Sad Idioms: English Phrases and Idioms for Sadness

If you are learning English as a second language, it’s important to know how to express your feelings. It will enable you to put your English vocabulary knowledge to work and interact more fluently with native English speakers.

We can always use such expressions as I feel a little low/depressed, but I invite you to learn a few interesting idiomatic expressions (formally known as phrasal verbs) that will help you express yourself.

6 Common Sad Idioms & Phrases in English

Let’s get started! First up:

1.

Down in the mouth

The first idiom on our list that expresses sadness means to look unhappy. It comes from the fact that the corners of the mouth are usually turned down when a person is sad. This idiom is never used to describe oneself. It is always used to describe another person.

Example:

She seems to be down in the mouth. Maybe she failed her exams.

2.  Down in the dumps

This idiom, in contrast to the previous one, is not used so much to describe a person’s appearance, but rather a person’s mood or the way they feel.

Example:

Nina seems to be down in the dumps because she broke up with her boyfriend recently.

3. Reduce to tears

This idiom means to make someone cry or to be so unhappy, and down that, you begin to cry.

Example:

My boss reduced me to tears with his constant criticism today.

4. Lump in your throat

Usually, when we watch an emotional movie (for example a drama like Titanic), we get a feeling in our throat that means we are about to cry. We are upset, sad, and we worry about the main characters of the film.

Example:

His speech was so emotional that I lumped my throat.

5. Feeling blue/to have the blues

I’m sure you’ve encountered this phrase in songs, films etc. The colour blue is associated with depression, a bad mood, and sadness. That’s where this phrase comes from. We can use the phrase feeling blue when talking about ourselves or others, but the phrase have the blues is usually used to speak about others.

Examples:

She has the blues today.

I was feeling blue yesterday.

6. Face like a wet weekend

This expression is British slang. It may come from a situation where a person wants to relax, do something outdoors, or get some fresh air on the weekend but can’t because the weather leaves much to be desired – it’s overcast, cold, or continuously raining, and this makes the person sad or depressed.

Example

Billy, your face is like a wet weekend. What’s wrong?

I hope that you will find these sad idioms useful (but hopefully not too useful, otherwise you’re probably not too happy). Practice and learn them! 

Good luck!

Don’t be down in the dumps. 😉 Smile.