Idiom 1
The mother said to the father, this is the calm before the storm. As soon as the children get home from school, the house will be chaos.
It is calm now but something bad is coming.
Lucy had a big argument with her boss and then she got fired. I think she burned a bridge with that boss and she can never go back.
Destroy relationships
I woke up this morning feeling as right as rain and ready to go. It was nice outside and everything seems right.
Perfect.
My parents were arguing about who had to take a five minute walk to the shops to buy some milk. It seemed to be like a storm in a teacup. What's the big deal anyway?
When there is a big fuss about nothing, or something that seems insignificant.
The festival officials said that the early bird catches the worm. The first 50 people to arrive at the festival will get free tickets and a free pizza.
Someone who gets up early and works hard, is likely to find success.
To abandon caution in order to take a risk.
We all sat quietly eating dinner. No one wanted to bring up the elephant in the room that our cat was missing for five weeks. I didn't think we should avoid this topic.
A significant or undesirable issue that is being intentionally ignored or avoided.
I got $50 from my mom and decided to save most of it in my piggy bank. I need to save it for a rainy day. Maybe one day I'll need it in an emergency.
To save something (usually money) for use in a time of unforeseen need.
I said to my friend, "don't rain on my parade. I will be super mad if you mess up my special plan."
To ruin someone's plans or to spoil something
I told him to look before he leaps and to make sure his plan will work. Otherwise, he could loss everything.
To take calculated risks, to consider the consequences before you take action.
My teacher said that I was skating on thin ice, because for a second week in a row, I had not completed my homework.
If one makes another mistake, there will be trouble.
It's raining cats and dogs. I have my raincoat and my rainboots on, but I am still soaked.
Raining heavily.
Just like his father, he is a chip off the old block. Both of them are firefighters and like to build model trains on their days off.
Someone who's character resembles that of their parent.
Mom really wanted to find this specific, rare ingredient. We went on a wild goose chase and searched for it in ten different stores. In the end, we got nothing.
A futile long search for something that is difficult to find, to do something pointless or worthless.
"Don't spill the beans." Mom said to me. "I know you are not good at keeping secrets, but it's important that dad doesn't know about the surprise birthday party."
To give away a secret.
I arrived at the birthday party and my best friend gave me the cold shoulder. I was surprised and sad that she would ignore me on purpose. I don't know what I did to make her mad at me.
To ignore someone, to intentionally appear not interested in someone.
Talking about the author's new crime novel and her previous science fiction novel is like comparing apples and oranges. Those books are completely different, and they aren't even in the same genre.
Comparing two things that cannot or should not be compared.
Annie really struggled learning French at school, but managed to pass the exam by the skin of her teeth. If she had gotten one more question wrong, she would've failed for sure.
To just barely do something, to almost fail.
This week's math homework is really hard and I can't wrap my head around it. Unlike me, my sister thinks it's really easy and not at all complicated.
To try to understand something that is particularly complicated.
I was enjoying playing video games with my friends so much, that I was not aware that I was late for dinner at home. Time flies when you're having fun.
One doesn't notice how long something lasts when one is having fun.
After losing his job, Tim was feeling depressed for a very long time. Finally, he pulled himself together and decided to look for a new job.
To recover from one's negative emotion, to calm down
We have gone through a lot of difficult times, but if we hang in there, things may start to get better. We cannot lose hope.
An expression of encouragement to not give up or lose hoe through difficult times.
Learning to cook is not rocket science for me. I just thinking cooking is easy.
Something that is not too complicated, or requires much skill.
The party at my house began to get out of hand. It was too crowded and too noisy, so I decided to tell everyone to go home.
To get out of control, unmanageable
"Should we call it a day?" I said to my friend. "We've been playing this game for hours and there is still no clear winner. Let's have a rematch tomorrow."
To stop working or doing something for the day.