Idioms

1. COLORS:

1. Out of the blue– randomly, without warning, surprisingly

Example: “That storm came out of the blue and I didn’t have an umbrella!”

2. Green with envy– to be very jealous, envious

Example: “Katie was green with envy when she saw you got a new car for your birthday.”

3. Gray area– something that is unclear, undefined

Example: The issue of allowing mobile phones in the classroom is a gray area right now- it could go either way.

4. Caught red-handed– to catch someone in the act of doing something

Example: “He was caught red-handed while stealing those candy bars.”

5. Green thumb– to be skilled at gardening

Example: “My mother has a green thumb- she can make anything grow!”

6. Black sheep– to be the outcast, odd one out, unlike the others

Example: “Rachel is the black sheep in the family because she is an artist whereas everyone else is an
economist.”

7. Once in a blue moon– very rarely

Example: “Once in a blue moon you will see that mean professor smile.”

8. Take the red eye– a late night flight that arrives early in the morning

Example: “I took the red eye from California to New York last night and now I am exhausted.”

9. Tickled pink– to be extremely pleased

Example: “Your grandma was tickled pink that you called on her birthday!”

10. White lie– a small lie that is told to be polite or avoid hurting someone’s feelings

Example: “I didn’t like her dress, but I told a white lie because I didn’t want to offend her.

diom meaning example sentence

beet red dark red (usually My sister's face turned beet red when I caught her singing in front of a
to describe face) mirror.

black bruised and We found the poor guy black and blue near the train tracks.
and beaten
blue

black straight forward, The rules we gave the kids were black and white. No answering the phone
and very clear or the door.
white

black faint I always black out at the sight of blood.

out

black the odd or bad My oldest brother was the black sheep in our family. He dropped out of
sheep member of the school at fifteen.
group

born born into a rich Keiko hasn't worked a day in her life. She was born with a silver spoon in
with a family her mouth.
silver
spoon in
one's
mouth

catch catch someone in The kids were caught red handed stealing chocolate bars.
red the act of doing
handed something wrong
or illegal

golden the perfect The models' conference was a golden opportunity for me to sell my beauty
opportu chance products.
nity

grey something Writing personal email in the office is a grey area that needs to be discussed
area, without a clear at the next meeting.
gray rule or answer
area

the permission The builders were given the green light to begin the tower.
green
light

green very jealous I am green with envy over Julio's new wardrobe.

with
envy

(have a) be skillful in the You can tell by her flower garden that Sheila has a green thumb.
green garden
thumb

have the be sad or I always have the blues during the winter time.

blues depressed

in the unaware Antoine left his wife in the dark about their honeymoon destination until
dark they got to the airport.

in the in debt>< NOT When we were in the red we almost had to sell the house.
red>< OWING ANY
IN THE MONEY/PROFI
BLACK TABLE

once in very rarely We only go out for dinner once in a blue moon.

a blue
moon

out of unexpectedly I got a phone call from a long lost cousin out of the blue last week.
the blue

red tape official or There is still some red tape to deal with in terms of the inheritance.
 bureaucratic
tasks

red eye an airplane flight I caught the red eye so that I would see the sunrise over the mountains.
that takes off
after midnight

roll out treat someone When relatives come to town my grandmother rolls out the red carpet.
the red like royalty
carpet

rose unrealistic view Paula imagines Hollywood with rose coloured glasses.

coloure
d
glasses

see red be very angry I saw red when that guy grabbed my sister's purse.

tickled very pleased and My mom was tickled pink when my father brought roses home for her.
pink appreciative

true real self Suzanne doesn't show her true colours when we have guests over.
colours

white lie an innocent lie to We told Grandma that her cake was delicious, which was actually a white
protect another lie.
person's feelings

with with distinction I passed my road test with flying colours.

flying
colours

white- người làm The company plans to cut 1,469 white-collar jobs as par

collar  việc văn
 phòng t of a restructuring.

công việc
blue- Blue-collar workers do work needing strength or physica
lao động tay
collar  l skill rather than office work
chân

