a chicken has its head  chopped off it will still run around for a short   time um yeah grim but anyway you get the idea  how ridiculous it is we use this figuratively not   literally to say that someone is running around  doing lots of things in a very disorganized way   it's a bit chaotic they're not being particularly  efficient or effective i have been trying to get   this party organized but honestly i feel like  i'm running around like a headless chicken   no one is helping now number 13 you can thank  my mother for this to run around like a blue ass   fly now clearly i'm using the word ass so it's  probably not going to be very formal none of   these idioms really are but i would say that  this is a little bit more informal than the rest   it's essentially the same thing as to run around  like a headless chicken to run around like a blue   ass fly means you are exceptionally busy you're  in a state of frenzied activity you have got so   much to do and so little time just imagine a fly  buzzing around your room it really does seem like   it's doing something and nothing and just crazy  and chaotic so very similar to running around like   a headless chicken to run around like a blue ass  fly i have been running around like a blue ass fly   all day and i don't think i've got anything done  i've still got to do the food shopping and pick   the kids up get their homework done get them into  bed get them bars cook for dinner oh my goodness   number 14 a bull male cow in a china shop a bull  in a china shop now china is the uh like teacups   and sources that we would refer to um a kind  of posh plate wear plate where yeah let's say   plate where okay and imagine a bull in a shop of  this yes there'd be a lot of breakage a lot of   things smashing crashing on the floor so when we  refer to somebody being a bull in a china shop or   going in like a bull in a china shop they  are not being very subtle someone who is very   careless in the way they move or behave it doesn't  literally have to be about breaking things it   could be about being insensitive and upsetting  people so being very clumsy and not very tactful   in dealing with sensitive situations honestly  she always comes into the meeting like a bull   in a china shop just blurts out her idea and  dismisses everybody else's she really doesn't have   much tact meaning ability to be sensitive  and delicate in certain situations monkeys   and monkey business okay now in this case we're  referring to kind of the playfulness of monkeys so   when we refer to monkey business we're referring  to this exact thing shenanigans naughty behavior   but fun so for example the boys have been very  quiet this afternoon i wonder what monkey business   they are getting up to so being mischievous  potentially this could even be behaving in   an illegal manner but often it is just referring  to children behaving as children do number 16 and   i bet you've heard this one before and it really  is a funny one the best thing since sliced bread   apparently a long time ago when the sliced  bread machine was invented everyone thought it   was amazing and i'm guessing this is everyone  in the uk because we do like our sandwiches   so when we say the best thing since sliced  bread we could be serious we could be saying   something is amazing fantastic the best  thing you've heard of or recently at least   or you could be using it in more of a sarcastic  way honestly the way they're behaving you would   think the new girl's the best thing since  sliced bread which is really nothing special   honestly the iphone i think it's the best thing  since sliced bread number 17 this is one that i   won't often use but i've definitely come across it  more holes than swiss cheese more holes than swiss   cheese now i'm sure swiss cheese isn't all holy  like that kind of cheese but when we say there's   more holes in something than swiss cheese we're  saying that it has many faults many problems flaws   wow that netflix series has more holes than a  swiss cheese seriously how even did they get   together that just didn't make any sense to me  i've got a bone to pick with you no not literally   i'm not gonna pick your bones or poke you with one  no when you say that you've got a boned pick with   someone it's quite a serious idiomatic expression  meaning you've got an issue you need to raise with   them you've got a problem something you need to  tell them something that needs to be discussed   that's usually pretty serious look i've got a  bone to pick with you you said you were going   to pay me about that 10 pounds last week and you  still haven't so when am i going to get my money   back have you got a friend who as lovely as they  are might not be as talented as they think in   one particular area perhaps they think they're  a fantastic singer or painter or photographer   or even chef now if you've got the kind  of relationship where you can talk quite   freely and openly and kind of make fun then you  might use the expression don't give up the day   job don't give up the day job so what did you  think of my meal last night did you enjoy it   well i wouldn't give up the day job if i were you  and finally fat chance or slim chance now actually   there's two opposing adjectives fat being and slim  being the opposite but essentially if you say fat   chance or slim chance you're saying that there is  a very minute possibility of something happening   he asked me out for dinner the other  night fat chance i'm gonna say yes   now fat chance is actually going to be  a little bit stronger and ruder than   slim chance there is a slim chance that i  can make it to the party tonight but i'll   let you know i'll text beforehand if you say fat  chance it really sounds quite rude and abrupt   so avoid that unless you are talking about  somebody crazy inviting you out for dinner   and there we go 20 idiomatic expressions that are  bizarre strange and may even have you laughing   just from the picture the imagery that they create  so comment below try using one or more of those   expressions in a context that is personal to you  and of course if there are any other idioms that   you would like me to explain add those in the  comments section too thank you for watching bye

Channel: Love English with Leila & Sabrah

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Keywords: Love English with Leila & Sabrah, Love English with Leila & Sabrah YouTube, YouTube Love English with Leila & Sabrah, learn English, love English, English, English with Leila, English with Sabrah, British English, english idioms, idiomatic expressions, use english idioms, learn english idioms, fun idioms, fun english expressions, common english idioms, british idioms, british expressions, speak like a native, essential idioms, idiom vocabulary, english vocabulary

Id: 8I-Vz33dHYQ

Length: 15min 29sec (929 seconds)

Published: Mon Mar 01 2021