Animal idioms

Animal idioms referred to terminology or idioms that mentioned animals.

Avians

A little birdie told me

Indicated a desire to conceal who revealed the information.

In 2382, Jack Ransom claimed a little birdie told him about Sam Rutherford's updates to USS Cerritos' plasma injectors. When Rutherford asked if Dr. Migleemo did (the Klowahkan being a literal bird), Ransom confirmed that. (LD: "The New Next Generation")

Bird in a gilded cage

To be a bird in a gilded cage was to live in luxury without freedom.

In 2268, Kirk described the crew of the USS Enterprise on the planet Mudd as birds in a gilded cage and asked how they could escape, to which Pavel Chekov replied that he had no ideas but that it was a very nice gilded cage. Kirk reminded everyone that despite it containing their deepest desires, it was a cage nonetheless and that they belonged back on the Enterprise. (TOS: "I, Mudd")

The birds and (the) bees

The birds and the bees was a euphemism for sexual information.

When Kirk was trying to console Spock, who was embarrassed about his pon farr, he said, "It happens to the birds and the bees." Spock replied, "The birds and the bees are not Vulcans." (TOS: "Amok Time")

Harry Kim once noted that "the birds and bees would be very confused" regarding the sex he had had with Tal. She did not understand the idiom. (VOY: "The Disease")

Birds of a feather

If two or more people were birds of a feather, they were similar.

Berlinghoff Rasmussen claimed not to know why Deanna Troi distrusted him, since he allegedly saw them as "birds of a feather" due to both having knowledge that others didn't (her being an empath and him knowing about the future). However, owing to the fact that he was actually from the past instead of the future (albeit with a time machine from the future), this was probably a lie, or at the very least, a half-truth. (TNG: "A Matter Of Time")

Canaries in coal mines

A canary in a coal mine was any early warning signal that something was wrong.

According to Jet Manhaver, Commander Jack Ransom used junior officers as canaries in coal mines. (LD: "The Best Exotic Nanite Hotel")

Chicken and the egg

The chicken and the egg was a situation in which it was a mystery or a contradiction as to which one came first or caused the other.

Picard referred to an anomaly that, due to time travel, he and his crew ended up causing while trying to remedy, as the chicken and the egg. (TNG: "All Good Things")

Dead duck

Being a "dead duck" referred to someone's imminent death or defeat.

In 2268, James Kirk told the Beta XII-A entity it was a dead duck aboard the USS Enterprise, as he and Kang's people had realized they could defeat it with peace. (TOS: "Day of the Dove")

When Voyager was captured by Kazon, Tom Paris sent a message to The Doctor on the emergency medical holographic channel and described himself as a "dead duck" if The Doctor wasn't receiving it. (VOY: "Basics, Part I")

Ducks in a row

Having one's "ducks in a row" meant they had things planned out and prepared.

In 2375, Admiral William Ross said that Wendell Greer had his ducks in a row, referring to the fact that he had been a low-level bureaucrat in the Department of Cartography for 15 years. (DS9: "Inter Arma Enim Silent Leges")

Kill two birds with one stone

To kill two birds with one stone meant to accomplish two things at once.

When locked in the cargo bay with Beverly Crusher and dealing with a volatile substance that was leaking, Geordi La Forge noted that his idea was unconventional, but might serve to "kill two birds with one stone". (TNG: "Disaster")

Mother hen

A mother hen was a derogatory term for someone who was nosy and overly nurturing, the term coming from the behavior of female chickens towards their chicks.

When Will Riker told Capt. Picard to "be careful", Picard referenced this idiom by saying, "Oh, cluck, cluck, number one." Riker did not understand, so Picard explained that Riker was being a mother hen. (TNG: "Loud As A Whisper")

When Benjamin Sisko reminded Joseph Sisko to take his medicine, Joseph asked Jake Sisko if Benjamin was always such a mother hen. (DS9: "Paradise Lost")

Nobody but us chickens

Meant just us.

