American Idioms - List One

Question 1

Piece of cake

Answer 1

Very easy

Question 2

Break the ice

Answer 2

To initiate conversation or friendship

Question 3

Hit the hay

Answer 3

To go to bed

Question 4

Kick the bucket

Answer 4

To die

Question 5

A dime a dozen

Answer 5

Very common, inexpensive

Question 6

Under the weather

Answer 6

Feeling ill or sick

Question 7

Let the cat out of the bag

Answer 7

To reveal a secret

Question 8

Bite the bullet

Answer 8

To endure a painful situation or task

Question 9

Cost an arm and a leg

Answer 9

Very expensive

Question 10

Jump on the bandwagon

Answer 10

To join a popular trend or activity

Question 11

Burn the midnight oil

Answer 11

To work late into the night

Question 12

On cloud nine

Answer 12

Feeling extreme happiness or euphoria

Question 13

Call it a day

Answer 13

To stop working or stop what one is doing

Question 14

All ears

Answer 14

Fully attentive and listening closely

Question 15

Cut to the chase

Answer 15

To get to the point quickly

Question 16

Hold your horses

Answer 16

To wait patiently

Question 17

Break a leg

Answer 17

Good luck (especially in a performance)

Question 18

Spill the beans

Answer 18

To disclose a secret

Question 19

Catch someone red-handed

Answer 19

To catch someone in the act

Question 20

Hit the nail on the head

Answer 20

To describe something accurately

Question 21

Get cold feet

Answer 21

To become afraid or hesitant

Question 22

Barking up the wrong tree

Answer 22

To pursue the wrong course of action

Question 23

Butter someone up

Answer 23

To flatter someone in order to gain favor

Question 24

When pigs fly

Answer 24

Something that will never happen

Question 25

A taste of your own medicine

Answer 25

Experiencing what you inflict

Question 26

Break a sweat

Answer 26

To exert physical effort

Question 27

Beating around the bush

Answer 27

Avoiding the main topic

Question 28

Don’t cry over spilled milk

Answer 28

Don’t worry about past mistakes

Question 29

Hit the road

Answer 29

To leave, to start a journey

Question 30

It’s a small world

Answer 30

Phrase used to express coincidence

Question 31

Let sleeping dogs lie

Answer 31

To leave things as they are

Question 32

Miss the boat

Answer 32

To miss an opportunity

Question 33

On the ball

Answer 33

Alert and competent

Question 34

Take with a grain of salt

Answer 34

To be skeptical about information

Question 35

Out of the blue

Answer 35

Unexpectedly

Question 36

Saved by the bell

Answer 36

Rescued from an unwanted situation

Question 37

To steal someone’s thunder

Answer 37

To take credit for someone else’s achievement

Question 38

Throw in the towel

Answer 38

To give up or surrender

Question 39

Up in the air

Answer 39

Uncertain or undecided

Question 40

A penny for your thoughts

Answer 40

Asking someone what they are thinking

Question 41

Back to the drawing board

Answer 41

To start over after a failure

Question 42

Break the bank

Answer 42

To spend a lot of money

Question 43

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket

Answer 43

To not risk everything on a single opportunity

Question 44

Drive someone up the wall

Answer 44

To irritate or annoy someone

Question 45

Face the music

Answer 45

To confront the consequences of one’s actions

Question 46

Have a blast

Answer 46

To have a great time

Question 47

Keep an eye on

Answer 47

To watch or monitor closely

Question 48

Make a long story short

Answer 48

To summarize briefly

Question 49

On the same page

Answer 49

In agreement or understanding