IDIOMS

Master idioms! This worksheet helps students understand figurative language and build vocabulary.

After going to the movies, the zoo, and the mall, Cassie was tired of bending over backwards to entertain her nieces. What does the bolded phrase mean? Cassie was doing very little to entertain her nieces. Cassie was making small efforts to entertain her nieces. Cassie was trying very hard to entertain her nieces. Cassie was not trying at all to entertain her nieces. Bobby would have been playing basketball until the cows came home if his mother had not called him home for dinner. What does the bolded phrase mean? Bobby was just about to stop playing ball. Bobby did not even want to play ball to begin with. Bobby prefers nature to athletics, Bobby would have continued to play ball for a long time. Eric wanted to fix his cousin's computer, but he was already having problems setting up his aunt's WiFi network and he didn't want to open up a whole new can of worms.What does the bolded phrase mean? Eric was not ready to begin working on a complicated new problem. Eric wanted to go fishing instead of working on computers. Eric was sick of spending his time helping his family. Eric was having difficulties untangling the computer wires. Even though Maria already had a new job, she submitted her two week notice and conducted herself in a professional way at her old job because she did not want to burn bridges. What does the bolded phrase mean? Maria wasn't ready to start her new job. Maria did not want to ruin her positive relationship with her old employer. Maria was really going to miss her old job. Maria was waiting until her last day to rub it in everyone's face that she was leaving. The extremely popular country western band The Mountain Boys can sell out a concert at the drop of a hat. What does the bolded phrase mean? The Mountain Boys may be able to sell out a concert, but it will take them a long time. The Mountain Boys are always willing to perform at charity events. The Mountain Boys can sell out a concert very quickly. The Mountain Boys enforce a dress code at all their shoes. Sherita expected Craig to cry uncontrollably when she broke up with him; however, Craig kept a stiff upper lip. What does the bolded phrase mean? Craig cried even more than Vivian expected. Craig did not let Sherita see him cry. Craig's eyes got watery and a few teardrops fell. Craig did not cry at all. Mrs. Robinson expects my presentation to be good, but I have been working on it every day for a week so I am really going to knock her socks off.What does the bolded phrase mean? The speaker does not like the socks Mrs. Robinson is wearing. The speaker intends on hitting Mrs. Robinson instead of presenting his project. The speaker's presentation will far exceed Mrs. Robinson's expectations. Mrs. Robinson will be extremely disappointed with the speaker's presentation. After Ms. Smith caught Darnisha chewing gum for the third time, Ms. Smith scheduled a parent teacher conference with Darnisha’s mother. When Darnisha’s mother came into Ms. Smith’s classroom, she was chewing gum. Ms. Smith thought to herself, “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.” What does the bolded phrase mean? Ms. Smith thinks that Darnisha acts a lot like her mother. Ms. Smith thinks that Darnisha looks just like her mother. Ms. Smith is surprised that Darnisha's mother came for a conference. Ms. Smith thinks that Darnisha's mother is a nice person. Keisha got up and started yelling at Ronnie and threatening him but Ronnie didn’t even flinch because he knew that her bark was worse than her bite. What does the bolded phrase mean? Ronnie thinks that Keisha will get in trouble for yelling. Ronnie thinks that Keisha has bad breath. Ronnie thinks that Keisha is loud, but not dangerous. Ronnie thinks that Keisha has a crush on him. You might think that Raheem is the kid who has everything, but if you saw the list of chores his parents give him, I guarantee that you wouldn’t want to be in his shoes. Raheem's parents make him wear old, hand-me-down shoes. If you had to do as many chores as Raheem does, you would need comfortable shoes. Raheem's shoes are so uncomfortable that he has a difficult doing his chores in them. Raheem has so many chores to do that it is hard to imagine getting them all done. Jose had a hard time comparing the iPhone to the Samsung phone because to him they were apples and oranges. What does the bolded phrase mean? Jose can hardly tell the difference between the two phones because they are so similiar. Jose believes that the phones are so different from each other that it is hard to compare them. Jose doesn't know anything about phones so he might as well be thinking about fruit. Jose is too hungry to think about phones at this time. Over the summer Sabrina was really excited about being placed in the advanced math class, but after getting the course outline on the first day and seeing the workload, she was ready to jump ship. What does the bolded phrase mean? Sabrina was even more excited about the math class now than he was over the summer. Sabrina wanted to start working on her math assignments right away. Sabrina did not like the woman who was teaching the advance math class. Sabrina did not want to be in the advanced math class anymore.