Mother's Day Idioms

Study the idioms below and try using them in your next conversations.

1. mother lode 
large supplies of a resource, especially mineral ore
• California was a mother lode of gold in the 1800’s. 
• We struck oil! It’s a mother lode. 

Note: Watch out for the spelling. 
X – mother load 
O – mother lode 

2. mother tongue
your native language 
• I study Spanish, but English is my mother tongue. 
• During the test, you must use English, not your mother tongue. 

3. motherland
your home country 
• I live in Japan, but Brazil is my motherland. 
• Today, we fight to save our motherland! 

4. like mother, like daughter (also “like father, like son) 
when a parent and child are very similar 
• She sings beautifully, just like her mother. 
  Like mother, like daughter. 

5. the mother of all 
the biggest and most impressive 
• Avengers Endgame is the mother of all superhero movies. 
• I have the mother of all headaches.

6. a face only a mother can love 
ugly (offensive) 
• That boy has a face only a mother can love. 
• That’s your girlfriend? She has a face only a mother can love. 

7. necessity is the mother of invention 
needing something leads to new ideas 
• We needed a way to communicate better so we built a translation app.
  Necessity is the mother of invention. 

8. mama’s boy
a weak male, overly dependent on his mother (offensive) 
• My cousin is a real mama’s boy. He depends on his mother for everything. 
• I don’t like that guy. He’s so weak. Seems like a real mama’s boy. 

9. mother nature 
nature, especially when we describe her as a living character
• We’ve been polluting the earth, and now mother nature is very angry. 
• I love getting away from the city and spending some time with mother nature. 

10. mother hen
an person who helps others a bit too much, fussy, or bothersome 
• I don’t need help. I can do this myself. Don’t be a mother hen. 
• My neighbor is a mother hen. She always helps people when they don’t need it. 

Like these idioms? Want to see more? Just get in touch or leave a comment below! And of course, Happy Mother’s Day!