Idioms beginning with T

Tables are turned

When the tables are turned, the situation has changed giving the advantage to the party who had previously been at a disadvantage.

Take for granted

If you take something for granted, you don’t worry or think about it because you assume you will always have it.  If you take someone for granted, you don’t show your appreciation to them.

Take guts

If something takes guts, it requires courage in the face of danger or great risk. It takes guts for firemen to enter a burning building to save someone.

Take one for the team

To sacrifice oneself in some way for the good of the group.

Take sand to the beach

Doing something that is completely pointless or unnecessary is like taking sand to the beach..

Take to your heels

If you take to your heels, you run away.

Take up the torch

If you take up the torch, you take on a challenge or responsibility, usually when someone else retires, or leaves an organisation, etc.

Take your breath away

If something takes your breath away, it astonishes or surprises you.

Someone who could talk a glass eye to sleep is very boring and repetitive.

Talk out of the back of your head

If someone is talking out of the back of their head, they are talking rubbish.

Talk turkey

When people talk turkey, they discuss something frankly.

Talk your arm off

Someone who talks so much that it is a strain to listen can talk your arm off.

Talking to a brick wall

If you talk to someone and they do not listen to you, it is like talking to a brick wall.

The sun might rise in the west

When people say this, they mean that they don’t expect something to happen.

The whole shooting match

Everything, the entire object, or all the related parts.

The world and his wife

If the world and his wife were somewhere, then huge numbers of people were present.

Their bark is worse than their bite

If someone’s bark is worse than their bite, they get angry and shout and make threats, but don’t actually do anything.

There are many ways to skin a cat

This is an expression meaning there are many different ways of doing the same thing.

There goes the neighbourhood

This is an exclamation after a negative change affects someone’s neighbourhood, such as someone undesireable moving in.

There’s a dead cat on the line

This used as a way of telling people that something suspicious is happening.

There’s never a road without a turning

No situation in life stays the same forever.

There’s no “I” in “Team”

Individual achievement is not superior to the good/results of the team.

There’s no such thing as a free lunch

This idiom means that you don’t get things for free, so if something appears to be free, there’s a catch and you’ll have to pay in some way.

Thick as thieves

If people are thick as thieves, they are very close friends who have no secrets from each other.

Think outside the box

If you think outside the box, you think in an imaginative and creative way.

If you throw someone a bone, you give them a small reward or some kind words to make them feel good even if they’ve not really contributed much.

Throw someone a line

If someone throws you a line, they give you help when you are in serious difficulties.

Throw someone under the bus

To throw someone under the bus is to get the person in trouble either by placing blame on that person or not standing up for him.

Throw the baby out with the bath water

If you get rid of useful things when discarding inessential things, you throw the baby out with the bath water.

Throw your weight around

If someone throws their weight around, they use their authority or force of personality to get what they want in the face of opposition.

Thumb your nose at

If you thumb your nose at something, you reject it or scorn it.

Tighten your belt

If you have to tighten your belt, you have to economise.

Till you’re blue in the face

If you do something till you’re blue in the face, you do it repeatedly without achieving the desired result until you’re incredibly frustrated.

Time does sail

This idioms means that time passes by unnoticed.

Time flies

This idiom means that time moves quickly and often unnoticed.

Tipping point

Small changes may have little effect until they build up to critical mass, then the next small change may suddenly change everything. this is the tipping point.

Tired and emotional

(UK) This idiom is a euphemism used to mean ‘drunk’, especially when talking about politicians.

Tit for tat

If someone responds to an insult by being rude back, it’s tit for tat- repaying something negative the same way.

To all intents and purposes

This means in all the most important ways.

To be as thick as two bricks

Someone who is as thick as two bricks is really stupid.

To be dog cheap

If something’s dog cheap, it is very cheap indeed.

To err is human, to forgive divine

This idiom is used when someone has done something wrong, suggesting that they should be forgiven.

To have the courage of your convictions

If you have the courage of your convictions, you are brave enough to do what you feel is right, despite any pressure for you to do something different.

To little avail

If something is to little avail, it means that, despite great efforts, something ended in failure, but taking comfort from the knowledge that nothing else could have been done to avert or avoid the result.

To the end of time

To the end of time is an extravagant way of saying ‘forever’.

Toe the line

If someone toes the line, they follow and respect the rules and regulations.

If someone is too big for their boots, they are conceited and have an exaggerated sense of their own importance.

Too big for your britches

If someone is too big for their britches, they are conceited and have an exaggerated sense of their own importance.

Too many chiefs and not enough Indians

When there are too many chiefs and not enough Indians, there are two many managers and not enough workers to work efficiently.

Too many cooks spoil the broth

This means that where there are too many people trying to do something, they make a mess of it.

Turn a blind eye

When people turn a blind eye, they deliberately ignore something, especially if people are doing something wrong.

Turn a deaf ear

If someone turns a deaf ear to you, they don’t listen to you.

Turn a new leaf

If someone turns a new leaf, they change their behaviour and stop doing wrong or bad things.

Turn something on its head

If you turn something on its head, you turn it upside down or reverse it.

Turn the corner

To get over a bad run. When a loss making venture ceases to make losses, it has “turned the corner”.

Turn the crack

(Scot) If you turn the crack, you change the subject of a conversation.

Turn the other cheek

If you turn the other cheek, you are humble and do not retaliate or get outwardly angry when someone offends or hurts you, in fact, you give them the opportunity to re-offend instead and compound their unpleasantness.

Turn the tables

If circumstances change completely, giving an advantage to those who seemed to be losing, the tables are turned.

Turn turtle

If something turns turtle, it turns upside down.

Turn up like a bad penny

If someone turns up like a bad penny, they go somewhere where they are not wanted.

Turn up one’s toes to the daisies

If someone has turned up their toes to the daisies, it means that the person died.

Turn water into wine

If someone turns water into wine, they transform something bad into something excellent.

Turn your nose up

If someone turns their nose up at something, they reject it or look odwn on it because they don’t think it is good enough for them.

Turn-up for the books

A turn-up for the books is an unexpected or surprising event.

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What and if are just two words, but if they are put side by side, they become a very painful word and everything does not matter anymore. So if it is our time, take it! - info@hitoeic.com