be all fur coat and no knickers

be all fur coat and no knickers

To be attractive on the surface but lack substance underneath. I thought David and I would really get along well, but we had nothing to talk about at dinner—he's all fur coat and no knickers. Our new boss sounded like she had a lot of good ideas for the department, but it turns out she's all fur coat and no knickers.

See also: all, and, coat, fur, knickers, no

Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2015 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.

be all fur coat and no knickers

have an impressive or sophisticated appearance which belies the fact that there is nothing to substantiate it. British informal

See also: all, and, coat, fur, knickers, no

Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017