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
