above one’s station
Meaning: higher than one’s social class or position in society.
Example: “He has been educated above his station and is now ashamed of his parents’ poverty.”
Focused Idiom Category
Relationship Idioms
Relationship idioms describe how people connect, cooperate, compete, disagree, support one another, or influence each other. They can refer to family, friendship, romance, social position, trust, conflict, and the way one person treats another. This category is organised around interpersonal meaning, so expressions focused mainly on a feeling, conversation style, or workplace action are placed elsewhere even when people are involved. Every idiom has a concise meaning and a realistic example sentence showing the relationship context. Use the A–Z navigation to find a particular phrase, then explore related emotion, communication, or everyday categories for nearby vocabulary. Relationship idioms are extremely common in stories, advice, social conversation, and media, helping learners describe complex human behaviour in a natural and memorable way.
71Relevant idioms
A
A Idioms
1 entriesB
B Idioms
1 entriesbe a thorn in someone’s side
Meaning: to be a constant source of annoyance to someone.
Example: “This problem is a thorn in my side.”
C
C Idioms
4 entriescan’t hold a candle to someone
Meaning: not equal to someone; unable to measure up to someone.
Example: “Mary can’t hold a candle to Ann when it comes to playing the piano.”
catch someone on the hop
Meaning: to find someone unprepared or defenceless.
Example: “The unexpected exam caught some of the pupils on the hop.”
change someone’s tune
Meaning: to change the manner, attitude, or behaviour of a person, usually from bad to good, or from rude to pleasant.
Example: “Then she changed her tune.”
cheek by jowl
Meaning: side by side; close together.
Example: “The walkers had to walk cheek by jowl along the narrow streets.”
D
D Idioms
4 entriesdamn someone or something with faint praise
Meaning: to criticize someone or something indirectly by not praising enthusiastically.
Example: “The critic did not say that he disliked the play, but he damned it with faint praise.”
dance attendance on someone
Meaning: to be always ready to tend to someone’s wishes or needs.
Example: “That young woman has three men dancing attendance on her.”
Darby and Joan
Meaning: an old married couple living happily together.
Example: “Her parents are divorced, but her grandparents are like Darby and Joan.”
dead set against someone or something
Meaning: totally opposed to someone or something.
Example: “I’m dead set against the new rates proposal.”
E
E Idioms
3 entries(every) Tom, Dick, and Harry
Meaning: everyone without discrimination; ordinary people.
Example: “They don’t let any Tom, Dick, or Harry join.”
extend one’s sympathy (to someone)
Meaning: to express sympathy to someone.
Example: “Please permit me to extend my sympathy to you and your children.”
eyeball to eyeball
Meaning: person to person; face to face.
Example: “The discussions will have to be eyeball to eyeball to be effective.”
F
F Idioms
3 entriesfair do’s
Meaning: fair and just treatment [done to someone].
Example: “It’s hardly fair do’s to treat her like that.”
fair game
Meaning: someone or something that it is quite permissible to attack.
Example: “I don’t like seeing articles exposing people’s private lives, but politicians are fair game.”
fall foul of someone or something
Meaning: to do something that annoys or offends someone or something; to do something that is contrary to the rules.
Example: “He has fallen foul of the police more than once.”
G
G Idioms
2 entriesget a word in (edgeways)
Meaning: to succeed in saying something when other people are talking and one is being ignored.
Example: “It was such an exciting conversation that I could hardly get a word in edgeways.”
one credit (for something)
Meaning: to praise or recognize someone for doing something.
Example: “The coach gave Mary a lot of credit.”
H
H Idioms
3 entrieshail-fellow-well-met
Meaning: friendly to everyone; falsely friendly to everyone.
Example: “Yes, he’s friendly, sort of hail-fellowwell-met.”
handle someone with kid gloves
Meaning: to be very careful with a sensitive or touchy person.
Example: “You really have to handle him with kid gloves.”
hard on someone’s heels
Meaning: following someone very closely.
Example: “I ran as fast as I could, but the dog was still hard on my heels.”
