Idioms for advice
Here you are a few idioms for advice.
- (Don’t) add fuel to the fire.
- (Don’t) add insult to injury.
- (Don’t) kick a man when he’s’s down.
Meaning: Don’t make a bad situation even worse.
- Absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Meaning: Being far away from a person you love makes your love even stronger.
- A penny saved is a penny earned.
Meaning: It’s good to save money, rather than spending and wasting it.
- A picture is worth a thousand words.
Meaning: Pictures can give more information than words alone.
- Actions speak louder than words.
Meaning: What you actually do is more important than what you say you will do.
- (It’s) all in your head.
Meaning: (It’s) imagined, not real.
- Around the clock
Meaning: All the time; 24 hours
- Asleep at the wheel
Meaning: Not paying attention; not doing one’s responsibilities
- (Shout or yell) at the top of your lungs
Meaning: (To shout or yell) as loud as you can
ACTIVITY: Choose one statement below and think about an appropriate idiom to give advice. Write the idiom through a comment to this entry (e.g. 1. John, …….). Before choosing one statement, check that statement has not been previously chosen and ‘done’.
- (John): «I really want to go and see a movie tonight, but I’m trying to save my money to buy a new watch.» (done)
2. (Julie): » I just saw my brother’s girlfriend with another boy, but he’s in a really bad mood because he got fired this morning. Do you think I should tell him?» (done)
3. (Irish): «Did you hear that? I think I heard something in the kitchen! Wait…I am not sure. There it is again! I think I heard something. Do you hear it? Maybe it´s a ghost! Maybe it´s a thief! (done)
4. (David): My girlfriend got a really good job offer in Taipei, but I’m afraid that if she moves away, she’ll forget about me and we might break up. (done)
5. (William): My grandfather is so old that he’s almost deaf. When I talk to him, he doesn’t even notice that I’m talking. (done)
6. (Rita): My sister always steals my money! I yelled at her, and she apologized and promised that she would stop, but I don’t know if I should believe her. (done)
Good morning!
1. I see your point John, yet remember, a penny saved is a penny earned.
Pilar, why do you put the word (done) at the end of each sentence? Have they done yet?
Hello Nerea!
The reason is that this post is an old post I created last year. Some of my students left comments to do the activity and I used to write «done» next to the statement after checking that the idiom for that statement was correct.
I will re-edit it.
By the way, your idiom «A penny saved is a penny earned» for statement 1 is correct. Well done!
2. (Julie): » I just saw my brother’s girlfriend with another boy, but he’s in a really bad mood because he got fired this morning. Do you think I should tell him?»
Julie don’t add fuel to the fire.
Good! Don´t forget to include a comma after Julie.
3. Irish, I haven’t heard anything. I believe it is all in your head. You should calm down!
Correct!
(David): My girlfriend got a really good job offer in Taipei, but I’m afraid that if she moves away, she’ll forget about me and we might break up.
David, remember absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Good!
5. (William): My grandfather is so old that he’s almost deaf. When I talk to him, he doesn’t even notice that I’m talking.
William, (Shout or yell) at him at the top of your lungs.
Correct!
(Rita): My sister always steals my money! I yelled at her, and she apologized and promised that she would stop, but I don’t know if I should believe her.
Rita,actions speaks louder than words.
Correct idiom, yet you made a grammar mistakes when writing the idiom: *actions speaks > actions speak