Idioms

mole

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(as) blind as a bat

1. Unable to see at all. After neglecting his vision for years, my grandfather became blind as a bat, unable to even see shadows. A: "Didn't Emily get hit by a car and end up blind as a bat?" B: "Yeah, so she could leave town to search for a cure—typical soap opera story. They had to write her out somehow." Doc, I'll do anything—surgery, drugs, you name it! Anything to keep from becoming blind as a bat.
2. Having poor vision. I've worn glasses for 20 years, so I'm as blind as a bat now. Because I'm blind as a bat, I always knew there was a good chance my daughter would need glasses too. That's not a cat, it's a trashcan! Geez, you really are blind as a bat!
3. Oblivious to something. Are you blind as a bat? Those two have been flirting all afternoon! You must be as blind as a bat if you don't see the problem with this plan. Come on, I'm not blind as a bat. I know you two have been scheming behind my back this whole time.
See also: bat, blind

(as) blind as a beetle

dated
1. Unable to see well or at all. My grandfather was born blind as a beetle, so he's never known what anything truly looks like. I've worn glasses for 20 years—I'm as blind as a beetle without them! That's not a cat, it's a trashcan! Geez, you really are blind as a beetle!
2. Totally oblivious to something. Are you blind as a beetle? Those two have been flirting all afternoon! You must be as blind as a beetle if you don't see the problem with this plan. Come on, I'm not blind as a beetle. I know you two have been scheming behind my back this whole time.
See also: beetle, blind

(as) blind as a mole

dated
1. Unable to see well or at all. My grandfather was born blind as a mole, so he's never known what anything truly looks like. I've worn glasses for 20 years—I'm as blind as a mole without them! That's not a cat, it's a trashcan! Geez, you really are blind as a mole!
2. Totally oblivious to something. Are you blind as a mole? Those two have been flirting all afternoon! You must be as blind as a mole if you don't see the problem with this plan. Come on, I'm not blind as a mole. I know you two have been scheming behind my back this whole time.
See also: blind, mole

make a mountain of a molehill

To exaggerate or put too much focus on a minor issue and make it seem like a major one. You got one B and you're acting like you're failing the class. You're making a mountain of a molehill, if you ask me. This is a minor setback. Let's not make a mountain of a molehill.
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of

make a mountain out of a molehill

To exaggerate or put too much focus on a minor issue and make it seem like a major one. You got one B and you're acting like you're failing the class. You're making a mountain out of a molehill, if you ask me. This is a minor setback. Let's not make a mountain out of a molehill.
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of, out

play whack-a-mole

1. Literally, to play an arcade game in which the player uses a small rubber mallet to hit robotic toy moles that pop up randomly in holes laid out across the surface of the machine. I love coming to this old arcade. I have a lot of fond memories playing Whack-a-Mole and Skee-Ball here as a kid.
2. By extension, to cope with a situation in which problems continue to arise faster than one is able to solve or cope with them, resulting in piecemeal, incomplete, or temporary results. These dang pop-up ads are so annoying! I have to play whack-a-mole every time I go online these days! Every time we think we have the software debugged, more problems show up. We've just been playing whack-a-mole from day one!
See also: play

whack-a-mole

1. Literally, an arcade game in which the player uses a small rubber mallet to hit robotic toy moles that pop up randomly in holes laid out across the surface of the machine. I love coming to this old arcade. I have a lot of fond memories playing Whack-a-Mole and Skee-Ball here as a kid.
2. By extension, a situation in which problems continue to arise faster than one is able to solve or cope with them, resulting in piecemeal, incomplete, or temporary results. These dang pop-up ads are so annoying! It's a game of whack-a-mole every time I go online these days! Every time we think we have the software debugged, more problems show up. We've just been playing whack-a-mole from day one!
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

make a mountain out of a molehill

Cliché to make a major issue out of a minor one; to exaggerate the importance of something. Come on, don't make a mountain out of a molehill. It's not that important. Mary is always making mountains out of molehills.
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of, out
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.