I
I Idioms
1 entriesin a stew (about someone or something)
Meaning: upset or bothered about someone or something.
Example: “I’m in such a stew about my dog.”
J
J Idioms
2 entriesJekyll and Hyde
Meaning: someone with both an evil and a good personality.
Example: “Bill thinks Mary is so soft and gentle, but she can be very cruel—she is a real Jekyll and Hyde.”
Job’s comforter
Meaning: someone who makes matters worse when trying to comfort or console someone.
Example: “Jane is a Job’s comforter.”
K
K Idioms
9 entrieskeen on someone or something
Meaning: enthusiastic about someone or something.
Example: “I’m not too keen on going to London.”
keep in with someone
Meaning: to remain friendly with a person, especially a person who might be useful.
Example: “Jack keeps in with Jane because he likes to borrow her car.”
keep oneself to oneself
Meaning: to remain private; not to mix with other people very much.
Example: “We never see our neighbours.”
keep one’s distance (from someone or something)
Meaning: to maintain a respectful or cautious distance from someone or something.
Example: “Keep your distance from John.”
keep one’s own counsel
Meaning: to keep one’s thoughts and plans to oneself; not to tell other people about one’s thoughts and plans.
Example: “She tends to keep her own counsel.”
keep one’s side of the bargain
Meaning: to do one’s part as agreed; to attend to one’s responsibilities as agreed.
Example: “He must keep his side of the bargain.”
keep someone in line
Meaning: to make certain that someone behaves properly.
Example: “It’s very hard to keep Bill in line.”
keep someone in stitches
Meaning: to cause someone to laugh loud and hard, over and over.
Example: “The comedian kept us in stitches for nearly an hour.”
keep the home fires burning
Meaning: to keep things going at one’s home or other central location.
Example: “My uncle kept the home fires burning when my sister and I went to school.”
L
L Idioms
5 entrieslay about one
Meaning: to strike at people and things in all directions around one; to hit everyone and everything near one.
Example: “When the police tried to capture the robber, he laid about him wildly.”
lead someone (on) a merry chase and lead someone (on) a merry dance
Meaning: to lead someone in a purposeless pursuit.
Example: “You really led me on a merry chase.”
lead someone to believe something
Meaning: to imply something to someone; to cause someone to believe something untrue, without lying.
Example: “But you led me to believe that this watch was guaranteed!”
lead someone to do something
Meaning: to cause someone to do something.
Example: “This agent led me to purchase a worthless piece of land.”
lead someone up the garden path
Meaning: to deceive someone.
Example: “Don’t lead me up the garden path.”
M
M Idioms
6 entriesmake a beeline for someone or something
Meaning: to head straight towards someone or something.
Example: “Billy came into the kitchen and made a beeline for the biscuits.”
make cracks (about someone or something)
Meaning: to ridicule or make jokes about someone or something.
Example: “Please stop making cracks about my haircut.”
make do (with someone or something)
Meaning: to do as well as possible with someone or something.
Example: “You’ll have to make do with less money next year.”
make fun of someone or something
Meaning: to ridicule someone or something.
Example: “Please stop making fun of me.”
make or break someone
Meaning: to improve or ruin someone.
Example: “The army will either make or break him.”
make someone look good
Meaning: to cause someone to appear successful or competent.
Example: “John arranges all his affairs to make himself look good.”
N
N Idioms
2 entriesnail in someone’s or something’s coffin
Meaning: something which will harm or destroy someone or something.
Example: “Every word of criticism that Bob said about the firm was a nail in his coffin.”
no love lost between someone and someone else and no love lost between people
Meaning: no friendship wasted between someone and someone else.
Example: “Ever since their big argument, there has been no love lost between Tom and Bill.”
O
O Idioms
5 entriesodd man out
Meaning: an unusual or atypical person or thing.
Example: “I’m odd man out because I’m not wearing a tie.”
on a first-name basis (with someone) and on first-name terms (with someone)
Meaning: knowing someone very well; good friends with someone.
Example: “I’m on a first-name basis with John.”
on a par with someone or something
Meaning: equal to someone or something.
