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black and white
- thinking of everything or judging everything as either good or
bad He tries to see everything in black and white although he knows
this is impossible.
black out
- darken by putting out or dimming electric
lights During the war people in the cities were forced to black out
their windows so that the enemy aircraft could not see them.
black out
- prevent or silence information or communication The
government decided to black out all of the information related to the political
prisoner.
black out
- lose consciousness Suddenly the man blacked out
during the parade and had to be helped to a quiet place.
black sheep (of the family)
- a person who is a disgrace to a family or group The
man is the black sheep in his family and is the only member who has not made a
success of his life.
blue in the face
- very angry or upset, excited and very emotional He
argued with her until he was blue in the face.
brown bag it
- take a lunch to work I have had to brown bag it
every day this week as the company cafeteria is closed for repair work.
catch (someone) red-handed
- catch someone in the middle of doing something
wrong The woman was caught red-handed at the store trying to steal
some cosmetics.
give someone the green light
- give permission to go ahead with a project We were
finally given the green light to begin setting up the new project.
grass is always greener on the other side
- a place that is far away or different seems better than where
we are now He realized that the grass is always greener on the other
side when he saw that his new job wasn`t perfect and had its own problems too.
green
- inexperienced, immature He is rather green and
doesn`t have enough experience to drive the large piece of machinery yet.
green belt
- an area of fields and trees around a town The city
has a policy of increasing the green belt around the city.
green thumb
- a talent for gardening, ability to make things
grow She has a green thumb and is able to grow one of the best gardens
in our neighborhood.
green with envy
- very jealous, full of envy I was green with envy
when I heard that she would be going to London for a week while I had to stay
and work.
horse of a different color
- something totally separate and different I know that
he would like to discuss that issue now but it is a horse of a different color
and we should discuss it at another time.
in the black
- successful or profitable The company has been in the
black since they began to adopt many new ideas to cut costs.
in the red
- lose money, unprofitable The company has been in the
red for three years now - ever since their exports to Asia decreased by 35 per
cent.
look at (see) the world through rose-colored
glasses
- see only the good things about something, be too
optimistic He always looks at the world through rose-colored glasses
and is never able to understand that some people are dishonest.
off-color
- in bad taste, rude, dirty He told an off-color joke
at the party that made his wife very angry.
once in a blue moon
- rarely We go out for Italian food once in a blue
moon although we enjoy it very much.
out of the blue
- without any warning, by surprise I don`t understand
what is the matter. Right out of the blue he decided to quit his job and go and
live in Europe.
paint the town red
- go out and party and have a good time When my cousin
came to visit us we decided to go out and paint the town red.
pink slip
- termination notice from a job I received my pink
slip last week and am now looking for a new job.
pot calling the kettle black
- the person who is criticizing someone else is as guilty as the
person he accuses She was criticizing me for not looking for a new job
but that is like the pot calling the kettle black. She isn`t looking for a new
job either.
red herring
- an unimportant matter that draws attention away from the main
subject Suddenly talking about the strike was a red herring and didn't
do anything to deal with today's problems.
red-letter day
- a day that is memorable because of some important
event It was a red-letter day when she finally received her graduation
diploma.
red tape
- excessive formalities in official business Many
businesses have been complaining about the amount of red tape that they must
deal with in order to get anything done with the government.
roll out the red carpet
- greet a person with great respect, give a big
welcome When the King of Jordon visited Washington, they rolled out
the red carpet and gave him a great welcome.
see red
- become very angry He really saw red last night when
I told him that I wouldn`t be coming to work today.
show one`s true colors
- show what one is really like I know that she doesn`t
like me but she was showing her true colors when she began yelling at me on the
telephone.
tickled pink
- be very pleased, thrill, delight She was tickled
pink that you made the effort to go and visit her when you were in town.
white elephant
- a useless possession The new stereo that he bought
is a white elephant and he doesn`t need it at all.
white as a ghost
- very pale because of fear, shock, illness etc. My
sister became white as a ghost when she saw the man at the window.
white lie
- a harmless lie (told to be polite or to do something not
seriously wrong) I told my boss a white lie and said that I was sick
yesterday when actually I wasn`t.
white sale
- the selling at a reduced price of towels or sheets
etc. We went to the white sale at the department store in order to buy
some new sheets before my parents come to visit.
with flying colors
- with great or total success She passed her course
with flying colors and now wants to go out and celebrate.
yellow-bellied
- extremely timid, cowardly He is a yellow-bellied
coward and never is willing to fight for what is right.
yellow streak
- cowardice in one`s character He has a yellow streak
running down his back and is not a good person to expect to support you when
things become difficult. 
Idiom Quizzes - Colors
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