Let’s Talk About Feelings! A Guide to Expressing Your Feelings in English (part 3)
This is the third part of our series on expressing your feelings in English. We started off this series with two articles about words that express all sorts of feelings in English. If you’re keen to read the first two articles in this series, you can do so here and here. In this article today, we’re kicking off the part of the series in which you’ll learn about idioms that express feelings in the English language.
Let’s get started:
To be as hard/tough as nails
This idiom is used when describing a person who is very tough, unsentimental or easily influenced. It can also describe someone who shows very little emotion, for instance, compassion, fear, or worry.
‘To be as tough/hard as nails’ in an example:
Vogue Editor Anna Wintour is often described as being tough as nails, but some say she is just perceived as such and is actually very shy.
To carry a torch for someone
This idiom means to be in love with someone, especially when it concerns unrequited (i.e. not reciprocated) love.
‘To carry a torch for someone’ in an example:
She carried a torch for her high school best friend for almost 5 years and was devastated when he announced his engagement to his older fiancé.
To have a chip on your shoulder
This idiom means to behave unpleasantly due to a belief that one has been treated unfairly or is not as good as others.
‘To have a chip on your shoulder’ in an example:
He has a chip on his shoulder because his best friend at work received twice as much in bonus than he did.
To be on cloud nine
This means to be extremely happy or excited.
‘To be on cloud nine’ in an example:
She was on cloud nine when she discovered she was pregnant with twin boys.
To be in a stew
This idiom describes being incredibly worried or upset about something.
‘To be in a stew’ in an example:
Sarah is in a stew about her upcoming highschool maths exams.
To go ballistic
This idiom means to become extremely angry and fly into a rage.
‘To go ballistic’ in an example:
My boss went ballistic when he discovered his accountant was stealing from him.
To have no hard feelings
This idiom means to have no (continued) feelings of upset (towards someone).
‘To have no hard feelings’ in an example:
My best friend and I were in a chess contest together. After she won, I celebrated with her and tried to show her that I had no hard feelings
-
I hope you enjoyed reading this article and that it was helpful in your English learning journey! As mentioned earlier, there is one article left in this series that has yet to be published. You can expect this article in May, so stay tuned!
Until next time :-)