Construction Idioms

Construction idioms are a fascinating aspect of the English language that are used to describe various situations and scenarios related to construction.

These idioms are often used in everyday conversations and can be quite useful for people who work in the construction industry or are interested in learning more about it.

List of Construction Idioms

• (Dumb as a) Bag Of Hammers
• (To) Put a Spanner in the Works
• A house of cards
• Accident Waiting To Happen
• Against The Grain
• An Axe To Grind
• Backing and Filling
• Break ground
• Brick and mortar
• Built on sand
• Bury the Hatchet
• Hammer it out
• Hit the nail on the head
• Lay the bricks
• Lay the foundation
• Lay the groundwork
• Mend Fences
• Nail down
• On shaky ground
• Raise the roof
• Reinvent the wheel
• Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day
• Square peg in a round hole
• Stick to the blueprint
• Throw a Wrench Into
• Tighten the Screws
• Toss a Wrench (Spanner) Into

Construction Idioms with Meanings

Here is a list of Construction Idioms with meanings:

Idiom	Meaning
(Dumb as a) Bag Of Hammers	Extremely stupid or lacking common sense
(To) Put a Spanner in the Works	To cause disruption or create difficulties in a plan or process
A House of Cards	A situation, plan, or structure that is insubstantial and likely to collapse easily
Accident Waiting To Happen	A situation that is likely to lead to an accident or problem due to inherent instability
Against The Grain	Contrary to the natural inclination or feeling; unorthodox or unconventional
An Axe To Grind	Having a self-serving reason for doing something; a personal motivation or bias
Backing and Filling	Acting indecisively; constantly changing one’s position or opinion
Break Ground	To start a new project, especially construction, or to make progress
Brick and Mortar	Physical buildings or structures, especially in reference to retail stores or businesses
Built on Sand	Having a weak or unstable foundation, literally or figuratively
Bury the Hatchet	To make peace or settle one’s differences with someone
Hammer it out	To work hard to reach an agreement or solution through discussion
Hit the Nail on the Head	To describe exactly what is causing a situation or problem
Lay the Bricks	To perform the actual work of building something, or to contribute to a project
Lay the Foundation	To establish a solid basis or groundwork for something
Lay the Groundwork	To prepare the basics or preliminary work necessary to start a project
Mend Fences	To repair a relationship or make amends with someone
Nail Down	To finalize or secure something; to make certain of something
On Shaky Ground	In a weak or unstable position, either physically or in terms of an argument or situation
Raise the Roof	To make a loud noise, often in protest, or to celebrate boisterously
Reinvent the Wheel	To waste time trying to create something that already exists
Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day	Reminder that complex or difficult tasks usually take time to complete and require patience
Square Peg in a Round Hole	Someone or something that does not fit in a particular place or situation
Stick to the Blueprint	To follow a plan or strategy closely
Throw a Wrench Into	To cause a plan to go awry; a variant of “put a spanner in the works”
Tighten the Screws	To increase pressure on someone or something to achieve a result
Toss a Wrench (Spanner) Into	Similar to “throw a wrench into,” meaning to disrupt or cause problems in a plan or process

Construction Idioms with Examples

Here are some example sentences for construction idioms:

Idiom	Example Sentence
(Dumb as a) Bag Of Hammers	He’s as dumb as a bag of hammers, always making the simplest mistakes.
(To) Put a Spanner in the Works	The sudden budget cuts really put a spanner in the works for our project’s completion.
A House of Cards	His financial empire was just a house of cards, ready to collapse at the slightest pressure.
Accident Waiting To Happen	With all those exposed wires, that old heater is an accident waiting to happen.
Against The Grain	It goes against the grain for me to cheat on a test, even if I’m sure I would get away with it.
An Axe To Grind	Ever since the lawsuit, he’s had an axe to grind with the company.
Backing and Filling	There was a lot of backing and filling on the terms of the agreement before both parties were satisfied.
Break Ground	They’re planning to break ground on the new building next month.
Brick and Mortar	Despite the rise of online shopping, there’s still a place for brick and mortar stores.
Built on Sand	Their marriage was built on sand, with no shared interests or values to keep them together.
Bury the Hatchet	After years of rivalry, the two companies decided to bury the hatchet and merge.
Hammer it out	We need to hammer out the details of the contract before we can move forward.
Hit the Nail on the Head	You really hit the nail on the head with that explanation; it’s exactly right.
Lay the Bricks	It’s time we lay the bricks for a new, more inclusive company policy.
Lay the Foundation	The early training sessions will lay the foundation for the team’s success.
Lay the Groundwork	We’ve laid the groundwork for a successful product launch, now we just need to execute our plan.
Mend Fences	He’s been trying to mend fences with his neighbors after the dispute over the property line.
Nail Down	We need to nail down the dates for our next meeting before everyone leaves today.
On Shaky Ground	The company is on shaky ground financially and might not survive another quarter without investment.
Raise the Roof	The crowd is going to raise the roof when the headlining band takes the stage.
Reinvent the Wheel	We don’t need to reinvent the wheel; let’s use the existing protocols that are already effective.
Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day	You can’t expect to learn everything in one afternoon; Rome wasn’t built in a day, after all.
Shit a Brick	I nearly shit a brick when I saw the repair bill for my car.
Square Peg in a Round Hole	He felt like a square peg in a round hole at his new school, not fitting in with any of the groups.
Stick to the Blueprint	It’s important to stick to the blueprint unless we have a very good reason to deviate from the plan.
Throw a Wrench Into	The new regulations might throw a wrench into our production schedule.
Tighten the Screws	Management decided to tighten the screws on spending to improve the company’s financial health.
Toss a Wrench (Spanner) Into	Just as we were getting ready to finalize the deal, a legal dispute tossed a wrench into the process.