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The E drawer
35 phrases beginning with E.
- Easier said than done A proposal or instruction sounds simple but is substantially more difficult to carry out in practice. Commonly used as a response to advice that makes…
- Easy as pie Super simple or effortless, a breeze.
- Eat crow To admit a humiliating mistake and take the bitter hit, swallowing pride like a tough, unpalatable bird-grudgingly accepting defeat.
- Eat humble pie Admit that you were wrong or accept defeat, usually after having spoken or behaved with too much confidence.
- Eat like a bird To nibble small or light, barely eat.
- Eat like a horse To eat a huge amount, hearty and big.
- Eat like a pig Eat a large amount, or eat in a way the speaker considers greedy, hurried, or messy. Informal and disapproving when aimed at someone else. It may…
- Eat out of house and home To gobble all the food or drain a place.
- Eat out of your hand To be easily controlled or swayed, tamed.
- Eat your hat To admit a big shock or wrong, stunned.
- Eat your heart out A taunting or boastful phrase urging jealousy or envy, suggesting someone should feel overwhelmed by another's success, beauty, or flair-figuratively…
- Eat your words To retract a bold claim or boast, swallowing it back.
- Eat, drink and be merry Enjoy food, drink, and present pleasures, sometimes because the future is uncertain. Can celebrate present enjoyment or criticize short-sighted…
- Eaten out of house and home Said of a person, animal or habit whose consumption is so large it ruins the household footing the bill; today usually hyperbole with affectionate…
- Echo chamber An environment, especially in media or social media, where people encounter only opinions and information that repeat and reinforce what they already…
- Egg on your face The embarrassment of being left looking foolish after a public error, a failed prediction, or a boast that backfires. It almost always appears in the…
- Egg someone on To urge, provoke or goad someone into doing something, especially something risky, foolish or out of character. The 'egg' has nothing to do with hen's…
- Elbow grease Strenuous physical effort, especially vigorous rubbing, scrubbing, or polishing. A joking coinage that treats sweat as a grease or polish applied with…
- Elbow room Enough free space to move, work or operate comfortably without crowding or restriction - originally the literal room a person needs to use their…
- Elephant in the room A major, obvious problem that everyone present is aware of but deliberately avoids mentioning because doing so would be embarrassing or uncomfortable…
- Emotional labour Work that requires managing your own emotions, and the feelings you display to others, as part of doing the job - for example a flight attendant who…
- Empty nester A parent whose children have grown and gone - the household suddenly quiet, the bedrooms suddenly spare, the syndrome optional. The word frames the…
- Enfant terrible Originally a child whose inopportune, outrageous remarks embarrass the adults around them; in modern use, chiefly a person, often a conspicuously…
- Enshittification The steady decay of an online platform or service, which first courts users, then degrades their experience to benefit business customers, and finally…
- Epicurean Devoted to refined pleasure, especially the table - the connoisseur's word for luxurious taste in food, wine, and comfort. The capital-letter…
- Ersatz Describing a substitute or imitation, nearly always one judged inferior to the real thing - synthetic coffee, fake affection, a mock version of a…
- Esprit de l'escalier The perfect retort that occurs to you only once it is too late to use it, conventionally on the stairs as you leave the party. The register is bookish…
- Eureka An exclamation of triumph at a sudden discovery or breakthrough, meaning 'I have found it.' It also serves as a modifier ('a eureka moment'). The word…
- Even Stevens Exactly equal or fairly balanced, especially once debts, favours or points have been settled between two people, so that nothing is owed on either…
- Every cloud has a silver lining A hopeful reassurance that even in bad situations, there's a positive aspect or potential for good to emerge, encouraging resilience and optimism. It…
- Every dog has its day Everyone gets a chance at success or revenge eventually, no matter how unlikely.
- Every man for himself A scramble where each fights alone, no help given.
- Every trick in the book Using all known tactics or ploys, pulling every move.
- Exit stage left To leave a scene, job or situation, either pointedly and with a flourish or, in its quieter register, discreetly and without fuss. Almost always…
- Eyes bigger than your stomach Wanting more than you can handle or consume, overreaching greed.