Meaning: 18-karat gold

n.
an alloy that contains 75 per cent gold

gol Idiom, Proverb

a golden opportunity

a good chance to succeed, a good investment The Royal Hotel is for sale. What a golden opportunity!

by golly

"I am surprised, impressed; by gosh" By golly! She did it. She made a cherry pie!

gol dang/gol darn

frustrating, dad-blamed, darn The gol dang cord is tangled. It's full of knots.

golden age

best years, time of most prosperity He said the decade after World War II was Canada's golden age.

golden opportunity

(See a golden opportunity)

golden rule

(See The Golden Rule)

golden years

65 years of age or older, sunset years Dad is retired now, enjoying his golden years.

golly

oh, gee, gosh Golly! I've never seen so much snow.

golly gee

oh, gee whiz, wow Golly gee! Nobody ever did that to me before.

good golly

oh, gosh, wow Good golly, Miss Molly. You are the prettiest girl in the county!

gosh darn (gol darn)

frustrating, darn, friggin Where is that gosh-darn pen? Who took my pen?

heart of gold

a kind, generous or forgiving nature My grandmother has a heart of gold and is always willing to help a stranger.

hole in one (golf)

hit the ball from the tee into the cup in one stroke There's a $50 prize for a hole in one at the Pines Golf Course.

kill the goose that layed the golden egg

spoil something that is good or something that one has by being greedy He was always complaining about his job but now it is gone. He has killed the goose that layed the golden egg.

kill the goose that lays the golden egg

spoil something that is good or something that one has by being greedy They sold part of their business but it was the most profitable part. I think that they have killed the goose that lays the golden egg.

kill the goose that lays the golden eggs

lose or destroy the source of wealth If we pollute the environment, we kill the goose - we lose it all.

pot of gold

a fortune, a lot of money Isy believes there's a pot of gold buried in every acre he buys.

silence is golden

silence is wonderful, silence is peaceful After a day of teaching grade two students, silence is golden.

The Golden Rule

Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. If everyone lived by The Golden Rule, you may not like the way you are treated.

kangol

a brand of hat; LL Cool J used to wear this along with other east coast rappers. It has a kangaroo on the side, but brothers wore them with the 'roo in front

project gold

huge gold hoop earrings

worth its weight in gold

Idiom(s): worth its weight in gold

Theme: VALUE

very valuable.
• This book is worth its weight in gold.
• Oh, Bill. You're wonderful. You're worth your weight in gold.

have a heart of gold

Idiom(s): have a heart of gold

Theme: KINDNESS

to be generous, sincere, and friendly.
• Mary is such a lovely person. She has a heart of gold.
• You think Tom stole your watch? Impossible! He has a heart of gold.

good as gold

Idiom(s): (as) good as gold

Theme: VALUE

genuine; authentic.
• Mary's promise is as good as gold.
• Yes, this diamond is genuine—good as gold.

gold mine of information

Idiom(s): gold mine of information

Theme: KNOWLEDGE

someone or something that is full of information.
• Grandfather is a gold mine of information about World War I.
• The new encyclopedia is a positive gold mine of useful information.

by guess and by golly

Idiom(s): by guess and by golly

Theme: AWKWARDNESS

by luck; with the help of God. (Folksy. Golly is a disguise of God. Fixed order.)
• They managed to get the shed built by guess and by golly.
• I lost my ruler and had to install the new floor tile by guess and by golly.

All that glitters is not gold

Idiom(s): All that glitters is not gold

Theme: VALUE

A proverb meaning that many attractive and alluring things have no value.
• The used car looked fine but didn't run well at all. "Ah, yes," thought Bill, "all that glitters is not gold."
• When Mary was disappointed about losing Tom, Jane reminded her, "All that glitters is not gold."

All that glitters is not gold.

Appearances can be deceptive.

Kill the goose that lays the golden egg.

Destroy something that would be a source of wealth or success.

Golden handshake

A golden handshake is a payment made to someone to get them to leave their job.

Golden touch

Someone with a golden touch can make money from or be successful at anything they do.

Fools' Gold

Iron pyrites, a worthless rock that resembles real gold.

a heart of gold

be a very kind person: "She'll always help - she has a heart of gold."

a round of golf

a game of golf: "Fancy a round of golf this evening?"

Kill not the goose that lays golden eggs.

Be satisfied with whatever you get little at a time, and do not lose it for the greed to get it all at once.

Acapulco gold|Acapulco|gold

n., slang Marijuana of an exceptionally high quality. Jack doesn't just smoke pot, he smokes Acapulco gold.

goldfish bowl|bowl|goldfish

n., slang, informal 1. A situation in which it is not possible to keep things secret for any length of time. Washington Society is a goldfish bowl. 2. An apartment or place that provides no privacy for its occupant, e.g., an office that has too many windows. Joe's office is a goldfish bowl, that's why I didn't let him kiss me there.

golf widow|golf|widow

n., informal A woman whose husband is often away from home playing golf. Mrs. Thompson didn't like being a golf widow.

heart of gold|gold|heart

n. phr. A kind, generous, or forgiving nature. John has a heart of gold. I never saw him angry at anyone. Mrs. Brown is a rich woman with a heart of gold.
Compare: GOOD AS GOLD, HEART IN THE RIGHT PLACE.

kill the goose that laid the golden egg|egg|golden

To spoil something that is good or something that you have, by being greedy.

A proverb. Mrs. Jones gives you an apple from her tree whenever you go by her house, but don't kill the goose that laid the golden egg by bothering her too much.

strike gold|gold|strike

v. phr. 1. To find gold. Ted struck gold near an abandoned mine in California. 2. To find suddenly the answer to an old puzzle. Professor Brown's assistant struck gold when he came up with an equation that explained the irregular motions of a double star. See: PAY DIRT.

gold mine

gold mine
A rich, plentiful source of wealth or some other desirable thing, as in That business proved to be a gold mine, or She's a gold mine of information about the industry. [First half of 1800s]

gold, golden

gold, golden
In addition to the idioms beginning with gold or golden, also see all that glitters is not gold; good as gold, as; heart of gold; silence is golden; worth one's weight in gold.

golden handcuffs

golden handcuffs
Financial benefits that an employee will lose upon resigning, as in The company's presented all the middle managers with golden handcuffs, so they can't afford to leave. This slangy business expression dates from the 1970s.

goldfish bowl

goldfish bowl
A situation affording no privacy, as in Being in a goldfish bowl comes with the senator's job—there's no avoiding it. The glass bowl allowing one to view goldfish from every direction was transferred first, in the 1920s, to a police interrogation room equipped with a one-way mirror. By the mid-1900s the expression was being used more broadly.

good as gold, as

good as gold, as
Completely genuine; also, well behaved. For example, Her credit is as good as gold, or The children were good as gold. With this alliterative idiom the initial as is sometimes dropped, and nearly always so when behavior is referred to. [Late 1600s]

worth one's weight in gold

worth one's weight in gold
Also, worth its weight in gold. Very valuable, as in John's been extremely helpful; he's worth his weight in gold, or That tractor's been worth its weight in gold. This metaphoric term dates from Roman times and appeared in English by the early 1300s.

More Idioms/Phrases

world is one's oyster, the world of good, a worm worm into worm out of worship the ground someone walks on worth one's weight in gold would that wouldn't

English Vocalbulary

180th 1820s 1830s 1840s 1850s 1860s 1870s 1880s 1890s 18th 19 190 1900s 190th 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s