blow away the cobwebs
blow away the cobwebs :
blow someone away
kill, destroy or defeat someone
have a very strong effect on someone – informal
1998 - Times - It blows me away the way she [a 13-year-old] is already moving through her life.
blow away the cobwebs = clear away the cobwebs
banish a state of lethargy
enliven or refresh yourself
blow your cool
lose your composure
become angry or agitated – informal
blow the doors off
be considerably better or more successful than - North American informal
blow a fuse = blow a gasket
lose your temper – informal
The metaphor is of the failure of an electrical circuit or engine as a result of overheating.
blow the gaff
reveal or let out a plot or secret
The word gaff is recorded from the early 19th century, but its origins are uncertain.
blow great guns
be very windy - informal
blow hot and cold
alternate inconsistently between two moods, attitudes or courses of action
be sometimes enthusiastic, sometimes unenthusiastic about something
This phrase refers to a fable involving a traveller who was offered hospitality by a satyr and offended his host by blowing on his cold fingers to warm them and on his hot soup to cool it.
blow the lid off
remove means of restraint and allow something to get out of control – informal
1995 - Daily Express - Fleiss was taken to court on prostitution charges and threatened to blow the lid off Hollywood by revealing names of all her superstar clients.
blow someone's mind
affect someone very strongly – informal
Blow someone's mind was originally a mid 20th-century expression for the effect of hallucinatory drugs such as LSD.
blow off steam = let off steam
get rid of pent-up energy or emotion – informal
The image here is of the release of excess steam from a steam engine through a valve.
blow your own horn = blow your own horn
talk boastfully about yourself or your achievements – North American
blow your own trumpet
talk openly and boastfully about your achievements
1998 - Spectator - I only mention this to blow my own trumpet. IT was a source of great pride to be reinstated at the specific behest of Britain's most distinguished black radical journalist.
blow a raspberry
make a derisive or contemptuous sound with your lips
This expression is from rhyming slang, where raspberry tart means a fart.
1996 – Observer - It is unthinkable that, this close to a general election, the party is going to blow a raspberry at its leader.
blow someone's socks off = knock someone's socks off
amaze or impress someone – informal
1991 - Barbara Anderson - Girls High Years ago she saw a Hockney. The few lines which sketched the owlish face knocked her socks off.
blow something sky-high
destroy something completely in an explosion – informal
blow your top
lose your temper
Two, chiefly North American, variants are blow your lid and blow your stack.
blow up in your face
(of an action, plan or situation) go drastically wrong with damaging effects to yourself.
blow the whistle on
bring an illicit activity to and end by informing on the person responsible – informal
This idiom comes from football in which the referee blows a whistle to indicate that a player has broken the rules. Those who inform on others engaged in an illicit activity are now referred to as whistle-blowers.
blow with the wind
act according to prevailing circumstances rather than a consistent plan
soften the blow = cushion the blow
make it easier to cope
which way the wind blows
how a situation is likely to develop
blow away the cobwebs :
Idioms Index – Previous Page
