75+ Religion and Ethnicity Idioms

Religion and Ethnicity Idioms

Language is a fascinating tapestry woven from words and phrases that carry meaning beyond their literal definitions. Idioms are a prime example, adding flavor and imagery to our speech.

List of Religion and Ethnicity Idioms

Religion and Ethnicity Idioms with Meaning and Examples

Idiom	Meaning	Examples
Act of God	An uncontrollable event caused by nature	The flooding was considered an act of God.
Adam’s ale	Water	He ordered Adam’s ale instead of soda.
All hell broke loose	Chaos and disorder	When the news broke, all hell broke loose in the office.
Amen	So be it; agreement	Amen to that!
At the bottom of the totem pole	Lowest in rank or importance	She’s always assigned the grunt work; she’s at the bottom of the totem pole.
Baptism of fire	An introduction to a difficult situation	His first day on the job was a baptism of fire.
Believe in the hereafter	Believe in life after death	She strongly believes in the hereafter.
Better the devil you know	Safer to deal with a known person/thing	I’m not sure about the new boss; better the devil you know.
Between the devil and the deep blue sea	A dilemma	It’s between the devil and the deep blue sea: stay in a job you hate or risk unemployment.
Broad church	Inclusive, accommodating	The political party is a broad church, welcoming a range of opinions.
Catch hell	Receive criticism or punishment	If you’re late again, you’ll catch hell from the boss.
Chapter and verse	Detailed information	He knows the report chapter and verse.
Cold day in hell	Highly unlikely to happen	There’s a cold day in hell before she apologizes.
Come hell or high water	Determined to achieve something	Come hell or high water, I’ll finish this project on time.
Cross to bear	A heavy burden or responsibility	Taking care of his sick mother was his cross to bear.
Devil finds work for idle hands	Idle hands often lead to mischief	I gave him chores to do; I don’t want the devil to find work for his idle hands.
Devil is in the detail	Small things matter	Make sure you read the contract thoroughly; the devil is in the detail.
Devil may care	A carefree attitude	He has a devil-may-care attitude about his finances.
Devil’s advocate	Arguing for the opposing side	She played devil’s advocate in the meeting to explore all options.
Doubting Thomas	A skeptic	He’s always the doubting Thomas when it comes to new ideas.
Dry as a wooden god	Completely sober	He’s sworn off alcohol and is dry as a wooden god.
Face your demons	Confront your fears or problems	She needed to face her demons and address her anxiety.
Fall from grace	To lose favor or status	After the scandal, he fell from grace in the eyes of the public.
Fool’s paradise	A false sense of security or happiness	She was living in a fool’s paradise, unaware of the impending dangers.
From your lips to God’s ears	May your wish come true	From your lips to God’s ears: I hope your wish for peace is realized.
Heaven knows	No one knows	Heaven knows what he’s up to.
Heavenly bodies	Beautiful people, stars	The event was attended by many heavenly bodies from the film industry.
Hell for leather	With great speed or energy	They rode hell for leather to reach the finish line first.
Hell in a handcart	Rapid deterioration or decline	The company’s finances are going hell in a handcart.
Holier-than-thou	Self-righteous attitude	He’s always preaching, but he has a holier-than-thou attitude.
Holy smoke!	An exclamation of surprise or amazement	Holy smoke! Look at the size of that fish!
Hope in hell	Little chance of success	There’s not a hope in hell that he’ll apologize.
Hot as Hades	Extremely hot or intense	It was hot as Hades in the desert.
Lap of the gods	Out of one’s control	Whether the project succeeds or fails is in the lap of the gods.
Let the devil take the hindmost	Look out for oneself	It’s a free-for-all situation; let the devil take the hindmost.
Lord willing and the creek don’t rise	If all goes well	Lord willing and the creek don’t rise, we’ll meet again next year.
Man of God	A respected religious leader	The village priest was a man of God.
Man of the cloth	A clergyman	He became a man of the cloth after years of studying theology.
Man proposes, God disposes	Humans make plans, but fate decides	He had everything planned out, but man proposes, God disposes.
Manna from heaven	Unexpected assistance or provision	The scholarship was a manna from heaven for her education.
Move heaven and earth	Do everything possible to achieve something	We’ll move heaven and earth to get the project finished on time.