make a mountain out of a molehill

Exaggerate trifling difficulties, as in If you forgot you racket you can borrow one-don't make a mountain out of a molehill. This expression, alluding to the barely raised tunnels created by moles, was first recorded in John Fox's The Book of Martyrs (1570).
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of, out
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

make a mountain out of a molehill

If someone makes a mountain out of a molehill, they talk or complain about a small, unimportant problem as if it is important and serious. The company's CEO has blamed the media for making a mountain out of a molehill. Don't make a mountain out of a molehill — it's really not a big deal.
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of, out
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012

make a mountain out of a molehill

foolishly or pointlessly exaggerate the importance of something trivial.
The contrast between the size of molehills and that of mountains has been made in this and related expressions since the late 16th century.
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of, out
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

make a ˌmountain out of a ˈmolehill

(disapproving) make a small or unimportant problem seem much more serious than it really is: It’s not such a big problem! You’re making a mountain out of a molehill!
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of, out
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017

make a mountain out of a molehill

To exaggerate a minor problem.
See also: make, molehill, mountain, of, out
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

blind as a bat/beetle/mole

Totally blind, or, figuratively, unseeing. None of these animals is, by the way, truly blind. The bat flies about in the dark in seemingly erratic paths (see bats in one’s belfry), and the beetle and mole burrow through the ground. Nevertheless, these similes are quite old and have become clichés. The bat analogy dates from the sixteenth century at least (John Harvey); the mole and beetle similes come from Roman times and were cited in translations by Erasmus.
See also: bat, beetle, blind, mole
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer
See also:
References in classic literature
Now you must set to work at your linen for your dowry, for nothing must be lacking if you are to become the wife of our neighbour, the mole!'
Thumbelina had to spin all day long, and every evening the mole visited her, and told her that when the summer was over the sun would not shine so hot; now it was burning the earth as hard as a stone.
But she was not at all pleased about it, for she did not like the stupid mole. Every morning when the sun was rising, and every evening when it was setting, she would steal out of the house-door, and when the breeze parted the ears of corn so that she could see the blue sky through them, she thought how bright and beautiful it must be outside, and longed to see her dear swallow again.
The mole had come to fetch Thumbelina to live with him deep down under the ground, never to come out into the warm sun again, for that was what he didn't like.
She told him how unwilling she was to marry the ugly mole, as then she had to live underground where the sun never shone, and she could not help bursting into tears.
You can sit on my back, and we will fly far away from the ugly mole and his dark house, over the mountains, to the warm countries where the sun shines more brightly than here, where it is always summer, and there are always beautiful flowers.
he was a different kind of husband to the son of the toad and the mole with the black-velvet coat.
View in context
After first passing a cambric handkerchief, with some white powder on it, over the part of her neck on which he designed to operate, he placed two layers of color on the moles with the tip of the brush.
View in context
The findings from the study indicated that in women, the lowest genetic effect on mole count was on the back and abdomen (26 per cent), and the highest on the lower limbs (69 per cent).
Why moles are found on particular parts of body?
A mole that looks markedly different from the other moles on your body can also indicate something is wrong.
Remember the ABCDE rule when watching moles
The mole is a self-hammering spike which will dig as much as five meters below the surface and record the temperature of Mars.
NASA starts new efforts to resume heat probe to study inner temperature of Mars
While most moles are benign (non-cancerous), in rare cases they can develop into melanoma and changes to a mole can be an early indication of this.
A model who uses sunbeds twice has warned people by sharing her surgery pictures; 'It doesn't matter how pale I am, it's fake tan all the way now'
You should check your moles every few months and look out for a change in shape where the contour of the mole becomes irregular.
Ask Dr Miriam; DR MIRIAM STOPPARD; Helping to keep you fit and healthy
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