HEALTH IDIOMS

A new lease of life	If someone has a new lease of life, they have a new enthusiasm for living.
A pain in the neck Informal	You can say someone is a pain in the neck if they annoy you, or something is a pain in the neck if you don't like doing it.
A shot in the arm Informal	You can say something is a shot in the arm if it gives a person or an organisation renewed energy or enthusiasm.
Bag of bones	To say that someone is a bag of bones means that they are extremely thin. "When he came home from the war he was a bag of bones."
Be on one's last legs	If you are on your last legs, you are in a very weak condition or about to die.
Do you the world of good	If something does you the world of good, it makes you feel a lot better.
Fresh as a daisy	If you feel as fresh as a daisy, you feel energetic and lively.
Get yourself back into shape	To get yourself back into shape, you need to take exercise in order to become fit and healthy again. "She decided she'd have to get back into shape before looking for a new job."
Hard of hearing	If you are hard of hearing, you can't hear very well. "You'll have to speak louder to Mr. Jones. He's a bit hard of hearing."
Ill at ease	If you're ill at ease, you feel tense or you can't relax in a situation.
In bad shape	A person who is in bad shape is in poor physical condition. "I really am in bad shape. I need to get some exercise."
Junk food	Food that is bad for us because it contains large amounts of harmful substances like artificial colouring, preservatives, salt, refined sugar, and so on.
Just what the doctor ordered Informal	You can say something was just what the doctor ordered when it was exactly what was needed.
Kick the habit l	If you kick the habit, you manage to stop doing something that has become a bad habit.
Keep body and soul together	If someone is able to keep body and soul together, they manage to survive. "He was unemployed and homeless, but he somehow managed to keep body and soul together."
Land of the living	This is a humorous way of saying that someone is still alive. "Hi there! It's good to see you're still in the land of the living!"
Like death warmed up	If you look or feel like death warmed up, you look or feel very ill or tired. "My boss told me to go home. He said I looked like death warmed up."
Living on borrowed time	This expression refers to a period of time after an illness or accident which could have caused death. "After heart surgery, some patients say they're living on borrowed time."
Look the picture of health	To look the picture of health means to look completely or extremely healthy. "Nice to see you again Mr. Brown. I must say you look the picture of health."
Meet your maker	This expression is used to say (often humorously) that someone has died. "Poor old Mr. Potter has gone to meet his maker."
On the mend	Someone who is on the mend is getting better after an illness. "My grandmother has not been very well this last while but she's on the mend now."
Go nuts	To say that a person has gone nuts means that they have become completely foolish, eccentric or mad.
Go under the knife	If a person goes under the knife, they have surgery. "I'm not worried about the anaesthetic. I've been under the knife several times."
Off colour	If you are off colour, you look or feel ill. "What's the matter with you Tom? You look a bit off colour today."
One foot in the grave	A person who is either very old or very ill and close to death is said to have one foot in the grave. "It's no use talking to the owner. The poor man has got one foot in the grave."
One's number is up	To say that one's number is up means that a person is either in serious difficulty and something bad is going to happen, or the time has come when they will die. "When he had a second heart attack, we thought his number was up!"
Out of sorts	If someone is out of sorts, they are upset and irritable and not feeling well. "The baby is out of sorts today. Perhaps he's cutting a tooth."
Have pins and needles	To have pins and needles is to have a tingling sensation in a part of the body, for example an arm or a leg, when it has been in the same position for a long time.
In the pink of health	If you are in the pink of health, you are in excellent physical condition or extremely healthy. "Caroline looked in the pink of health after her holiday."
Pop one's clogs	This is a euphemistic way of saying that a person is dead. "Nobody lives in that house since old Sam popped his clogs."
In the prime of one's life	A time in one's life when a person is the most successful or in their best physical condition is called the prime of one's life. "At the age of 75, the singer is not exactly in the prime of his life!"
Pull through	If you pull through, you recover from a serious illness "My grandmother got pneumonia but she pulled through.".
Pushing up the daisies	If you say of someone that they are pushing up the daisies, you mean that they are dead. "Old Johnny Barnes? He's been pushing up the daisies for over 10 years!"
Tacked with pain	When someone is suffering from severe pain, they are racked with pain. "The soldier was so badly injured that he was racked with pain."
Ready to drop	Someone who is ready to drop, is nearly too exhausted to stay standing. "I've been shopping all day with Judy. I'm ready to drop!"
Recharge your batteries	When you recharge your batteries, you take a break from a tiring or stressful activity in order to relax and recover your energy. "Sam is completely over-worked. He needs a holiday to recharge his batteries."
Right as rain	If someone is (as) right as rain, they are in excellent health or condition. "I called to see my grandmother, thinking she was ill, but she was (as) right as rain!"
