State of mind idioms

List of Idioms to Express Feelings and Emotions

• All the Rage
• Meeting of the Minds
• Scare the Living Daylights out of Someone
• Out of Sight, Out of Mind
• Tear-Jerker
• Pet Peeve
• Pull Yourself Together
• Get Carried Away
• Think Big
• Not Playing with a Full Deck
• Under the Impression
• Out of Sorts
• Short Fuse
• Off One’s Rocker
• Bang One’s Head Against the Wall (Against a Brick Wall)
• Young at Heart
• Take It Easy
• Passing Fancy
• On the Ball
• On the Fence
• Living in Cloud Cuckooland
• Mad as a Hatter
• Freudian Slip
• Fly off the Handle
• Draw a Blank
• Drive Someone Up the Wall
• Down in the Dumps
• Chuck a Wobbly
• Cock-A-Hoop
• Blow One’s Stack
• At the End of One’s Rope (Tether)
• At Wit’s End
• Air Rage
• Act One’s Age

Phrases & Idioms to Express Feelings and Emotions | Meaning & Examples

All the Rage

• Meaning: Very much in fashion
• Example: Yoga pants are all the rage in North America right now, but in two years probably nobody will be wearing them.

Meeting of the Minds

• Meaning: Strong instinctive agreement on something
• Example: At first the negotiations weren’t going well, but when the president of the company and I sat down over drinks, we had a real meeting of the minds.

Scare the Living Daylights out of Someone

• Meaning: Frighten someone severely
• Example: I know my boyfriend was just trying to be nice, but when I opened the door to my apartment and everyone yelled “Surprise!” it scared the living daylights out of me.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

• Meaning: When you don’t see something or someone, you tend to forget about that thing or person.
• Example: When I broke up with Jake, I was heartbroken. But since he moved away, I hardly ever think about him. Out of sight, out of mind!

Tear-Jerker

• Meaning: A film or book that makes you cry
• Example: The film “Love Story,” with its story of young love cut short by death, was one of the most successful tear-jerkers of all time.

Pet Peeve

• Meaning: A small thing that you find particularly annoying
• Example: My pet peeve is people who bring large numbers of items to the express checkout at the supermarket.

Pull Yourself Together

• Meaning: Control your emotions; recover from a strong emptional upset
• Example: I know it was hard seeing your ex-boyfriend at the bar, but you need to pull yourself together so we can go home.

Get Carried Away

• Meaning: Become overly enthusiastic
• Example: Sure, you can invest a little money, but don’t get carried away – people lose lots of money on the stock market.

Think Big

• Meaning: Consider ambitious plans; avoid becoming overly concerned with details
• Example: Sales this year have been good. Caitlin said we should think bigand consider whole new product lines.

Not Playing with a Full Deck

• Meaning: Stupid, mentally deficient or impaired
• Example: John’s suggestions in the meeting were ridiculous. Sometimes I think he’s not playing with a full deck.

Note: “A few bricks short of a load” is one of many variants.

Under the Impression

• Meaning: Believing something, perhaps mistakenly
• Example: I was under the impressionthat you were going to pick me up at the airport.

Out of Sorts

• Meaning: Slightly ill; not feeling well
• Example: Sorry I was so quiet during the meeting. I’ve been out of sorts all day.

Short Fuse

• Meaning: A quick temper; a tendency to anger quickly
• Example: Brandon has a short fuse, but he calms down as quickly as he gets angry.

Off One’s Rocker

• Meaning: Crazy, nuts, insane
• Example: Have you heard Dmitri is going to try to climb Mt. Rinjani in the rainy season? He must be off his rocker.

Bang One’s Head Against the Wall (Against a Brick Wall)

• Meaning: Try repeatedly to do something without making progress
• Example: Susana has been working on the data for three hours, but she says she’s just banging her head against the wall.

Young at Heart

• Meaning: Having a youthful outlook, regardless of age
• Example: Jack is young at heart. He’s 84 years old, but he’s always willing to go out dancing.

Take It Easy

• Meaning: Don’t hurry; relax; don’t get angry
• Example: I’ve been working too hard. I just want to head for the islands and take it easy for a few days.

Passing Fancy

• Meaning: A temporary interest or attraction
• Example: Many people thought Uggs were just a passing fancy, but they’ve been popular for several years now.

… Useful Idioms to Express Feelings and Emotions …

On the Ball

• Meaning: Prepared, alert, competent
• Example: Ralph is on the ball. I think we can leave the office under his supervision for a few days.

On the Fence

• Meaning: Undecided between two choices
• Example: I’m on the fence about the election – both candidates have their good and bad points.

Living in Cloud Cuckooland

• Meaning: Having unrealistic or foolish beliefs or plans.
• Example: Norma thinks she’s going to be making $100,000 euros by next year. She’s living in cloud cuckooland.

Mad as a Hatter

• Meaning: Mentally ill, psychotic
• Example: Gerald used to be one of the most logical people I know. Now he’s mad as a hatter.

Note: This is rare in the USA.

Freudian Slip

• Meaning: Accidental use of an incorrect word; a revealing slip of the tongue
• Example: That was a real Freudian slipwhen Jane referred to her boyfriend as her father.

Fly off the Handle

• Meaning: To become suddenly enraged
• Example: How was I to know Tom would fly off the handle when I asked him about his father?

Draw a Blank

• Meaning: Be unable to remember something
• Example: I drew a blank when she asked me to name all of her sisters.

Drive Someone Up the Wall

• Meaning: Deeply irritate someone
• Example: When Marie hums at her desk, it drives up up the wall.

Note: Some people also say “drives me up a wall.”