Idioms in English Language

Idioms in English Language

21st March 2019 CHALLA 6 Comments

Idioms in English Language

Idioms in the English Language

Every language has its own peculiar native expressions which seem to be difficult to the non-native speakers. These expressions in the English Language are otherwise called idioms which normally have figurative meaning but not literal meaning. The words used to frame the idiomatic expressions do not mean exactly. One has to try to find out the hidden meaning of these words which is very quite interesting.

Here is a list of Idioms in the English Language, more than 330, commonly used and those appeared in different competitive examinations which will be highly useful to all the enthusiastic learners.

IDIOM	MEANING
A bird’s eye view	a view from a very high place which allows you to see a large area
A barking dog seldom bites	a person who readily threatens other people does not often take action
A bed of roses	easy option
A blessing in disguise	something that seems bad or unlucky at first, but results in something good happening later
A bolt from the blue	a sudden and unexpected event
A bone of contention	something that people argue for a long time
A bosom friend	a very close friend
A bull in a china shop	an extremely rough or dangerous person in a place where gentleness is a must
A cash cow	a product or service that makes much money
A cat in gloves catches no mice	if you are too careful and polite you may not get what you want
A cat nap	a short period of sleep; a brief nap
A chip on your shoulder	an angry attitude from someone who feels unfairly treated
A cock and bull story	a story or an explanation which is obviously not true
A copycat	someone who copies another person`s work etc.
A couch potato	a lazy and inactive person; especially, one who spends a great deal of time watching television
A cuckoo in the nest	someone in a group of people but not liked by them
A dark horse	a candidate who is little known to the general public
A dime a dozen	very common and of no particular value
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 fish out of water	anyone in an awkward
A flash in the pan	a sudden success that ends quickly and is unlikely to happen again
A fraidy-cat/ A scaredy-cat	someone who is afraid of something (usually used by children)
A gentleman at large	an unreliable person
A horse of a different color	a very different thing or issue
A hot potato	a controversial subject
A knuckle sandwich	a punch to the face, especially to the mouth
A leopard can’t change his spots	people can’t change their basic nature
A litmus Test	a method that helps to know if something is correct
A lone wolf	an animal or person that generally lives or spends time alone instead of with a group
A man of straw	a weak person
A mare’s nest	a false invention
A piece of cake	something is very easy to do
A recipe for disaster	something very likely to have unpleasant consequences
A red-letter day	an important day
A scapegoat	a person who is blamed for something that someone else has done
A slap on the wrist	a small punishment when a more severe punishment is deserved
A white elephant	a useless possession which is extremely expensive to keep
A white-collar worker	a person who performs professional, managerial, or administrative work
A wolf in sheep`s clothing	a person pretends to be harmless but is actually dangerous or bad
Achilles’ heel	a small problem or weakness in a person or system that can result in failure
Add fuel to the fire	to make a problem worse; to say or do something that makes a bad situation worse
Add insult to injury	to make a bad situation even worse, especially by treating someone very badly
Advanced in years	old; elderly
Alpha and omega	both the beginning and the end
An acid test	a severe or crucial test
Ants in one’s pants	to be unable to sit still, due to anxiety, excess energy, or impatience
Apple of someone’s eye	someone’s favourite person or thing
Arm and a leg	very expensive or costly
As clean as a hound’s tooth	very clean
As conceited as a barber’s cat	very conceited, vain
As crooked as a dog’s hind leg	dishonest
As fat as a pig	very fat
As quiet as a mouse	very quiet, shy
As sick as a dog	very sick
As strong as a horse/ox	very strong
As weak as a kitten	weak, sickly
Ask for the moon	to ask for too much
At a snail’s pace	very slowly
At an arm’s length	to keep at a distance
At daggers drawn	bitterly hostile; almost ready to fight
At death’s door	near death
At first blush	at first sight
At home	comfortable
At one’s wit’s end	in a state where one does not know what to do
At sea	confused and lost
At sixes and sevens	in a disordered/disorganized manner, chaotic
At someone’s beck and call	to be always ready to serve
At the drop of a hat	without hesitation or good reason
At the eleventh hour	be too late
Idioms in the English Language – B
Back the wrong horse	to support someone weak
Back up	to support and sustain
Backseat driver	a person who gives unwanted advice or criticism, esp. to the driver of a car
Bad egg	a troublesome person
Bag and Baggage	with all one’s belongings
Baker’s dozen	thirteen
The ball is in your court	it is up to you to make the next decision
Barking up the wrong tree	to make a wrong assumption about something
