Idiom Category: General, Page 7

Fall on stony ground

If an idea or plan falls on stony ground, it is received negatively by people in positions of power or fails to  take off.

Familiarity breeds contempt

This means that the more you know something or someone, the more you start to find faults and dislike things about it or them.

Famous last words

This expression is used as a way of showing disbelief, rejection  or self-deprecation.'They said we had no chance of winning- famous last words!'

Far cry from

This means that something is very different from something.

Fast and furious

Things that happen fast and furious happen very quickly without stopping or pausing.

Fat chance!

This idiom is a way of telling someone they have no chance.

Fat hits the fire

When the fat hits the fire, trouble breaks out.

Fat of the land

Living off the fat of the land means having the best of everything in life.

Feel free

If you ask for permission to do something and are told to feel free, the other person means that there is absolutely no problem

Few and far between

If things are few and far between, they happen very occasionally.

Finders keepers, losers weepers

Whoever finds something can keep it.  This is often shortened to 'finders keepers'.

Fine and dandy

(UK) If thing's are fine and dandy, then everything is going well.

Fire away

If you want to ask someone a question and they tell you to fire away, they mean that you are free to ask what you want.

Fire in the hole!

This is used as a warning when a planned explosion is about to happen.

First port of call

The first place you stop to do something is your first port of call.

Fish for compliments

Usually said of someone who puts themselves down (similar to false modesty) in the hope that others will contradict them, and in the process, compliment them. Sam: I'm no good at drawing!Judy: Nonsense! You're an excellent artist!Bob: Aw, he was just fishing for compliments.

Fit for a king

If something is fit for a king, it is of the very highest quality or standard.

Fit the bill

If something fits the bill, it is what is required for the task.

Fit to be tied

If someone is fit to be tied, they are extremely angry.

Flat out

If you work flat out, you work as hard and fast as you possibly can.

Fly off the handle

If someone flies off the handle, they get very angry.

Fly the flag

If someone flies the flag, they represent or support their country. ('Wave the flag' and 'show the flag' are alternative forms of this idiom)

Foam at the mouth

If you foam at the mouth, you are very, very angry.

Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me

This means that you should learn from your mistakes and not allow people to take advantage of you repeatedly.

Fools rush in where angels fear to tread

This idiom is used where people who are inexperienced or lack knowledge do something that more informed people would avoid.

For kicks

If you do something for kicks, or just for kicks, you do it purely for fun or thrills.

Foregone conclusion

If the result of, say, a football match is a foregone conclusion, then the result is obvious before the game has even begun.

Forewarned is forearmed

If you have been warned about something to happen, you will be at an advantage.

Fortune knocks once at every man's door

Everyone gets one good chance in a lifetime.

Free rein

If someone has a free rein, they have the authority to make the decisions they want without any restrictions. ('Free reign' is a common mistake.)

Free-for-all

A free-for-all is a fight or contest in which everyone gets involved and rules are not respected.

From a different angle

If you look at something from a different angle, you look at it from a different point of view.

From A to Z

If you know something from A to Z, you know everything about it.

From pillar to post

If something is going from pillar to post, it is moving around in a meaningless way, from one disaster to another.

From scratch

This idiom means 'from the beginning'.

From the get go

If you are familiar with something from the get go, you are familiar with it from the beginning

From the get-go

(USA) If something happens from the get-go, it happens from the very beginning.

From the sublime to the ridiculous

If something declines considerably in quality or importance, it is said to have gone from the sublime to the ridiculous.

From the word go

From the word go means from the very beginning of something.

Full bore

If something is full bore, it involves the maximum effort or is complete and thorough.

Full circle

When something has come full circle, it has ended up where it started.

Full Monty

(UK) If something is the Full Monty, it is the real thing, not reduced in any way.

Full of oneself

Someone who acts in a arrogant or egotistical manner is full of himself/herself.

Full speed ahead

If people do something with all their enthusiasm and energy, they go full speed ahead.

Full swing

If a something is in full swing, it is going or doing well.

Fuzzy thinking

Thinking or ideas that do not agree with the facts or information available

Game on

When someone says 'Game on!', it means that they are accepting a challenge or ready to get something done.

Gather pace

If events gather pace, they move faster.

Gather steam

If something gathers speed, it moves or progresses at an increasing speed.

Get a grip

If you get a grip, you control your emotions so that they don't overwhelm you.

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