Idioms are essential to enriching your English skills. An idiom uses metaphor to convey meaning beyond the words used. They are based on shared cultural knowledge, which is why they are understandable, even if not literal. Native speakers communicate in idioms all the time, which makes them crucial for mastering the language. 

What Are Body Idioms? 

Body idioms are idioms which refer to specific body parts in order to express something. For example, the phrase “he’s got a good head on his shoulders”, means “he is a sensible person”. 

Body idioms make sense because bodies are something everyone has and thus understands. Everyone interacts with their own bodies every day, so it’s very easy to infer meaning from body idioms. They can be used to give advice, describe situations, talk about people, and more. 

Why Learn Body Idioms?

As an English learner, you’ll encounter body idioms regularly. 

• They’re used in film, books, TV, speeches, and even essays. 
• Body idioms are quite expressive, so their use will lend your speaking and writing extra weight.
• Incorporating these metaphors into your English vocabulary makes it sound more creative.

List of Popular Body Idioms 

Almost every body part has several idioms associated with it, and these phrases are very commonly used. Here are some examples. 

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Break a sweat	Make an effort	Moving boxes all day really made him break a sweat.
Pull yourself together	Control yourself	When he got the news, he needed a minute to pull himself together.
Jump out of your skin	Be very startled or scared	The haunted house had us jumping out of our skins.

Head Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Off the top of my head	From memory	Off the top of my head, I don’t know who would be available for the party tonight.
Use your head	Think carefully	Before you accept an offer, use your head
Turn heads	Attract attention	He’s really starting to turn heads in that jacket

Eye Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Keep an eye out	Stay alert	As a security guard, his job was to keep an eye out for shoplifters.
Cry your eyes out	Cry a lot	The breakup left her crying her eyes out.
See eye to eye	To agree	I can see eye to eye with many.

Mouth and Lip Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Word of mouth	Heard in person verbally	He applied to the job through word of mouth.
Keep your mouth shut	Stay silent	We both swore to keep our mouths shut about the secret.
Mouth-watering	Very appetizing	The restaurant’s food looks mouth-watering.

Hand Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Lend a hand	Help out	They finished building after asking the neighbor to lend a hand.
Wash your hands of something	To distance yourself from something	She washed her hands of the crime.
On hand	Available	He’s always got coffee on hand.

Arm and Finger Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Cost an arm and a leg	Very expensive	George’s new car cost an arm and a leg.
At arm’s length	At a distance	They have a mutual friend, but they’re always at arms length.
Fingers crossed	Wishing for something	They kept their fingers crossed for the prize.

Back Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Watch your back	Be careful	If you go home too late at night, you should watch your back.
Back to the wall	A difficult situation	A sudden layoff left him with his back to the wall.
Put your back into it	To put a lot of energy and effort into something	He really put his back into it getting the sofa through the hallway.

Heart Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Change of heart	A change in your ideas, feelings	In light of the new information, I’ve had a change of heart.
Pour your heart out	To let all your emotions be known	Once she starts talking, she pours her heart out.
Learn by heart	To memorize something	She learned her English grammar by heart.

Leg and Foot Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Break a leg	Exclamation of good luck	My parents told me to break a leg in the play tonight.
Put your foot down	To be firm and decisive	When it comes to the kids’ bedtime, we’ve put our foot down.
Shake a leg	Move faster	Shake a leg before the store closes.

Stomach and Gut Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
Have butterflies in your stomach	To be nervous/nervously excited	Their first date gave her butterflies in her stomach.
An uneasy stomach	Feeling worried or unsettled	They’ve called a big meeting out of nowhere; that gives me an uneasy stomach.
Stomach something	Accept or put up with something unpleasant	It’s hard to stomach when people lie to your face.

Bone Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example
No bones about it	No doubt about something	That’s a great deal, no bones about it.
A bone to pick	A disagreement or grievance	They had a bone to pick with each other after the party.
Throw someone a bone	To give someone a reward or generosity	He’s been working all day, why not throw him a bone?

Fun Quiz: Test Your Knowledge of Body Idioms

Now that you’re familiar with a number of popular body idioms, see how well you’ve understood them with this quiz. Do your best to find the missing body idiom!

1. The rent increase meant his ___ was to ___.
2. He had ___ with the bartender after their argument.
3. Judy may be 92 years old, but she’s still ___. 
4. Fred was ____ about the new tax law. 

If you want to learn more about idioms, check out our lists of idioms about clothes, idioms about money, or IELTS idioms. 

Everyday Use of Body Idioms in Conversation

Phrases like “give me a hand,” or “a leg up” show up regularly in conversations. They’re common ways that native speakers describe situations. Body idioms are common when giving advice or making requests; for example, when telling someone to “use their head” or saying “you should put your foot down”.

Here’s an example conversation with body idioms. 

Person 1: “My kid was up in arms when I grounded him, but as a parent, you need to know when to put your foot down.”

Person 2: “I completely agree; you have to keep an eye out for that sort of behavior.”

Conclusion

You can make these idioms easier to learn with mnemonic devices, making flash cards, and doing quizzes daily. Just a few minutes a day will have you incorporating these phrases into your speech naturally.

Body idioms have many uses in the English language. Do you have a favorite body idiom we didn’t cover? Drop it in the comments!