Home/Family matters Idioms Like a house on fire – very quickly Home truth – true but unpleasant fact to bring it home to someone – make smb understand smth more cleary, esp. unpleasant To get your own house in order – to solve your own problems To home in on smth – to aim for/ to give a lot of attention to smth or smb To make yourself at home To go round the houses – to waste time doing or asking smth in a complicated way Castles in the air – plans that have little chance to come true To have a skeleton in the cupboard – an embarrassing secret To wear the pants – be a person in relationships who makes decisions To have a full plate – to be overloaded with tasks and resposibilities To tie the knot – to get married To run in the family – a quality, ability, disease that many members of the family have Cupboard love – Love shown by smb in return for a favour To turn the tables – to change from being in a weaker position to a stronger one An armchair critic – smb knows about the subject from reading, not personal experience To fall off one’s chair – to be extremely surprised To be out of the top drawer – highest level of rank, excellence or importance As you make your bed, so you must lie upon it – unpleasant consequences of one’s actions To get out of bed on the wrong side – be in a bad mood throughout the day Memory like a sieve – forget things easily To pull the plug – to stop an activity from continuing To bring the curtain down on smth – to bring an end to smth
