cheer it to the rafters

English as a Second Language English Vocabulary, Grammar and Idioms
1

It contained absolutely nothing new and was riddled with pre-conditions…Yet Congress cheered it to the rafters.

  • Why “to the rafters”? Could you bring more examples of that saying?
    Thanks.
2

Hi,

This would suggest that the cheering was very loud and went up to the rafters, which are the beams that support the roof of a building. There is another expression along these lines ‘raise the roof’, which is also used for loud cheering/singing.

Alan

3

So, Congress gave a big hand to the speech…
Thank you, Alan.