It's Murder Out (Metaphor)
When Rose goes to take out her kitchen dustbin, she discovers Mr. and Mrs. Sands out on the landing beyond her door. As they chat idly about the weather, Mrs. Sands says, "It's murder out. Have you been out?" In this metaphor, Mrs. Sands uses hyperbolic language to emphasize the unpleasantness of the freezing weather, speaking of the cold as though it is intent on causing deadly harm to people.
This'll Keep the Cold Out (Metaphor)
At the play's opening, Bert is reading a magazine while Rose cooks for him. As she serves him a plate of eggs and bacon, she says, "Here you are. This'll keep the cold out." Using metaphorical language, Rose speaks of the warm food as though it can create a physical barrier that will insulate Bert from the freezing weather. In reality, she believes Bert will be more comfortable during his driving if he is well-fed; she is simply encapsulating this belief in a statement that suggests the food will somehow prevent cold air from getting at Bert's skin.
Those Walls Would Have Finished You Off (Metaphor)
In the opening scene, Rose carries a one-sided conversation with Bert in which she discusses the cold weather and her relief that they aren't living in the basement. Rose comments on how she rejected the basement when the landlord offered it to her because she didn't like how there was damp in the walls. Referring to Bert's recent illness, Rose says it's good they weren't living in the basement because "those walls would have finished [Bert] off." In this metaphor, Rose personifies the moist, moldy walls as killers, suggesting the damp atmosphere would have exacerbated Bert's illness until he died.
Spit It Out (Metaphor)
After considerable reluctance, Rose tells Mr. Kidd to bring the stranger up from the basement so they can talk before Bert comes home. Irritated when the blind man doesn't immediately explain himself, Rose says, "Spit it out or out you go. What do you want?" In this metaphor, Rose uses the turn of phrase "spit it out" to urge Riley to speak quickly, as if the words are being physically spit from his mouth.
"Go Home" (Metaphor)
After coming inside Rose's room to warm up, Mr. and Mrs. Sands bicker with each other over trivial details. When Mrs. Sands tells Rose it is so dark out that she saw a star in the sky, her husband insists she didn't see a star. Mrs. Sands says she saw one "as we were coming along," and Toddy replies, "Go home." In this metaphor, Toddy isn't literally telling his wife she should go home; rather, he uses a turn of phrase to tell his wife she should give up trying to convince him she saw a star.
