Mood:
sharpTopic: learn your english
It's raining cats and dogs
Examples:
"The weather was horrible on Saturday.
It was raining cats and dogs all day."
"It's really awful weather outside.
It's windy and is raining cats and dogs."
Use:
We use this idiom to say that is is (or was) raining VERY heavily.
(It doesn't mean that cats and dogs are falling out the sky!)
Alternates:
It's raining cats and dogs / buckets / stair rods / pitchforks / elephants & giraffes
It's a frog strangler
It's a frog-strangling-gully-washer
It's a frog-strangling downpour
it's pelting / chucking / pissing / tipping it down
It's not my cup of tea
Examples:
"David, would you like to go ice-skating tomorrow evening
with me?" asked Mary.
"To be honest, Mary, ice-skating's not really my cup of tea.
Would you like to go to the cinema instead?"
Use:
If something isn't your cup of tea then you don't like it.
It's often used with 'really' which acts as a softener.
- It's not my cup of tea = I don't like it
- It's not really my cup of tea = I don't like it very much
The grass is always greener
(on the other side of the fence)
Examples:
Dave:
I hate my job! All I do is write letters and phone customers.
I'd love a job like Mary's. She seems really happy.
Paul:
The grass is always greener, David.
I'm sure she also has lots of paperwork to do too.
Use:
The original meaning of this idiom comes from when a person would
look over their garden fence and think that the neighbour's grass was greener, and therefore better.
We often use this idiom to tell somebody who feels that someone else has a better job, house, life, garden, etc. that it just seems that way.
The idiom can be used in the short or long form, but just saying
"the grass is always greener" is most common, as the listener will normally know the full idiom.
You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours
Examples:
Manfred:
"I don't want to do my English homework this week.
Will you do it for me, Rainer?"
Rainer:
"Only if you do my Physics homework.
You scratch my back and I'll scratch yours!"
Use:
We use this idiom to tell someone that if you help us
then we'll help them in return.
To put your foot in it
Examples:
David:
"I saw Susan today and told her that we'd see her at
Sarah's party on Friday."
Mary:
"Oh no. You've really gone and put your foot in it now.
Sarah doesn't want Susan to come to the party.
That's why she didn't invite her."
Use:
You put your foot in it when you say something that you shouldn't
and so put yourself or someone else in an embarrassing situation.
To be snowed under (with something)
Examples:
"I'm sorry I didn't come to the meeting, but I was snowed under with work."
"I'm sorry I haven't replied to your email before now,
but I've been snowed under with paperwork."
"I'm afraid I can't come to the cinema this evening.
I'm snowed under with work and I have to try to finish it today.
I'll probably be here until late evening."
Use:
To be snowed under (with something) means that you have so much
to do that you cannot do anything else. The first thing to do is to try to clear the "snow".
This idiom is often used when we apologise for not being able to do something/meet someone.
To burn the midnight oil
Examples:
Peter:
"Hey, Gerald, look at the bags under your eyes!
have you been burning the midnight oil again?"
Gerald:
"Oh, I'm so tired! I stayed up studying until 2am this morning."
Use:
If you burn the midnight oil then you are probably working
or studying very late at night.
In the days before electric lighting many people used oil lamps
and so if you burned the midnight oil you would be up very late.
It's not used to refer to time spent in pubs and discos - that is
definitely not burning the midnight oil!