Idioms & Phrases
1. What is and Idiom?
An idiom is an expression, word, or
phrase that has a figurative meaning conventionally understood by native
speakers. This meaning is different from the literal meaning of the idiom's individual
words.
A
Bird In The Hand Is Worth Two In The Bush: Having something that is certain is much better than taking a risk for
more, because chances are you might lose everything.
2.
A
Blessing In Disguise: Something
good that isn't recognized at first.
3.
A
Chip On Your Shoulder: Being
upset for something that happened in the past.
4.
A
Doubting Thomas: A
skeptic who needs evidence in order to believe something.
5.
A
Drop in the Bucket: A
very small part of something big or whole.
6.
A
Fool And His Money Are Easily Parted: It's easy for a fool to lose his/her money.
7.
A
House Divided Against Itself Cannot Stand: Everyone involved must unify and function together or it will not work
out.
8.
A
Penny Saved Is A Penny Earned: By not spending money, you are saving money.
9.
A
Picture Paints a Thousand Words: A visual is far more descriptive than words.
10.
A
Piece of Cake: A
task that can be accomplished very easily.
11.
A
Slap on the Wrist: A
very mild punishment.
12.
A
Taste Of Your Own Medicine: When
you are mistreated the same way you mistreat others.
13.
A
Toss-Up: A
result that is still unclear and can go either way.
14.
Actions
Speak Louder Than Words: It's
better to actually do something than just talk about it.
15. Add Fuel To The Fire: Whenever something is done to make a bad situation even worse than it
is.
16.
All
In The Same Boat: When
everyone is facing the same challenges.
17.
An
Arm And A Leg: Very
expensive. A large amount of money.
18.
An
Axe To Grind: To
have a dispute with someone.
19.
Apple
of My Eye: Someone
who is cherished above all others.
20.
Back
Seat Driver: People
who criticize from the sidelines, much like someone giving unwanted advice from
the back seat of a vehicle to the driver.
21.
Back
To Square One: Having
to start all over again.
22.
Back
To The Drawing Board: When
an attempt fails and it's time to start all over.
23.
Baker's
Dozen: Thirteen.
24.
Beat
A Dead Horse: To
force an issue that has already ended.
25.
Beating
Around The Bush: Avoiding
the main topic. Not speaking directly about the issue.
26.
Between
A Rock And A Hard Place: Stuck
between two very bad options.
27.
Bite
Your Tongue: To
avoid talking.
28.
Blood
Is Thicker Than Water: The
family bond is closer than anything else.
29.
Blue
Moon: A rare event or occurrence.
30.
Cock
and Bull Story: An
unbelievable tale.
31.
Crack
Someone Up: To
make someone laugh.
32.
Cry
Over Spilt Milk: When
you complain about a loss from the past.
33.
Curiosity
Killed The Cat: Being
Inquisitive can lead you into a dangerous situation.
34.
Dark
Horse: One who was previously unknown and is now
prominent.
35.
Dead
Ringer: 100% identical. A duplicate.
36.
Devil's
Advocate: Someone
who takes a position for the sake of argument without believing in that
particular side of the arguement. It can also mean one who presents a counter
argument for a position they do believe in, to another debater.
37.
Dog
Days of Summer: The
hottest days of the summer season.
38.
Don't
count your chickens before they hatch: Don't rely on it until your sure of it.
39.
Don't
Put All Your Eggs In One Basket: Do not put all your resources in one possibility.
40.
Drink
like a fish: To
drink very heavily.
41.
Drive
someone up the wall: To
irritate and/or annoy very much.
42.
Dry
Run: Rehearsal.
43.
Eighty
Six: A certain item is no longer available. Or
this idiom can also mean, to throw away.
44.
Every
Cloud Has A Silver Lining: Be
optomistic, even difficult times will lead to better days.
45.
Feeding
Frenzy: An aggressive attack on someone by a group.
46.
Finding
Your Feet: To
become more comfortable in whatever you are doing.
47.
Finger
lickin' good: A
very tasty food or meal.
48.
French
Kiss: An open mouth kiss where tongues touch.
49.
Get
Down to Brass Tacks: To
become serious about something.
50.
Go
The Extra Mile: Going
above and beyond whatever is required for the task at hand.
51.
Good
Samaritan: Someone
who helps others when they are in need.
52.
Great
Minds Think Alike: Intelligent
people think like each other.
53.
Green
Room: The waiting room, especially for those who
are about to go on a tv or radio show.
54.
Haste
Makes Waste: Quickly
doing things results in a poor ending.
55.
Head
Over Heels: Very
excited and/or joyful, especially when in love.
56.
Hit
The Books: To
study, especially for a test or exam.
57.
Hold
Your Horses: Be
patient.
58. Idle Hands Are The Devil's Tools: You are more likely to get in trouble if you have nothing to do.
59.
In
The Buff: Nude.
60.
In
The Heat Of The Moment: Overwhelmed
by what is happening in the moment.
61.
Keep
An Eye On Him: You
should carefully watch him.
62. Keep body and soul together: To earn a sufficient amount of money in order to keep yourself alive
63.
Keep
your chin up: To
remain joyful in a tough situation.
64.
Kick
The Bucket: Die.
65.
Lend
Me Your Ear: To
politely ask for someone's full attention.
66.
Let
The Cat Out Of The Bag: To
share a secret that wasn't suppose to be shared.
67.
Nest
Egg: Savings set aside for future use.
68.
Never
Bite The Hand That Feeds You: Don't hurt anyone that helps you.
69.
Off
The Hook: No
longer have to deal with a tough situation.
70.
On
Pins And Needles: Anxious
or nervous, especially in anticipation of something.
71.
On
The Fence: Undecided.
72. Pass The Buck: Avoid responsibility by giving it to someone else.
73.
