COMMON ENGLISH IDIOMS Flashcards
‘The best of both worlds’
means you can enjoy two different opportunities at the same time.
“By working part-time and looking after her kids two days a week she managed to get the best of both worlds.”
‘See eye to eye’
this means agreeing with someone.
“They finally saw eye to eye on the business deal.”
‘Speak of the devil’
this means that the person you’re just talking about actually appears at that moment.
“Hi Tom, speak of the devil, I was just telling Sara about your new car.”
‘Once in a blue moon’
an event that happens infrequently.
“I only go to the cinema once in a blue moon.”
‘When pigs fly’
something that will never happen.
“When pigs fly she’ll tidy up her room.”
‘To cost an arm and a leg’
something is very expensive.
“Fuel these days costs and arm and a leg.”
‘A piece of cake’
something is very easy.
“The English test was a piece of cake.”
‘Let the cat out of the bag’
to accidentally reveal a secret.
“I let the cat out of the bag about their wedding plans.”
‘To feel under the weather’
to not feel well.
“I’m really feeling under the weather today; I have a terrible cold.”
‘To kill two birds with one stone’
to solve two problems at once.
“By taking my dad on holiday, I killed two birds with one stone. I got to go away but also spend time with him.”
‘To cut corners’
to do something badly or cheaply.
“They really cut corners when they built this bathroom; the shower is leaking.”
‘To add insult to injury’
to make a situation worse.
“To add insult to injury the car drove off without stopping after knocking me off my bike.”
to do or say something that makes a bad situation even worse for someone. People were forced to work longer hours, and to add insult to injury, the company decided not to give pay raises.
‘You can’t judge a book by its cover’
to not judge someone or something based solely on appearance.
“I thought this no-brand bread would be horrible; turns out you can’t judge a book by its cover.”
The saying “never judge a book by its cover” or “don’t judge a book by its cover” means that you shouldn’t judge someone or something based only on what you see on the outside or only on what you perceive without knowing the full situation. It means that the outward appearance of something is not an indication of its value or worth.
‘Break a leg’
means ‘good luck’ (often said to actors before they go on stage).
“Break a leg Sam, I’m sure your performance will be great.”
‘To hit the nail on the head’
to describe exactly what is causing a situation or problem.
“He hit the nail on the head when he said this company needs more HR support.”
‘A blessing in disguise’
An misfortune that eventually results in something good happening later on.
The phrase ‘A Blessing in Disguise’ refers to something that at first appears to be bad or unlucky but is actually good. Example of Use: “My car broke down again, but maybe it was a blessing in disguise; I’ve been wasting too much time driving around anyway
‘Call it a day’
Stop working on something
‘Let someone off the hook’
To allow someone, who have been caught, to not be punished.
‘No pain no gain’
You have to work hard for something you want.
‘Bite the bullet’
Decide to do something unpleasant that you have avoided doing.
‘Getting a taste of your own medicine’
Being treated the same unpleasant way you have treated others.
‘Giving someone the cold shoulder’
To ignore someone.
‘The last straw’
The final source of irritation for someone to finally lose patience.
a further difficulty or annoyance, typically minor in itself but coming on top of a whole series of difficulties, that makes a situation unbearable.
“his affair was the last straw”
‘The elephant in the room’
A matter or problem that is obvious of great importance but that is not discussed openly.
‘Stealing someones thunder’
Taking credit for someone else achievements.
ants in your pants
can’t sit still
barking up the wrong tree
having the wrong impression of a person or situation
bats in the belfry
indicates that someone is behaving in an eccentric or less than sane manner
beef up
to strengthen something
eager beaver
someone who is very eager or excited to do something
earworm
thinking about a song or lyrics from a song over and over
for the birds
something that is silly, ridiculous or ludicrous
Worthless, not to be taken seriously, no good. For example, This conference is for the birds—let’s leave now. This term has been said to allude to horse droppings from which birds would extract seeds. This seemingly fanciful theory is borne out by a more vulgar version of this idiom, shit for the birds. [Slang; first half of 1900s]
get your ducks in a row
make proper plans; get things in order
gets my goat
something that really bothers or annoys someone
to upset or irritate someone. The way she’s always correcting other people really gets my goat!
