Idioms and Phrases: Unraveling the Meanings Behind the Expressions
Explore the fascinating world of idioms and phrases that enrich our language and communication. This comprehensive collection showcases a diverse range of idiomatic expressions, their meanings, and illustrative examples. Dive in to enhance your understanding and appreciation of these colourful sayings that add depth and nuance to everyday conversations.
Common idioms
Here’s a table of 100 useful idioms, along with their meanings and examples. Use the idiom index for letter-based idioms.
| Idiom | Meaning | Example |
|---|---|---|
| A blessing in disguise | A good thing that seemed bad at first | Losing that job was a blessing in disguise; I found a better one. |
| A dime a dozen | Very common, not unique | In this city, coffee shops are a dime a dozen. |
| A piece of cake | Very easy | The exam was a piece of cake; I finished it in 30 minutes. |
| A slap on the wrist | A mild punishment | He got a slap on the wrist for his minor offense. |
| Actions speak louder than words | What someone does is more important than what they say | He promised to help, but actions speak louder than words. |
| Add insult to injury | To make a bad situation worse | She not only lost the match but also, to add insult to injury, hurt her ankle. |
| Barking up the wrong tree | Looking in the wrong place; misguided | If you think I’m the one who stole your pen, you’re barking up the wrong tree. |
| Beat around the bush | Avoiding the main topic | Stop beating around the bush and tell me what happened. |
| Bite the bullet | To do something painful or unpleasant | I don’t want to go to the dentist, but I’ll bite the bullet. |
| Break the ice | To initiate conversation in a social setting | He told a joke to break the ice at the party. |
| Burn the midnight oil | To stay up late working or studying | She burned the midnight oil to finish her project. |
| Call it a day | To stop working for the day | I’m tired; let’s call it a day and finish this tomorrow. |
| Caught between a rock and a hard place | In a difficult situation with no good options | I was caught between a rock and a hard place when choosing between jobs. |
| Cost an arm and a leg | Very expensive | That car costs an arm and a leg! |
| Cut corners | To do something in a cheaper or easier way | They cut corners to save money, but the quality suffered. |
| Devil’s advocate | To argue a position one does not necessarily agree with | I’ll play devil’s advocate; what if the plan fails? |
| Don’t count your chickens before they hatch | Don’t assume success until it happens | She wants to get a new car, but don’t count your chickens before they hatch. |
| Don’t put all your eggs in one basket | Don’t risk everything on a single venture | It’s better to invest in multiple stocks; don’t put all your eggs in one basket. |
| Easier said than done | It’s easier to talk about something than to do it | Quitting smoking is easier said than done. |
| Every cloud has a silver lining | There is something good in every bad situation | Losing that job was tough, but every cloud has a silver lining; I found a better one. |
| Get a taste of your own medicine | Experience the same negative effects you give to others | After being rude to everyone, he got a taste of his own medicine. |
| Get out of hand | To become uncontrollable | The party got out of hand when more guests arrived than expected. |
| Get your act together | To start to take things seriously | You need to get your act together if you want to pass this course. |
| Give the cold shoulder | To ignore someone | She gave him the cold shoulder after their argument. |
| Go back to the drawing board | Start over with a fresh plan | The proposal was rejected, so we have to go back to the drawing board. |
| Hit the nail on the head | To describe exactly what is causing a situation | You hit the nail on the head with your analysis of the problem. |
| In the heat of the moment | In a very emotional situation | I said things I didn’t mean in the heat of the moment. |
| It takes two to tango | Both parties involved in a situation are responsible | They both contributed to the argument; it takes two to tango. |
| Jump on the bandwagon | Join a popular trend | Now that everyone is doing yoga, she decided to jump on the bandwagon. |
| Keep your chin up | Stay positive in a difficult situation | Even though times are tough, keep your chin up! |
| Kill two birds with one stone | Achieve two things with one action | By taking the bus, I can save money and kill two birds with one stone. |
| Let the cat out of the bag | Reveal a secret | She let the cat out of the bag about the surprise party. |
| Make a long story short | Get to the point quickly | To make a long story short, we won the game. |
| Miss the boat | To miss an opportunity | I didn’t apply for the job in time; I missed the boat. |
| No pain, no gain | You must work hard for something you want | If you want to lose weight, remember, no pain, no gain. |
| Not playing with a full deck | Someone who is not very intelligent | I think he’s not playing with a full deck if he believes that. |
| On the ball | Alert and aware | She is really on the ball; she always knows what’s happening. |
| Once in a blue moon | Very rarely | We only see each other once in a blue moon. |
| Out of the blue | Unexpectedly | He called me out of the blue after years of silence. |
| Over the moon | Extremely happy | She was over the moon when she heard she got the job. |
| Play it by ear | To improvise or act spontaneously | I’m not sure what we’ll do; let’s just play it by ear. |
| Pull someone’s leg | To joke or tease someone | I thought he was serious, but he was just pulling my leg. |
| Put all your eggs in one basket | To risk everything on one venture | Investing everything in one stock is putting all your eggs in one basket. |
| Raining cats and dogs | Raining heavily | It was raining cats and dogs during the storm. |
| Read between the lines | To understand the deeper meaning | You need to read between the lines to understand what she really means. |
| Spilled the beans | Revealed a secret | He spilled the beans about the surprise party. |
| Steal someone’s thunder | Take credit for someone else’s work | She stole my thunder by presenting my idea as her own. |
| Take it with a grain of salt | Don’t take something too seriously | You should take his advice with a grain of salt. |
| The ball is in your court | It’s your decision now | I’ve done all I can; the ball is in your court. |
| The best of both worlds | An ideal situation | Living in the city and having a cabin in the woods gives me the best of both worlds. |
| The elephant in the room | An obvious problem that is being ignored | We need to address the elephant in the room: our budget cuts. |
| The whole nine yards | Everything possible | She went the whole nine yards to make the wedding perfect. |
| Throw in the towel | To give up | After months of trying to fix the car, he finally threw in the towel. |
| Under the weather | Feeling sick | I’m feeling a bit under the weather today. |
| When pigs fly | Something that will never happen | I’ll believe it when pigs fly. |
| You can’t judge a book by its cover | Don’t judge based on appearance | He seems unfriendly, but you can’t judge a book by its cover. |
| Your guess is as good as mine | I have no idea | I don’t know when the meeting is; your guess is as good as mine. |
| A penny for your thoughts | Asking what someone is thinking | You seem quiet today; a penny for your thoughts? |
| All bark and no bite | All talk, no action | He talks a big game, but he’s all bark and no bite. |
| Bite off more than you can chew | To take on a task that is too big | I think I bit off more than I can chew with this project. |
| Break the bank | To spend all your money | That new car will break the bank! |
| Better late than never | It’s better to do something late than not at all | He finally returned my book; better late than never. |
| Every rose has its thorn | Every good thing has its downside | Living in a big city is great, but every rose has its thorn. |
| Get cold feet | To become nervous or hesitant | She got cold feet before her wedding. |
| Hit the ground running | To start something and proceed at a fast pace | The project hit the ground running after the meeting. |
| Keep your eyes peeled | Stay alert or watchful | Keep your eyes peeled for any updates. |
| Make ends meet | To manage finances in a way that covers basic expenses | They are struggling to make ends meet this month. |
| Miss the mark | To fail to achieve a goal | His predictions for the market missed the mark this time. |
| On thin ice | In a risky or precarious situation | He’s on thin ice after missing several deadlines. |
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