a fat lot of good that does me
Meaning: That is of no use to me at all.
Language: English
Literally: (Already vivid in English)
Example: “The store is open until ten, but I'm stuck at work; a fat lot of good that does me.”
Category: The Absurd
Origin: "A fat lot" is ironic, meaning very little, found from the late 19th century.
Equivalents in other languages
- French: Ça me fait une belle jambe — literally: That makes me a fine leg
More idioms — The Absurd
- what have you been smoking? — Said to someone whose idea sounds crazy.
- yada yada yada — And so on; skipping boring details.
- walk a tightrope — To be in a situation where one small mistake would be disastrous.
- lose one's marbles — To go crazy.
- think outside the box — To find an unconventional solution.
- where the sun doesn't shine — Somewhere hidden; also a rude way of naming the body.
More English idioms
- knock someone's socks off — To impress or amaze someone greatly.
- no sweat — No problem; that's easy.
- dumb as a box of rocks — Very stupid.
- without a penny to one's name — With no money at all.
- feed someone a line — To tell someone something untrue to deceive them.
- a smart aleck — An annoying person who shows off how clever they are.