2. ANIMALS

diom meaning example sentence

ants in one's unable to sit still or remain Lisa had ants in her pants the day
pants calm out of nervousness or before her interview.
excitement

(the) birds sex education I learned about the birds and the

and the bees bees when my baby brother was born.

cat nap a short sleep I'm going to have a cat nap while

you're cooking dinner.

cat's got said about someone who It looks like the cat's got your
one's tongue doesn't speak (usually due to tongue, Lucy. Are you always this
shyness) quiet?

chicken out to decide not to do I was going to take a ride on Geoff's

something out of fear motorcycle, but I chickened out when
(usually just before) he gave me a helmet to wear.

clam up become quiet suddenly Arthur clammed up when I asked him

about his family.
diom meaning example sentence

copy cat a person who does the same My sister is such a copy cat. First she
thing as someone else bought the same car as me, and now
she's applying to my school.

dog days very hot days I sleep in the basement during the dog
days of August.

dropping like dying/giving up quickly My roses are dropping like flies in this

flies early frost.

eager beaver a person who is excited Ever since he got his new drill set my
about doing certain work husband has been an eager
beaver around the house.

fishy odd, suspicious I knew something fishy was going on

when I saw all of my friends' cars in my
mom's driveway.

have a cow get extremely upset (often My teacher had a cow when she

over something minor) realized nobody had done the
homework.

hold your wait and be patient Hold your horses! I'll be done in the
horses washroom in a minute.

holy cow! Wow, I'm surprised! Holy cow! I can't believe you ate
everything on your plate.

horse around play roughly If you're going to horse around, please

diom meaning example sentence

go outside.

get the lion's get the greatest percentage My aunt got the lion's share of the
share inheritance.

in the dog in trouble with another I don't think Marsha is coming out
house person tonight. She's still in the dog house for
forgetting Aaron's birthday.

kill two birds get two things done at once If you pick the groceries up when you
with one drop George off for his shift, you will kill
stone two birds with one stone.

kitty corner diagonal direction The gas station is kitty corner to the
library.

let the cat out reveal a secret Who let the cat out of the bag about
of the bag the surprise party?

(a) little bird I heard something (usually A little bird told me that you are
told me secretive or unknown) from thinking of quitting your job.
someone (not named)

make a go straight for something My grandma made a beeline for the

beeline smoking room as soon as she got off
the airplane.

monkey see, silly/unintelligent people tend Our one-year-old is saying bad words
monkey do to copy each other's actions now. I told my husband, "Monkey see,
diom meaning example sentence

monkey do!"

nest egg money saved for the future We have a nest egg that we might
have to use if Jim goes on sick leave.

pig out eat a lot of something I pigged out on pancakes so I don't

have room for lunch.

raining cats raining heavily I forgot my umbrella, and it was raining

and dogs cats and dogs.

rat race fierce, competitive struggle I'm ready to leave this rat race and
for power, position etc retire in Mexico.

smell a rat begin to suspect trickery etc I asked my brothers not to tell my
parents that I went out, but I
could smell a rat as soon as I opened
the door.

straight from directly from the original I know Jenny is pregnant, because I
the horse's source heard it straight from the horse's
mouth mouth.

take the bull face a challenge or danger If you really think you deserve a
by the horns boldly promotion, you'll have to take the bull
by the horns.

until the for a very long time I could eat pizza and ice-cream until
cows come
 diom meaning example sentence

home the cows come home.

