Common European Idioms | 2004/2005

Common European Words, Idioms and Proverbs

CEWIP: A SOCRATES Comenius 1 School Project 2004/2005

CEWIP IDIOMS

Dictionary 1 | Dictionary 3

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T W

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to have an ace up your sleeve
Achilles' heel
to play devil's advocate
golden age
the American dream
Argus-eyed
Ariadne's thread
to welcome sb with open arms
the long arm of the law
to rise like a Phoenix from the ashes

Tower of Babel
to cry like a baby
to turn one's back on sb/sth
to pass the ball
green belt
The bird has flown.
a black day
black gold
black hole
black humor
the black sheep
to have blue blood
a river of blood
blue blood
body and soul
to talk like a book
a golden boy
to open the Pandora’s box
Big Brother
to take the bull by the horns
as soft as butter

to put your cards on the table
to be like cat and dog
to play cat and mouse
to turn the other cheek
It's a child's play.
vicious circle
to go / run like a clockwork
Molotov cocktail
the other side of the coin
the two sides to every coin
the egg of Columbus
the cream
to weep crocodile tears
to be as rich as Croesus

to be like a Damocles sword hanging over somebody’s head
David and Goliath
a black day
not be sb’s day
have seen better days
sb’s days are numbered
to go to the devil
to play devil's advocate
to sell your soul to the devil
to die like a dog
a dog’s life
to treat sb like a dog
prima donna
to play a double game
double life
to walk like a duck
ugly duckling

to go in one ear and out the other
to have a good ear
not to be able to believe one’s ears
the egg of Columbus
to kill the goose that lays the golden egg
not to believe one’s eyes
one’s eyes are bigger than one’s belly
Argus-eyed

to be written all over one’s face
to be two-faced
to lose face
to burn one’s fingers
not to stir a finger
to be able to count sth on the fingers of one hand
first / second hand
to feel like a fish out of water
red flag
white flag
not hurt a fly
to have one’s foot in the grave
to have a foot in the door
sure as two and two are four
to bear fruit [see also to bear fruit in NATURE ]

a golden boy / girl
to kill the goose that lays the golden egg
a golden opportunity
golden rule
a Gordian knot
to be a green
to give sb/sth /to have the green light
green belt

half and half
to have a free hand
to have sth. first hand
second hand
to cost one one’s head
to bury one’s head in the sand
from head to foot
to take it into one’s head
A sword of Damocles hangs over so’s head.
to have a heart of stone
to break sb’s heart
Manna from heaven
in seventh heaven
Achilles’ heel
as sweet as honey

to break the ice - [ see also to break the ice in NATURE ]
to be like Jekyll and Hyde
to behave as a Judas
as gentle as a lamb
to give sb / sth / have the green light
to fight like a lion
to throw somebody to the lions

man’s best friend
an iron-man
a self-made man
the man in the street
a man / woman of the world
Manna from heaven
to serve two masters
as old as Methuselah
Midas touch
Molotov cocktail
Mother Nature
as stubborn as a mule
Murphy's law
to mushroom - [see also to mushroom in NATURE ]
Mother Nature

to look for a needle in a haystack
to have nerves of steel
to get on so’s nerves
to lose one’s nerves
to have a sleepless night
to sing like a nightingale
to stick one’s nose into sth. / everything

Oedipus complex
once and for all
in one blow
something goes in one ear and out the other
to have one foot in the grave
at one stroke
in one word
as strong as an ox

to open a Pandora's box
as proud as a peacock
to rise like a phoenix from the ashes
to swallow a bitter pill
to avoid sth. like the plague
to live on another planet
a child's play
to be a prima donna
Pyrrhic victory

to breed like rabbits
to be a red
to go / turn red
red flag
red meat
a river of blood
to look at sth through rose-tinted glasses
to play Russian roulette
to play Russian roulette

to be a good Samaritan
first / second hand
in seventh heaven
black sheep
sixth sense
to save one’s skin
no more than skin and bones
the prodigal son
body and soul
a guiding spirit
to have a heart of stone
swan’s song
A sword of Damocles hangs over sb’s head.

to show one’s teeth
to grit one’s teeth
to be armed to the teeth
from time to time
Ariadne’s thread
to hang by a thread
Tower of Babel
Trojan horse
think twice before doing something
to be two-faced
sure as two and two are four
the two sides to every coin
to serve two masters

to be like talking to a brick wall
like a fish out of water
to go as white as a sheet
white flag
a wolf in sheep’s skin
a man / woman of the world
in a word
to weigh each word
to pass from words to deeds
to live in a dream world
a man / woman of the world
not the end of the world

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| Dictionary 1 | Dictionary 3 |

| Dictionary 2

© CEWIP 2003 - 2006 | The project CEWIP is granted by Socrates |

| 02.05.2006 22:04 |