Last weekend we paid a visit to my folks. They had a load of sand delivered to fill an old cistern pit and the delivery was so over what was needed, that Jim took the tractor to clean up the sand and pack the pit. While we were there, we added to the already formidable list of idioms, proverbs and sayings.
Mom, who grew up hearing this and taught them to me, was making a list, and we thought of and spoke more of them during the visit. It's a way of speaking for us. It's normal.
I'm making a new list, since the other one is so long.
Sayings
Adding insult to injury
All bets are off
Better fish to fry
Beyond the pale
Bit off more than I can chew
I have a bone to pick with you
Brought to a head
Burning the midnight oil
Cash on the barrel head
Cat got your tongue?
Clear as a bell
Cool as a cucumber
Don't burn your bridges
Don't look a gift horse in the mouth
Don't rock the boat
Down to brass tacks
Dry as a bone
Give up the ghost
Get off on the right foot
Get our of my hair
Get under your skin
Get your foot in the door
Give them the boot
Got the short end of the stick
Finger on the pulse
Fly by the seat of your pants
A fly in the ointment
I have a bone to pick with you
In the loop
In the nick of time
Jump out of your skin
Let sleeping dogs lie
Like a fish out of water
Living hand to mouth
Look at what the cat dragged in
Lose your shirt
Low man on the totem pole
Money burning a hole in your pocket
Need like a hole in my head
No skin off my teeth
Not my cup of tea
Not my strong suit
On its last legs
Out of the loop
A pig in a poke
Poor as a church mouse
Preaching to the choir
Put a damper on
Put your best foot forward
Right of the bat
Right on the money
Running around like a chicken with its head cut off
Same song, second verse
See the handwriting on the wall
Sharp as a tack
Slick as a whistle
Spill the beans
Start on a shoe string
Sticks to your ribs
Strike while the iron is hot
Sweep under the rug
Take the bull by the horns
Testing the waters
The early bird gets the worm
The tide has turned
Too big for your britches
Tricks of the trade
Until the cows come home
Waiting for the other shoe to drop
A watched pot never boils
Water under the bridge
We're all in the same boat
What goes around comes around
You can't teach an old dog new tricks
You make a better door than window
Other Words
A pretty kettle of fish
All buttoned up
As the crow flies
Bandied about (told around)
Bone of contention
A bum steer
Cobble together
Crack of dawn
A Doubting Thomas
On edge
Feel like death warmed over
Feel like I've been run over by a truck
For crying out loud
Hand over fist
I declare
In a pickle
In nothing flat
In one ear and out the other
Jam-packed
Looked High and Low
Nip and Tuck
No time like the present
Pain in the neck
Pennies on the dollar
Shot down
Slim to none
Splitting hairs
I'm ready to be done with this project, but it has been lots of fun.
We use a lot more than we thought we did. Most of these, one time or another, we have used.
Our language is the more colorful in their use.
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