English Vocabulary: Interesting Idioms with Animals

Good morning ABA Community!

Today we’d like to share an amazing video with you!

In this video, you will learn 10 idioms which are used regularly in English speaking countries. You will see how the idioms are written, this will make it easier to learn. If you want to share more idioms, we’d love to hear which are your favourites too!

Read the dictionary definition below and then watch the video – it’s fantastic!

Busy as a bee – This idiom means to be very busy and active.
Example: “I have a lot of university homework and then I have to go to work… I’m as busy as a bee!”

Blind as a bat – This idiom means to be unable to see well at all : having very poor vision.
Example: “Without her glasses, she’s as blind as a bat”

Raining cats and dogs – This idiom means that it’s raining very hard.
Example: “Don’t forget your umbrella! It’s raining cats and dogs, you’ll get wet”

Frog in the throat – If you have a frog in your throat, it means you are unable to speak normally because your throat is dry.
Example: “She was so nervous to speak in front of class, she got a frog in her throat”

Holy Cow – This idiom is used as an interjection to express surprise or excitement.
Example: “Holy Cow! I just won the lottery!”

When pigs fly – This idiom is used as a response to something that seems unlikely to happen.
Example: “I’m going to ask my parents to lend me $100 to go shopping”, “Sure, and pigs might fly!”

Copycat – A copycat is a person who does the same thing as someone else : a person who adopts the behavior, style, etc., of someone else.
Example: “That girl is such a copycat – she always copies what I’m wearing”

Fishing for compliments – This idiom means to to try to make someone praise you, often by criticizing yourself to them.
Example: “Do I look fat in this dress?” “No, you know you don’t, are you fishing for compliments?”

Pulling the wool over someone’s eyes – This idiom means to trick or deceive someone : to hide the truth from someone.
Example: “We didn’t want her to know about the surprise party, so we told her we all had to study. We pulled the wool over her eyes”

Ants in your pants – Having ants in your pants means having a strong feeling of wanting to be active and not wait for something : a feeling of excitement and impatience.
Example: “On Christmas Eve, my 4 year old son had ants in his pants, he was so excited about his presents!”

Naked as a jaybird – This idiom means to be completely naked.
Example: “When I walked into his bedromm he was as naked as a jaybird”

Heard from a little bird – This idiom is used if you have heard a rumour and don’t want to say who told you.
Example: “Is it true you’re dating John?” “Who told you?” “Oh, a little bird told me”

Video