Idioms about feelings bring life and color to how we express emotions in English. They help us describe happiness, sadness, nervousness, anger, and many other emotions in vivid, relatable ways. Using idioms makes your speech and writing more engaging and helps you understand native speakers better. This guide covers 39 idioms related to feelings, each with clear meanings, example sentences, and alternative expressions. To help you practice, there’s a quiz with 20 multiple-choice questions at the end.
39 Idioms About Feelings with Meanings and Examples
- Over the moon
Meaning: Extremely happy or delighted.
Example: She was over the moon when she got the job offer.
Other Ways to Say: Ecstatic, Thrilled - Down in the dumps
Meaning: Feeling sad or depressed.
Example: He’s been down in the dumps since his pet passed away.
Other Ways to Say: Gloomy, Melancholy - Butterflies in your stomach
Meaning: Feeling nervous or anxious.
Example: I had butterflies in my stomach before the presentation.
Other Ways to Say: Nervous, Anxious - Walking on air
Meaning: Feeling very happy or joyful.
Example: She was walking on air after hearing the good news.
Other Ways to Say: On cloud nine, Elated - Hot under the collar
Meaning: Feeling angry or upset.
Example: He got hot under the collar when his phone was stolen.
Other Ways to Say: Angry, Upset - Cry over spilled milk
Meaning: To be upset about something that cannot be changed.
Example: Don’t cry over spilled milk; just learn from your mistakes.
Other Ways to Say: Don’t dwell on it, Let it go - Tickled pink
Meaning: Very pleased or delighted.
Example: She was tickled pink to receive the award.
Other Ways to Say: Delighted, Thrilled - Green with envy
Meaning: Feeling jealous.
Example: I was green with envy when I saw her new car.
Other Ways to Say: Jealous, Envious - Head over heels
Meaning: Deeply in love or very excited.
Example: He’s head over heels for his new girlfriend.
Other Ways to Say: In love, Infatuated - Cold feet
Meaning: Feeling nervous or hesitant about something important.
Example: She got cold feet before the wedding.
Other Ways to Say: Nervous, Hesitant - Over the edge
Meaning: Feeling overwhelmed or extremely upset.
Example: The stress pushed him over the edge.
Other Ways to Say: Upset, Losing control - In high spirits
Meaning: Feeling cheerful and happy.
Example: Everyone was in high spirits at the party.
Other Ways to Say: Cheerful, Joyful - In the doldrums
Meaning: Feeling sad or bored.
Example: She was in the doldrums after her vacation ended.
Other Ways to Say: Down, Low - Lose your cool
Meaning: To become angry or lose patience.
Example: He lost his cool when the meeting went off track.
Other Ways to Say: Get angry, Lose patience - Heart of gold
Meaning: A very kind and generous person.
Example: She has a heart of gold and helps everyone.
Other Ways to Say: Kind-hearted, Compassionate - Wear your heart on your sleeve
Meaning: To openly show your emotions.
Example: He wears his heart on his sleeve and isn’t afraid to cry.
Other Ways to Say: Be open, Show feelings - All ears
Meaning: Fully listening or eager to listen.
Example: I’m all ears—tell me what happened.
Other Ways to Say: Listening carefully, Attentive - On pins and needles
Meaning: Feeling nervous or anxious.
Example: She was on pins and needles waiting for the test results.
Other Ways to Say: Anxious, Nervous - Feel like a million bucks
Meaning: Feeling very good or confident.
Example: After the makeover, she felt like a million bucks.
Other Ways to Say: Fantastic, Great - Throw a tantrum
Meaning: To have an outburst of anger.
Example: The child threw a tantrum when he didn’t get his way.
Other Ways to Say: Lose temper, Get upset - Grin from ear to ear
Meaning: Smile broadly because of happiness.
Example: He was grinning from ear to ear after winning the game.
Other Ways to Say: Beaming, Smiling big - In a pickle
Meaning: In a difficult or troublesome situation.
Example: I’m in a pickle because I lost my wallet.
Other Ways to Say: In trouble, Stuck - Jump for joy
Meaning: To be extremely happy.
Example: She jumped for joy when she heard the news.
Other Ways to Say: Celebrate, Be thrilled - Down to earth
Meaning: Practical and realistic.
Example: He’s very down to earth despite his success.
Other Ways to Say: Practical, Sensible - Light up
Meaning: To show happiness or excitement.
Example: Her face lit up when she saw the gift.
Other Ways to Say: Glow, Be excited - Cold shoulder
Meaning: To deliberately ignore someone.
Example: After the argument, he gave her the cold shoulder.
Other Ways to Say: Ignore, Snub - Feel under the weather
Meaning: To feel unwell.
Example: I’m feeling under the weather today.
Other Ways to Say: Sick, Ill - Burst out laughing
Meaning: To suddenly laugh loudly.
Example: We all burst out laughing at the joke.
