Food Idioms - Part 4
Tuesday, April 1, 2008 – 8:59 am
| Idiom | Meaning | Example Sentence | |
| spice something up | to make something more interesting, lively, or sexy. | Judy liked to spice her lectures up by telling jokes. | |
| spill the beans | to give away a secret or a surprise. |
I told her not to tell anyone, but the next day she spilled the beans to Mary. | |
| take something with a pinch (or grain) of salt | With reservations; skeptically; to listen to a story or an explanation with considerable doubt. |
Take Mandy’s advice with a pinch of salt. She doesn’t always do her research. | |
| use your noodle | use your brain | You’re going to have to really use your noodle on this crossword puzzle. It’s an extra difficult one. | |
Notes:
When spill the beans takes an object, you spill the beans to someone or you spill the beans about something. You can also use this phrase without an object (”She finally spilled the beans.”)
When you tell someone to take something with a pinch of salt or to take something with a grain of salt, you are telling them to be skeptical or not to rely on it.
Example:
“John told me he is coming here tomorrow, but you have to take anything he says with a grain of salt.” (You have to be skeptical of what John says. You should always doubt what John says, etc.)
The implication is that you can’t always believe what John says.
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