Free House & Furniture Idioms List for ESL teachers and students, to learn idioms or prepare ESL lesson plans. (Free download available.)
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Idioms List Relating to House, Furniture & Fittings
darken somebody’sdoor | Just get out of here and never darken my door again! |
the door swings both ways | “You never call me.” “You don’t contact me either. The door swings both ways you know!” |
open doors to-from something | A degree from a top university generally opens doors to major companies. |
dead as a doornail | They’ve started fighting again, so the peace agreement is now as dead as a doornail. |
hammer home | The police hammered home the dangers of drinking and driving. |
fly off the handle | Dad flew off the handle when I told him I had damaged his new car. |
bring the housedown | If he sings like that on Saturday, he’ll bring the house down. |
on the house | The new owner offered us a drink on the house. |
put house in order | You should put your house in order before telling me what to do! |
under the knife | I’m not worried about the anaesthetic. I’ve been under the knife several times. |
light bulb moment | Harry had a light-bulb moment when he finally realized what was blocking the mechanism. |
see in a new light | After listening to my colleague, I began to see things in a new light. |
big picture | While each aspect is important, try not to forget the big picture. |
picture of health | Nice to see you again Mr. Brown. I must say you look the picture of health! |
a picture is worth a thousand words | Look at the picture of the crash! A picture is worth a thousand words isn’t it? |
get the picture | The alarm went off and people started running everywhere – you get the picture I’m sure! |
put in the picture | Some changes were made during your absence. Let me put you in the picture. |
a lot on your plate | It’s not a good time to discuss the problem with David. He’s got a lot on his plate at the moment. |
want head on a platter | He was so angry when he read the article about his family that he wanted the journalist’s head on a platter. |
pot calling kettle black | After being disqualified for not obeying the rules, the player accused another competitor of cheating; it was the pot calling the kettle black! |
raise the roof | The concert was such a success, the audience raised the roof. |
sweep under the rug | They tried unsuccessfully to sweep the scandal under the rug. |
no strings attached | I managed to get a loan with no strings attached. |
put/lay one’s cards on the table | Let’s clean the air and put our cards on the table. |
bang one’s head against a brick wall | I’ve been banging my head against a brick wall trying to explain the internet to my grandmother! |
like talking to a brick wall | I tried to discuss the problem with him but it was like talking to a brick wall. |
writing on the wall | We all knew Larry was going to lose his job, but he refused to see the writing on the wall. |
bounce off the walls | Danny can’t wait to start his new job. He’s bouncing off the walls. |
window on the world | The internet has become a window on the world. |
window shopping | I haven’t been paid yet, so I can only go window shopping. |
go out the window | When the plant closed down, all hopes of finding a job went out the window. |
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