hair of the dog that bit you
whatever caused you to be in the situation you’re in, go get more of that
“Hair of the dog”, short for “hair of the dog that bit you”, is a colloquial expression in the English language predominantly used to refer to alcohol that is consumed as a hangover remedy (with the aim of lessening the effects of a hangover). Many other languages have their own phrase to describe the same concept.
hold your horses
slow down; stop and think about what you’re doing
on a fishing expedition
trying to get information out of someone without being fully aware of what you’re looking for
monkey business
silliness or goofing off; breaking the rules
plenty of fish in the sea
there are plenty of other dating prospects out there
put lipstick on a pig
if you dress up ugly, there’s still ugly underneath
quit cold turkey
to give up something all at once rather than gradually weaning off it
running around like a chicken with your head cut off
being confused, disorganized, or unsure of where to get started or what to do next
smell a rat
to get a sense that there is a problem with something
phrase. If you smell a rat, you begin to suspect or realize that something is wrong in a particular situation, for example that someone is trying to deceive you or harm you.
straight from the horse’s mouth
got information directly from the most knowledgeable source
to be a fly on the wall
to wish to witness what is going on without anyone being aware that you are there
zebras don’t change their stripes
don’t expect anyone to be anything other than who they really are
behind the eight ball
in a difficult position
call the shots
to make the decisions; to decide what will be done
cheap shot
to take advantage of someone when they are down
dead ringer
a duplicate or double, something that looks just like another
down to the wire
completing or finishing something with no extra time remaining
drop the ball
to make a basic mistake
game plan
to put a plan in place; to decide how things should be handled
get the ball rolling
to begin or get started; to put things into motion
get ahead of the game
to have an advantage over others
get a kick out of it
to be amused by something
give it your best shot
try as hard as you possibly can; put forth your best effort
hit the mark
to find the perfect or ideal solution; to be in exactly the right place
hit below the belt
to capitalize on an opponent’s vulnerabilities in an unfair way
in the ballpark
close to a suitable amount or suggestion
know the score
be aware of all relevant factors and variables
make the cut
to be chosen, selected or included in something
Monday morning quarterback
someone who tries to call the shots after the action is already over
move the goalposts
to set your sights or standards even higher; to make something more challenging
out of your league
above or beyond what one is capable of attaining
political football
an issue that politicians argue in circles about or seek to use for their own political gain
skin in the game
having a vested interest in how something turns out
the ball is in your court
it’s your turn to act or respond
to go to bat
to speak out positively about someone or something with the intent of helping
to run interference
to try to remove obstacles that are in someone’s way; clearing the way for someone else
to take sides
to choose a team
toe the line
to stay within the acceptable boundary or limits
to do what you are expected to do without causing trouble for anyone: If you want to get ahead, you’d better learn to toe the line.
apply some elbow grease
put some physical effort into what you’re doing
armed to the teeth
in possession of a lot of weapons
bare bones
a very basic model or version, with no extras or add-ons
bundle of nerves
very nervous or anxious about something
by the skin of your teeth
just barely
Just barely, very narrowly, as in Doug passed the exam by the skin of his teeth. A related term appears in the Bible (Job 19:20), where Job says, “I am escaped with the skin of my teeth,” presumably meaning he got away with nothing at all. Today the phrase using by is used most often to describe a narrow escape.
get it off your chest
share information about something that has been bothering you
say something that one has wanted to say for a long time, resulting in a feeling of relief.
“tell me about it, get it off your chest”
give me a hand
please help or assist me with something
go behind one’s back
to sneak and do something without telling someone who should be aware
go belly up
go out of business; to lose everything
green thumb
to be good at gardening; having good skills or luck with growing flowers or vegetables
I’m all ears
the person is prepared and ready to listen to what you have to say
it’s like pulling teeth
something that requires a lot of effort
If you say that making someone do something was like pulling teeth, you mean it was very difficult and they did not want to do it: Getting her to tell me about her childhood was like pulling teeth.
itchy feet
someone is getting restless; being ready to move on to the next activity
If you have itchy feet, you have a strong desire to leave a place and to travel.
