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Download the Animal Idioms List & PDF Worksheets
View the updated web-version of the animal idioms list in the table below.
The idiom worksheets and games are also free to download.
- Download and print the PDFs.
- Use the materials for interactive learning activities in class.
- Students can also complete the worksheets to review or for self-study.
Animal Idiom Worksheets for ESL Students
Worksheet A: Defining Idioms & Writing Sentences with Idioms
Worksheet B: Reading Idioms in Context & Describing Meanings
Fun Animal Idiom Games for the Classroom
Animal Idioms Checklist (for BINGO)
107 Idioms and Phrases About Animals
*Updated: December 2021
| Idiom / Phrase | Meaning | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|
| a barking dog never bites | a person who constantly threatens never acts | Don't worry about his vocal threats. He won't hurt you physically. |
| a cat in gloves catches no mice | being too careful can result in failure | You need to tell her how you really feel if you want to marry her. Remember that a cat in gloves catches no mice. |
| a little bird told me | someone told me a secret | A little bird told me that you're getting a divorce. |
| a whale of a time | an exciting experience | The family had a whale of a time at the theme park. |
| ants in your pants | anxious or nervous | Frank had ants in his pants before taking his exam. |
| bark up the wrong tree | look in the wrong place or falsely accuse | He asked me if I broke his laptop. I said he was barking up the wrong tree. |
| bark up the wrong tree | pursue misguided action | Stop accusing me. I'm innocent. You're barking up the wrong tree! |
| beast of burden | someone carries others problems | I will never be your beast of burden. You have got to deal with your own problems. |
| beat a dead horse | dwell on a topic beyond resolution | I told you several times that I won't do it. Don't beat a dead horse! |
| bell the cat | take on a difficult task | Politicians should bell the cat and start reducing the inflation rate. |
| black sheep | unaccepted group member | Tom was the black sheep of the family and preferred to do things on his own. |
| call your dogs off | stop criticizing or attacking | I paid you all of the money. I don't owe you anything. Call your dogs off! |
| cat and mouse | playfully deceive | The boss kept playing cat and mouse with me and never gave me the raise. |
| cat around | sleep with many people | His wife used to cat around while he was working hard at the office. |
| cat burglar | quick thief | The cat burglar took everything in the house before the cops arrived. |
| cat got your tongue | said when someone doesn't speak | What's wrong? Cat got your tongue? You haven't said a word since we arrived. |
| cat on a hot tin roof | very nervous | I felt like a cat on a hot tin roof waiting for my medical results. |
| cat's cradle | something overly complicated | There is a cat's cradle of rules that you must follow to board a flight these days. |
| cat's meow | something wonderful | Her birthday cake was the cat's meow. She ate the whole thing in less than a minute! |
| cat's paw | someone being exploited | Poorer citizens are usually the cat's paw of politicians. They use them only to get votes and never follow through on promised policies. |
| catcall | sexually suggestive comment | The construction workers were all catcalling the woman as she walked by. |
| catfight | a fight between two women | The catfight was brutal! The other girl scratched her face with her nails. |
| catnap | a short sleep | My father always takes a catnap after work. |
| chicken out | avoid doing something because of fear | Mary was going to go skydiving, but she chickened out. |
| clam up | become quiet | Tom always clams up when you ask him about his ex-girlfriend. |
| cool cat | a hip or cool person | He was such a coot cat. He was respected by his peers and the girls all loved him. |
| copycat | someone who copies another | You're such a copycat! Do your own work! |
| crocodile tears | fake tears | Her little daughter always cries crocodile tears to get whatever she wants. |
| curiosity killed the cat | curiosity may lead to unwanted circumstances | Don't enter that haunted house. Remember that curiosity killed the cat! |
| dog and bone | a telephone | She is speaking with her boyfriend on the dog and bone. |
| dog and pony show | elaborate presentation | The designer bag showcase was such a dog and pony show. |
| dog days | very hot days | The dog days of summer are really humid and uncomfortable. |