Be all ears	to be very keen to hear what someone is going to tell you
Be as clear as mud	to be impossible to understand
Be in a tight corner	in a very difficult situation
Be in seventh heaven	to feel extremely happy
Be on cloud nine	be extremely happy
Be on the edge	to be nervous or worried about something.
Beat around the bush	avoiding the main topic
Beat one’s brain out	to work hard
Beat the drum	to publicly show your support for something or someone
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder	everyone has different preferences for what is attractive
Bee in one’ bonnet idea	preoccupied or obsessed with an idea
Behind the eight ball	in a difficult situation; in a very unfavorable position
Better to be the head of a dog than the tail of a lion	it is better to be the leader of a small group than a follower of a bigger one
Between a rock and a hard place	being faced with two difficulties
Between the devil and the deep blue sea	between two equally difficult or unacceptable choices
Between Scylla and Charybdis	the choice between two unpleasant alternatives
Big cheese	an important person
Birthday suit	naked
Bite off more than one can chew	to do more than one’s ability
Bite the bullet	to endure an unpleasant and unavoidable situation
Bite your tongue	to stop yourself from saying something that might upset or annoy someone
Black and blue	full of bruises
Black and white	absolute terms
Black sheep of the family	worst member; a good for nothing fellow
Blow one’s own horn/trumpet	to tell everyone proudly about one’s achievements
Blood is thicker than water	the family bond is closer than anything else
Body and soul	entirely
Born with a silver spoon in mouth	born into a wealthy family
Bouncing off the walls	acting in a very uncontrolled and exciting way
Bread and butter	source of income
Break the ice	to make people who have not met before feel more relaxed with each other
Build a castle in the air	to have hopes and dreams that are unlikely to become real
Burn a hole in one’s pocket	to spend money quickly
Burn one’s fingers	means to suffer consequences of one’s actions, especially in a financial context
Burn the candle at both ends	to work extremely or excessively hard; to work too hard for good health or peace of mind
Burn the midnight oil	to work late into the night
Burst your bubble	to ruin someone’s happy moment
Bury my head in the sand	to ignore a problem or an unpleasant situation and hope that it will disappear
Bury the hatchet	end the quarrel and make peace
Butterflies in stomach	to feel very nervous and restless
Buy a pig in a poke	to buy something without looking inside first
By hook or by crook	by fair or foul means
By leaps and bounds	speedily
Idioms in the English Language – C
Call a spade a spade	speak frankly and directly
Call names	to use unpleasant words to describe someone in order to insult or upset them
Can’t judge a book by its cover	cannot judge something primarily on appearance
Cast pearls before swine	to offer something valuable or good to someone who does not know its value
Cat burglar	a burglar who enters a building by climbing a wall etc.
Cat gets one`s tongue	one cannot speak because of shyness
Change horses in midstream	to change plans
Chew the fat / chew the rag	to talk with someone in an informal and friendly way
Class clown	a student who tries to make other students laugh
Cold-blooded	without emotion or feeling; dispassionate; cruel
Cold fish	an unfriendly person who does not share his/her feelings
Come off with flying colors	be highly successful
Couch potato	a person who watches a lot of television and does not have an active life
Cross a bridge before one comes to it	to worry excessively about something before it happens
Crunch time	a critical period
Cry over split milk	it is useless to worry about things that already happened and can’t be changed
Cry wolf	to give a false alarm, to warn of a danger that is not there
Cut corners	to save time, money, or energy by doing things quickly and not as carefully as one should
Cut the mustard	to be good enough to do something
Cut your cloth according to your cloth	live within your income
Idioms in the English Language – D
Dances to the tune	to always do what someone tells you to do
Day in and day out	continuously, constantly
Devil may care	Worry-free or carefree attitude; reckless
Devil’s advocate	one who argues against something just for the sake of arguing, without actually being committed to the views
Die in harness	die while in service
Dog and pony show	an event that is designed to impress people in order to make them buy something or invest money
Don’t count your chickens before they are hatched	don’t make plans for something that might not happen
Don’t judge a book by its cover	one shouldn’t prejudge the worth or value of something by its outward appearance alone
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket	do not put all your resources in one basket (in one place or thing)
Donkey’s years	a very long time
Dragging its feet	delaying in decision
Drink like a fish	to drink too much alcohol
Dropping like flies	to fall down ill or to die in large numbers
Idioms in the English Language – E
Easy as pie / easy as ABC	extremely easy
Eat humble pie	to admit that you were wrong
Eat like a horse	to eat a lot
