English Idioms & Idiomatic Expressions

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Feelings - Emotions - Reactions

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bare your heart (or soul) to someone	If you bare you heart (or soul) to someone, you reveal your innermost thoughts and feelings to them. Mike couldn't keep things to himself any longer. He decided to bare his soul to his best friend.
bear the brunt	A person who bears the brunt of something is the one who suffers the most when something bad or unpleasant happens. When things go wrong, his assistant always has to bear the brunt of his anger.
bent out of shape	If you get bent out of shape, you become annoyed or upset about something that is usually not that important or cannot be avoided. Don't get bent out of shape if you're delayed.  We'll wait for you.
beside yourself (with emotion)	If you are beside yourself (with an emotion), you lose your self-control because of the intensity of the emotion you are feeling. He was beside himself with grief when he lost his son.
bored to tears (also: to distraction/to death/silly)	If you find something so dull and uninteresting that it makes you sad enough to cry, you are bored to tears. I could see that my son was bored to tears by the historical documentary.
carry the torch for	If you carry the torch, you have strong feelings for someone with whom you do not or cannot have a relationship. He's been carrying the torch for Julie since their college days, before she married Ted.
wouldn't be caught/seen dead	If someone says that they wouldn't be caught or seen dead in a particular place or doing something, they mean that they would be too ashamed or embarrassed. My seven-year-old son thinks he's a big boy; he wouldn't be caught dead holding my hand in front of his friends!
cheesed off	If someone is cheesed off with something, they are annoyed, bored or frustrated. Jenny is absolutely cheesed off with her job.
chip on your shoulder	If someone has a chip on their shoulder, the feel resentful because they feel they are being treated unfairly, especially because of their background, their sex or their colour. He's got a chip on his shoulder because he's from a working-class family.
close to home	If a remark or comment is close to home, it is so true, or it affects you so directly, that you feel uncomfortable. Alan looks embarrassed.  Bob's comment must bave been close to home.
come apart at the seams	To say that someone is coming apart at the seams means that they are extremely upset or under severe mental stress. Bob has had so many problems lately, he's coming apart at the seams.
cork up something	If you cork up your feelings or emotions, you fail to show or express them. It would be better if she showed her grief and didn't cork up her feelings.
cut to the quick	If you cut someone to the quick, you hurt their feelings or offend them deeply. Alan was cut to the quick when Joe expressed doubt about his sincerity.
deep down	If you talk about how someone is, or feels, deep down, you are describing what they are like or what they really feel deep inside, behind the outward appearance. He appears to be indifferent to his success, but deep down he's very happy.
fish out of water	If you feel like a fish out of water, you feel uncomfortable in unfamiliar surroundings. As a non-golfer, I felt like a fish out of water at the clubhouse.
fit of pique	Someone who reacts by showing their resentment or annoyance when their pride has been wounded, or they feel insulted, is said to have a fit of pique. She left the table in a fit of pique.
freudian slip	A Freudian slip is a mistake made by a speaker which is considered to reveal their true thoughts or feelings. So you got the job - I'm so sad ...  Sorry, I mean 'glad'!
have your heart in the right place	A person who has their heart in the right place has kind feelings and good intentions, even if the results are not too good. The old lady's cake wasn't wonderful but she's got her heart in the right place!
get a grip on yourself	If you get a grip on yourself, you try to control your feelings so as to be able to deal with a situation. After the initial shock, Lisa got a grip on herself and called an ambulance.
go bananas	If someone becomes very emotional and starts behaving in a crazy way, they go bananas. If you announce that you are going to drop out of school, your parents will go bananas!
go to pieces	If you go to pieces, for example after a terrible shock, you are so upset or distressed that you cannot lead a normal life. Jack nearly went to pieces when his son died in a car crash.
groan inwardly	If you groan inwardly, you feel like expressing despair, disapproval or distress, but you remain silent. On his return, when Pete saw the pile of files on his desk, he groaned inwardly.
hard as nails	A person who is (as) hard as nails is unsentimental and shows no sympathy. Don't expect any sympathy from him.  He's as hard as nails.
change of heart	If someone has a change of heart, they change their attitude or feelings, especially towards greater friendliness or cooperation. He was against charity, but he had a change of heart when he saw the plight of the homeless.
hot under the collar	If you get hot under the collar, you feel annoyed, indignant or embarrassed. If anyone criticizes his proposals, Joe immediately gets hot under the collar.
lick one's wounds	When a person licks their wounds, they try to recover their confidence or spirits after a defeat, failure or disappointment. Poor Harry is licking his wounds after being dropped from the team.
look on the bright side	If you look on the bright side, you view a mostly unpleasant situation in a positive and optimistic way and the see the favourable aspects. OK. You know nobody. But look on the bright side - you'll make lots of new friends!
love me, love my dog	This expression means that if someone loves you, they must love everything about you, including everyone and everything you love. Harry didn't like Sally's best friend, but Sally said : 'love me, love my dog!'
makes your ears burn	If something makes your ears burn, you are embarrassed by what you hear, especially if the conversation is about you. The comments I overheard made my ears burn.
mixed feelings	When you have mixed feelings about something, you react to it with conflicting emotions; you are happy and unhappy at the same time. I had mixed feelings about leaving the company. I was excited about my new job but sad to be leaving my colleagues.
no hard feelings	If you have no hard feelings, you feel no resentment or bitterness about something. When Alan was promoted instead of Steve, he said to Steve : 'No hard feelings I  hope.'
not give a hang	If you do not give a hang about something, you are totally indifferent to it and do not care at all about it. I'm not interested in football so I don't give a hang about which team wins.
not turn a hair	If someone does not turn a hair, they show no emotion in circumstances where a reaction is expected. When the police came to arrest him, he didn't turn a hair.
open/reopen old wounds	If you open or reopen old wounds you revive memories of an unpleasant event, situation or dispute that took place in the past. He carefully avoided the subject so as not to open old wounds.
pour your heart out	If you pour your heart out to someone, you express your feelings freely. When she needs to pour her heart out to someone, Elsa goes to visit her grandmother.
proud as a peacock	A person who is as proud as a peacock is extremely proud. When his son won first prize, Bill was as proud as a peacock.
put foot in mouth	If you put your foot in your mouth, you say something that offends, upsets or embarrasses someone. She really put her foot in her mouth when she mentioned the housewarming party - Andy hadn't been invited.
reduce to tears	If your behaviour or attitude makes someone cry, you reduce them to tears. The teacher criticized her presentation so harshly that she was reduced to tears.
have a soft spot	If you have a soft spot for someone or something, you particularly like them. My grandfather has always had a soft spot for his first grandchild.
swallow one's pride	If you swallow your pride, you accept something humiliating or embarrassing, for example having to admit that you are wrong, or that you have less knowledge that you thought. When Jill failed the exam, she had to swallow her pride and repeat the course.
sweet nothings	Pleasant but unimportant words that lovers say to each other are called sweet nothings. He whispered sweet nothings in her ear as they danced.
thank one's lucky stars	When someone says they can thank their lucky stars, they are expressing heartfelt gratitude or feeling particularly fortunate. I can thank my lucky stars I wasn't on the train that crashed.
tongue-tied	If you are tongue-tied, you have difficulty in expressing yourself because you are nervous or embarrassed. At the start of the interview I was completely tongue-tied!
over the moon	If you are over the moon, you are absolutely delighted. We were all over the moon when we heard the good news.
written all over face	When someone's feelings or thoughts are very clear, you can say that they are written all over their face. Her affection for her grandson was written all over the old lady's face.