III. BODY:

idiom meaning example sentence

all ears fully listening Give me a minute to finish my

work and then I'll be all ears to
hear about your project.

break a leg good-luck Today's the big game, eh? Break

a leg!

cold feet nervous just before a big event My sister didn't get cold feet until
she put her wedding gown on.

cost an arm be very expensive These cakes are delicious, but

and a leg they cost an arm and a leg.

cry your heart cry very hard I cried my heart out when my

out best friend moved away.

face the music meet, stand up to unpleasant I stayed out all night. When I
consequences, for example eventually got home I had to face
criticism or punishment the music from my wife.
(my) flesh and relative I have to hire Mia. She's my
blood own flesh and blood.

get something tell someone your problems Thanks for listening to me

off one's chest complain about my boss. I just
needed to get this off my chest.

give a hand, help (someone) do something I can give you a hand when you

lend a hand move if you like.

have one's be unaware or unrealistic about Amy has her head in the

head in the something clouds if she thinks she's going to
clouds pass her exams without studying.

head over heels deeply in love My brother is head over heels for

his new girlfriend.

head start an earlier start The kids gave Anthony a head

start in the bicycle race because
he was the youngest.

in over one's taking on a task that you can't I was in over my head when I
head handle agreed to babysit the triplets and
the dogs.

keep an eye on take care of, watch in order to I'll keep an eye on the dinner
protect while you're on the phone.

keep one's chin try to be cheerful Keep your chin up. I'm sure
up you'll make some friends soon.
learn by heart, memorize I learned my multiplication
know by heart tables by heart in the fourth
grade.

let one's hair relax, have fun Go to the cottage and let your
down hair down this weekend.

(my) lips are promise to keep a secret Don't worry, I won't tell your
sealed mother how much you spent. My
lips are sealed.

makes my makes me very angry It makes my blood boil when

blood boil people don't tie up their dogs.

neck of the nearby location or region I heard that they might be opening
woods a post office in our neck of the
woods soon.

(an) old hand an experienced person My uncle's an old hand at car

repair. He'll know what the
problem is.

over my dead not unless I'm dead and can't My daughter wants a tattoo. I told
body stop you her she'd get one over my dead
body.

pat on the back recognition or a thank-you The party organizers deserve

a pat on the back for a job well
done.

play something do something without a plan We don't know if the weather will
by ear be good enough for camping.
 We'll have to play it by ear.

pull one's leg joke or tease someone I was just pulling your leg. I'm
not really a police officer.

rule of thumb basic rule (not always followed) The rule of thumb is that the
students wear black pants and
white shirts.

see eye to eye agree The couple don't see eye to

eye on how to train their pets.

(by the) skin of just barely I passed my exam by the skin of

one's teeth my teeth.

stick your neck help someone a lot, with I stuck my neck out for Bessie
out possible bad consequences for when she was thrown out of her
oneself house.

sweet tooth a love of sugar or sweet things I need three spoonfuls of sugar in
my tea. I have a sweet tooth.

thick in the not very intelligent I'm a bit thick in the head when it

head comes to reading a map.

wash one's stop dealing with an issue or I'm washing my hands of Mary's

hands of problem addiction. She is going to have to
something get some professional help.

IV. CLOTHING
idiom meaning example sentence

at the drop of a hat without needing any advance My Grandma will babysit for anyone at the drop
notice of a hat.

(have a) bee in something that is annoying Milan has had a bee in his bonnet all day, but he
one's bonnet someone won't tell me what's wrong.

below the belt beyond what is fair or socially His comment about Manfred's handicap
acceptable was below the belt.

bursting at the not fitting anymore I ate too much. I'm bursting at the seams in these
seams jeans.

caught with one's unprepared My students caught me with my pants down on

pants down Monday. I forgot about the field trip.

(have a) card up have a secret or reserve plan I think Josh has a card up his sleeve cause he
one's sleeve wants me to wear a dress to the fast-food
restaurant.

buckle down work extra hard It's almost exam time, so I need to buckle
down this weekend.

burn a hole in one's money that one is tempted to Let's go to the mall after school. There's a hundred
pocket spend dollar bill burning a hole in my pocket.

dress to kill, dress dress in nice or sexy clothes My cousin was dressed to kill on her birthday.
to the nines

fit like a glove fit perfectly (tight to one's Anita's prom dress fits me like a glove.
 body)

fine-tooth comb in great detail, extremely The police looked for fingerprints with a fine-
carefully tooth comb.

fly by the seat of do by instinct, not by plan I had never taught art to kids before. I had to fly
one's pants by the seat of my pants.

