Idioms with color words
"a gray area"
"The issue of allowing mobile phones in the classroom is a gray area right now- it could go either way."
"cost an arm and a leg"
'It cost me an arm and a leg to get my car fixed.'
"piece of cake"
"The exam was a piece of cake."
"kill two birds with one stone"
"If you pick the groceries up when you drop George off for his shift, you will kill two birds with one stone."
"Break the ice"
He made a weather joke to break the ice.
"Once in a blue moon"
“Once in a blue moon you will see that mean professor smile.”
"off the top of my head"
'Off the top of my head, I'd say there were a thousand people there.'
"cool as a cucumber"
"I thought I was afraid of flying, but I was cool as a cucumber all the way to England"
"to have ants in one's pants"
"Lisa had ants in her pants the day before her interview."
"Bury your head in the sand"
"Stop burying your head in the sand. You haven’t been happy with him for years, so why are you staying together?"
"a black sheep"
"Rachel is the black sheep in the family because she is an artist whereas everyone else is an economist.”
"to give someone a cold shoulder"
'I saw my ex-girlfriend at a party but she wouldn't talk to me. She gave me the cold shoulder.'
"to butter someone up"
"We'll have to butter Angie up before we tell her the news about the broken vase."
"let the cat out of the bag"
"Who let the cat out of the bag about the surprise party?"
"Clear as mud"
"He’s a great scientist, but I find his explanations in class are as clear as mud."
"to have a green thumb"
“My mother has a green thumb- she can make anything grow!”
"play it by ear"
"I don't know where we should go tonight. Let's just play it by ear"
"take something with a pinch (grain) of salt"
"Take Mandy's advice with a pinch of salt. She doesn't always do her research."
dog days
"I sleep in the basement during the dog days of August."
"Get into deep water"
He got into deep water when he borrowed a lot of money from a loan shark.
"to take the red eye"
“I took the red eye from California to New York last night and now I am exhausted.”
"to put foot in mouth"
'I put my foot in my mouth when I called by brother's new wife by his ex-wife's name.'
"spill the beans"
"On Monday, I'm going to spill the beans about my travel plans."
"to have a cow"
"My teacher had a cow when she realized nobody had done the homework."
"Can’t see the forest for the trees"
"He’s worried about the flowers, but the rest of the wedding has been beautiful. He just can’t see the forest for the trees."