Click on the topics to learn the idioms then scroll down to do the tasks.

House and home idioms

 

a halfway house = partly this, partly that

a house of cards = weak, can be easily destroyed

bring down the house = very successful

a fox guarding the henhouse = the worst person for the task

wear the pants in the house = the boss

People who live in glass houses shouldn’t throw stones. = don’t criticise others for your own bad qualities

eat someone out of house and home = eat a lot of food

build castles in the air = have impossible plans or dreams

get on like a house on fire = get on very well (!)

on the house = the house pays it

There’s no place like home. = your home is a special place

have a roof over your head = have somewhere to live

Building and construction idioms

 

Rome wasn’t built in a day. = it takes a long time to do an important task

to stonewall = refuse to co-operate

hit the nail on the head = be exactly correct

know the drill = have a great experience

build castles in the air = daydream

Good walls make good neighbours. = respect others’ privacy

like a ton of bricks = quickly and severely

lay the groundwork = provide the basic ideas

pick-and-shovel work = tedious, hard or meticulous work

the nuts and bolts = basic practical details

to paper over the cracks = deal with the superficial issues and not the real problems

like talking to a brick wall = makes no sense to tell him/her anything

You can’t make bricks without straw. = you need the necessary material or knowlwdge to do it

Furniture idioms

 

love triangle = two people in love with the same person

move in the same circles with sb. = have the same taste as the group you belong to

bring the curtain down = end sg.

bring to the table = contribute to sg.

a doormat = a person who is too weak to stand up for himself

everything but the kitchen sink = everything regardless of whether it is useful or not

fresh from the oven = very new

get out of the bed on the wrong side = start the day in a bad mood

take the chair = become a chairman

You’ve made your bed- you’ll have to lie in it. = have to live with the consequences of your deeds

darken sb’s door = come as an unwanted visitor

dead as a doornail = definitely dead

sweep under the rug = hide an uncomfortable truth

armchair critic = passive advisor