handle with kid treat delicately Please handle my grandmother's tea set with kid
gloves gloves.

hand-me-down used clothing We buy hand-me-down skates because the kids'

feet grow so quickly.

hat trick three goals scored by one The fans cheered when the hockey player got
person a hat trick.

in one's birthday in the nude The swimmers in the lake were in their birthday
suit suits.

keep one's shirt on try to stay calm I know you're in a hurry, but please keep your
shirt on.

keep something keep something a secret We know we're having a boy, but we're keeping it
zipped zipped from the grandparents.

off the cuff said without planning I didn't have a speech prepared. Everything I said
was off the cuff.

pull up one's socks try harder Marco will have to pull up his socks if he wants
to make the football team.
 put a sock in it stop talking Put a sock in it! I'm trying to tell a story.

put one's thinking think hard in order to solve a I can't remember where the Christmas decorations
cap on problem are. I'll have to put my thinking cap on.

put oneself in imagine what it would be like Put yourself in Amber's shoes. She doesn't even
someone else's to be in someone else's situation have a car to drive.
shoes

ride one's coattails let someone else do all of the It was a group project, but everyone rode
work Andrew's coattails.

roll up one's sleeves get down to hard work The celebrities rolled up their sleeves and
washed cars for charity.

take one's hat off to recognize or honour someone I take my hat off to Jim. The doctors said he'd
someone for something never walk, and he just ran a marathon.

wear one's heart on display emotions openly My Dad's not afraid to cry. He always wears his
one's sleeve heart on his sleeve.

wear the trousers be in charge, make the rules By the looks of things, the kids wear the
trousers in this household.

V. FOOD

idiom meaning example sentence

apple of one's eye a person that is Baby Jessica is the apple of her father's
adored by someone eye.
(have a) bun in be pregnant I don't think Jan will come to the bar
the oven because she has a bun in the oven.

bad egg a person who is often I don't want my little brother hanging
in trouble around with the bad eggs on the street.

big cheese very important person I thought I was just going to interview the
(VIP) secretary, but they let me talk to the big
cheese himself.

bread and butter necessities, the main Just explain the bread and butter of your
thing report. You don't have to go into details.

bring home the earn the income My husband has had to bring home the
bacon bacon ever since I broke my leg.

butter someone be extra nice to We'll have to butter Angie up before we

up someone (usually for tell her the news about the broken vase.
selfish reasons)

(have one's) cake want more than your Rick wants to have his cake and eat it
and eat it too fair share or need too. He wants to be single but he doesn't
want me to date anyone else.

carrot top person with red or Simon is the first carrot top I've ever
orange hair gone out with.

cheesy silly I love reading cheesy romance novels

because I don't have to think.

cool as a very relaxed I thought I was afraid of flying, but I

cucumber was cool as a cucumber all the way to
England.

cream of the crop the best We hired the cream of the crop to

entertain us at the Christmas party.

(don't) cry over get upset over The mirror is broken and we can't fix it.
spilled milk something that has There's no need to cry over spilled milk.
happened and cannot
be changed

cup of joe cup of coffee Let's stop for a cup of joe before we head
to work.

(not my) cup of something you enjoy Opera isn't exactly my cup of tea.
tea (usually used
negatively)

egg someone on urge someone to do The gang tried to egg us on but we didn't
something want to fight.

freeze one's buns be very cold I froze my buns off at the ice rink.
off

full of beans have a lot of (silly) The kids were full of beans after the
energy circus.

gravy train extremely good pay The unionized grocers have been
for minimal work enjoying the gravy train for twenty years.

