Idioms: animal and food sayings Our language is full of rather odd sayings, or idioms, and terms associated with the body forms a major part of this. Phrases such as ‘rule of thumb’ and ‘skeleton in the cupboard’ are often used in spoken language and are quite intriguing to children who have not come across them before. One of my favourites is ‘bone of contention’. As well as working out the meanings of these, there is considerable scope in trying to find out how they originated. Another subject with many idioms is the animal kingdom. ‘A fly in the ointment’, ‘the lion’s share’ and ‘ants in your pants’ are just three sayings which conjure up wonderful pictures. There are many more, some of which are included in our latest sets of worksheets on idioms. They can be found in the English, Vocabulary category and are well worth a visit. Go to body sayings and animal sayings.