Meaning
to be so excited, nervous or anxious about something that it’s hard to be still and calm.
Examples
My children have ants in their pants because tomorrow is Christmas and they are excited about their presents.
Every time we take our children to church they jump around like they’ve got ants in their pants and I constantly have to ask them to sit down.
I’ve got ants in my pants because I have to give a presentation at work tomorrow.
Notice
This idiom describes a kind of excitement that can be either positive (excited about something) or more negative (anxious or worried about something).
Origin
Synonyms
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
The idiom ‘ants in your pants’ means “to deal with a difficult situation without being harmed or damaged”
Example usage of idiom ‘ants in your pants’: Newspapers have weathered the storm of online information by providing news online themselves.