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Put your foot in your mouth
To put your foot in your mouth means to say something embarrassing, rude, or awkward without meaning to. It is used when someone accidentally says the wrong thing and regrets it afterward.The expression comes from the image of someone speaking so carelessly that they metaphorically shove their own foot into their mouth. The phrase became common in English in the 1900s.
I really put my foot in my mouth when I asked about her job before realizing she had just been laid off.
Putting the cart before the horse
Putting the cart before the horse means doing things in the wrong order. It describes a situation where someone tries to do a later step before the earlier step that should come first.The idiom comes from the simple image of a horse pulling a cart. If the cart is placed in front of the horse, it cannot be pulled, so nothing works properly. The phrase has been used since at least the 1500s.
Trying to decorate the house before the walls are painted is putting the cart before the horse.
Quiet as a mouse
The phrase quiet as a mouse means very quiet. Mice are naturally small, quiet and good at hiding from predators, so a person who is unusually quiet might get described as quiet as a mouse.She was quiet as a mouse
Rabbit warren
A place is like a rabbit warren if it has many small rooms, passages, or paths that are confusing to move through. This idiom is used when a building or area is easy to get lost in.The expression comes from the underground burrows where rabbits live. A real rabbit warren is made of many twisting tunnels and chambers, which makes it easy to get lost inside.
The older part of the hospital is a rabbit warren of narrow corridors and small rooms.
Rain on your parade
To rain on your parade means to spoil someone's plans or happiness by saying or doing something negative. It is used when someone interrupts a good moment with bad news or criticism.The phrase comes from the image of a parade being ruined by bad weather. If rain falls during a parade, it makes the event less enjoyable for everyone.
I don't want to rain on your parade, but the concert you wanted to see has already sold out.
Raise the bar
To raise the bar means to increase the level of difficulty or the standard that must be reached. When someone raises the bar, they make expectations higher so that people have to work harder or perform better to succeed.The phrase comes from the sport of high jump, where athletes must jump over a horizontal bar. As the competition continues, the bar is raised higher, making each attempt more challenging.
After the team produced such a great design, the manager said they had really raised the bar for future projects.
Rare as hen's teeth
Something is as rare as hen's teeth if it is so uncommon that you need an idiom to exaggerate how uncommon it is! Hens have no teeth, so hen's teeth are so rare they do not exist at all.You found one of those at the thrift store? Well done, they are as rare as hen's teeth!
Read between the lines
To read between the lines means to understand a hidden meaning that is not directly stated, usually from hints or clues.The expression comes from the idea of looking past the written words to notice what the writer or speaker truly intends. The phrase has been used in English for many centuries.
She did not say she was unhappy with the plan, but if you read between the lines, you could tell she had doubts.
Reap what you sow
To reap what you sow means that your actions bring their own results. Good actions tend to lead to good outcomes, and harmful actions often lead to trouble later.The phrase comes from farming. A farmer harvests the same crop that was planted in the field months earlier. The saying uses that image to explain how choices lead to consequences.
After ignoring the warning signs for months, he finally had to reap what he had sown.
Reinvent the wheel
You reinvent the wheel when you invest a lot of time, money or effort into doing something that has already been done. This idiom is often used when a solution to something already exists and you could just use that instead.Let's not reinvent the wheel, and just use an existing service.