Ninth circle of hell	The lowest level of difficulty	The meeting was like the ninth circle of hell, with one problem after another.
Not a snowball’s chance in hell	No possibility at all	There’s not a snowball’s chance in hell that she’ll agree to that plan.
Pastoral care	Spiritual support and guidance	The church provided pastoral care to the grieving family.
Poisoned chalice	Something that seems beneficial but is harmful	The promotion turned out to be a poisoned chalice; it came with too much stress.
Poor as a church mouse	Extremely poor	They were poor as church mice and couldn’t afford basic necessities.
Practise what you preach	Follow your own advice	If you’re going to tell others to be punctual, you should practice what you preach.
Preaching to the choir	Trying to convince people who already agree	Telling me to recycle is like preaching to the choir; I already do it.
Prodigal son	One who returns after living a wild life	After years of wild living, he returned home like the prodigal son.
Right church, wrong pew	Close but incorrect	You’re in the right ballpark, but you’re in the right church, wrong pew with your estimate.
Saving grace	The one good quality or thing in a situation	His sense of humor was his saving grace during tough times.
Sell your soul	Betray one’s principles for personal gain	He was willing to sell his soul for a chance at fame.
Seventh heaven	A state of bliss or ecstasy	Winning the championship put him in seventh heaven.
Sing from the same hymn sheet	Be in agreement	We need to sing from the same hymn sheet if we’re going to succeed.
Slough of despond	A state of depression or despair	After losing his job, he fell into a slough of despond.
Speak of the devil!	Mentioning someone just as they appear	Speak of the devil! I was just talking about you.
Tempt providence	Take a risk that could have bad consequences	He decided to tempt providence by driving without a seatbelt.
To err is human, to forgive divine	Forgiveness is a noble quality	To err is human, to forgive divine: don’t hold grudges.
Vale of tears	A place of sadness and suffering	She’s been through a vale of tears since her husband died.
When hell freezes over	Never; highly unlikely	She said she’d apologize when hell freezes over.
Wing and a prayer	Barely managing or surviving	With just a wing and a prayer, they managed to finish the project on time.
Your sins will find you out	You will be discovered or punished for your wrongdoing	Be careful what you do; your sins will find you out.
(A) Snowball’s Chance in Hell	No possibility of success	She has a snowball’s chance in hell of getting that promotion.
(Going to) Hell in a Handbasket	Deteriorating rapidly	Ever since the new manager arrived, everything’s been going to hell in a handbasket.
(The) Devil Is in the Details	Small things are important	Pay attention to the contract; the devil is in the details.
(To) Dance with the Devil	Engage in risky behavior or association	By working with that notorious dealer, he’s dancing with the devil.
All Hell Breaks Loose	Chaos and disorder ensue	When the news broke, all hell broke loose in the office.
All Over Hell’S Half Acre	Everywhere; in many places	He’s been looking all over hell’s half acre for his lost keys.
Angel’s Advocate	Someone who supports the positive side of an issue	She acted as angel’s advocate during the debate.
Baptism by Fire	Introduction to a difficult situation	Her first project at work was a baptism by fire; it was challenging but taught her a lot.
Be A Cold Day In Hell	Something is very unlikely to happen	It will be a cold day in hell before he admits he was wrong.
Cross to Bear	A burden or responsibility	Taking care of his sick mother was his cross to bear.
Devil’s Advocate	One who argues against a cause or position, not necessarily believing in it	She played devil’s advocate to ensure all perspectives were considered.
Hail Mary	A desperate or last-minute attempt	It was a Hail Mary pass, but somehow they managed to score a touchdown.
Is the Pope Catholic?	A sarcastic way of affirming the obvious	Is the Pope Catholic? Of course, I’ll have another slice of pizza.
Not Have a Prayer	No possibility of success	She doesn’t have a prayer of passing the exam without studying.
Sacred Cow	Something considered immune from criticism or questioning	We need to challenge the sacred cows of our organization to foster innovation.

While idioms add color to your communication, it’s important to be mindful of their cultural context. Some idioms might have offensive connotations, so ensure you understand the meaning before using them.

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