blood, sweat, and tears
- great personal effort
We put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears into fixing our old house.
blue blood
- the blood (family line) of a noble or aristocratic family
Many blue bloods attended the opening of the new opera.
a body blow
- something that causes something to be badly damaged or destroyed
The small food store was hit with a body blow when the large supermarket moved in next door.
a bone of contention
- something that people disagree about
The issue of working on Saturday evenings is a bone of contention between the store and the workers.
break into a cold sweat (about something)
- to become nervous or frightened about something
I broke into a cold sweat when I went to tell my teacher about my mistake.
break one`s back (to do something)
- to do all one possibly can, to work very hard to do something
I broke my back trying to help my friend with his project.
break one`s neck (to do something)
- to do all one possibly can, to work very hard to do something
I broke my neck to try and get the report finished on time.
a breath of fresh air
- new ideas or new energy or new ways of doing something
The new manager is a breath of fresh air in our company.
not breathe a word (about someone or something)
- to keep a secret about someone or something
"Please don't breathe a word about my new job to my supervisor."
breathe down (someone`s) neck
- to watch someone closely (often by standing right behind them), to pressure someone to do something
My boss has been breathing down my neck all day to pressure me to finish the report.
breathe easy/easier
- to relax after a busy and stressful time
I could breathe easy after I finished my essay and gave it to my teacher.
breathe one's last
- to die, to breathe one's last breath before dying
The elderly man breath