Run down	A person who is run down is in poor physical condition. "He's completely run down from lack of proper food."
spare-part surgery	This term refers to surgery in which a diseased or non-functioning organ of a person is replaced with a transplanted or artificial organ.
Spare tyre	If a person has a spare tyre, they have a roll of flesh around the waist. "I'd better go on a diet - I'm getting a spare tyre!"
Take a turn for the worse	If a person who is ill takes a turn for the worse, their illness becomes more serious. "I'm afraid the news is not good. The patient has taken a turn for the worse."
Touch-and-go	If something is touch-and-go, the outcome or result is uncertain. "Dave's life is out of danger now, but it was touch-and-go after the operation."
Under the weather	If you are under the weather, you are not feeling very well. "I'm not going to the party. I'm a bit under the weather today."
Up and about	If someone is up and about, they are out of bed or have recovered after an illness. "She was kept in hospital for a week but she's up and about again."
On your last legs | on its last legs Informal	If you say you're on your last legs, it can mean you're close to exhaustion, or it can mean you're close to death. If a thing is on its last legs, it's close to breaking or wearing out.
Recharge your batteries	You recharge your batteries if you do something to regain your energy after a period of hard work.
Sick as a dog	If you're as sick as a dog, you're very sick.
Stick out like a sore thumb | stand out like a sore thumb	If someone sticks out like a sore thumb, or stands out like a sore thumb, everyone notices them because they're not the same as the people around them.
Teething problems | teething troubles	If someone or something is having teething problems, or teething troubles, they're having problems during the early stages of something.
Under the weather	If you are under the weather, you're not feeling well.
Verbal diarrhoea Informal	If someone has verbal diarrhoea, they can't stop talking.
Vim and vigor	If you have vim and vigor, you have lots of energy and enthusiasm for life.
Warts and all	If you show something warts and all, you show it exactly as it is without trying to hide any of its faults or weaknesses.
Weak at the knees	If you go weak at the knees, you feel an emotion so strongly that it makes you feel unstable on your feet.
You are what you eat.	You can say "you are what you eat" when you want to point out the connection between food and health.
Full of beans	A person who is full of beans is lively, active and healthy. "You'd never guess his age. He's still full of beans!"
Black out	If you black out, you lose consciousness. "When Tony saw the needle, he blacked out."
As blind as a bat	Someone whose vision is very poor, or who is unable to see anything, is (as) blind as a bat. "Without his glasses the old man is as blind as a bat."
Blue around the gills (also green or pale around the gills)	If a person looks blue around the gills, they look unwell or sick. "You should sit down. You look a bit blue around the gills."
Feel blue	To feel blue means to have feelings of deep sadness or depression. "My old neighbour has been feeling blue since her dog died."
Kick the bucket	To kick the bucket is a light-hearted way of talking about death. "He will inherit when his grandfather kicks the bucket."
Cast iron stomach	If you can eat all sorts of food and drink what you like, without any indigestion, discomfort or bad effects, it can be said that you have a cast iron stomach. "I don't know how you can eat that spicy food. You must have a cast iron stomach!"
Clean bill of health	If a person has a clean bill of health, they have a report or certificate declaring that their health is satisfactory.
Be off colour	If you are off colour, you are looking or feeling ill. "You look a bit off colour. Are you feeling all right?"
Dead as a doornail	This expression is used to stress that a person or thing is unquestionably dead. "As soon as the golf ball hit the rabbit, he was dead as a doornail."
Dice with death	If you put your life at risk by doing something very dangerous, you dice with death. "Going mountain-climbing alone is dicing with death."
die with one's boots on	A person who dies with their boots on dies while still leading an active life." He says he'll never retire. He'd rather die with his boots on!"
My dogs are barking	When a person says that their dogs are barking they mean that their feet are hurting. "I've been shopping all day. My dogs are barking."
Drop like flies	If people drop like flies, they fall ill or die in large numbers. "There's an epidemic of flu at the moment. Senior citizens are dropping like flies."
Hit the dust	The expression hit the dust is a humorous way of referring to death. "You can have my computer when I hit the dust!"
Back on one's feet	If you are back on your feet, after an illness or an accident, you are physically healthy again.
As fit as a fiddle	A person who is as fit as a fiddle is in an excellent state of health or physical condition. "My grandfather is still fit as a fiddle at the age of 90."
A frog in one's throat	A person who has a frog in their throat is unable to speak clearly because their throat is sore, or because they want to cough.
Hair of the dog that bit you	This expression means that you use as a remedy a small amount of what made you ill, for example a drink of alcohol when recovering from drinking too much. "Here, have a drop of this. It's a little hair of the dog that bit you!"
Hale and hearty	Someone, especially an old person, who is hale and hearty is in excellent health "My grandmother is still hale and hearty at the age of ninety."
A hangover	To have a hangover means to suffer from the unpleasant after-effects of drinking too much alcohol.