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Paul Sparks, Online Business English Lesson Plans, Lesson Material and Ideas for Grade 2 English Conversation Lessons at Xiangtan Normal University...

Lesson Objectives: To make the students aware of Slang words and Idioms used in general everyday conversation in the English language. To increase students level of conversation and vocabulary.

Idioms are normally phrases which do not make much sense when looked at in normal English language, they are expressions which have no logical structure. For example the term "Red Hering", an idiom meaning "false trail", is used of something which is neither red nor a herring. Some more common Idioms are shown below:

• He was "all ears" when his boss talked.
  Answer: listening carefully 
• He is a "chip off the old block".
  Answer: like his father 
• He is "thick in the head".
  Answer: stupid 
• They were "beat" after three days of hard work.
  Answer: exhausted 
• Jack was "hard up" to pay his rent.
  Answer: had no money 
• The storm left them "all in the same boat".
  Answer: all in the same situation 
• The house fire meant we had to "start from scratch".
  Answer: the beginning
• Slang words are phrases used to mean other things. For example "A Quid" means "1 pound" in English money. Another common slang word is "loo", which is slang for "toilet".

Idioms Quiz Questions

Animal Idioms Quiz

1. When Richard said something about his brother's surprise birthday party, he "let the cat out of the bag."

• Richard gave his brother a cat for his birthday.
• Richard revealed a secret.
• Richard's brother is celebrating his birthday.

2. Mr. Evans was "in the doghouse" with his wife because he spent all day Sunday watching football instead of helping her clean the house.

•  Mr. Evans enjoys watching football.
•  Mr. Evans is going to build a doghouse for his dog.
•  Mrs. Evans is angry with her husband.

3. When George asked Karen how she knew that William was getting married, she said that she "heard it straight from the horse's mouth."

•  William told Karen that he was getting married.
•  Karen and William are getting married.
•  George told Karen that he was getting married.

4. When I clean my house today, I can also rearrange the furniture. That way, I can "kill two birds with one stone."

•  I have a lot of time to clean the house.
•  I can do two things at the same time.
•  I can rearrange the furniture after I clean the house.

5. David moved to the countryside because living in the city had become such a "rat race."

•  David moved to the countryside because there were too many rats in the city.
•  David was stressed out by the hectic pace of life in the city.
•  David thought that the city was too dangerous.

6. Even though Mrs. Jensen is no "spring chicken," she still enjoys swimming and running every day.

•  Mrs. Jensen is not young, but she enjoys exercising.
•  Mrs. Jensen doesn't eat chicken.
•  Mrs. Jensen is training for a marathon race.

"Face" Idioms Quiz

1. The news that he had been accepted by the University was "music to Mike's ears."

•  Mike is going to study music at the university.
•  Mike received some very good news.
•  Mike enjoys listening to music.

2. Wayne doesn't know for sure what he's going to do tomorrow. He'll "play it by ear."

•  Wayne will listen to his friend tomorrow.
•  Wayne will make a definite plan for tomorrow.
•  Wayne won't make a definite plan for tomorrow.

3. When Robert met his girlfriend after a long separation, he told her that she was a "sight for sore eyes."

•  Robert told his girlfriend that he was happy to see her.
•  Robert told his girlfriend that his eyes were sore.
•  Robert told his girlfriend that she had pretty eyes.

4. Jack told his wife to "keep her eyes peeled" for a gas station because they were almost out of gas.

•  Jack told his wife that they were out of gas.
•  Jack told his wife to look at the gas station.
•  Jack told his wife to look for a gas station.

5. The Japanese and American negotiators had been meeting for ten hours, but they still couldn't "see eye-to-eye" on many important issues.

•  The negotiators couldn't agree.
•  The negotiators couldn't see clearly.
•  The negotiators couldn't look at each other.

6. The way that Cindy was fired from her job "left a bad taste in her mouth."

•  Cindy ate some strange food. 
•  Cindy was fired because she said something rude.
•  Cindy had some bad feelings about being fired.

Australian Slang Quiz

1. "Dunny" means __________.

•  a toilet
•  a house
•  a teacher

2. Your "mate" is your __________.

•  wife
•  shoe
•  friend

3. A "sheila " is a __________.

•  friend
•  woman
•  beer

4. The remote country area of Australia is called the __________. 

•  pub
•  outback
•  city

5. A common Australian greeting is __________.

•  honk
•  meow
•  g'day 

6. "Fair dinkum" means that Dave is __________. 

