Idioms W	Back to Vocabulary..
Waiting in the wings If someone is waiting in the wings, or in the wings, they are in the background, but nearby, ready to act on short notice
Wake up and smell the coffee When someone doesn't realise what is really happening or is not paying enough attention to events around them, you can tell them to wake up and smell the coffee
Wake up call A wake-up call is a warning of a threat or a challenge, especially when it means that people will have to change their behaviour to meet it
Walk a fine line If you have to walk a fine line, you have to be very careful not to annoy or anger people or groups that are competing
Walk in the park An undertaking that is easy is a walk in the park
Walk on egg shells If you have to walk on eggshells when with someone, you have to be very careful because they get angry or offended very easily
Walk the green mile Someone or something that is walking the green mile is heading towards the inevitable
Walk the plank If someone walks the plank, they are going toward their own destruction or downfall
Walking encyclopedia A very knowledgeable person is a walking encyclopedia
Walking on air If you are walking on  air, you are so happy that you feel as if you could float
Walking time bomb A person whose behaviour is erratic and totally unpredictable is a walking time-bomb
War chest A war chest is a fund that can be used to finance a campaign like and election or for use in emergencies or unexpected times of difficulty
War of words A war of words is a bitter argument between people or organisations, etc
Warm the cockles of your heart If something warms the cockles of your heart, it makes you feel happy
Warpath If someone is on the warpath, they are very angry about something and will do anything to get things sorted the way they want
Wash your hands of something If you wash your hands of something, you disassociate yourself and accept no responsibility for what will happen
Waste not want not If you don't waste things, you are less likely to end up lacking
Waste of space If a person is referred to as a 'waste of space', it means he is not worth very much
Watch grass grow If something is like watching grass grow, it is really boring
Water off a ducks back If criticism or something similar is like water off a duck's back to somebody, they aren't affected by it in the slightest
Water under the bridge If something belongs to the past and isn't important or troubling any more, it is water under the bridge
Watering hole A watering hole is a pub
Watery grave Someone who has gone to a watery grave has drowned
Wear your heart on your sleeve Someone who wears their heart on their sleeve shows their emotions and feelings publicly
Weather the storm If you weather a storm, you get through a crisis or hard times
Weight off your shoulders If something is a weight off your shoulders, you have relieved yourself of a burden, normally something that has been troubling you or worrying you
Well heeled Someone who is well-heeled is rich
Wet behind the ears Someone who is wet behind the ears is either very young or inexperienced
Wet blanket A wet blanket is someone who tries to spoil other people's fun
Wet your whistle If you are thirsty and have an alcoholic drink, you wet your whistle
Whale of a time If you have a whale of a time, you really enjoy yourself
What goes round comes round This saying means that if people do bad things to other people, bad things will happen to them
What will be will be The expression what will be will be is used to describe the notion that fate will decide the outcome of a course of events
What's good for the goose is good for the gander This idiom means that all people should be treated the same way and not be subjected to different standards
Whatever floats your boat When people say this, they mean that you should do whatever makes you happy
Wheels fall off When the wheels fall off something, it goes wrong or fails
When Hell freezes over An impossible or very unlikely situation or event
When in Rome do as the Romans do This idiom means that when you are visiting a different place or culture, you should try to follow their customs and practices
When it rains it pours This idiom means that when things go wrong, a lot of things go wrong at the same time
When pigs fly Means there is not much chance of something happening
When the chickens come home to roost When a person pays dearly for something bad he or she did in the past, the chickens come home to roost
Where there's a will there's a way This idiom means that if people really want to do something, they will manage to find a way of doing it
Where there's smoke there's fire When there is an indication or sign of something bad, usually the indication is correct
Whet your appetite If something whets your appetite, it interests you and makes you want more of it
Which came first the chicken or the egg This idiomatic expression is used when it is not clear who or what caused something
Whilst the cats away the mice will play People whose behaviour is strictly controlled go over the top when the authority is not around
Whistle for it If someone says that you can whistle for something, they are determined to ensure that you don't get it
Whistle stop tour A whistle-stop tour is when someone visits a number of places quickly, not stopping for long