Other Ways to Say: Crack up, Laugh loudly - Feel on top of the world
Meaning: To feel very happy and successful.
Example: She felt on top of the world after the promotion.
Other Ways to Say: Elated, Thrilled - Bite someone’s head off
Meaning: To speak angrily to someone.
Example: He bit my head off for being late.
Other Ways to Say: Snap at, Yell - Have mixed feelings
Meaning: To feel both positive and negative emotions.
Example: I have mixed feelings about moving to a new city.
Other Ways to Say: Conflicted, Unsure - A lump in your throat
Meaning: Feeling like you’re about to cry.
Example: She had a lump in her throat during the farewell speech.
Other Ways to Say: Emotional, Tearful - Blow off steam
Meaning: To release pent-up emotions.
Example: I went jogging to blow off steam after work.
Other Ways to Say: Relax, Let out emotions - All in your head
Meaning: Imagining or worrying about something that isn’t real.
Example: Don’t worry, it’s all in your head.
Other Ways to Say: Imaginary, Not real - Break someone’s heart
Meaning: To cause someone deep sadness.
Example: It broke her heart when her dog died.
Other Ways to Say: Hurt deeply, Cause sadness - On cloud nine
Meaning: Extremely happy.
Example: He was on cloud nine after the wedding.
Other Ways to Say: Overjoyed, Ecstatic - Feel blue
Meaning: To feel sad.
Example: She felt blue after the breakup.
Other Ways to Say: Sad, Down - In stitches
Meaning: Laughing uncontrollably.
Example: The comedian had us in stitches all night.
Other Ways to Say: Laughing hard, Amused - Wear your heart on your sleeve
Meaning: To openly show emotions.
Example: He wears his heart on his sleeve and shows how he feels.
Other Ways to Say: Be open, Show feelings
Quiz: Test Your Knowledge of Feelings Idioms
Choose the best answer for each question.
- What does “over the moon” mean?
a) Sad
b) Nervous
c) Extremely happy
d) Angry - If someone is “down in the dumps,” they feel:
a) Happy
b) Sad
c) Excited
d) Angry - “Butterflies in your stomach” means:
a) Feeling hungry
b) Feeling nervous
c) Feeling cold
d) Feeling tired - To “cry over spilled milk” means:
a) To be upset about something that can’t be changed
b) To clean a mess
c) To cry loudly
d) To waste milk - “Hot under the collar” means:
a) Feeling cold
b) Feeling angry
c) Feeling happy
d) Feeling tired - “Head over heels” means:
a) Very tired
b) Deeply in love
c) Nervous
d) Sad - To “lose your cool” means:
a) To calm down
b) To get angry
c) To be happy
d) To be tired - “All ears” means:
a) Not listening
b) Listening carefully
c) Sleeping
d) Talking - “Feel like a million bucks” means:
a) Feeling great
b) Feeling poor
c) Feeling tired
d) Feeling nervous - “Throw a tantrum” means:
a) To get very upset
b) To laugh loudly
c) To be quiet
d) To sleep - “Grin from ear to ear” means:
a) To be very happy
b) To be angry
c) To be tired
d) To be sad - “In a pickle” means:
a) In trouble
b) Happy
c) Excited
d) Calm - “Jump for joy” means:
a) To be sad
b) To be angry
c) To be very happy
d) To be tired - “Cold shoulder” means:
a) To ignore someone
b) To hug someone
c) To help someone
d) To talk to someone - “Feel under the weather” means:
a) To feel sick
b) To feel happy
c) To feel excited
d) To feel angry - “Burst out laughing” means:
a) To start laughing suddenly
b) To cry
c) To be quiet
d) To sleep - “Bite someone’s head off” means:
a) To speak angrily
b) To laugh
c) To hug
d) To ignore - “Have mixed feelings” means:
a) To feel only happy
b) To feel only sad
c) To feel both happy and sad
d) To feel angry - “Blow off steam” means:
a) To relax and release emotions
b) To get angry
c) To sleep
d) To cry - “Wear your heart on your sleeve” means:
a) To hide emotions
b) To openly show emotions
c) To be angry
d) To be tired
Answers to the Quiz
- c) Extremely happy
- b) Sad
- b) Feeling nervous
- a) To be upset about something that can’t be changed
- b) Feeling angry
- b) Deeply in love
- b) To get angry
- b) Listening carefully
- a) Feeling great
- a) To get very upset
- a) To be very happy
- a) In trouble
- c) To be very happy
- a) To ignore someone
- a) To feel sick
- a) To start laughing suddenly
- a) To speak angrily
- c) To feel both happy and sad
- a) To relax and release emotions
- b) To openly show emotions
Conclusion
Mastering idioms about feelings enriches your English by helping you express emotions in imaginative and relatable ways. Using these idioms makes your conversations and writing more engaging and helps you understand native speakers better. Practice regularly with the quiz to build confidence and make these expressions part of your everyday language.