•  a very crazy teacher
•  telling the truth 
•  tired, hungry, and drunk

7. "Chook" means __________.

•  chicken
•  beef
•  pork

1. A "puppy" is a small _____. 

•  fish
•  paper
•  dog

2. A "hamburger" is made from _____ .

•  pork
•  beef
•  vegetables

3. Starting "on time" means beginning _____ .

•  at the scheduled time
•  at the scheduled time or later
•  at the scheduled time or earlier

4. "You don't have to do it" means _____.

•  "It isn't necessary to do it." 
•  "You mustn't do it." 
•  "It isn't a good idea to do it."

5. How come?" and "What for?" both mean _____ .

•  "In what way?"
•  "Really?"
•  "Why?"

6. If someone says "Cool it!," he/she wants you to:

•  freeze something
•  calm down
•  go away

7. A "whatchamacallit" is something that you:

•  use for communicating
•  think isn't true
•  can't remember / don't know the name of

8. "To veg [vedge] out" means to:

•  relax
•  become very confused 
•  get really angry

American / British Vocabulary Quiz 2

1. "He hardly worked" means that he worked _______.

•  very much
•  very long
•  very little

2. I'd better "get a move on" means I need to _______.

•  dress
•  hurry up
•  decide what to do

3. Getting somewhere "in time" means arriving there _______.

•  earlier than expected
•  just a little bit late
•  before it's too late

4. A "ewe" is a female _______.

•  deer
•  horse
•  sheep

5. If I give you "my two cents' worth," I give you _______.

•  a very small amount of money
•  my opinion
•  something you can't use

6. If someone says "Hold it!," he/she wants you to _______.

•  stop what you're doing
•  pick something up
•  work harder or move faster

7. When the response to a question is "Beats me," the person responding means that he/she _______.

•  doesn't know the answer
•  thinks the question is stupid
•  wants you to ask the question again

8. "I really pigged out" means that I _______.

•  behaved very badly
•  wasn't neat or organized

 ate too much

"A to Z" of Animal related Idioms

A 

ANT 
"working like ants" - Working hard. 
"ants in one's pants" - to be very restless and impatient 

B 

BARK 
"a barking dog never bites" - Someone who makes threats all the time, seldom carries out the threats. 
"bark up the wrong tree" - Pursue an erroneous course of action. 
"his bark is worse than his bite" - Someone comes across as being very mean and nasty, but doesn't necessarily act on their threats 
"why keep a dog and bark yourself" - You should not do something you hired some one else to do. 

BAT 
"As blind as a bat" - Blind. 
"have bats in the belfry" - Informal. to be mad or eccentric; have strange ideas 
"like a bat out of hell" - Fast. 

BEAR 
"like a bear with a sore head" - Very disgruntled. 
"have a bear by the tail" - to have a very difficult problem to solve 

BEAVER 
"busy as a beaver" - Busy. 
"eager beaver" - someone who is very eager to do something 

BEE 
"busy as a bee" - Busy. having bees in one's bonnet 
to be up in a tizzy about something. 

BIRD 
"a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush" - Don't go after something if it means loosing what you have. 
"free as a bird" - Free. 
"a little bird told me" - I won't tell you who told me. 
"bird's-eye view" - Seen from above. 
"birds of a feather flock together" - Similar people tend to associate with each other. 
"killing two birds with one stone" - Accomplishing two things at the same time. 
"the birds and the bees" - Euphemistic or jocular. sex and sexual reproduction 

BONE 
"throw you a bone" - To give you a compliment. 

BUG 
"as snug as a bug in a rug" - Comfortable
"don't let the bed bugs bite" - Sleep Well. 

BULL 
"take the bull by the horns" - to face and tackle a difficulty without shirking. 
"cock-and-bull story" - untrue story 
"like a bull in a china shop" - Someone who heedless of physical damage or the personal feelings of anyone, shoulders his way though delicate situations. 