(have something) receive without The professor's daughter had her college
handed to working for diploma handed to her on a silver
someone on a something platter.
silver platter

hard nut to crack difficult to understand Angelo is a hard nut to crack when

(often a person) something is bothering him like this.

hot potato a controversial or Choosing a location for our new store is

difficult subject a hot potato right now.

in a nutshell simply In a nutshell, I'm having a bad day.

nuts about like a lot I'm nuts about classical music these

something, days.
someone

out to lunch crazy or mad Harry has been out to lunch ever since

he lost his job.

one smart cookie a very intelligent Your daughter is one smart cookie. She
person reads much higher than her grade level.

peach fuzz small amount of hair Except for a bit of peach fuzz, the baby
growth came out bald.

piece of cake very easy The exam was a piece of cake.

put all of ones rely on one single Even though I'm majoring in Art, I'm
eggs in one thing taking a maths course because my Dad
basket says I shouldn't put all of my eggs in
 one basket.

souped up made more powerful The car was souped up with shiny rims
or stylish and a loud stereo.

sell like hot cakes bought by many The new Harry Potter books sold like hot
people cakes.

spice things up make something I wanted to spice things up in the office,
more exciting so I bought some red and gold paint.

spill the beans reveal the truth On Monday, I'm going to spill the
beans about my travel plans.

take something don't consider Take Mandy's advice with a pinch of salt.
with a pinch something 100% She doesn't always do her research.
(grain) of salt accurate

use your noodle use your brain You're going to have to really use your
noodle on this crossword puzzle. It's an
extra difficult one.

VI.GEOGRAPHY:

diom meaning example sentence

(on) cloud nine extremely happy Andrea was on cloud nine when she
bought her new car.

dig deep look hard for information I had to dig deep to find my old report
cards.
dirt cheap very inexpensive The clothes at the thrift shop are dirt
cheap.

down to earth natural or real (personality) Lucile is really down to earth for a

woman with so much money.

fair-weather a person who is only a I can't talk to Nancy about my

friend friend in good times boyfriend problems. She's only a fair-
weather friend.

a field day a very enjoyable time The kids had a field day at the water
slide park.

go downhill get progressively worse My grades started going

downhill when I got a part-time job.

go with the flow continue in the same way Nobody trained me at work. I
as others just went with the flow.

hit the hay go to sleep I'm exhausted. I think I'll hit the

hay early tonight.

hit the road leave It's getting late. We had better hit the
road.

keep one's head have just enough money to It's hard to keep my head above
above water live water with all of these medical bills.

know which way know how things will turn Who knows which way the wind will
the wind blows out blow? I just hope Jesse gets one of
 the jobs he's applied for.

make a make a small problem The car only got a tiny dent.
mountain out of seem big You're making a mountain out of a
a molehill molehill.

out of the woods clear of danger The doctor said my heart is doing
better, but I'm not out of the woods
yet.

over the hill past middle age I knew I was over the hill when I
started needing glasses to read.

rain on someone ruin somebody else's Whenever I had a dance recital, my

else's parade happiness older brother always rained on my
parade.

stick-in-the-mud a loner or person who They didn't bother inviting Charles to

won't join in the party because he's always
a stick-in-the-mud.

(as) quick as very fast Wow! Your shower was as quick as

lightning lightning.

the tip of the a small part of a large The lost tickets were just the tip of
iceberg problem the iceberg.

take a raincheck accept at a later date I'd love to go out for dinner, but can I
take a raincheck?

under the ill I was feeling under the weather so I

weather went back to bed.

up the creek in trouble If my Dad finds out I had a party I'll

be up the creek.

win by a win by a lot of points The skier in the green coat won by a

landslide landslide.

(get) wind of overhear something about My Dad has a new girlfriend. I got
something someone or something wind of it over dinner tonight.
(often gossip)

VII. SPORTS:

idiom meaning example sentence

sport of origin

across the board equal for everyone Ten percent raises were given across
cards the board.

at this stage in the at this time Nobody knows who is going to win the
game election at this stage in the game.
any sport

the ball is in your it's your decision or "Do you think I should accept the job
court responsibility to do offer?"
tennis something now "Don't ask me. The ball is in your
court now".

bark up the wrong you've got the wrong I think you're barking up the wrong
tree person or idea tree by blaming Matt for the missing
hunting money.
blind-sided to not see something George blind-sided Eric with his fist at
American football coming the bar.

