IDIOMS AND PHRASES Flashcards
A blessing in disguise
Something good that isn’t recognised at first.
A chip on your shoulder
To seem angry all the time because you think you have been treated unfairly or feel you are not as good as other people.
A dime a dozen
Anything that is common and easy to get.
A doubting Thomas
A skeptic who needs physical or personal evidence in order to believe something.
A drop in the bucket
A very small part of something big or whole.
A fool and his money are easily parted
It’s easy for a foolish person to lose his/her money.
A house divided against itself cannot stand
If the members of a group fight each other, the group will disintegrate.
A leopard can’t change his spots
A person’s character especially if it is bad, will not change, even if they pretend it has.
A penny saved is a penny earned
By not spending money, you are saving money (little by little).
A picture paints a thousand words
A visual presentation is far more descriptive than words.
A piece of cake
A task that can be accomplished very easily.
A slap on the wrist
A very mild punishment.
A taste of your own medicine
When you are
mistreated the same way you mistreat others.
A toss-up
A situation where two or more possibilities are equally likely.
Actions speak louder than words
It’s better to actually do something than just talk about it.
Add fuel to the fire
Something done to make a bad situation even worse than it is.
Against the clock
against time; in a great hurry to get something done before a particular time.
All bark and no bite
When someone is threatening and/or is aggressive but not willing to engage in a fight.
All Greek to me
Something that is meaningless and incomprehensible to someone.
All in the same boat
When everyone is facing the same challenges.
An arm and a leg
Very expensive, costing a large amount of money.
Have an axe to grind
To have a strong personal opinion about something that you want people to accept and that is the reason you do something.
Apple of my eye
Someone who is cherished above all others.
Be as high as a kite
To feel very happy and excited.
At the drop of a hat
Willing to do something immediately.
Back to square one
Having to start all over again.
Back to the drawing board
Back to the beginning or planning phase after an approach has proved unsuccessful.
Barking up the wrong tree
To be wrong about the reason for something or the way to achieve something.
Beat a dead horse
To waste effort on something when there is no chance of succeeding.
Beating around the bush
Avoiding the main topic, not speaking directly about the issue.
Bend over backwards
To go out of one’s way to do something for someone.
Between a rock and a hard place
Stuck between two very bad options.
Bite off more than you can chew
To decide or agree to do more than one can finally accomplish.
Bite your tongue
To stop yourself from saying something that you would really like to say.
Blood is thicker than water
Said to emphasize that you believe that family connections are always more important than other types of relationship.
Once in a blue moon
To do something rarely.
Break a leg
A superstitious way to say ‘good luck’
without saying ‘good luck’, but rather the opposite.
Buy a lemon
To purchase a vehicle that constantly gives problems or stops running after you drive it away.
Can’t cut the mustard
Unable to deal with problems or difficulties.
Cast iron stomach
Someone who has no problems, complications or ill effects with eating anything or drinking anything.
Charley horse
A cramp in your arm or leg.
Chew someone out
Verbally scold someone.
Chow down
To eat something usually quickly, saying something rude or unpleasant.
Close but no cigar
To be very near and almost accomplish a goal, but fall short.
Cock and bull story
An unbelievable tale.
Come hell or high water
To decide to do something no matter what happens.
Crack someone up
To make someone laugh.
Cross your fingers
To hope that something
happens the way you want it to.
Cry over spilt milk
To regret in vain about what cannot be undone or rectified.
Cry wolf
Intentionally raise a false alarm.
Cup of joe
A cup of coffee.
Curiosity kills the cat
Being inquisitive can lead you into a dangerous situation.
Cut to the chase Leave
out all the unnecessary details and get to the main point.
Dark horse
Someone who unexpectedly wins a competition.
A dead ringer for someone/ something
Someone or something that looks exactly like someone or something else.
Devil’s advocate
Someone who argues against a cause or position either for the sake of argument or to help determine its validity.
Dog days of summer
The hottest days of the summer season.
Don’t count your chickens before they hatch
Don’t make plans based on future events that might not happen.
Don’t look a gift horse in the mouth
When someone gives you a gift, accept it graciously.
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
To not put all your resources in one area.
Down to the wire
Until the last possible moment.
Drastic times call for drastic measures
When you are extremely desperate you need to take extremely desperate actions.
Drive someone up the wall
To irritate and/or annoy someone very much.