Pedal
to the metal: To
go full speed, especially while driving a vehicle.
74.
Pig
Out : To eat a lot and eat it quickly.
75.
Pulling
Your Leg: Tricking
someone as a joke.
76.
Rome
Was Not Built In One Day: If
you want something to be completely properly, then its going to take time.
77.
Rule
Of Thumb: A
rough estimate.
78.
Run
out of steam: To
be completely out of energy.
79.
Scapegoat: Someone else who takes the blame.
80.
Smell
A Rat: To detect someone in the group is betraying
the others.
81.
Son
of a Gun: A
scamp.
82.
Southpaw: Someone who is left-handed.
83.
Start
From Scratch: To
do it all over again from the beginning.
84.
The
Ball Is In Your Court: It
is your decision this time.
85.
The
Last Straw: When
one small burden after another creates an unbearable situation, the last straw
is the last small burden that one can take.
86.
Tie
the knot: To
get married.
87.
Tongue-in-cheek: humor, not to be taken serious.
88.
Turn
A Blind Eye: Refuse
to acknowledge something you know is real or legit.
89.
When
Pigs Fly : Something
that will never ever happen.
90.
You
Are What You Eat: In
order to stay healthy you must eat healthy foods.
Exercise: Choose the Idiom and phrase which completes
the meaning
1. You have to raise your
voice a little when talking to him. He's a little hard of hearing.
(a) stubborn (b) quiet when he speaks (c) deaf (d) distracted
2. I went to a real nice
restaurant yesterday. The food cost was cheap and they served a lot of food. I
had to ask for a doggy bag because I couldn't eat the whole thing.
(a) package to store leftover food
so the person can take it home
(b)
dog bowl so you can give the rest of the food to your dog
(c) special order where you get
smaller meal sizes (d) kid's meal
3. Fabian was a doormat.
No wonder his classmates were always giving him a hard time.
(a) snob (b)
geek (c) coward (d) chubby boy
4. I invited a friend to a
hotel for lunch. He said Ok, as long as we go Dutch next time.
(a) I pay for your meal (b) you take me with you
(c) you let me drive you there (d) we divide the costs
5. So, is everything plain
as a pike staff? Oh, yes indeed sir!
(a) clean (b)
clear (c)
messy (d) in
position
6. We are having a pot-luck
dinner at Tim's house tomorrow. Everybody is invited!
(a) dinner where everybody brings something to eat (b) dinner where everybody chips in
(c) dinner where only soup is served (d) dinner where people eat and
play games at the same time
7. I need everybody's help.
The wedding is tomorrow and we haven't even started with the decorations
yet. We have no time to lose.
(a) been procrastinating (b) to remember what time it is
(c) extra time (d)
to start right now
8. Just keep your
wig on. Everything is going to be alright, okay?
(a) hold your wig so it won't fall off (b) get another hair cut
(c) calm down (d)
throw a fit
9. Kishore was saved
by the bell when his sister walked in and asked him to take her to the
tuition.
(a) rescued from an unwanted situation (b) detained from his duty
(c) obligated to
comply (d)
obliged to cooperate
10. I would stay away from
that guy if I were you, he has a screw loose.
(a) is dangerous (b)
is annoying (c) is a
flirt (d) is crazy
11. The speaker gave a bird's eye view
of the political conditions in the country
A. a detailed presentation
B. A biased view C. A general view D. A brief
view.
12. He is plain,
simple and sincere man. He will always call a spade a spade.
A. Find meaning or purpose in your
action. B. Avoid controversial situations
C. Be outspoken D. Desist from making controversial
statement
13. Raj had to
look high and low before he could find his scooter key.
A. Everywhere B. Somewhere C. Nowhere D. Always
14. We should give a wide berth
to bad characters
A. Give publicly to B. Not sympathize C. Keep away from D. Publicly condemn
15. I
am leaving India for good.
A. Permanently B. to good for myself C. To do good for the country D. To
do nobody good.
16. Last evening I was held up at the
meeting.
A. Stopped B. Delayed C. Kept D.
Detained
17. He has come up during the last
five years
A. Become proud B. Become humble C. Fallen in rank D. Risen in status
18. My plan to have a new car fell through
because of the price rise.
A. Was postponed B. Failed to materialize
C. Was completed D. Was competed with difficulty
19. He has
rejoined office after a week and looks run down.
A. Cheerful and bubbly B. Weak and tired
C. Active and energetic D. Busy and preoccupied
20. In summer, woolen goods are a drug
in the market.
A. Rarely available B. Worthless
products
C. Commodities not in demand D. Available at cheap rates
21. He kept beating around the ______ and did
not get to the point.
(A) street (B) wood (C) bush (D)
grass
22. Let's
be patient and continue to work at it. Every cloud has a silver ______.
(A) lining (B) spark (C)
streak (D) line
23. It's a trivial matter.
Don't make a mountain out of a ______.
(A) hill (B) peak (C) molehill (D)
hillock
24. The news was like
a bolt from the ______. I never expected it to happen to me.
(A)
blue (B) shock (C) sky (D)
cloud
25. He arrived in the
______ of time to save her from a lot of embarrassment.
(A) crux (B) nick (C) tip (D) tick
26. The cat disappeared in
the dark in the twinkling of a/an ______.
(A) star (B) eye C) light (D) flash
27. Raji takes up two jobs
to make ends ______.
(A) meet (B)
stay (C)
float (D) burn
28. He is a Jack of all
______ but master of none.
(A) sorts (B)
trades (C) things (D) tricks
29. He turned ______ and
ran away immediately.
(A) head (B)
feet (C)
tail (D) back
30. Let's bury the ______
and be friends again.
(A) hatchet (B)
weapon (C) gun (D)
knife
