Shakespeare Phrases

Modern phrases that come from the works of Shakespeare...

1. "A heart of gold" - Henry V
2. "A wild goose chase" - Romeo and Juliet
3. "All of a sudden" - The Taming of the Shrew
4. "All that glisters is not gold" – The Merchant of Venice
5. "Break the ice" – The Taming of the Shrew
6. "Come what, come may" – Macbeth
7. "Dead as a doornail" - Henry VI, Part II
8. "Eaten out of house and home" - Henry IV, Part II








9. "Faint-hearted" - Henry VI, Part I
10. "For goodness’ sake" - Henry VIII
11. "Foregone conclusion" - Othello
12. "Full circle" - King Lear
13. "Give the devil his due" - Henry IV, Part I
14. "I have been in such a pickle" - The Tempest
15. "I must be cruel, only to be kind" - Hamlet
16. "I will wear my heart upon my sleeve" - Othello
17. "In my heart of hearts" - Hamlet
18. "It’s Greek to me" – Julius Caesar
19. "Knock knock! Who's there?" - Macbeth
20. "Laugh oneself into stitches" - Twelfth Night
21. "Lie low" - Much Ado About Nothing
22. "Love is blind" - The Merchant of Venice
23. "Made of sterner stuff" – Julius Caesar
24. "Melted into thin air" – The Tempest
25. "Mum's the word" - Henry VI, Part II
26. "Naked truth" - Love's Labour's Lost
27. "One fell swoop" - Macbeth
28. "Neither here nor there" – Othello
29. "Neither rhyme nor reason" – The Comedy of Errors
30. "Not slept one wink" - Cymbeline
31. "One fell swoop" - Macbeth
32. "Own flesh and blood" - Hamlet
33. "Salad days" - Antony and Cleopatra
34. "Send him packing" - Henry IV
35. "Spotless reputation" - Richard II
36. "Such stuff as dreams are made on" - The Tempest
37. ”The be-all and the end-all" - Macbeth
38. "The world's mine oyster" - The Merry Wives of Windsor
39. "This sceptred isle" - Richard III
40. "Though this be madness, yet there is method in't" - Hamlet
41. "Too much of a good thing" - As You Like It
42. "Truth will out" - The Merchant of Venice
43. "With bated breath" - The Merchant of Venice
44. "What's done can't be undone" - Macbeth