Bird Idioms and Phrases

List of Bird Idioms in English

List of 27 commonly used insect and bird idioms and phrases in English.

(Bird in a) Gilded (Golden) Cage
A Home Bird
A Rare Bird
A Little Bird Told Me
Birds of A Feather
Bird’s-Eye View
Early Bird
Kill Two Birds with One Stone
Night Owl
A Lame Duck
A Sitting Duck
Fox In The Henhouse (Chicken house)
Get One’s Ducks in a Row
Sitting Duck
Ugly Duckling
Swan Song
Eager Beaver
Eagle-Eyed
Feather One’s Nest
Flew The Coop
He Would Put Legs Under A Chicken
Sick As A Parrot
To Have Butterflies In Your Stomach
What’s Good for the Goose Is Good for the Gander
Wild Goose Chase
Eat Crow
(Someone’s) Goose Is Cooked

Insect & Bird Idioms with Meaning & Examples

List of insect and bird idioms in English with meaning and example sentences.

(Bird in a) Gilded (Golden) Cage

Meaning: In a luxurious but confining situation
Example: Theresa married a rich guy, but all she does is sit at home and log on to social media. She’s a bird in a gilded cage.

Note: This is from an old American popular song, Bird in a Gilded Cage.

A Home Bird

Meaning: Somebody who prefers to spend his social and free time at home
Example: Sharah’s a home bird really.

A Rare Bird

Meaning: Somebody or something of a kind that one seldom sees
Example: Diane Johnson’s book is that rare bird, an American novel of manners.

A Little Bird Told Me

Meaning: I don’t wish to divulge where I got the information
Example: How do you know my boyfriend went out with someone else? – A little bird told me.

Birds of A Feather

Meaning: People having similar characters, backgrounds, interests, or beliefs
Example: Tina and Marlene are birds of a feather. They like the same clothes, songs, and books.

Note: This is often used in the expression birds of a feather flock together.

Bird’s-Eye View

Meaning: A view from above; a broad perspective on something
Example: For a bird’s-eye view of the city, you can take a cable car to the top of the mountain.

Early Bird

Meaning: Someone who does something prior to the usual time, or someone who gets up early.
Example: If you think prices at restaurants are too high, many of them offer early bird discounts for people who eat before 5 p.m.

Note: The early bird catches the worm (proverb, meaning people who are very prompt reap rewards).

Kill Two Birds with One Stone

Meaning: Act in such a way as to produce two desirable effects
Example: If we change suppliers, we’ll kill two birds with one stone: we’ll increase profits, and we’ll squeeze our rivals’ supply chain.

Night Owl

Meaning: Somebody who often stays up late or is active at night can be called a night owl.
Example: My husband’s a night owl, but I like to be in bed by 10 o’clock.

A Lame Duck

Meaning: A person or enterprise (often a business) that is not a success and that has to be helped.
Example: The company started as a lame duck that was saved by an innovative entrepreneur who decided to take some risks and go in a new direction.

A Sitting Duck

Meaning: A person or object in a vulnerable position that is easy to attack or injure.
Example: When my car broke down in a bad neighborhood, I felt like a sitting duck, just waiting to get robbed.

Fox In The Henhouse (Chicken house)

Meaning: Someone who causes trouble
Example: The boss’s son is a fox in the henhouse. He does no actual work, and all he does is stir up problems.

Get One’s Ducks in a Row

Meaning: Have everything organized; get oneself organized
Example: Sorry about all the emails. I’m just trying to get my ducks in a row before I go on vacation.

Sitting Duck

Meaning: Something or someone easily attacked or criticized
Example: Considering the weakness of our offensive line this year, our quarterback is often a sitting duck.

Ugly Duckling

Meaning: An awkward child or young person who grows into a beautiful person
Example: Sarah was such an ugly duckling at the start. Now she’s a beautiful dancer .

Note: This is old-fashioned. (bird idioms)

Swan Song

Meaning: A final appearance
Example: This game will be the quarterback’s swan song – he’s retiring after this season.

Note: This comes from the (probably mistaken) belief that swans sing before dying.

Eager Beaver

Meaning: The term eager beaver refers to a person who is hardworking and enthusiastic, sometimes considered overzealous.
Example: Give that big project to the new girl, she’s a real eager beaver.

Eagle-Eyed

Meaning: Having sharp vision
Example: My eagle-eyed sister spotted the car in the parking lot before anyone else did.

Feather One’s Nest

Meaning: To take advantage of one’s position to benefit oneself
Example: Most politicians in our country don’t have the public good in mind-they’re just interested in feathering their nests.

Flew The Coop

Meaning: Left, escaped
Example: You’d better pay him more, or one day you’ll come to the office and find that he flew the coop.

Note: This is more common in North America. You can say fly the coop, but the past tense is more common.

He Would Put Legs Under A Chicken

Meaning: He will talk your head off; he is very talkative
Example: Get ready to do a lot of listening if you go out to lunch with Karl – he would put legs under a chicken.

Sick As A Parrot

Meaning: Very disappointed
Example: I was sick as a parrot after Man United lost last night.

Note: This expression is British.

To Have Butterflies In Your Stomach

Meaning: To be nervous
Example: I almost didn’t go on stage and perform tonight because I had butterflies in my stomach.

What’s Good for the Goose Is Good for the Gander

Meaning: What’s OK For A Man is OK For A Woman, too
Example: My boyfriend complains when I go out, but then I found out he went out with his friends every night this week. What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.

Note: This bird idiom is rather old-fashioned. Still more old-fashioned is an earlier version, what’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander.

Wild Goose Chase

Meaning: An impossible or futile search or task
Example: I think this is a wild goose chase. This library doesn’t have the books we need.

Eat Crow

Meaning: To admit one was wrong, and accept humiliation
Example: I am ready to eat crow. My prediction about the game was completely wrong.

(Someone’s) Goose Is Cooked

Meaning: In serious trouble, with no hope of improvement
Example: After losing two sets to the invincible Djokovic, the tennis player’s goose was cooked.

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