poetic device: Idioms

An idiom is a common expression that has a different meaning than the literal meaning of the words. For example, to say that someone “kicked the bucket” means that they died, not that they actually kicked a bucket, and to describe something as “a piece of cake” means it is very easy, not a literal slice of cake.

Each of these poems include at least one idiom, often in the final line of the poem, but sometimes more. See if you can find the idioms in each of these poems.

My Dad Was a Custodian by Kenn Nesbitt
My Father Was a Janitor
My Chicken’s On the Internet
Steve the Superhero
Stumblebum Stan by Kenn Nesbitt
Stumblebum Stan
How Did You Get So Mean by Kenn Nesbitt
How Did You Get So Mean?
My Brother’s a Genius
Everything We Learn at School by Kenn Nesbitt
Everything We Learn at School
Our Family Picnic
A Shark Is a Pet by Kenn Nesbitt
A Shark Is a Pet
Cara’s Parrot
Forty Purple Porpoises by Kenn Nesbitt
Forty Purple Porpoises
The Dragons of Monster Town by Kenn Nesbitt
The Dragons of Monster Town
A Pair of Potatoes Were Talking by Kenn Nesbitt
A Pair of Potatoes Were Talking
If You Ever Meet an Elephant
Molly Has a Myna Bird by Kenn Nesbitt
Molly Has a Myna Bird
My Old Uncle Wheeler by Kenn Nesbitt
My Old Uncle Wheeler
The Size of Yankee Stadium by Kenn Nesbitt
The Size of Yankee Stadium
Buckaroo Huck