In 2264, when Elizabeth Dehner asked if the Enterprise landing party were the only people on Delta Vega, Kirk replied, "Nobody but us chickens, Doctor." (TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before")

Sharon O'Donnell once punned on the expression by stating, "Nobody but us galliformes. (VOY: "11:59")

No spring chicken

Meant one was old.

Kyle Riker described himself as "no spring chicken" when about to face his son Will in anbo-jyutsu. (TNG: "The Icarus Factor")

Pecked to death by ducks

To be pecked to death by ducks meant to be seriously impacted by a series of minor problems.

Janeway felt as though she and her crew were being pecked to death by ducks when the Kazon were attacking Voyager. (VOY: "Basics")

Ruffle one's feathers

To ruffle someone's feathers was to annoy them.

When trying to instruct Seven of Nine to be more polite in her phrasing, Harry Kim noted that he was easygoing and it took a lot to ruffle his feathers, but that not everyone was the same. (VOY: "Concerning Flight")

Sauce for the goose

The Earth idiom "what's sauce for the goose, is sauce for the gander," was in part spoken by Spock following Saavik's notation that Khan Noonien Singh, aboard the USS Reliant was following the USS Enterprise into the Mutara Nebula. In response, Spock stated "sauce for the goose, Mr. Saavik." (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)

Sitting duck

Being a "sitting duck" referred to someone or something being completely unable to defend itself.

In 2154, Captain Jonathan Archer said that he wanted to get the Enterprise's engines back online so that it wouldn't be a sitting duck when Harrad-Sar returned to attack. (ENT: "Bound")

In 2285, when the Enterprise entered the Mutara sector, they were engaged in combat by a Klingon Bird-of-Prey commanded by Kruge. During the attack, they lost control of their ship and Kirk said: "So, we're a sitting duck." (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock)

In 2367, Wesley Crusher was concerned that the Enterprise's saucer section was a sitting duck after being disabled by a Borg cube. (TNG: "The Best of Both Worlds, Part II")

In 2371, Chief O'Brien furiously told Michael Eddington that by sabotaging the USS Defiant, Eddington had turned them into sitting ducks for the Jem'Hadar. (DS9: "The Die is Cast")

In 2372, following an attack by Kazon raiders, Chakotay described USS Voyager and its crew as sitting ducks. (VOY: "Alliances")

In 2373, Captain Benjamin Sisko told Jadzia Dax that the Defiant would be a sitting duck if they hadn't finished laying the minefield before the imminent arrival of Dominion forces. (DS9: "Call to Arms")

In 2374, Major Kira Nerys told Sisko that the Defiant was a sitting duck for Jem'Hadar attack as long as they remained tethered to the miniaturized USS Rubicon. (DS9: "One Little Ship")

Spread one's wings

To spread one's wings was to be more independent, more confident, or to try new things.

The EMH stated that he always wanted to spread his wings when he got sent on an away mission to help the Tak Tak deal with a virus on their homeworld. (VOY: "Macrocosm")

The vultures are circling

To say that the vultures [were] circling was to state that many people wanted something, or that the speaker was being pursued by enemies.

In 2373, when Janeway, Neelix, B'Elanna Torres, and Tuvok all wanted sirillium, Chakotay noted that the vultures were circling. (VOY: "Flashback")

In 2377, when Voyager was being monitored by many ships while trapped inside the Void, Tom Paris noted that the vultures were circling. Janeway replied, "Vultures eat the dead, Mr. Paris. We're not dead yet." (VOY: "The Void"

Wild goose chase

Meaning: an expression used to mean futile pursuit or search after something.

In 2153, Jonathan Archer told T'Pol "Maybe we're just on a wild goose chase" after their initial attempts to locate a dark matter nebula had failed. (ENT: "First Flight")

In 2268, Leonard McCoy accused Spock of "run[ning] off on some wild goose chase halfway across the galaxy" when Kirk, Uhura, and Chekov disappeared from Gamma II. Spock replied, "Doctor, I am chasing the captain, Lieutenant Uhura, and Ensign Chekov, not some wild aquatic fowl." (TOS: "The Gamesters of Triskelion")

Later that year, Spock described M-5 multitronic unit's diversionary tactics as "pursuing a wild goose." (TOS: "The Ultimate Computer")

After Katherine Pulaski was abducted by Professor James Moriarty in 2365, Geordi La Forge believed she planned "to lead [Data] on a wild goose chase and then recount the story to everyone between here and Alpha Centauri." (TNG: "Elementary, Dear Data")

In 2367, Data told Doctor Crusher that he "could be chasing an untamed ornithoid without a cause," describing this idiom, when examining the clues of Ambassador T'Pel's presumed death. Crusher eventually recognized the idiom, and corrected him with its common form. (TNG: "Data's Day")

In 2368, Jean-Luc Picard commented that the USS Enterprise-D's investigation of a Barolian freighter's activities at Galorndon Core "may prove to be a wild goose chase." (TNG: "Unification II")

In 2369, Picard told Deanna Troi that his continuation of Professor Galen's research was not a case of his taking the Enterprise and its crew on a wild goose chase. (TNG: "The Chase")

In 2371, Kira Nerys told Tom Riker that if she had hijacked the USS Defiant as he had, she "wouldn't have gone flying off into the middle of Cardassia on some wild goose chase." (DS9: "Defiant")

In 2372, Kathryn Janeway was concerned that investigating "Planet Hell" might prove to be a wild goose chase. (VOY: "Parturition")

In a deleted scene from "Dramatis Personae", Jadzia Dax begins to recount a wild goose chase on Elanu IV, involving Curzon Dax and Benjamin Sisko.

Canines

Bark worse than bite

If somebody's bark was worse than their bite, they were intimidating, but not aggressive.

Chakotay once noted of a Krenim commandant, "His bark's obviously worse than his bite." (VOY: "Year of Hell")

Trevis used the expression to refer to himself, which doubled as a pun since he was a tree being. (VOY: "Once Upon a Time")

Sick as a dog

To be sick as a dog meant to be either nauseated, or suffering from a disease.

Whatley punned on the idiom by describing Duarte, who was off work due to suffering from an unspecified disease, as "sick as a vole". (DS9: "The Assignment")

Wolf in sheep's clothing

A wolf in sheep's clothing was a disreputable person disguised as a friendly person.

Chakotay once used this idiom to describe an 8472 disguised as a Human. (VOY: "In the Flesh").

Cetaceans

A whale of a

To have a whale of something was to have something large or extreme.

An ad for the Cetacean Institute on the side of a bus invited visitors to have a whale of a good time seeing George and Gracie. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)

In 2374, according to Tom Paris, a holographic Klingon from the holoprogram B'Elanna Torres had previously used was "nursing a whale of a black eye." (VOY: "Day of Honor")

Equines

Get down off one's high horse

To get down off one's high horse was to stop being self-righteous.

A replica of Jadzia Dax told the real Dax to get down off her high horse so she could appreciate Julian Bashir. (DS9: "If Wishes were Horses")

Felines

As clever as an alley cat on his tenth life

To be as clever as an alley cat on his tenth life was to be very smart.

While Twaining, Sam Rutherford complemented Brad Boimler thusly. (LD: "Something Borrowed, Something Green")

Cat and mouse

Cat and mouse referred to a series of interactions between groups in which one hunted and tried to catch the other.

In 2267, Spock described Trelane's repositioning of the planet Gothos so that it was always in front of the USS Enterprise's flight path as a "cat-and-mouse game", Kirk adding that they were the mouse. (TOS: "The Squire of Gothos") / (TOS: "Friday's Child"; TAS: "Once Upon a Planet"; VOY: "Equinox, Part II")

When Dr. McCoy was on a planet where people's thoughts were made into reality via robots, he described the malevolent robots chasing them as "cat and mouse". This caused a large, aggressive, robot cat to appear.