Dropping like flies
A large number of people either falling ill or dying.
Dry run
Rehearsal; a dummy run or show.
Elvis has left the building
The show has come to
an end; it’s all over.
Ethnic cleansing
Killing of a certain ethnic or religious group on a massive scale.
Every cloud has a silver lining
There is something good even in an unpleasant situation.
Everything but the kitchen sink
Almost everything imaginable.
Feeding frenzy
A situation in which people try to get as much as possible of something, for example information about an event, especially in an unpleasant way.
Field day
A time of great pleasure, activity or opportunity.
Finding your feet
To become familiar with and confident in a new situation.
Fixed in your ways
Not willing or wanting to change from your normal way of doing something.
Flash in the pan
Something that happened only once or for a short time and was not repeated.
Flesh and blood
The quality of being alive.
Foam at the mouth
To be extremely angry.
From rags to riches
To go from being very poor to being very wealthy.
Get down to brass tacks
To start talking about the most important or basic facts of a situation.
Get over it
To move beyond something that is bothering you.
Get up on the wrong side of the bed
To begin the day feeling unhappy and uncomfortable.
Get your walking papers
To get fired from a job.
Give him the slip
To get away from or escape
someone.
Go down like a lead balloon
To be received badly by an audience.
Go down like a lead balloon
To be received badly by an audience.
Go for broke
To gamble everything you have.
Go out on a limb
Put yourself in a tough position
in order to support someone/something.
Go out on a limb
Put yourself in a tough position
in order to support someone/something.
Go the extra mile
Going above and beyond whatever is required for the task at hand.
Good Samaritan
Someone who helps others when they are in need, with no discussion for compensation and no thought of a reward.
Good Samaritan
Someone who helps others when they are in need, with no discussion for compensation and no thought of a reward.
Great minds think alike
Intelligent people think like each other.
Green room
The waiting room, especially for those who are about to go on a TV or radio show.
Gut feeling
Sense something about a person or situation, without knowing why, but you’re sure what you sense is right.
Haste makes waste
Quickly doing things results in a poor ending.
Have clean hands
Be guiltless.
He lost his head
To be angry and overcome by
emotions.
Head over heels
To be very excited or joyful, especially when in love.
To be going to hell in a hand basket
To be rapidly deteriorating – on course for disaster.
Hit the books
To study especially for a test or an exam.
Hit the hay
Go to bed or go to sleep.
Hit the nail on the head
Do something exactly right or say something exactly right.
Hold your horses
To be patient.
Hit the sack
Go to bed or go to sleep.
Hit the sack
Go to bed or go to sleep.
Icing on the cake
When you already have it good and get something on top of what you already have.
Idle hands are the devil’s tools
You are more likely to get in trouble if you have nothing to do.
If it’s not one thing, it’s another
Used when bad things keep happening to you.
In like Flynn
To quickly or easily achieve goal or gain access to something.
In the bag
To have something secured.
In the buff
Nude.
In the heat of the moment
Overwhelmed by what is happening in the moment.
In your face
Characterised by or expressive of bold and often defiant aggressiveness.
It takes two to tango
If two people are involved in a bad situation, both must be responsible.
It’s a small world
You frequently see the same people in different places.
Its anyone’s call
A competition where the outcome is difficult to judge or predict.
Keep an eye on someone
To keep someone or something under careful observation.
Keep body and soul together
To earn a sufficient amount of money in order to keep yourself alive.
Keep your chin up
To remain joyful in a tough situation.
Kick the bucket
Die.
Knee jerk reaction
A quick reaction that doesn’t
allow you time to consider something carefully.
Know the ropes
Be informed about the details of a situation or task.
Last but not the least
An introduction phrase to let the audience know that the last person or thing mentioned is no less important than those introduced before him/her.
Lend me your ear
To politely ask for someone’s full attention.
Let bygones be bygones
To forget about unpleasant things that have happened in the past.
Let sleeping dogs lie
Said to warn someone that they should not talk about a bad situation that most people have forgotten about.
Let the cat out of the bag
To share a secret that wasn’t suppose to be shared.
Level playing field
A fair competition where no side has an advantage.
Like a chicken with its head cut off
To act in a frenzied manner.
Liquor someone up
To get someone drunk.
Live high on the hog
To live in great comfort with
a lot of money.
Long in the tooth
To be very old.