| dog-eared | folded corners of pages in a book | He dog-eared the pages of the book instead of using a bookmark. |
| dog-eat-dog world | competitive | American political debates are a dog-eat-dog world. |
| dog-tired | very tired | She was dog-tired after running the marathon. |
| dog's bollocks | the best | That new Tesla is the dog's bollocks. |
| dog's breakfast | very messy | Her mother was upset because her son's room was like a dog's breakfast. |
| doggy bag | food taken home after a restaurant meal | My girlfriend barely ate her dinner so she asked the waiter for a doggy bag. |
| dogs of war | destruction caused by war | Famine and poverty are unfortunately common dogs of war. |
| dogsbody | someone who does all the work | The chef was the dogsbody in the kitchen. Everyone else broke dishes. |
| don't count chickens before they hatch | don't plan for something that may not happen | Zoe bought the dress, before anyone asked her to the prom. I told her not to count her chickens before they hatch. |
| double dog dare | challenge defiantly | She double dog dared me to go hang gliding so I had to do it! |
| drop like flies | die or give up quickly | The other candidates dropped like flies at the end of the election. |
| eager beaver | someone who is excited about something | She's such an eager beaver when checking updates on Instagram. |
| early bird | someone who likes to wake up early | Sara is such an early bird. She gets up before the sun rises. |
| elephant in the room | a sensitive unaddressed issue | The couple's money problem was an elephant in the room. They never talk about finances. |
| every dog has its day | everyone has success eventually | Keep shooting and you will score. Every dog has its day. |
| fat cat | wealthy person | Fat cats get wealthier with inflation while the poor have to pay more for groceries. |
| fishy | strange or suspicious | Something fishy is going on. He takes his wedding ring off when he leaves. |
| fly in the ointment | annoyance that spoils enjoyment | The wedding crasher was such a fly in the ointment. |
| glory hound | someone looking for fortune or fame | He's such a glory hound. He loves the attention from the press. |
| grin like a Cheshire cat | mischievously satisfied | She was grinning like a Cheshire cat after she had used her boyfriend's credit card. |
| hair of the dog | drinking alcohol to cure a hangover | The hair of the dog is the best remedy for a hangover. |
| have a cow | get upset | Don't have a cow! It's not like I scratched the car on purpose! |
| hold your horses | wait and be patient | Hold your horses! I'll be ready in a minute. |
| holy cow | that is surprising | Holy cow! Did she really dye her hair blue? |
| horse around | play roughly | Stop horsing around kids. You're in the library. |
| hot dog | show off | What a hot dog! He's stickhandling the puck around every player! |
| in the dog house | in trouble | The coach won't let me play. I'm in the dog house. |
| keep the wolves at bay | stay safe from or prevent near disaster | He needed a part-time job to keep the wolves at bay and to avoid serious debt. |
| kill two birds with one stone | accomplish two things at once | Why not kill two birds with one stone and brush your teeth in the shower? |
| kitty corner | diagonally across from | Starbucks is kitty corner to the gas station. |
| lazy as a dog | very lazy | I was lazy as a dog last weekend. I stayed in bed on Saturday and Sunday. |
| lead a dog's life | unhappy life | Her father lead a dog's life trying to raise her and she never appreciated him. |
| let sleeping dogs lie | avoid interfering in something that may create trouble | Don't bring up old arguments. It's best to let sleeping dogs lie. |
| let the cat out of the bag | reveal a secret | Don't let the cat out of the bag about the birthday party. |
| let the dog see the rabbit | remove unnecessary obstructions | It's time to let the dog see the rabbit. Bring the batter up to the big leagues! |
| like herding cats | a difficult task | Getting everyone to take the vaccine is like herding cats. |
| like the cat got the cream | satisfaction with some kind of achievement | After proving her innocence, she smiled at the police officer like the cat got the cream. |
| lion's share | the majority of something | You took the lion's share of the money. All I got was a couple pennies. |
| look what the cat dragged in | someone unwelcome has arrived | Look what the cat dragged in. We told you to stay home and talk to your therapist. |
| monkey see, monkey do | silly people copy each other | Monkey see, monkey do. Your brother spilt ketchup on his shirt too. |
