It just went over my head: Idiomatic expressions

1. At the head of the class – academic superior of the class
2. Head and shoulders above – clearly superior to someone or something
3. A head start – to start early
4. Have a good head on one’s shoulder – have good sense or judgment
5. Off the top of one’s head – in an impromptu way
6. Put one’s heads together – to think something together to form an idea
7. Use one’s head – to think
8. Make one’s head spin – drive you insane
9. Over one’s head – beyond one’s understanding or competence
10. Scratch one’s head – to think hard
11. Head over heels – to be in love with someone very much
12. Lose one’s head – to lose control; not being calm
13. Out of one’s head – in a wandering state mentally
14. Soft in the head – stupid, witless
15. Heads will roll – people will get into severe trouble
16. Talk someone’s head off - to scold or berate someone severely
17. Laugh someone’s head off - to laugh very hard and loudly
18. Hard-headed – a stubborn person
19. Thick-headed – a person who is stubborn and stupid at the same time
20. Hot-headed – a person who is constantly mad or who gets easily mad
21. Cool-headed - not easily excited or flustered
22. Knucklehead – a stupid person
23. Bonehead – a stupid person
24. Sleepyhead – a person who always lacks in sleep
25. Pothead – one who habitually smokes marijuana
26. Head off – to go somewhere
27. Head on – directly
28. Head in – to move in something head or first
29. Turn heads – people will notice
30. Keep one’s head above water – to retain self-control
31. At the eleventh hour – the last possible time
32. In the dead of the night – at midnight
33. A nightcap – an alcoholic drink taken before bedtime
34. A night-bird – a person who is active late at night
35. On the spur of the moment – without premeditation
36. One’s Sunday best – in one’s best clothes
37. To do something at the last minute – to do something late
38. It’s all in day’s work – part of what is expected
39. To have seen better days – be in a state of decline
40. To call it a day – to quit work and go home
41. To fight tooth and nail – engage in vigorous combat
42. To have the time of one’s life – a highly pleasurable experience
43. To kill time – to waste time
44. To learn something by heart - to do something without thinking
45. To have one’s heart in one’s mouth – to feel emotionally strong about something
46. To pull someone’s leg – to apply force into something
47. Not to have a leg to stand on – to have no support
48. To be on its last leg – to be final
49. To pay through the nose pay an excessive amount of something
50. To stick one’s neck out – to make oneself vulnerable, to take risk
51. To give someone the cold shoulder - to behave unfriendly
52. To rub shoulders with someone – to socialize closely
53. To toe the line – to follow or abide
54. To hold one’s tongue – to refrain someone from speaking
55. To make a slip of the tongue – to try to say something
56. To let one’s hair down – to be free
57. To escape by a hair’s breadth – to get away from a small distance
58. To have one’s hands full – has too many agendas
59. To be a handful – to be difficult to deal with
60. To be an old hand – someone who is familiar in doing the job
61. To get the upper hand of something – to get the advantage of something
62. To say something off-hand – to say something unplanned
63. To have a finger in the pie – to have an interest or meddle with something
64. To keep one’s fingers crossed – to hope with eagerness
65. To see eye to eye – to see on the same level
66. To keep a straight face – not having a definite expression
67. Elbow room – enough space to move about
68. To get something off one’s chest – to unburden
69. To play music by ear – to play something after listening for a few times
70. To be within earshot – close enough to hear it
71. To pick someone’s brains – to get information of something from someone
72. A bone of contention – the main point of an argument
73. To have one’s back against the wall – in a hard situation that is difficult to escape
74. To be up in arms – very angry
75. To break the back of something – to end the domination
76. To see red - angry
77. To see the red light – to notice to stop
78. To catch someone red-handed – to get caught
79. To have green fingers – to have a talent in growing plants
80. To turn grey – to become old
81. To see pink elephants – to see hallucinations because of drunkenness
82. To feel blue – to feel sick
83. To be dressed in black – to mourn something or someone
84. To beat someone black and blue – to beat someone until they have bruises
85. A feather in one’s cap – an act or deed in one’s credit
86. A wolf in sheep’s clothing – to deceive
87. To clip someone’s wings – restrain or reduce someone’s freedom
88. To take the bull by the horns – to confront a problem openly
89. To have butterflies in one’s stomach – to feel nervous
90. To rain cats and dogs – to rain heavily
91. To count one’s chickens before they hatch – to count one’s blessings before they’re gone
92. To have other fish to fry – other matters to attend to
93. To go to the dogs – to go to ruin
94. To wait till the cows come home – to wait patiently
95. To err on the safe side – to take a risk
96. To set the ball rolling – to go
97. To talk down to someone – to have a serious talk
98. To clear the air – to clarify
99. To throw someone’s weight around – to boss people around
100. A saving grace – to save someone or something from a total disaster
101. To affect ignorance (of something) – ignorance within the individual’s control
102. To be asking for trouble – wanting for trouble
103. To be barking up the wrong tree – to misdirect one’s attention
104. To beat the air – fight to no purpose
105. To blow one’s own trumpet – to brag
106. It all boils down to – to end
107. To buck one’s ideas up – to summon one’s courage
108. To buckle down to something – to settle for something with finality
109. To burn one’s bridges – to make anything going back impossible
110. To burn a hole in one’s pocket – spending money once they get it
111. To burn the candle at both ends – extreme effort without time or rest
112. To burn one’s fingers – harm oneself
113. To burn the midnight’s oil – to work in the middle of the night
114. To butter someone up – to ingratiate yourself with flattery
115. To buy a pig in a poke – buying what you like but regretting in the end
116. To call the tune – to decide what needs to be done
117. To catch someone napping – to be unaware of danger or trouble
118. To catch someone red-handed – to be caught in the act
119. To chop and change – to keep changing what you want
120. To cross the Rubicon – to commit something that inevitably commits one to follow
121. To curry favor with someone – to make someone like you by pleasing them
122. To cut one’s coat according to one’s cloth – to bring about one’s failure
123. To draw a blank – to cease the line
124. To err on the safe side – to take a risk
125. To feather one’s nest – to decorate one’s home acc. to his lifestyle
126. To fish in troubled waters – to involve in a difficult situation
127. To flog a dead horse – to insist in talking about something that no one is interested in
128. To fly in the face of someone – to challenge
129. To fly off the handle – to loose one’s temper
130. To follow the crowd – to do what everyone else is doing
131. To follow in someone’s footsteps – to be next
132. To gild the lily – engage in an wasteful activity
133. To hand out bouquets – to give something plentiful
134. To handle someone with kid gloves – to handle someone like a child
135. To harp on the same string – to keep talking or complaining
136. To hear something over the grape-vine – to hear news from someone who has heard it from someone else
137. To hold the olive branch – to say something to end the disagreement
138. To hit below the belt – to deal someone with an unfair blow
139. To iron out differences – to settle differences
140. To join forces – to come together
141. To jump on the bandwagon – to join others
142. To kill two birds with one stone – getting lucky twice
143. To know where the shoe pinches – to know the root of the trouble
144. To know which side one’s bread is buttered – to know where one’s best interest lie
145. To lead a charmed life – to have a satisfying life
146. To lead someone a dance – to confuse them by deception
147. To lead someone a dog’s life – to live a boring life
148. To lead someone up the garden path – to deceive you
149. To leave much to be desired – to be very unsatisfactory
150. Let by-gones be by-gones – forgive someone for what he/she did in the past
151. To let sleeping dogs lie – allow inactive problems to remain so
152. To let something drop – to let a secret out
153. To let the cat out of the bag – to reveal a secret
154. To let the grass grow under one’s feet – to stand still
155. To meet one’s Waterloo – to let a tragedy happen
156. To meet someone half-way – to meet someone in a certain destination
157. To mend one’s ways – to change his/her attitude
158. To mince one’s words – to soften the effect of the words
159. To mind one’s p’s and q’s – to practice good manners
160. To move heaven and earth – exert the utmost effort
161. To nip something in the bud – to stop something before it goes larger
162. To pat someone on the back – to congratulate him
163. To pocket one’s pride – to settle differences
164. To pour oil on troubled waters – to calm someone down
165. To rain cats and dogs – to rain heavily
166. To rest on one’s laurels – to rely on past achievements instead on working someone’s reputation
167. To ring a bell – to remind something
168. To rise to the occasion – to meet the challenge of an event
169. To rob Peter to pay Paul – to use one’s funds to pay debts
170. To roll one’s sleeves up – to prepare to get to work
171. To throw in the towel – to give up
172. To tighten one’s belt – to be strict
173. To wash one’s dirty linen in public – to talk to people about things that should be kept private
174. To weather the storm – to settle differences
175. To whistle for the wind – to influence someone that cannot be changed
176. To make one’s feet wet – to start a new job
177. To stick one’s neck out – to look out for another person
178. To stretch a point – to tell your idea
179. To smell a rat – to suspect that something is wrong
180. To speak volume – to talk louder
181. To steal someone’s thunder – to get attention
182. To spill the beans – to reveal a secret
183. To split hairs – to make petty distinctions
184. To stick around – to remain in a place
185. To run in the blood – be characteristic of a family that is passed
186. To be six feet under – to be buried
187. To die by one’s own hand – to commit suicide
188. To come to an untimely death – to come to a sudden passing
189. To be on piece-work – to settle in a negotiation
190. To cook someone’s goose – to damage or ruin someone
191. Straight from the horse’s mouth – from a dependable source
192. To hold one’s horses – to slow down, be patient
193. To look a gift-horse in the mouth – to be ungrateful for someone who gives you something
194. The lion’s share – the greater part of something
195. The leopard can’t change its spots – the person cannot change
196. To put the cat among the pigeons – to say something that causes people to be angry
197. To have a bee in one’s bonnet – to keep talking about something that is important to you
198. To take the bull by the horns – to confront a problem
199. To have other fish to fry – other matters to attend to
200. To keep the wolf from the door - To avoid the privation and suffering resulting from a lack of money