blow the win easily If you wear that dress to the beauty
competition away pageant you are going to blow the
any sport competition away.

call the shots make the decisions While our boss is on vacation, Bob
billiards will call the shots.

chip in help by donating The staff members chipped in 5 dollars

gambling money or time each to buy Jody a birthday gift.

down to the wire right at the end It's coming down to the wire to get
horse racing these done on time.

front runner one of the people who Angela is a front runner for the new
track is expected to win supervisor position.

get a head start start before all others They gave the walkers a head start in
horse racing the run for cancer.

get into the full be comfortable doing It will probably take a month of working at
swing something after some my new job before I get into the full
tennis time swing of things.

get off the hook escape, have The child got off the hook for stealing
fishing responsibility removed because the security camera was
broken.

give something or try for a while before You should give Nadine a fair
someone a fair giving up shake before you decide she isn't good
shake enough for the job.
gambling

get a second wind have a burst of energy I was exhausted after 3 kilometres of
sailing after tiring running, but I got a second wind after I
passed the beach.

give it your best try your hardest Give it your best shot and you may just
shot make it to the finals.
hunting

give one a run for try one's hardest to I know the other team is expected to win,
one's money defeat another person but let's give them a run for their
horseracing money tonight.

go overboard do or say more than You can't believe everything Janice says
sailing you need to about Rick. She tends to go
overboard when she's complaining
about him.

go to bat for defend someone Andy is asking for a salary increase, and
someone I'm going to go to bat for him if the boss
baseball says no.

have the upper have a better chance The Blues have the upper hand in the
hand of winning or tournament, because none of their
cards succeeding players is injured.

hit below the belt do or say something Amanda was hitting below the
martial arts that is very unfair or belt when she called Adrian an unfit
cruel father.
 hit a snag come up against a The renovations were going along great
boating problem until we hit a snag with the carpet
installation.

hold all the aces expected to win or The children hold all the aces when it
cards succeed comes to the father-son baseball
tournament.

the home stretch almost the end I think Alice's pregnancy is in the home
horse racing stretch.

hot shot (big shot) an important or very All the hot shots from Silicon Valley
hunting successful person were invited to meet the president.

VIII. Idioms/Music
a jam session
If musicians play in a jam session, they play whatever they feel like playing in an informal
setting.
blow your own horn | blow your own trumpet
If you blow your own horn, or blow your own trumpet, you proudly boast about your own
talents and successes.
change your tune
If you change your tune, you change your opinion about something or your attitude towards
someone.
face the music
If someone has to face the music, they have to accept the consequences of doing
something wrong.
for a song
If you buy or sell something for a song, you buy or sell it at a very cheap price.
make a song and dance about something 
If you make a song and dance about something, you make a big deal out of, or a fuss over,
something that isn't very important.
music to your ears
If something is music to your ears, it's just what you want to hear.
play it by ear
If you play it by ear, you don't plan ahead but you do whatever seems best at the time
depending on the situation.
pull out all the stops
If you pull out all the stops, you do everything you can to make sure something is
successful.
ring a bell INFORMAL
If something rings a bell, it sounds familiar or you think you've heard it before.

