To Cost an Arm and a Leg

Example Dialogues:

Joanna: How much did you pay for you car?
John: It was $12,000.

Michelle: How much was dinner?
Maria: It was $24.00

Lia: How much was the hospital bill?
Eric: It cost an arm and a leg!
Lia: What? Are you ok? An arm and a leg? What do you mean?
Eric: Haha, don’t worry, Lia! My arms and legs are safe! When we say something cost an arm and a leg, it means something was very very expensive! It’s an idiom!
Lia: Oh…ok. You scared me! So… how much was it?
Eric: I was in the hospital for three days and it cost me $150,000
Lia: Wow, that really did cost an arm and a leg! Sorry to hear that, but I am happy that you are not sick anymore!
Eric: Thanks, Lia…

Hideka: Ligia, that is a really nice purse! It looks very expensive!
Ligia: Well… Thank you! Guess how much I paid for it.
Hideka: I don’t know, but I am sure it cost an arm and a leg! It looks really expensive!
Ligia: The original price was $400.00, but I bought it at ROSS for only $80.00!
Hideka: Wow! That was a great deal!

Meaning: To cost an arm and a leg means to be extremely expensive.
Watch this video to see an example of how to use the idiom to cost an arm and a leg:
www.howcast.com/videos/3100-How-To-Live-on-Practically-Nothing

These idioms are from LSI’s book Speaking Savvy, which is used in the level 5 listening and speaking classes. For more information, please visit https://www.languagesystems.com/