Idiom Index: Words and Themes Beginning with ‘S’

A	B	C	D	E	F	G	H	I
J	K	L	M	N	O	P	Q	R
S	T	U	V	W	X	Y	Z

Find idioms related to words beginning with the letter S.

Sailing

• At Loggerheads
• Chief Cook and Bottle Washer
• Fair-Weather Friend
• Show Your True Colors, to
• Taken Aback, to be
• With Flying Colors

Sailors

Salt

• Rub Salt in the Wound
• Salt of the Earth, the
• Take With a Grain of Salt

Same

• By the Same Token
• Cut From the Same Cloth
• Go Over the Same Old Ground
• In the Same Boat, all
• In the Same Breath
• On the Same Page, to be
• Same Old, Same Old

Sand

• Bury One’s Head In The Sand

Say

• It Goes Without Saying
• That’s Saying Something
• You Can Say That Again
• You Said a Mouthful

Science

• Not Rocket Science

Second

• Any Second Now
• Get One’s Second Wind
• Give Me a Second/Minute
• In a Second or In a Minute
• Play Second Fiddle
• Secondhand (Second-hand, second hand)

See

• Can’t See the Forest for the Trees
• Know Something When You See It
• Let Me See
• See Eye to Eye

Sell

• Bet the Farm
• Like Gangbusters
• Sell Like Hot Cakes

Sense

• Humor Me and Sense of Humor

Set

• Dead Set Against (something)
• Set the Table

Seven

• Seventh Heaven, in

Sex

• Facts Of Life
• Hanky Panky

Shadow

• Afraid Of Your Own Shadow

Shake

• More Than You Can Shake a Stick At
• No Great Shakes
• Shake a Leg
• Square Deal, a

Shakespeare Related Idioms

• Dog Tired
• Hamlet without the Prince
• In a Nutshell
• My Heart Bleeds For You
• Splitting Hairs
• Time Is Ripe
• To Your Heart’s Content

Shame

• Crying Shame, a

Shelf

• Off The Shelf

Shine

• Rain Or Shine
• Rise and Shine

Ship

• Ship Out
• Ships That Pass In The Night

Shirt

• Give the Shirt Off One’s Back
• Keep Your Pants On

Shit

• Built Like a Brick Shithouse
• Get Your Act Together
• Shit Will Hit The Fan
• Shoot the Breeze

Shoe

• If the Shoe Fits, Wear It
• On a Shoestring
• Shoe is On the Other Foot, the
• Waiting for the Other Shoe to Drop

Shoot

• Like Shooting Fish in a Barrel
• Shoot Down
• Shoot From the Hip
• Shoot the Breeze
• Turkey Shoot

Short

• A Day Late and a Dollar Short
• Draw the Short Straw

Shot

• Call the Shots
• Shot in the Dark

Shoulder

• Chip On Your Shoulder
• Give Someone the Cold Shoulder
• Stand On Someone’s Shoulders

Show

• Dog And Pony Show
• Get This Show on the Road
• Show Your True Colors, to

Sick

• Run a Fever
• Sick and Tired
• Sick Joke
• Worried Sick (about someone or something)

Side

• Get Up on the Wrong Side of the Bed, to
• Know Which Side Your Bread is Buttered On
• Side Street
• Wrong Side of the Tracks, the

Sight

• No End In Sight (to something)
• Sight for Sore Eyes, a

Silver

• Hand Something on a Silver Platter
• Silver Lining Meaning

Single

• Each And Every One (Every Last One, Every Single One)

Sink

• Everything but the Kitchen Sink
• My Heart Sank | One’s Heart Sinks

Sinker

• Hook, Line, and Sinker

Size

• That’s About the Size Of It

Skin

• By the Skin of My (or one’s) Teeth
• Make One’s Skin Crawl
• Skin and Bones (nothing but)

Sleep

• Hit the Hay
• Let Sleeping Dogs Lie
• Sleep A Wink, to not
• Sleep In
• Sleep Tight

Slip

• Slip Someone a Mickey (Finn)

Slow

• Quick or Slow On the Uptake
• Slow as Molasses
• Slow-Walk

Small

• Big Fish in a Small Pond, a
• It’s A Small World
• Small Talk
• Thankful for Small Mercies, be

Smart

• Smart Alec

Smoke

• Blow Smoke
• Blow Smoke Up Someone’s Ass
• Smoking Gun

So

• I Hope So
• So Far, So Good
• So What?

Sorrow

• Drown Your Sorrows

Speak

• Actions Speak Louder Than Words
• Speak of the Devil

Spill

• Don’t Cry Over Spilt Milk

Spoil

• Too Many Cooks Spoil the Broth

Sports Related Idioms

• A Shoo-in
• Back the Wrong Horse
• Behind the Eight Ball
• Call the Shots

See More Sports Idioms

Spot

• Johnny On The Spot
• Leopard Can’t Change Its Spots, a
• X Marks the Spot

Square

• Back To Square One
• Fair and Square
• Square Deal, a

Start

• Don’t Get Me Started
• Don’t Start

Steal

• Caught with Your Hand In The Cookie Jar
• Five-finger Discount
• Ill-gotten Gains
• Rip Off
• Rob Someone Blind
• Steal Someone’s Thunder

Steel

• Have a Mind Like a Steel Trap

Step

• Hornet’s Nest, a
• Step Outside
• Step Up to the Plate

Stick

• More Than You Can Shake a Stick At
• Stick In Your (or one’s) Throat
• Stick to Your Ribs

Stiff

• Keep a Stiff Upper Lip

Stink

• Stinks To High Heaven

Stir

• Hornet’s Nest, a

Stitch

• In Stitches

Stock

• In Stock
• Out of Stock

Stomach

• An Army Marches on Its Stomach
• Butterflies In Your Stomach
• Have No Stomach for Something
• Strong Stomach (have a)
• Turn One’s Stomach

Stone

• Run Into a Brick Wall
• Stone’s Throw, a

Stoop

• Stoop To

Stop

• Even a Broken Clock Is Right Twice a Day
• Go Cold Turkey
• Stop On A Dime

Story

• A Likely Story
• Fish Story

Straight

• Keep A Straight Face

Strange

• Truth Is Stranger Than Fiction

Straw

• Draw the Short Straw
• Grasping At Straws
• Straw Poll
• The Straw That Broke the Camel’s Back

Streak

• Talk A Blue Streak

String

• On a Shoestring

Strong

• Strong Stomach (have a)

Stupid/Stupidity

• Dead from the Neck Up
• I May Be Dumb But I’m Not Stupid Origin
• The Lights Are On But Nobody’s Home

Such

• No Such Animal

Suck

• Go Suck an Egg
• Suck Up (to someone)

Sudden

• All of a Sudden

Sugar

• Give Me Some Sugar
• Sugar Daddy
• Sugarcoat

Summer

• Dog Days

Sun

• Catch Some Rays

Sure

• Sure (Thank You Response)
• Surefire

Surprise Related Idioms

• Holy Cow
• I’ll Be A Monkey’s Uncle
• Taken Aback, to be

Swallow

• Bitter Pill to Swallow, a

Sweat

• No Sweat (Thank You Response)

Sweep

• Sweep Something Under the Rug

Swoop

• One Fell Swoop

Sword

• Damocles’ Sword