IX. Idioms/Money
Idioms based on money. Select an idiom for more details. Also try Money Idioms Quiz.
(your) bread and butter
Your bread and butter is your livelihood or the source of your income.
a ballpark figure | a ballpark estimate 
If you give a ballpark figure or a ballpark estimate, you give a number which you think is
fairly close to the actual one.
a nest egg
If you have a nest egg, you have money put away for the future.
a vested interest
If you have a vested interest in something, you have a strong personal interest in it because
you stand to gain from it.
cook the books | cook the accounts
If someone cooks the books, or cooks the accounts, they keep inaccurate accounts for a
business, usually in order to pay less tax.
cost the earth | charge the earth
If something costs the earth, or they charge the earth for it, it's very expensive.
deep pockets
You can say a person or an organisation has deep pockets if they have lots of money.
dirt cheap
You can say something is dirt cheap if it costs very little money.
easy come, easy go INFORMAL
You can say "easy come, easy go" to express the idea that if something comes to someone
easily, such as money they get without working hard for it, they can lose it just as easily and
it won't matter to them much.
easy money
You can say "easy money" to describe money that someone gets without having to make
much effort.
feather your own nest
If you feather your own nest, you use your position or your job illegally for personal gain.
feel the pinch
If you are feeling the pinch, you're finding it harder to survive on your income.
for my money
You can say "for my money" to mean the same as "in my opinion".
go out of business
If a company goes out of business, it stops trading and closes down.
grease someone's palm INFORMAL
If you grease someone's palm, you pay them a bribe.
in the black
If a person or a company is in the black, their assets are greater than their debts.
in the red
If a person or a company is in the red, their debts are greater than their assets.
kill the goose that lays the golden egg
If you kill the goose that lays the golden egg, you destroy something that has made you a
lot of money.
made of money
If you are made of money, you have lots of money.
make a killing
If you make a killing, you make a lot of money from a sale or a deal of some sort.
make ends meet
If you make ends meet, you earn just enough to pay for a place to live and your daily
expenses.
pay the price
You pay the price for doing something when you experience the unpleasant results of doing
it.
pay through the nose INFORMAL
If you pay through the nose for something, you pay more than the usual price for it.
pick up the tab | pick up the bill INFORMAL
If you pick up the tab, or pick up the bill, you pay for yourself and your friends in a
restaurant or a bar.
rags to riches
If you go from rags to riches, you start out very poor and you become very rich.
talk turkey
If you talk turkey, you discuss something seriously, usually to do with business or money.
tighten your belt
If you tighten your belt, you try to spend less money.
under the table 
If something is done under the table, it's done secretly, usually because it's illegal or
unethical.
wheeling and dealing
If you're wheeling and dealing, you're involved in the complex world of making deals and
exchanging favours in business or politics, or both.
worth its weight in gold
If something is worth its weight in gold, it is extremely valuable or extremely useful.

X. Idioms/Nature
a drop in the ocean 
If an amount is a drop in the ocean, it's a very small portion of the amount that's needed.
a ray of sunshine
Something is a ray of sunshine if it brings happiness to someone.
a voice (crying) in the wilderness
You're a voice in the wilderness, or a voice crying in the wilderness, if you're expressing an
unpopular opinion or insight.
answer the call of nature
If you answer the call of nature, you go to the toilet.
at sea | all at sea
If you're at sea, or all at sea, you're confused about something and not sure what to do.
beat around the bush | beat about the bush
If you beat around the bush, or beat about the bush, you don't say something directly,
usually because you don't want to upset the person you're talking to.
can't see the forest for the trees 
If you can't see the forest for the trees, you can't see the whole situation clearly because
you're looking too closely at small details, or because you're too closely involved.
can't see the wood for the trees 
If you can't see the wood for the trees, you can't see the whole situation clearly because
you're looking too closely at small details, or because you're too closely involved.
down to earth
If someone is down to earth, they are practical and sensible.
go with the flow
If you go with the flow, you relax and go along with whatever is happening.
in deep water
If you're in deep water, you're in some sort of trouble or in a difficult situation.
make a mountain out of a molehill
If you make a mountain out of a molehill, you make a small problem seem to be a much
bigger problem.
make hay while the sun shines
If you make hay while the sun shines, you make good use of the chance to do something
while it lasts.
neck of the woods INFORMAL
A neck of the woods is a neighbourhood or a district, usually rural.
reach for the moon | reach for the stars
If you reach for the moon, or reach for the stars, you are aiming to achieve something great,
or do something very challenging.
the tip of the iceberg
You can say something is the tip of the iceberg when it's just a small part of something
much bigger.
under a cloud
If someone is under a cloud, they are suspected of having done something wrong.
under the weather
If you are under the weather, you're not feeling well.
virgin territory
You can say something is virgin territory if it's never been explored before or never been
done before.
weather a storm
If you weather a storm, you survive a dangerous event or deal with a difficult situation.