Whistle in the dark If someone is whistling in the dark, they believe in a positive result, even though everybody else is sure it will not happen
White as a sheet A bad shock can make somebody go as white as a sheet
White as snow If something or someone is as white as snow, they are perfect or completely uncorrupted and honest
White elephant A white elephant is an expensive burden; something that costs far too much money to run
White feather If someone shows a white feather, they are cowards
White lie If you tell a white lie, you lie in order not to hurt someone's feelings
Who wears the pants The person who wears the trousers in a relationship is the dominant person who controls things
Whole kit and caboodle The whole kit and caboodle means 'everything' required or involved in something
Whole new ball game If something's a whole new ball game, it is completely new or different
Whole nine yards The whole nine yards means means everything that is necessary or required for something
Whole shebang The whole shebang includes every aspect of something
Why keep a dog and bark yourself There's no need to do something yourself when you have somebody to do it for you, usually trivial matters
Wide berth If you give someone a wide berth, you keep yourself well away from them because they are dangerous
Wide of the mark If something is wide of the mark, it is inaccurate or incorrect
Wild goose chase A wild goose chase is a waste of time- time spent trying to do something unsuccessfully
Will of the wisp Something that deceives by its appearance is a will-o’-the-wisp; it looks good, but turns out to be a disappointment
Win by a nose If somebody wins by a nose, they only just beat the others
Window dressing If something is done to pretend to be dealing with an issue or problem, rather than actually dealing with it, it is window dressing
Wing and a prayer If you do something on a wing and a prayer, you try to do something and hope you'll succeed even though you have very little chance of success
Wipe the floor with If you wipe the floor with someone, you destroy the arguments or defeat them easily
Wipe the smile off someone's face If you wipe the smile of someone's face, you do something to make someone feel less pleased with themselves
With a heavy hand If someone does something with a heavy hand, they do it in a strict way, exerting a lot of control
With a heavy heart To do something with regret or sadness
With child If a woman's with child, she's pregnant
With flying colours If you pass something with flying colours, you pass easily, with a very high mark or grade
With friends like that who needs enemies This expression is used when people behave badly or treat someone badly that they are supposed to be friends with
Whither on the vine If something withers on the vine, it fails to get the intended result, doesn't come to fruition
Within a whisker If you come within a whisker of doing something, you very nearly manage to do it but  don't succeed
Without a hitch If something happens without a hitch, nothing at all goes wrong
Wolf in sheep's clothing A wolf in sheep's clothing is something dangerous that looks quite safe and innocent
Wood for the trees If someone can't see the wood for the trees, they get so caught up in small details that they fail to understand the bigger picture
Word of mouth If something becomes known by word of mouth, it is because people are talking about it, not through publicity, etc
Words fail me If words fail you, you can't find the words to express what you are trying to say
Works like a charm If something works like a charm, it works perfectly
Work like a Trojan If someone works like a Trojan, they work very hard
Work the system If people work the system, they exploit the state or similar setup to their advantage
Work your fingers to the bone If you work your fingers to the bone, you work extremely hard on something
Work your socks off If you work your socks off, you work very hard
Work your tail off If you work your tail off, you work extremely hard
World at your feet If everything is going well and the future looks full of opportunity, you have the world at your feet
World is your oyster When the world is your oyster, you are getting everything you want from life
Worms eye view A worms eye view of something is the view from below, either physically or socially
Worse for wear If something's worse for wear, it has been used for a long time and, consequently, isn't in very good condition, or a person is drunk
Worse things happen at sea This idiomatic expression is used as a way of telling someone not to worry so much about their problems
Worth a shot If something is worth a shot, it is worth trying as there is some chance of success
Worth your salt Someone who is worth their salt deserves respect
Wouldn't touch it with a barge pole If you wouldn't touch something with a barge pole, you would not consider being involved under any circumstances
Writing's on the wall If the writing's on the wall for something, it is doomed to fail
Written all over your face If someone has done something wrong or secret, but cannot hide it in their expression, it is written all over their face
Written in stone If something is written in stone, it is permanent and cannot be changed
Wrong end of the stick If someone has got the wrong end of the stick, they have misunderstood what someone has said to them
Wrong foot If you start something on the wrong foot, you start badly