you could cut the atmosphere with a knife

you could cut the atmosphere with a knife

something that you say to describe a situation in which everyone is feeling very angry or nervous and you feel that something unpleasant could soon happen There was a lot of tension between Diane and Carol; you could cut the atmosphere in that room with a knife.

See Fish or cut bait, cut through like a knife through butter, to cut a long story short

See also: could, cut, knife