Showing 11-12 of 12
The elephant in the room
The elephant in the room means a big problem or important issue that everyone knows about but no one wants to talk about. People may avoid mentioning it because it is uncomfortable, embarrassing, or difficult.The idiom is from the nonsense image of a huge elephant standing in a room while everyone pretends it is not there. Because an elephant is impossible to miss, the idea shows how strange it is to ignore something so obvious.
We kept discussing the budget, but the elephant in the room was that the company might close next year.
To exchange blows
To exchange blows means that two people are hitting each other during a fight. It can describe a physical fight or a heated argument where both sides attack each other with strong words.The phrase comes from boxing and other forms of fighting, where a blow is a punch or strike. When opponents exchange blows, each person hits the other in turn.
The two boxers stepped into the ring and began to exchange blows as the crowd cheered.