Idiom for the Day. 'Nature' and Nature Words.

   'Nature' and Nature Words.

The are many idioms in English that use the word 'nature', and use words that describe natural features- hills, clouds and fields. 

In this post I have given you some of the more common ones. Again, if you want to use idioms in conversation you need to get them exactly right.

Mother nature. The force of that controls nature.

Did you see all those trees blown down by the storm? I really shows you the power of Mother nature.

To let/allow nature take its course. Permit something to happen naturally.

I'm not going to take anything for this cold. I'll just let nature take its course.

To be good/bad natured. Cheerful and friendly, or moody and unfriendly.

Labradors really are the best natured dogs. 

To be in someone's nature. Describes someone's personality or why they behave as they do.

It's really not in his nature to be generous.

To be second nature. Something a person or animal does which is innate or comes entirely from instinct (very similar to the previous expression).

Languages are easy for John, they're second nature to him.

A call of nature, or To answer the call of nature.

Euphemism for the need to urinate, or to urinate

(polite but a little old-fashioned).

I need to leave the class for a moment to answer the call of nature. 

Can't see the wood for the trees. Unable to see a situation clearly because you are too involved or have too much detail.

Two weeks studying the present perfect and now I can't see the wood for the trees.

To be down-to-earth. Having a natural or real personality.

For someone with so much money he's really down to earth.

To go downhill. To get progressively worse. 

This place has gone downhill since the brought in the new Director.

To have a field day. To have a very successful or enjoyable time.

We had a field day when we went to Brighton last weekend.

To go with the flow. To do, or continue doing thing the way things are done, or do things how other people want to do them.

I don't mind what we do. I happy just to go with the flow.

To be over the hill. To be past ones best (usually because of age).

He'll never play for England again, he's over the hill now.

To be out of the woods. To be clear from danger.

The doctor says that he's much better so he's out of the woods now.

To be up the creek. To be in trouble. 

The car won't start. Now we're up the creek.

A cruder version of this is: To be up shit creek. 

To be up shit creek without a paddle. 

Means there is no escape from the the trouble you are in.

The car won't start, I don't have my mobile phone, there's nobody around and it's snowing- now we're really up shit creek without a paddle.