Neck Idioms


break one`s back/neck (to do something)
- do all one possibly can, work very hard to do something
I broke my neck to try and get the report finished on time.

breathe down (someone`s) neck
- watch someone closely (often by standing right behind them), pressure someone to do something
My boss has been breathing down my neck all day to try and get me to finish the report.

a crick in one's back/neck
- a painful cramp in one's back/neck
I woke up this morning with a crick in my neck.

dead from the neck up
- very stupid
My boss seems to be dead from the neck up.

a kink in one's neck
- a cramp in one's neck that causes pain
I have a kink in my neck and it hurts every time that I turn my head.

a millstone around (someone's) neck
- a burden or handicap for someone
My parents' condominium is a millstone around their neck and I hope that they can sell it.

neck and neck
- exactly even in a race or contest
The two horses were running neck and neck at the end of the race.

a pain in the neck
- an annoying or bothersome person or event
The customer is a pain in the neck and is always complaining about something.

risk one's neck (to do something)
- risk harm in order to do something
The fireman risked his neck to save the young child.

save (someone`s) neck/skin
- save someone from danger/trouble/embarrassment
The worker tried to save his own neck without thinking of any other people.

stick one`s neck out (for someone or something)
- do something dangerous or risky for someone
My friend will never stick his neck out to try and help other people.

up to one's neck/ears/eyeballs (in something)
- having a lot of something, much involved/busy with something
I am up to my neck in work at the moment and won't be able to attend the dinner tonight.

wring (someone's) neck
- be extremely angry at someone
I plan to wring my friend's neck for breaking my new laptop computer.

a yoke around (someone's) neck
- a burden, something that oppresses people
The legal problems of my friend were a yoke around his neck which he wanted to deal with.

Shoulder Idioms


carry the weight of the world on one's shoulders
- appear to be dealing with all the problems in the whole world
My friend has a lot of stress and thinks that he is carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.

get the cold shoulder (from someone)
- be ignored, be rejected
Yesterday, one of the women who I work with gave me the cold shoulder all day.

give (someone) the cold shoulder
- ignore someone, reject someone
The office staff gave me the cold shoulder when I did not go to the farewell party.

have a chip on one's shoulder
- have a tendency to try to get in a conflict with others
Our supervisor has a chip on his shoulder and is not an easy person to work with.

have broad shoulders
- have the ability to work hard and take on responsibilities and accept criticism (because you are strong with broad shoulders)
The man has broad shoulders and does much more than his share of work in our company.

head and shoulders above (someone or something)
- be superior to someone or something
Our soccer coach is head and shoulders above the other coaches in the city.

look over one's shoulder
- be worried that something dangerous or bad may happen to you
I always look over my shoulder when I am walking next to a construction site.

on (someone's) shoulders
- someone's responsibility
I don't want to have the failure of the project on my shoulders.

put one's shoulder to the wheel
- get busy and do some work
We must put our shoulders to the wheel and get our work done on time.

rub elbows/shoulders with (someone)
- be in the same place as others, meet and mix with others
We went to the party in order to rub shoulders with some interesting artists.

a shoulder to cry on
- someone who you can tell about your problems and ask for sympathy and advice
I gave my friend a shoulder to cry on when I met him at the coffee shop.

shoulder to shoulder
- side by side, with a shared purpose
The children were standing shoulder to shoulder during the exercise class.

straight from the shoulder
- an open and honest way of speaking
He was speaking straight from the shoulder when he told the workers about the possible factory closing.

Skin Idioms


as soft as a baby's bottom
- very soft and smooth
My new silk pajamas are as soft as a baby's bottom.

get under (someone`s) skin
- bother/irritate someone
She is beginning to get under my skin with her constant complaining about the noise.

goose bumps
- the bumpy skin (like a goose) that one gets because of excitement or fear
I got goose bumps when the woman began to talk about her sick child.

jump out of one`s skin
- be badly frightened, be very surprised
I almost jumped out of my skin when I saw my boyfriend at the movie theater with another girl.

save (someone`s) neck/skin
- save someone from danger/trouble/embarrassment
The worker tried to save his own neck without thinking of any other people.

skin and bones
- a person or animal that is very thin/skinny
The dog was skin and bones after his owner stopped giving him food.

skin-deep
- only on the surface, not having any deep or honest meaning
I believe that the speaker's interest in the environment is only skin-deep.

soaked to the skin
- one's clothing is wet right through to the skin
I was soaked to the skin after walking in the rain for only a few minutes.

thick-skinned
- insensitive, not easily upset or hurt
You really must be thick-skinned if you decide to get involved in politics.

thin-skinned
- easily upset or hurt, very sensitive
My friend is rather thin-skinned and is always upset about something that someone may have said to her.