C 

CAMEL 
"plain as the hump on a camel" - obvious 

CAT 
"play cat and mouse" - to play with a person or animal in a cruel or teasing way. esp before a final act of cruelty or unkindness 
"not a cat in hell's chance" - no chance at all 
"fat cat" - A person high up in the business world with a lot of money. 
"copycat" -Some one who mimics some one else. 
"catnap" - A mid-day nap. 
"look what the cat dragged in" - A humorously derogatory comment on someone's arrival. 
"looks like something the cat brought in" - to appear disheveled or bedraggled. 
"curiosity killed the cat" - Warning about being curious. 
"a cat has nine lives" - Cats can survive things that are severe enough to kill them. 
"like a cat on hot bricks" - in an uneasy or agitated state. 
"cat got your tongue" - Unable to speak. 
"let the cat out of the bag" - To tell a secret -- normally accidentally. 
"not enough room to swing a cat" - Very little room. 
"raining cats and dogs" - It is raining very hard. 
"when the cat's away, the mice will play" - Without supervision, people misbehave. 
"like cat and dog" - quarrelling savagely 

CHICKEN 
"don't count your chickens before they are hatched" - Don't assume you have something until you really have it. 
"chicken" - a cowardly person 
"the chickens come home to roost" -You have to face the consequences of your mistakes or bad deeds. 
"no spring chicken" - Old. 

COW 
"How now, Brown Cow?" - what next, or what's going on 
"till the cows come home" - Late hours. 

CROCODILE 
"crocodile tears" - Fake tears. 

CROW 
"as the crow flies" - From point A to point B directly. 
"stone the crows" - an expression of surprise, dismay, etc 

D 

DODO 
"dead as a dodo" - Dead; obsolete; completely washed up. 

DOG 
"gone to the dogs" - Taken a turn for the worse.
"the hair of the dog that bit you" - The drink you drink in the morning to get over the drinks you drank the night before. 
"in the dog house" - In trouble. 
"dog tired" - Very tired. 
"sick as a dog" - Very sick. 
"a dogs breakfast" - Something bad. 
"it’s a dog eat dog world" - Vicious world. 
"it's a dog's life" - It’s an easy life 
"dog eat dog" - ruthless competition or self-interest 
"like a dog's dinner" - Informal. dressed smartly or ostentatiously 
"let sleeping dogs lie" - Don't bring up an old issue/topic that will raise tempers or cause an argument 
"you cannot teach an old dog new tricks" - Someone who is used to doing things a certain way cannot change. 
"go see a man about a dog" - go use the toilet 

DUCK 
"if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and looks like a duck, it must be a duck" - Assume the obvious. 
"dead duck" - someone or something that is certain to fail 
"a sitting duck" - An easy mark. 

E 

ELEPHANT 
"a white elephant" - A gift you don't want and you don't know what to do with it. 
"a memory like an elephant" - Never forgets. 

EGG 
"nest egg" - a fund of money kept in reserve; savings 

F 

FISH 
"like a fish out of water" - Out of one's element. 
"drink like a fish" - A big drinker. 
"there's more than one fish in the sea" - There are always more options 

FLY
"would not hurt a fly" - Wouldn't harm anything. 
"catching flies" - open mouth 

FOX 
"a fox" - a sexually attractive woman 
"out fox" - to trick; deceive 

FROG 
"frog in your throat" - Scratchy voice. 

G 

GOAT 
"a scapegoat" - One whom is inflicted punishment for the faults or wrongs of another.
"get someone's goat" - to irritate someone 

GOOSE
"what’s good for the goose is good for the gander" - What is good for one person is good for another; often what is good for the man is good for the woman. 
"cannot say boo to a goose" - shy 
"a wild-goose chase" - A vain pursuit of something, which, even if attained, would be worthless. 

GRASSHOPPER 
"Knee high to a grasshopper" - short, small

H 

HARE 
"As mad as a March hare" - a mad person 

HAWK 
"hawk-eyed" - having extremely keen sight 

HEN 
"hen party" - party for only women 

HERRING 
"red herring" - False trail. 

HOG 
"hogwash" - nonsense 
"go the whole hog" - Informal. to do something thoroughly or unreservedly 

HORSE 
"sounding horse" - Scratchy voice. 
"as strong as a horse" - Strong. 
"look a gift horse in the mouth" - Having bad manners when accepting a gift. 
"to put the cart before the horse" - Doing something in reversed order. 
"straight from the horse's mouth" - From the highest authority. 
"wild horse couldn’t drag me away" - Even the most disasterous events won't keep me from coming. 
"you can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink" - You can offer someone something but you cannot insist that they take it (e.g. advice). 
"horsing around" - Joking around. 
"hold your horses" - Just wait a second. 

K 

KITTENS 
"to have kittens" - To throw a fit. 

L 

LAMB 
"as gentle as a lamb" - gentle
"like a lamb to the slaughter" - without resistance 
"two shakes of a lamb’s tail" - Very fast. 