Example: “Your effort is simply not on a par with what’s expected from you.”
on behalf of someone and on someone’s behalf
Meaning: [doing something] as someone’s agent; [doing something] in place of someone; for the benefit of someone.
Example: “I’m writing on behalf of Mr. Smith, who has applied for a position with your company.”
one-up (on someone)
Meaning: ahead of someone; with an advantage over someone.
Example: “Tom is one-up on Sally because he got a job and she didn’t.”
P
P Idioms
6 entriespack someone off (to somewhere)
Meaning: to send someone away to somewhere, often with the suggestion that one is glad to do so.
Example: “His parents packed him off to boarding-school as soon as possible.”
pack them in
Meaning: to draw a lot of people.
Example: “The play really packed them in.”
packed out
Meaning: very crowded; containing as many people as possible.
Example: “The theatre was packed out.”
parting of the ways
Meaning: a point at which people separate and go their own ways.
Example: “Jane and Bob finally came to a parting of the ways and divorced.”
pass as someone or something
Meaning: to succeed in being accepted as someone or something.
Example: “The spy was able to pass as a normal citizen.”
pick a quarrel (with someone)
Meaning: to start an argument with someone.
Example: “Are you trying to pick a quarrel with me?”
R
R Idioms
3 entriesrally round someone or something
Meaning: to come together to support someone or something.
Example: “The family rallied round Jack when he lost his job.”
rap someone’s knuckles
Meaning: to rebuke or punish someone.
Example: “She rapped his knuckles for whispering too much.”
ride roughshod over someone or something
Meaning: to treat someone or something with disdain or scorn.
Example: “Tom seems to ride roughshod over his friends.”
S
S Idioms
2 entriesscratch someone’s back
Meaning: to do a favour for someone in return for a favour done for you.
Example: “You scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours.”
see someone home
Meaning: to accompany someone home.
Example: “Bill agreed to see his aunt home after the film.”
T
T Idioms
6 entriestake a leaf out of someone’s book
Meaning: to behave or to do something in the way that someone else would; to use someone as an example.
Example: “Take a leaf out of your brother’s book and work hard.”
take someone down a peg (or two)
Meaning: to reprimand someone who is acting in too arrogant a way.
Example: “The teacher’s scolding took Bob down a peg or two.”
take someone to task
Meaning: to scold or reprimand someone.
Example: “The teacher took John to task for his bad behaviour.”
take someone under one’s wing
Meaning: to take over and care for a person.
Example: “John wasn’t doing well at school until an older pupil took him under her wing.”
take up the cudgels on behalf of someone or something
Meaning: to support or defend someone or something.
Example: “We’ll have to take up the cudgels on behalf of Jim or he’ll lose the debate.”
tarred with the same brush
Meaning: having the same faults or bad points as someone else.
Example: “Jack and his brother are tarred with the same brush.”
V
V Idioms
2 entriesvent one’s spleen
Meaning: to get rid of one’s feelings of anger caused by someone or something by attacking someone or something else.
Example: “Because Jack didn’t get the job, he was angry, and he vented his spleen by shouting at his wife.”
villain of the piece
Meaning: someone or something that is responsible for something bad or wrong.
Example: “I discovered that Joan was the villain of the piece.”
W
W Idioms
1 entrieswish someone joy of something
Meaning: to express the hope that someone will enjoy having or doing something, usually while being glad that one does not have to have it or do it.
Example: “I wish you joy of that old car.”
Helpful Answers
Frequently asked questions
What are relationship idioms?
They are expressions about friendship, family, romance, cooperation, conflict, trust, social position, or the way people treat one another.
Are love idioms included here?
Some are, especially when the expression describes a relationship. Idioms focused mainly on the feeling itself may appear under emotions.
How is this category different from communication?
Relationship idioms describe the connection between people, while communication idioms describe how information or words are exchanged.
Can I use these idioms in formal writing?
Many are suitable for general writing, but highly conversational expressions should be used carefully in formal or sensitive contexts.
How can learners practise them?
Create short situations involving friends, colleagues, family members, or partners, then choose the idiom that best describes their relationship.