Loose cannon
Someone who behaves in an uncontrolled or unexpected way and is likely to cause problems for other people.
Make no bones about
Having no hesitation in stating or dealing with something, however unpleasant or awkward it is.
Method to my madness
Strange or crazy actions that appear meaningless but in the end are done for a good reason.
Mumbo jumbo
Confusing or meaningless words or activity.
Mum’s the word
Used to say that some information is being kept secret or should be kept secret.
Nest egg
Savings set aside for future use.
Never bite the hand that feeds you
To not hurt
anyone that helps you.
New kid on the block
Someone new to the group.
New York minute
A minute that seems to go by quickly, especially in a fast paced environment.
No room to swing a cat
An unusually small or confined space.
Not playing with a full deck
Not mentally sound; crazy or mentally deranged.
Get off on the wrong foot
Getting a bad start on a relationship or task.
Off the hook
To escape from a difficult situation.
Off the record
Not intended to be known publicly
or recorded officially.
On pins and needles
Anxious or nervous, especially in anticipation of something.
On the fence
Undecided about something.
Be on the same page
To understand or agree with
what is being done or suggested.
Out of the blue
Something that suddenly and unexpectedly occurs.
Over my dead body
When you absolutely will not allow something to happen.
Over the top
Too extreme and not suitable, or demanding too much attention or effort, especially in an uncontrolled way.
Pass the buck
To pass the blame; to give the responsibility to someone else.
Pedal to the metal
To make something go forward or increase as fast as possible.
Pick up your ears
To listen very carefully.
Pick up your ears
To listen very carefully.
A pig in a poke
Something that you buy without
knowing if it is good or not.
Pig out
To eat a lot and eat it quickly.
Pipe down
To shut-up or be quiet.
Pull the plug
To stop something, to bring something to an end.
Queer the pitch
Destroy or ruin a plan.
Raining cats and dogs
To be raining in great
amounts.
Rome was not built in a day
If you want something to be completed properly then its going to take time.
Rule of thumb
A practical and approximate way of doing something.
Run out of steam
To be completely out of energy.
Saved by the bell
When a difficult situation ends suddenly before you have to do or say something that you do not want to.
Sick as a dog
To be very ill.
Smell a rat
To recognise that something is not as it seems to be or that something dishonest is happening.
Smell something fishy
Detecting that something isn’t right or someone is being dishonest.
Son of a gun A worthless person.
A worthless person.
Southpaw
Someone who is left-handed.
Spitting image
To look extremely similar to someone.
Start from scratch
To do it all over again from the beginning.
The ball is in your court
It is upto you to make the next move.
The best of both worlds
A situation in which you can enjoy the advantages of two very different things at the same time.
The bigger they are the harder they fall
The more powerful and successful people are, the more they suffer when they experience defeat and disaster.
The last straw
The final difficulty in a series; the last little burden or problem that causes everything to collapse.
The whole nine yards
Everything; the entire amount.
Third time’s a charm
After no success the first two times, the third try is a lucky one.
Tie the knot
To get married.
Until the cows come home
For a very long time.
To make a long story short
As a way to avoid a long explanation.
To steal someone’s thunder
To take the credit for something someone else did.
Tongue in cheek
If you say something tongue in cheek, you intend it to be understood as a joke, although you might appear to be serious.
Turn a blind eye
Refuse to acknowledge something you know is real or legitimate.
Twenty three skidoo
To leave quickly.
Under the weather
Feeling ill or sick.
Up a blind alley
At a dead end; on a route that leads nowhere.
Van Gogh’s ear for music
When referring to a singer it implies that he/she is not good and tend to go off key a lot.
Variety is the spice of life
New and exciting experiences make life more interesting.
Wag the dog
To purposely direct the attention from something of greater importance to something of lesser importance.
Water under the bridge
Anything from the past that isn’t significant or important anymore.
Wear your heart on your sleeve
To openly and freely express your emotions.
When it rains, it pours
Many difficult things happening at the same time
When pigs fly
Something that will never ever happen.
Wild and woolly
Uncultured and without laws.
You are what you eat
In order to stay healthy you
must eat healthy foods.
You can’t judge a book by its cover
You cannot judge the quality or character of someone or something just by looking at them.
You can’t take it with you
When you die you cannot take things such as money or property with you.
Your guess is as good as mine
Something you say when you do not know the answer to a question.
