Idioms and Expressions: High School: Idioms and Expressions, List 3

This list focuses on idioms and expressions that relate to bodies and body parts.
10 words 37 learners

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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. blue blood
    a member of the aristocracy or upper class
    On paper, Close is of a similar pedigree to Katharine Hepburn: an, educated, East Coast blue blood from a wealthy, well-connected family. The Guardian (Nov 6, 2015)
  2. thin-skinned
    quick to take offense
    It’s hard to imagine anyone, thin-skinned or not, objecting to this. New York Times (Jun 16, 2011)
  3. sound bite
    a very short speech; usually on radio or television
    Their remarks are cut down to the briefest of sound bites, delivering specific bits of information that drive the movie ahead. The New Yorker (Aug 29, 2019)
  4. eye-popping
    amazingly impressive
    Once you’ve visually adjusted to the eye-popping scenery, your eyes pop once more. Forbes (Apr 2, 2013)
  5. thick-skinned
    insensitive to criticism
    He was regarded as thick-skinned and insensitive—even cruel. East of Eden
  6. skin and bones
    a person who is unusually thin and scrawny
    So in the words of worrying moms everywhere, "Eat, eat! You're skin and bones!" Golf Digest (Mar 19, 2019)
  7. bare bones
    (plural) the most basic facts or elements
    While the technologies may be bare bones, their impact is far-reaching. Forbes (Dec 20, 2013)
  8. yellow-bellied
    easily frightened
    He will play a yellow-bellied chicken farmer who is forced to corral his courage when an outlaw terrorises his town. The Guardian (Mar 19, 2013)
  9. pain in the neck
    something or someone that causes trouble
    Maybe it wouldn’t hurt if she were a little more like Zane, a pain in the neck who didn’t care what anybody thought of him. A Tangle of Knots
  10. mealymouthed
    hesitant to state facts or opinions simply and directly
    The few how-was-this-written jam sessions we get are fairly bland: That irresistibly self-aggrandizing anthem “We Will Rock You” is explained away with some mealymouthed blather about audience participation. Los Angeles Times (Oct 29, 2018)
Created on Tue Jun 03 13:47:46 EDT 2025

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