| more than one way to skin a cat | more than one way to succeed | There's more than one way to skin a cat. Let's quit our jobs and start a business by the beach! |
| nest egg | saved money | She has a huge nest egg, so she doesn't have to work anymore. |
| no room to swing a cat | very small place | There's no room to swing a cat in this apartment. I can almost touch the two walls with both hands. |
| not have a cat's chance in hell | no chance whatsoever | You don't have a cat's chance in hell of marrying her. |
| pig out | eat a lot | Last night, I pigged out on a bag of potato chips. |
| plenty of other fish in the sea | there are many other available partners | Don't worry. You'll find another girl. There are plenty of other fish in the sea. |
| puppy dog eyes | innocent facial expression | His daughter showed him puppy dog eyes after dropping his ice cream cone. |
| puppy love | teenager romantic love | It was just puppy love during high school but they broke up in university. |
| put the cat among pigeons | an action that causes problems | You really put the cat among pigeons when you brought up those bill payments again. |
| raining cats and dogs | raining heavily | It's raining cats and dogs. Remember your umbrella. |
| rat race | competitive struggle | I escaped the rat race in the office and moved to Hawaii. |
| red herring | something that draws attention away from an important topic | The President's gambling addiction was just a red herring for the pipeline problems. |
| rock hound | a geologist | The gold miner is such a rock hound. He is going to be very wealthy. |
| run with the big dogs | compete with the top performers | It's time to run with the big dogs when you play in the Premier League. |
| scaredy-cat | someone who is always scared | Are you really afraid of the dark? You're such a scaredy-cat! |
| screw the pooch | fail | Carl really screwed the pooch on the exam. He's the only one who failed. |
| see a man about his dog | go to the bathroom | I left the dinner table to see a man about his dog. |
| shooting fish in a barrel | easy or not challenging | For my brilliant little brother, setting up the Wifi connection is like shooting fish in a barrel. |
| sick as a dog | very sick | I was sick as a dog on Monday, so I couldn't go to work. |
| sleep with the fishes | die | Before pulling the trigger, he told the gangster to sleep with the fishes. |
| smell a rat | suspect deception | I smell rat. I know I left my wallet on my desk, but it's gone. |
| straight from the horse's mouth | directly from the source | The boss said we're bankrupt. The news came straight from the horse's mouth. |
| take the bull by the horns | be brave and face a challenge | If you want to be rich, take the bull by the horns and work harder. |
| the birds and the bees | sex education | I remember learning about the birds and the bees in middle school. |
| the cat's pyjamas | the best person or thing | She's the cat's pyjamas. Everyone loves to watch her perform on the stage. |
| the cat's whiskers | the best person or thing | Do you think you're really the cat's whiskers? Anybody can parallel park with car sensors now. |
| the lion's share | the majority | She was upset because her sister got the lion's share of the inheritance. |
| three dog night | very cold | Looks like it's going to be a three dog night. It's going to minus 40 degrees. |
| throw to the dogs | allow someone to be attacked | Why did you throw me to the dogs yesterday? I couldn't defend myself. |
| until the cows come home | for a long time | She can watch Netflix until the cows come home. |
| wag the dog | distract attention from | The politician wags the dog to prevent people from discovering his scandal. |
| water off a duck's back | a harmful remark that has no effect on someone | She insulted me but I didn't care. It was like water off a duck's back. |
| while the cat's away, the mice will play | people will misbehave when there is no authority figure | They never do any work when the boss is out of the office. While the cat's away, the mice will play! |
| wild goose chase | lengthy undertaking that accomplishes little | Making the playoffs is now a wild goose chase. The team should focus on player development. |
| work like a dog | work very hard | My boss has me working like a dog. |
Extra Examples of Animal Idioms in Use
Do you want to read more examples and sentences with animal idioms?
Try entering the expressions in a corpus database or language app.
We highly recommend the following corpus resources and tools: