10 Idioms with a Halloween Theme
  1. Not a cat in hell’s chance – no chance at all
    Ex: We didn’t have a cat in hell’s chance of winning that contract.
  2. Stick the knife in – to do or say something very unpleasant or unkind to someone
    Ex: The Sales Director really stuck the knife in when he told Tom that his sales pitch was the worst he’d ever seen.
  3. Stab in the back – to stab someone in the back means to betray them
    Ex: After all I did for him, he stabbed me in the back when he told all those lies about me.
  4. Skeleton in the Cupboard – a scandal that is kept secret
    Ex: James has a few skeletons in his cupboard and is terrified that he will be found out.
  5. Skeleton staff – the fewest number of people needed in an office
    Ex: We always operate with a skeleton staff over the Christmas period.
  6. Scared Stiff – so scared that you cannot move
    Ex. I am scared stiff of walking on ice.
  7. Scare the pants off someone – to frighten someone a lot
    Ex: The film “Nightmare on Elm Street” scared the pants off me.
  8. Make the blood run cold – to totally scare you
    Ex: The screams in the woods made my blood run cold.
  9. In cold blood – to act in cold blood is to do something without any emotion and deliberately
    Ex: The victim was shot in cold blood.
  10. A witch – hunt – an investigation carried out under the pretext of uncovering illegal activity but is actually used to harass people with different views.
    Ex: The Government has been accused of carrying out a witch-hunt on small businesses.