Idiom Category: Animals, Page 3

Don't stop and kick at every dog that barks at you

(USA) If we stop to kick at every dog that barks at us we will never arrive at our destination in life, because we are obsessed with righting insignifigant wrongs that should have no more effect on us then a dog that barks as we walk by.

Donkey work

Donkey work is any hard, boring work or task.

Donkey's years

This idiom means 'a very long time'.

Drink like a fish

If someone drinks like a fish, they drink far too much alcohol.

Drop like flies

This means that something is disappearing very quickly. For example, if you said people were dropping like flies, it would mean that they were dying off, quitting or giving up something rapidly.

Drunker than a peach orchard boar

(USA) Southern US expression - Very drunk, as when a boar would eat fermented peaches that have fallen from the tree.

Duck to water

If you take to something like a duck to water, you find when you start that you have a natural affinity for it.

Ducks in a row

(USA) If you have your ducks in a row, you are well-organized.

Eager beaver

A person who is extremely keen is an eager beaver.

Eagle eyes

Someone who has eagle eyes sees everything; no detail is too small.

Early bird catches the worm

The early bird catches the worm means that if you start something early, you stand a better chance of success.

Eat crow

(USA) If you eat crow, you have to admit that you were wrong about something.

Eat like a bird

If someone eats like a bird, they eat very little.

Eat like a horse

Someone who eats like a horse, eats a lot.

Eat like a pig

If some eats like a pig, they either eat too much or they have bad table manners.

Elephant in the room

An elephant in the room is a problem that everyone knows very well but no one talks about because it is taboo, embarrassing, etc.

Enough to cobble dogs with

(UK) A large surplus of anything: We've got enough coffee to cobble dogs with. Possible explanations: A cobblestone is a cut stone with a curved surface. These were set together to create road surfaces, in the days before the widespread use of asphalt. The image the phrase contains is that, even after all the roads have been cobbled, there are so many cobblestones left over that things that don’t need cobbling – such as dogs – could still be cobbled. A cobbler repairs shoes, so if you have enough leather to cobble an animal with four feet or that doesn't need shoes, you have a surplus.

Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while

This expression means that even if people are ineffective or misguided, sometimes they can still be correct just by being lucky.

Even the dogs in the street know

(Irish) This idiom is used frequently in Ireland, and means something is so obvious that even the dogs in the street know it.

Every ass likes to hear himself bray

This means that people like the sound of their own voice.

Every dog has its day

This idiom means that everyone gets their moment to shine.

Fat cat

A fat cat is a person who makes a lot of money and enjoys a privileged position in society.

Feather your own nest

If someone feathers their own nest, they use their position or job for personal gain.

Feathers fly

When people are fighting or arguing angrily, we can say that feathers are flying.

Fight like Kilkenny cats

When you say that people fought like Kilkenny cats, you mean they fought valiantly to the bitter end, even if they are both destroyed. For instance, ''The two political parties fought like Kilkenny cats over the matter''

Fine as frog's hair

(USA) If something is as fine as frog's hair, it is very delicate and fine. The phrase is facetious as frogs do not possess hair.

Fish or cut bait

(USA) This idiom is used when you want to tell someone that it is time to take action.

Fish out of water

If you are placed in a situation that is completely new to you and confuses you, you are like a fish out of water.

Fishy

If there is something fishy about someone or something, there is something suspicious; a feeling that there is something wrong, though it isn't clear what it is.

Fit as a butcher's dog

Someone who's very healthy, fit or physically attractive is as fit as a butcher's dog.

Flash as a rat with a gold tooth

(AU) Someone who's as flash as a rat with a gold tooth tries hard to impress people by their appearance or bahaviour.

Flat out like a lizard drinking

(AU) An Australian idiom meaning extremely busy, which is a word play which humorously mixes two meanings of the term flat out.

Flogging a dead horse

(UK) If someone is trying to convince people to do or feel something without any hope of succeeding, they're flogging a dead horse. This is used when someone is trying to raise interest in an issue that no-one supports anymore; beating a dead horse will not make it do any more work.

Fly in the ointment

A fly in the ointment is something that spoils or prevents complete enjoyment of something.

Fly on the wall

If you are able to see and hear events as they happen, you are a fly on the wall.

Fly the coop

When children leave home to live away from their parents, they fly the coop.

For donkey's years

(UK) If people have done something, usually without much if any change, for an awfully long time, they can be said to have done it for donkey's years.

For the birds

If something is worthless or ridiculous, it is for the birds.

From the horse's mouth

If you hear something from the horse's mouth, you hear it directly from the person concerned or responsible.

Full as a tick

If you are as full as a tick, you have eaten too much.

Get a sheepskin

Getting a sheepskin (or your sheepskin) means getting a degree or diploma.  (Sheepskin refers to the parchment that a degree is printed on-  parchment comes from sheepskin.)

Get the monkey off your back

If you get the monkey off your back, you pass on a problem to someone else.

Get your ducks in a row

If you get your ducks in a row, you organise yourself and your life.

Get your feathers in a bunch

If you get your feathers in a bunch, you get upset or angry about something.

Get your goat

If something gets your goat, it annoys you.

Give a dog a bad name

A person who is generally known to have been guilty of some offence will always be suspected to be the author of all similar types of offence. Once someone has gained a bad reputation, it is very difficult to lose it.

Glory hound

A glory hound is a person seeking popularity, fame and glory.

Go tell it to birds

This is used when someone says something that is not credible or is a lie.

Go the whole hog

If you go the whole hog, you do something completely or to its limits.

Gone fishing

If someone has gone fishing, they are not very aware of what is happening around them.

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