A look in the eye

I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat

is a famous quotation from Winston Churchill.  (Speech in the House of Commons, 13 May 1940)

I could do it blindfolded is an expression about a task which the speaker has done many times before. 

A blind man would be glad to see it.
This is said when a fault in workmanship is being discussed.

The blind leading the blind is a description of two people who cannot see a way forward in a situation.

If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into the ditch.  Matthew 15:14

Look right, look left and if nothing is coming, cross the road.

In Britain, where traffic drives on the left, this is how children used to be taught.  It has been superseded by other methods including the Green Cross Code.  With foreign travel being more usual than it was in my childhood, it is important to be able to cross the road safely even when the direction of traffic flow is the opposite.  “Look all around and if nothing is coming…”

All me eye and Peggy Martin/Betty Martin
describes an attempt at deception.  The Dictionary of Modern Phrase defines it as nonsense.  The long explanation includes the following facts.  There is an age-old gesture of pulling down the lower eyelid to indicate disbelief.  Betty Martin was an actress in the eighteenth century.

It will all end in tears.
Is this the view of a pessimist?

He didn’t bat an eyelid.
Liars are supposed to blink a lot.  Someone telling a lie or trying to talk their way out of an awkward situation might have their behaviour and words reported using this phrase.

There’s more to this than meets the eye.
Something which is not obvious on the surface is going on.  A hidden agenda, perhaps.

Seeing is believing.
It is a form of proof.

Have a decko/dekko is slang for have a look.  (It derives from the word in Hindi –dekho.)

Blinkered is unable to see anything which is not directly in front. The US version is with blinders on.

Tunnel vision is a physical condition, but may also be used figuratively.

Before your very eyes is a phrase used in the Bible (2 Samuel 12:11) where the prophet Nathan is speaking God’s words to King David.  The link puts the phrase in context and makes for an interesting read.  2 Samuel 11-12.

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News about the UK Blog Awards:  Voting is now open.  This blog is entered in the Education category.  My other blog, Sue’s Trifles is entered in the Education category and the lifestyle category.  A free ebook by the entrants is on offer to voters.  There are voting buttons – one below the posts on this blog and two on the sidebar of Sue’s Trifles.

Eyesight

Don’t throw that, you’ll have somebody’s eye out.

This is a common saying by teachers in schools.

He’s got his beady eye on it.
Beady means like a bead.  This means that he is watching it closely.  What are his motives, I wonder?

Prying eyes belong to inquisitive people.

A smack in the eye is sometimes a serious disappointment.  (Smack means hit.)

A sight for sore eyes is an idiom.  It usually refers to something eye-catching, which could cheer someone up.

Making sheep’s eyes means flirting.

Keep an eye out for means remember to look for.  When I go shopping I keep an eye out for useful items.

That’s one in the eye for… This refers to something bad or bringing someone down a peg or two.  King Harold was killed at the Battle of Hastings in 1066 by an arrow in the eye.

Feast your eyes on that!
Enjoy looking at it!

You need eyes in the back of your head!
Sometimes we need to know what is going on all round us.  This phrase is a favourite with people in charge of children.

Your eyes are bigger than your stomach.
This is said to a child who has taken more food than he/she is able to eat.

Seeing eye to eye means agreeing.  Two neighbours did not agree about much.  One of them was very nosey.  She even peeped through a knot-hole in the fence to watch her neighbours in their garden.  One neighbour noticed and put his eye to the hole.  The joke was that that was the only time they ever saw eye to eye!

A raised eyebrow may be from surprise, shock or in question.  Can you raise your eyebrows independently?

In Luke 11:33-36 Jesus speaks about the eye being the lamp of your body.