LARK 
"as happy as a lark" - very happy 

LEOPARD 
"a leopard cannot change his spots" - a person does not change 

LION 
"lionhearted" - very brave; courageous 
Source: wordreference.com, The Collins English Dictionary 
"a lion's share" - The greater portion. 

M 

MONKEY 
"make a monkey of" - someone made to look a fool 
"who gives a monkey's what he thinks" - to care about or regard as important 
"monkey suit" - a man's evening dress 
"well i'll be a monkey's uncle" - I am surprised. 
"monkey business (monkey-ing around)" - Something against the 'rules' but not too serious. 

MOUSE 
"as quiet as a mouse" - Very quiet. 

N 

NEST 
"fly the nest" - Children must eventually leave home. 
"feathering one's nest" - Taking money on the side. 

O 

OWL 
"wise as an owl" - wise person 

OX 
"as strong as an ox" - very strong 

OYSTER 
"the world is his oyster" - He can do anything. 

P

PIG 
"fat as a pig" - large person 
"pig out" - Informal. to devour (food) greedily. 
"make a pig of yourself" - Eat all you want. 
"sweating like a pig" - sweating a lot 
"happy as a pig in mud" - happy and content 
"when pigs fly" -Never. 

PUPPY
"puppy love" - a juvenile crush on a member of the opposite sex

R 

RAT 
"a rat" - a despicable person 
"rat race" - Work force. 
"smell a rat" - Think that there is a traitor. 

ROOSTER 
"the chickens come home to roost" - You have to face the consequences of your mistakes or bad deeds. 

S 

SHARK 
"card-shark" - A person who pretends they don't know how to play cards until they play for money, and then they play well and take all the profits. 

SHEEP 
"a wolf in sheep's clothing" -Getting admission under false pretenses. 
"black sheep of the family" -most troublesome member of the family 

SNAIL 
"a snail's pace" - Slow. 

SNAKE 
"snake in the grass" - There is trouble. 
"slippery as a snake" - Tricky – unable to trust. 

T

TOAD 
"ugly as a toad"  -Ugly. 
Source: Bertram, Anne (Bowl of Cherries) 

TURKEY 
"to talk turkey" - To talk straight or be honest. 
"a turkey" - a thing or person that fails; dud. 

W 

WEASEL 
"a weasel"  -Informal. a sly or treacherous person 

WING 
"to take under one's wing" - to protect, to mentor. 
"on a wing and a prayer "  - with only the slightest hope of succeeding 
" to clip someone's wings" - to restrict freedom 
"wing it" - to accomplish or perform something without full preparation or knowledge; improvise 

WOLF 
"keep the wolf from the door" - to ward off starvation
"throw to the wolves" - to abandon or deliver to destruction 
"to wolf down" - to gulp 
"to cry wolf" - false claim 

WOOL 
"to pull the wool over one's eyes" - To hoodwink (trick, hide). 

WORM 
"even the worm will turn" - Even a meek person will become angry if you abuse him or her too much. 
"worm" a program that duplicates itself many times in a network and prevents its destruction 

Website Links

• http://www.wilton.net/etyma1.htm - This page is useful in searching origins of idioms.

• http://www.aitech.ac.jp/~iteslj/quizzes/idioms.htmI - What are some food idioms you recognize and what do they mean?

• http://www.cIta.on.ca/ce.htm - This site lists many idioms, their meanings, and their origins.

• http://clever.net/quinion/words/index.htm - How has the meaning of various idioms changed over the years?

• http://www.knownet.net/users/ackley/vocabred.html - A learning center activity in which students practice working with idioms.

• http://www.education.mcgill.ca/call/431-506x/f97506x29/teachers.htm - This page is geared toward English as a Second Language (ESL).

• http://www.linguarama.com/ps/295-6.htm - This page provides a simple definition of idioms and gives several common examples with the corresponding meanings.

• http://www.intuitive.com/origins/ - Are you ready to test your knowledge of the etymology of some idioms? This is a fun game to test your knowledge of word origins.

• http://www.eslcafe.com/idioms/ - This is an excellent site for kids. It lists idioms alphabetically, randomly, and gives definitions.

• http://www.fun-with-words.com/etym_explain.html - This is a fun site that that offers a clear definition of etymology with easy to understand examples.

• http://members.aol.com/MorelandC/Phrases.htm - This site gives definitions, context, and etymology of some idioms.

• http://vlc.polyu.edu.hk/idioms/tests/ex_index.htm - This page provides an enjoyable test of your knowledge of idioms.

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