Idioms describing feelings or mood

Positive feelings, moods and states

Jo's as happy as the day is long. [extremely content]
Mary seems to be on cloud nine these days. [extremely pleasedlhappy]
Everyone seemed to be in high spirits. [lively, enjoying things]
She seems to be keeping her chin up. [happy despite bad things]

Negative feelings, moods and states

He had a face as long as a fiddle. [looked very depressedlsad]
She certainly looked down in the dumps. [looked depressedlsad]
Gerry is in a (black) mood. la bad moodltemper]
Mark was like a bear with a sore head. [extremely irritable] (See Unit 76.)

I'm feeling all in. [exhausted]

You're looking a bit under the weather. [not very well I ill]
She looked, and felt, on top form. [in good physical condition]
I suddenly felt as if my head was going round. [dizzy]
I was almost at death's door last week! [very sick or ill]
Old Nora's as fit as a fiddle. [very fit indeed]

She frightened the life out bf him. [frightened him a lot]

We were all shaking in our shoes. [trembling with fear]
The poor lad was scared out of his wits. [very scared indeed]
I jumped out of my skin when I heard the bang. [gave a big jump]
Remember: there is an element of exaggeration in these idioms; they make comments on the
situation and lighten the tone of what you are saying. So use them only informally.

Horoscopes in English language newspapers and magazines are often a good place to find
idioms about moods and states, since the horoscope usually tries to tell you how you are
going to feel during the coming daylweeklmonth. Look at these horoscopes and note the
idioms in italics. Each one is given
- a literal paraphrase below the text. Collect more idioms
from horoscopes if you can.

Capritorn (21.12-19.1) Taurus (21.4-20.5)

on't get carried owoy (1) by promises that omeone will soy something that will make
won't be kept. Keep o cool heod(2) and you swell witfi pride (3) and you may feel on

(1) be fooled
toke everything os it comes. On the work

(2) stay calm

-
(3) feel very proud
top of tfie world(4) for o while, but the evening

(4) very happy indeed

158 English Vocabulary in Use

 Exercises
79; 1 Here are some more idioms that can be grouped as expressing either positive or negative
feelings. Try to group them using a dictionary if necessary.
to be over the moon to feellbe a bit down
to feellbe as pleased as Punch to feellbe browned off

Using the idioms from 79.1 and from A opposite, say how you would probably feel if ...
1 you were told you had just won a vast sum of money. I'd be over t h e moon!
2 your boss said you had to do again a piece of work you'd already done three times.
3 you were told you'd got a very high mark in an exam.
4 you had a bad toothache and your neighbour was making a lot of noise late at night.
5 nothing seemed to have gone right for you that day.
6 someone you were secretly in love with told you they were in love with you.

79-3 Complete the idioms in these sentences.

1 Don't creep up behind me like that! You frightened the ...
2 I don't need a doctor, I just feel a bit under ...
3 As long as he has his car to work on, he's as happy ...
4 Last year, when I won that medal, I really was on...
5 I wasn't expecting such a loud bang; I nearly jumped ...
6 I've had nothing since lunch; I could.. .
7 I feel a bit down this week; last week I felt on top ...

Spot idioms to do with feelings, moods and states in these horoscopes. Underline them, then
check the meaning if necessary in a dictionary.

Scorpio (23 10-22.1 1) Leo (21.7-21.8)

ou may get ltchy feet today, but be patient, this ou'll be up in orms over something someone
a not a good time to travel. Events at work will close to you says rather thoughtlessly today, but
keep you on the edge of your seat for most of the don't let ~tspoil things. You may be in two minds
day. Altogether an anxious time for Scorpians. over on invitation, but think positively.

Now use the idioms to rewrite these sentences.

1 I can't decide about that job in Paris.
2 I've been in suspense all day. What's happened? Tell me!
3 Her son became restless to travel and went off to Uruguay.
4 Everyone protested loudly when they cancelled the outing.

Which idioms opposite include the words head, wits, swell, black and c a k e d ? Write a
sentence using each one.

English Vocabulary in Use 159