Eat my hat	used to say that something will not happen or cannot be true
Eat your words	to admit that something you said before was wrong
End on smoke	to bear no result
Every cloud has a silver lining	to be optimistic even in difficult times
Every dog has his day	everyone will have good luck or success at some point in their lives
Idioms in the English Language – F
Fabian policy	the policy of delaying decisions
Face the music	to accept punishment for something you have done
Fall on your own sword	to be cheated by someone you trust
Far and wide	everywhere
Feather in one’s cap	something that you achieve and proud of
Feel a bit under the weather	feeling slightly ill
Feel one’s oats	to be very active and energetic
Fight like cats and dogs	to argue and fight violently
Find your feet	to become familiar with and confident in a new situation
Fire and fury	fearful penalties
Fingers and thumbs	be clumsy or awkward in one’s actions
Fish out of water	someone being in a situation that they are unfamiliar or unsuited for
Fit as a fiddle	to be in perfect health
Flog/Beat a dead horse or beat a dead dog	to waste effort on something when there is no chance of succeeding
Fool’s paradise	a false sense of happiness or success
Fortune smiles on somebody	to be lucky and advantageous for somebody
Foul play	cheating
From rags to riches	to go from very poor to wealthy
French kiss	a kiss involving the insertion of the tongue into the partner’s mouth
French leave	absent without permission
Full steam ahead	with as much speed or energy as possible
Idioms in the English Language – G
Get a raw deal	not treated equally
Get hitched	get married
Get off the hook	free from all obligations
Give the benefit of the doubt	believe someone’s statement without proof
Go bananas	to express great excitement about something in an exuberant manner
Go to the dogs	it is not as good as it was in the past; to become bad.
Go under the hammer	that is sold in an auction
Good Samaritan	someone who helps people in trouble
Good wine needs no bush	there is no need to advertise something good
The grass is always greener on the other side	others always have it better
Grease someone’s palm	to secretly give someone money in order to persuade them to do something for you
Greased lightning	very fast or quick
Idioms in the English Language – H
Hail-fellow-well-met	someone whose behavior is hearty, friendly and congenial
Halcyon days	a time when there are peace and happiness in the land
Hard pill to swallow	something that is difficult to accept
Haughty and naughty	arrogant and naughty
Have an axe to grind	to have a dispute with someone
Have an egg on the face	be embarrassed
Have clean hands	be guiltless
Head is in the clouds	have unrealistic, impractical ideas
Head over heels	falling deeply in love with another person
Hear it on the grapevine	to hear rumours
the heart is in their boots	they feel very sad, disappointed, worried, etc
Hit the bull’s-eye	to reach or focus on the main point of something
Hit the nail on the head	do or say something exactly right
Hit the roof	suddenly become very angry
Hit the sack	to go to bed
Hive of activity	a place full of activity; very busy place
Hold one`s horses	to wait, to be patient
Hoping against hope	without hope; hopelessly
Hornet’s nest	raise controversy
Horse around	to play around (in a rough way)
Horse sense	common sense, practical thinking
hot potato	a difficult problem to deal with
Hot under the collar	angry, resentful, or embarrassed
Idioms in the English Language – I
In a pig`s eye	unlikely, not so, never.
In dribs and drabs	in small amounts at a time
In high spirits	very happy
In the blues	low spirited
In the same boat	in the same situation; having the same problem
In the doghouse	in disgrace or very unpopular, in trouble
In the heat of the moment	overwhelmed by what is happening in the moment
In the red	losing money; being in debt
In vain	useless, without the desired result
Ins and outs	full detail
Idioms in the English Language – J
Jack of all trades, master of none	a person who can do many things but is not an expert in any of them
Jaws of death	being in a dangerous situation
Jump down somebody’s throat	to react angrily to something that someone says or does
Jump on the bandwagon	join a popular trend or activity
Idioms in the English Language – K
Keep something at bay	keep something away
Keep your eyes peeled	to be watchful
Kick the bucket	die
Kill the goose that lays the golden egg	to destroy the thing that brings you profit or success
Kill time	pass time aimlessly
Kill two birds with one stone	to accomplish two different things at the same time
Know the ropes	having a familiarity
Know your socks off	to be taken by surprise
Idioms in the English Language – L
Last straw	the final problem in a series of problems
Lead a dog`s life	to lead a miserable life
Let the cat out of the bag	to reveal facts previously hidden
Lion’s share	the majority of something
Lock the barn door after the horse is gone	to try to deal with something after it is too late
Lovey-dovey	kissing and hugging
Idioms in the English Language – M
Mad as a wet hen	extremely angry
Maiden speech	a person’s first speech
Make (both) ends meet	to have just enough money to buy the things that you need
