20 Animal Idioms in English

20 Animal Idioms in English

Hello English learners. Welcome to a new lesson. If idioms are your cup of tea, you are in the right place because, in today’s lesson, we will look at 20 “animal” idioms in English.

Here is the list:

1. Ants in your pants
2. Bigger fish to fry
3. Bull in a china shop
4. Butterflies in your stomach
5. Cat’s pyjamas
6. Crocodile tears
7. Dark horse
8. Dog eat dog
9. The elephant in the room
10. Fish out of water
11. Go the whole hog
12. Has the cat got your tongue?
13. Let sleeping dogs lie
14. Let the cat out of the bag
15. The lion’s share
16. It looks like something the cat brought in
17. Ostrich burying its head in the sand
18. Raining cats and dogs
19. Smell a rat
20. Straight from the horse’s mouth

Ants in your pants

Meaning: to have ants in your pants means to be unable to sit still, to be restless.

Michael is having ants in his pants because of his exam tomorrow.

Bigger fish to fry

Meaning: to have a bigger fish to fry means that you have more important things to do.

Dan wasn’t interested in working on small projects. He always had a bigger fish to fry.

Animal Idioms in English

Bull in a china shop

Meaning: the idiom refers to a clumsy person who often breaks things and causes damage.

I don’t like John helping me cook. He’s like a bull in a china shop in the kitchen.

Butterflies in your stomach

Meaning: if you say that you have butterflies in your stomach, you mean that you are nervous or excited about something, especially if you do it for the first time.

I had butterflies in my stomach when I was giving a speech at my friend’s wedding in front of 300 people.

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Cat’s pyjamas

Meaning: if someone or something is a cat’s pyjamas, it is exceptionally good.

The concert last night was a cat’s pyjamas, wasn’t it?

Crocodile tears

Meaning: the expression crocodile tears refers to insincere sorrow and sympathy.

Mike shed crocodile tears when his uncle died. He never really loved him.

Dark horse

Meaning: a dark horse is a person we know little about who suddenly surprises us with their deed or ability.

Did you know that William dances very well? He’s won a dancing contest recently. He’s such a dark horse.

Dog eat dog

Meaning: The idiom refers to an extremely competitive (usually) business environment.

Politics is a dog eat dog profession. Some politicians would do anything to rule.

Animal Idioms in English

Elephant in the room

Meaning: we can say that there is an elephant in the room if there is a big problem no one wants to talk about.

Their son was a drug addict and it was an elephant in the room in their family. Nobody wanted to talk about it.

Fish out of water

Meaning: if you say that you feel like a fish out of water it means that you feel uncomfortable in a new situation.

Born and raised in the UK, Helen felt like a fish out of water in Australia.

Go the whole hog

Meaning: to go the whole hog means to do something thoroughly and completely.

We renovated the living room and then decided to go the whole hog and renovate the entire house.

Animal idioms in English

Has the cat got your tongue?

Meaning: you can use it to tell someone that it annoys you when they do not speak.

Why don’t you answer me? Has the cat got your tongue?

Let sleeping dogs lie

Meaning: if you let sleeping dogs lie, you avoid interfering in a dangerous or difficult situation.

Please, don’t tell dad that I took his car without asking. Let the sleeping dogs lie.

Let the cat out of the bag

Meaning: to let the cat out of the bag means to reveal a secret.

We were preparing a surprise party for Mary but someone let the cat out of the bag so it was no longer a surprise.

Animal Idioms in English

The lion’s share

Meaning: the idiom refers to the largest part of something.

The lion’s share of our family budget usually goes on living expenses.

Look like something the cat brought in

Meaning: you can use the idiom to say that someone or something is dirty and untidy.

 After spending a weekend by the lake fishing and sleeping in a tent, Bob and George looked like something the cat brought in.

Ostrich burying its head in the sand

Meaning: We say that people bury their heads in the sand when they do not want to accept the unpleasant truth about something.

If you notice some strange activity going on don’t bury your head in the sand like an ostrich. You have to report it to your boss.

Raining cats and dogs

Meaning: when it rains heavily, we can say that it rains cats and dogs.

You can’t go for a walk now. It’s raining cats and dogs outside.

Animal Idioms in English

Smell a rat

Meaning: to smell a rat means to become suspicious.

Pam only began to smell a rat when her husband stayed at work until late for three days in a row; he was having an affair.

Straight from the horse’s mouth

Meaning: to hear something from the horse’s mouth means to hear it from a direct source.

I heard the story straight from the horse’s mouth, not from a gossiper.

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