The thought gave me really itchy feet so within a couple of months I decided to leave.
joined at the hip
people who seem to be together all the time
if two people are joined at the hip, they are very close to each other emotionally and they spend a great deal of time together. Though we often work together, we’re not joined at the hip, so we see things differently.
keep at arm’s length
to deliberately not let someone get too close
long in the tooth
old; of advanced years
A horse’s teeth grow with age, and the length of the front teeth is often used as an indicator of equine age. Thus ‘long in the tooth’ equates to old age.
need elbow room
to prefer to have plenty of space between you and other people
Elbow room is the freedom to do what you want to do or need to do in a particular situation
no skin off my nose
something isn’t going to affect you, so you don’t really care
pick your brain
to ask questions to find out someone’s thoughts or opinions on a topic
play it by ear
to move forward without a specific plan; to figure things out along the way
slap on the wrist
a minor caution against doing something rather than an actual punishment
stick your neck out
to take a chance on another person in a way that could impact your reputation
wet behind the ears
doesn’t have very much experience; isn’t very skilled
The meaning of the phrase “Wet Behind the Ears” is someone who is very young, naive and inexperienced. Example of use: “I can’t believe they decided to promote Kelly. If you ask me, I think she’s still wet behind the ears
your neck of the woods -
the general area where someone lives
a dime a dozen
refers to something that’s very common, so it doesn’t have much value or worth
What does “dime a dozen” mean? This idiom means that something is easy to find or obtain. Since it’s easy to find, it doesn’t have a lot of value and is considered cheap or ordinary. Here’s how to use it in sentences: “During apple season, apples around here go for a dime a dozen.”
bang for your buck
get the most benefit possible out of the money you spend
bought the farm
to die unexpectedly
don’t let the inmates run the asylum
those who are in charge should make the decisions rather than those in subordinate rolls
freeze someone out
to deliberately leave someone out; to choose not to include someone who would expect to be included
to make someone feel that they are not part of a group by being unfriendly toward that person, or to stop someone from being included in an arrangement or activity: be frozen out of I felt I was being frozen out of the discussions.
go Dutch -
to pay your own way when going somewhere with another person or a group of people
going forward
the next time or on a future occasion
graveyard shift
working through the overnight hours
jump on the bandwagon
to do something because everyone is doing it
hold the line
to stay on the telephone to wait for the party you are calling to become available
give something a fair shake
to try something for a while before deciding that it isn’t for you
looney tunes
someone who may not be mentally healthy
(slang, humorous) A silly or crazy person; a person whose actions are unpredictable and irrational. Some loony tune parked his car in the no parking section. Stop fooling around like a loony tune and get to work on your essay!
party pooper
someone who puts a stop to the fun
pass the buck
blame someone else for something or make someone else responsible for a difficult or unpleasant task
put a pin in this
stop discussing or working this now, with plans to come back to it later
'’Put a pin in it’’ is a slang term that means to ‘‘hold onto that thought/idea and we’ll come back to it later. ‘’ One might assume that it comes from thumb-tacking an idea to a bulletin board, but in fact, it comes from a WWII reference to a hand-grenade - ‘‘putting a pin in it’’ so you can save it for later!
reach out to someone
ask someone for information
To reach out to someone” means to offer support. To reach out can also mean to seek support. For example: “ The football club reached out to the local community to gain support for their new stadium”
riding shotgun
riding in the front passenger seat of a car or truck
shoot the breeze
make small talk; have a casual conversation
spill the beans
to reveal information you were not supposed to share
stick to something like white on rice
to cling tightly with no possibility of letting go
Meaning: If you do something like white on rice, you do it very closely: When Bob found out I had front row tickets for the concert, he stuck to me like white on rice.
that really knocked my socks off
to be really impressed by something
think outside the box
think of new ideas outside the norm
to take a rain check
to say no to an invitation when it is given, but suggest that it is likely to be accepted in the future
top of the line
the best possible version of something; the most luxurious or expensive options
touch base
to communicate with someone regarding future plans
briefly make or renew contact with someone.
“they are travelling back to Star City, where they plan to touch base with relatives”
up my alley
something that you really like, or something that is within your skillset
wet blanket
someone who is dull and keeps others from having fun
a person who spoils other people’s fun by failing to join in with or by disapproving of their activities.
“don’t be a wet blanket”
your John Hancock
your official signature