(Like) herding cats

Something that was like herding cats was a task that was next to impossible.

Saru compared dealing with delegates aboard USS Discovery to herding cats. (DIS: "The Galactic Barrier")

The cat is out of the bag

If the cat was out of the bag, that meant a secret was exposed.

When Data asked Jenna D'Sora if her giving him a decoration as a present was an attempt to make his quarters appear less "Spartan", she replied, "The cat's out of the bag." He did not understand and believed she was referring to Spot. (TNG: "In Theory")

Purring like a kitten

If a machine purred like a kitten, it ran smoothly.

Miles O'Brien once stated that he had the engine on the Prometheus purring like a kitten. (DS9: "Second Sight")

Tiger by the tail

To have a tiger by the tail was to be in control of a dangerous situation that might become more dangerous if one tried to escape it.

Kirk described a tense situation with the Klingons as having a diplomatic tiger by the tail. (TOS: "Day of the Dove")

When the cat's away, the mice will play

Meaning: people tend to make merry, often in prohibited ways, when their superiors are absent.

A parallel universe version of Sulu once used this expression to flirt with the prime universe version of Uhura. (TOS: "Mirror, Mirror")

Insects

Dropping like flies

If people were dropping like flies, then many of them were dying in quick succession.

Quark described a biogenic weapon as "They'll be dropping like flies." (DS9: "Business as Usual")

Fly on the wall

A "fly on the wall" or "spider under the table" was a colloquial way of referring to an observer.

When Sito Jaxa was wondering why the senior officers were going to the Federation-Cardassian border, she wanted to have been a "spider under the table" during the briefing. She asked Sam Lavelle if he felt the same way, to which he responded, "Is that like a fly on the wall?". When Sito affirmed, he agreed. (TNG: "Lower Decks")

When Berlinghoff Rasmussen claimed to be a time-travelling historian observing Geordi La Forge and Data for research purposes, he told them to think of him as a fly on the wall. (TNG: "A Matter Of Time"

Other

Different animal

A different animal was another matter entirely.

Kira Nerys described a Federation phaser rifle as an entirely different animal from a Cardassian phase-disruptor rifle. (DS9: "Return to Grace")

Pig-headed

Pig-headed meant stubborn.

Quark once referred to Worf as having the brain of a pig-headed idiot. (DS9: "Let He Who is Without Sin")

Play possum

Meaning: To feign death when an enemy approached.

• In 2377, when Chakotay suggested the Hirogen might be laying a trap for Voyager, Kathryn Janeway dismissed the idea, saying that the Hirogen "aren't the type to play possum." (VOY: "Flesh and Blood")

Janeway uses the term incorrectly here, as it refers to an (o)possum's tendency to play dead in the hopes that an enemy will go away, rather than lying in wait to attack. [1]

According to the script for "Favor the Bold", the USS Defiant was "playing possum" when it, and the IKS Rotarran lured in and engaged two Dominion ships.

Pull a rabbit out of (a) hat

Pulling a rabbit out of a hat was a type of magic trick. Metaphorically, it referred to performing any amazing feat.

In 2372, Julian Bashir said, "Next time I'm going to pull a rabbit out of his ear" (DS9: "Rejoined")

In 2373, Chakotay said, "What's your next trick, Harry. Pull a shuttlecraft out of a hat?" (VOY: "Favorite Son")

In 2375, Ezri Dax, "Now we get to pull a rabbit out of our hat." (DS9: "The Siege of AR-558")

Later that year, Miles O'Brien said, "Julian, it's time to face facts. You're not going to pull a rabbit out of your medkit." (DS9: "Tacking Into the Wind")