Make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear	to make something good out of something that is bad quality
Make hay while the sun shines	take advantage of all opportunities
Milk and water	weak
Miss the boat	missing one’s chance
Monkey around with (someone or something)	to waste effort on something when there is no chance of succeeding
Monkey business	wasting time, or effort, on some foolish project
Monkey see, monkey do	someone copies something that someone else does
Much ado about nothing	a lot of fuss about something which is not important
Mumbo jumbo	confusing language or pointless speech
Idioms in the English Language – N
Nip in the bud	destroy in the early stage
No ifs, ands, or buts	finishing a task without excuses or doubts
Not a spark of decency	no manners
Not enough room to swing a cat	very little or no space
Not hurt a fly	not cause harm to anyone, be kind and gentle
Not one’s cup of tea	not what one likes or is interested in
Not playing with a full deck	someone who lacks intelligence
Idioms in the English Language – O
On cloud nine	having strong feelings
On the ball	understands the situation well
Once in a blue moon	something that happens very rarely
One’s tail between one`s legs	with a feeling of being embarrassed or ashamed especially because one has been defeated
Idioms in the English Language – P
Pain in the neck	someone or something that is very annoying
Piggybank	a small bank (sometimes in the shape of a pig) for saving money
Put a sock in it	asking someone to be quiet; stop talking
Put on ice	postpone
Put wool over other people’s eye	to deceive someone into thinking well of them
Idioms in the English Language – R
Raid of one’s own shadow	easily frightened; always frightened, timid, or suspicious
Rain cats and dogs	to rain very heavily
Rank and File	ordinary people
Rat race	a rushed and confusing way of living that does not seem to have a purpose
Read between the lines	understand the hidden meaning
Rule of thumb	general rule
Idioms in the English Language – S
Scapegoat	a person who is blamed for something that someone else has done
Sealed with a kiss also sealed with a loving kiss, SWAK or SWALK (acronym)	written and sent with love and care
See eye to eye	two or more people agree on something
Separate the sheep from the goats	to divide people into two groups
Shed/Cry/Weep crocodile tears	an insincere show of sorrow
Shot in the dark	an attempt that has little chance for success
Silver screen	the movie industry
Sit on the fence	doesn’t want to choose or make a decision
Sitting duck	a person or thing with no protection against an attack or other source of danger
Smell a rat	to be suspicious of someone or something, to feel that something is wrong
Spin a yarn	tell a long and farfetched story
Steal someone’s thunder	win praise for oneself by pre-empting someone else’s attempt to impress
Stir up a hornet’s nest	to create big trouble
Straight from the horse`s mouth	directly from a reliable source
Idioms in the English Language – T
Take the bull by the horns	to deal with a difficult situation in a very direct way
Take to one’s heels	run away
Talk through one’s hat	to talk about something without understanding what one is talking about
Tall story	a long story that is hard to believe
Taste of your own medicine	an attack in the same manner in which one attacks others
There is more than one way to skin a cat	there is more than one way to do something
Throw in the towel	giving up; to surrender
To be in the doldrums	to be in low spirits
To bell the cat	to face the risk
To build castles in the air	make imaginary schemes
To pour oil on troubled waters	to calm or settle a tense situation
To sit on the fence	to remain neutral
Top dog	the most important person in an organization
Turn a deaf ear	pay no attention; ignore what one says
Turn tail	to run away from trouble or danger
Idioms in the English Language – U
Up in arms	angry
Idioms in the English Language – W
When the cat’s away the mice will play	people will naturally take advantage of the absence of someone in authority to do as they like
White elephant	useless possession
White lie	a harmless lie
Whole nine yards	everything
Wild goose chase	a foolish and hopeless search for something unattainable
Work like a dog	to work very hard
Wouldn’t be caught dead	someone dislikes something very much
Idioms in the English Language – Y
Yellow-bellied	a coward
Yeoman’s service	to serve in an exemplary manner; useful help in need
Yes-man	someone who always agrees with people in authority
You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink	you can offer something to someone, like good advice, but you cannot make them take it
You can’t hide elephants in mouseholes	some issues/problems/challenges cannot be hidden/concealed but have to be faced and dealt with
You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs	in order to achieve something or make progress, there are often losers in the process
You can’t teach old dog new tricks	it is difficult for older people to learn new things
You reap what you sow	you eventually have to face up to the consequences of your actions
Young Turk	a young person who is rebellious and difficult to control in a company, team or organization
Idioms in the English Language – Z
Zip your lip	to say nothing or stop talking