English Reference
Idiom idiom

darken a church door


To go to church to attend a service.

Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.


SIMPLE

He does not darken a church door very often.

CONTEXTUAL

Although he grew up in a religious family, he rarely darkens a church door these days.

COMPLEX

Despite the pressure from his traditional relatives, he refused to darken a church door, preferring to spend his Sunday mornings in quiet reflection at home.


Related idioms8entries
  1. 01

    bang down the door

    To present oneself as a strong candidate for a role or achievement, explicitly or implicitly.

  2. 02

    blow the doors off

    To be much more important or impressive than.

  3. 03

    close the stable door after the horse has bolted

    To attempt to prevent a problem that has already occurred; to design and implement a preventive mechanism that is too late (after the first failure instead of before).

  4. 04

    darken someone's door

    To arrive at someone's residence or location, especially as an unexpected visitor.

  5. 05

    don't let the door hit you on the way out

    Used as a command to leave in haste, or to indicate that one is glad, or at least unmoved, to see the addressed person leaving.

  6. 06

    get one's foot in the door

    To initiate contact or a relationship; to gain access, especially to an entry-level job.

  7. 07

    get the door

    To open a door to help another person to pass through.

  8. 08

    go in the out door

    To engage in anal sex.

Last updated August 10, 2026