eyes are bigger than your stomach

Meaning

This idiom means that you have taken or ordered much more food than you are actually capable of eating. It describes the visual greed or excitement of seeing delicious food, which leads to overestimating your actual physical appetite. It is used casually, often in a lighthearted or slightly regretful tone when looking at leftovers.

Examples

• I couldn't finish my dessert; I guess my eyes were bigger than my stomach.

  I couldn't finish my dessert; I guess my eyes were bigger than my stomach.

• Don't load up your plate like that; your eyes are bigger than your stomach!

  Don't load up your plate like that; your eyes are bigger than your stomach!

• We ordered five appetizers, but our eyes were bigger than our stomachs.

  We ordered five appetizers, but our eyes were bigger than our stomachs.

• I always find that my eyes are bigger than my stomach when I visit an all-you-can-eat buffet.

  I always find that my eyes are bigger than my stomach when I visit an all-you-can-eat buffet.

• She left half of her steak on the plate because her eyes were bigger than her stomach.

  She left half of her steak on the plate because her eyes were bigger than her stomach.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ My eyes are larger than my belly.

  ✓ My eyes are bigger than my stomach.

  While 'larger' and 'belly' are synonyms, the fixed idiomatic phrase strictly uses 'bigger' and 'stomach'.

• ✗ I ate too much because my eyes are bigger than my stomach.

  ✓ I couldn't finish my food because my eyes were bigger than my stomach.

  The idiom means you are unable to finish what you took, not that you successfully overate and finished everything.

Related Expressions

Practice

• Don't take too much food at the buffet; your ___.

  💡 An idiom warning someone that they might take more food than they can actually eat.

  Show answer

  eyes are bigger than your stomach

• When you order way too much food that you cannot finish, people say your ___.

  💡 Your visual desire for food is greater than your actual capacity to eat it.

  Show answer

  eyes are bigger than your stomach