Example: Let the cat out of the bag

Problem: She let the cat out of the bag about the surprise party.

Solution:

1. She accidentally revealed the secret.

Example: The elephant in the room

Problem: Nobody wanted to talk about the elephant in the room—his recent job loss.

Solution:

1. Everyone ignored the obvious problem.

Example: A fish out of water

Problem: He felt like a fish out of water at the fancy party.

Solution:

1. He was uncomfortable and didn't fit in.

Example: Hold your horses

Problem: Hold your horses! We haven't finished yet.

Solution:

1. Wait and be patient.

Example: Let sleeping dogs lie

Problem: Don't mention the argument again—let sleeping dogs lie.

Solution:

1. Don't bring up past issues.

Example: Raining cats and dogs

Problem: It's raining cats and dogs outside!

Solution:

1. It's raining very heavily.

Example: Curiosity killed the cat

Problem: Don't ask too many questions—curiosity killed the cat.

Solution:

1. Being too curious can cause problems.

Example: A wild goose chase

Problem: Looking for that old file was a wild goose chase.

Solution:

1. It was a pointless search.

Example: Kill two birds with one stone

Problem: By visiting my parents and going shopping, I killed two birds with one stone.

Solution:

1. I accomplished two tasks at once.

Example: The lion's share

Problem: She did the lion's share of the work on the project.

Solution:

1. She did most of the work.