Idioms A to Z

A  B  C  D  E  F

G  H  I  J  K  L

M  N  O  P  Q  R

S  T  U  W

  

Y  Z

Idioms with 'B'

Bad mouth: Say unkind, unflattering, embarrassing (and probably untrue) things about someone.
A: "I can't believe what Sandra just said. Why is she always bad-mouthing me?"
B: "Sandra probably must be jealous of your success."

Be a piece of cake: Be very easy.
A: "Rita said the examination was difficult, but I think it was a piece of cake."

Be all ears: Be eager to hear what others have to say.
A: "I just got a letter from our old friend Sally."
B: "Tell me all about it. I'm all ears!"





Be broke: Be without money.
"I can't lend you 20 dollars because I'm completely broke until I get my next paycheck."

Be fed up with: (with someone or something): Be out of patience (with someone or something); be very tired of someone or something.
"Bob, you are very careless with your work. I'm fed up with you always apologizing for your mistakes!"

Be in and out: Be at and away from a place during a particular event or time.
"Can we postpone our meeting until next Saturday? I will be in and out of the office most of the day this week."


Be on the go: Be very busy (going from one job or project to another).
"I'm really exhausted. I've been on the go all week long."

Be on the road: To be traveling.
"You won't be able to see me until next week because I'll be on the road all week."

Be over: Be finished; end.
"She can't see you until 5 o'clock. Her meeting won't be over until then."

Be up and running: Be up and running: (for a technological process) be operational; be ready to use .
"English Planet blog has been up and running for all English learners since 2018."

Be used to: (+Ving/noun): be accustomed to; not uncomfortable with.
"It won't be difficult to wake up at 5:00 a.m.. I'm used to getting up very early."

Beat: Exhausted; very tired (adjective).
"This has been a long day. I'm beat!"

Beat around the bush: Avoid giving a direct answer, evade an issue; change the subject.
"Stop beating around the bush! If you don't want to let me use your care, just tell me!"

Beat one's brains out: Try very hard to understand or do something.
"Can you help me with this balance sheet? I've been beating my brains out with it for more than an hour, but I just can't solve it."


Beats me: I have no idea or clue.
A: "When is Sandra going to get married?"
B: "Beats me!"

Before long: Soon; shortly.
A: "I'm really tired of waiting."
B: "Just relax. She will be here before long.

Bent out of shape: Needlessly worried about something.
"I know you're worried about your trip, but don't get bent out of shape. You are going to do just fine."

Bite off more than one can chew: Take on responsibility more than one can handle.
"I'm really behind with my project. Can you help me? I'm afraid I

bit off more than I could chew!"

Blabbermouth: A very talkative person--especially one who says things that should be kept secret.
"Don't say anything to Sandra unless you want the whole office to know. Sandra is quite a blabbermouth."

Blow one's top: Become extremely angry.
A: "Was your mother angry when you came home late?"
B: "She was more than angry. She blew her top!"

Boom box: portable cassette/CD player.
"Don't forget to bring your boom box to the party!"

Idioms with 'C'

Call it a day: stop work for the day.
"It's late and you've accomplished a lot. Why don't you call it a day?"

Can't make heads or tails of something: can't understand something at all; find something confusing and illogical.
"I can't make heads or tails of your e-mail. Were you having problems with your computer?"

Catch one's eye: attract one's attention/interest.
"This brochure about Tahiti caught my eye when I was at the travel agency."

Catch some Zs: sleep for a while; take a nap.
"You look tired, Mark. Why don't you catch some Zs?"

Change one's mind: decide to do something different from what had been decided earlier.
A: "Why are you working this week? I thought you were going to be on vacation."
B: "I changed my mind. I'm taking my vacation next month."

Chicken (adjective or noun): cowardly.
"Fred will never ask Lucy for a date. He's chicken / a chicken.

Chow: food.
"How's the chow in the university cafeteria?"

Chow down: eat.
"It's almost 6:00. Are you ready to chow down?"

A cinch: something that's very easy to do.
A: How was the test?
B: It was a cinch. I finished it quickly and I know that all my answers were correct."

Cool (also kewl): neat, special, wonderful.
"English Planet is a really cool place to learn English!"

Cool it!: calm down.
"There's no need to be so upset. Just cool it!"

Cost (someone) an arm and a leg: cost a lot; be very expensive.
A: "Your new car is really nice."
B: "It should be. It cost (me) an arm and a leg!"



Couch potato: someone who spends too much time watching TV.
"You're a real couch potato, Jay. You need to get more exercise!"

Cram: try to learn as much as possible in a very short time.
"Rodney did well on the test because he crammed for it. However, he probably won't remember any of the information a couple of days from now."

Crash course: short course designed to give a lot of knowledge/information in a very short time.
"Tom's company is sending him to a business meeting in Istanbul.
Should he take a crash course in Turkish?"

Cut it out!: stop doing something (that's annoying).
"You kids are making too much noise. Cut it out!"

Idioms with 'D'

Don't count your chickens until (before) they hatch (they've hatched): Don't assume
that something will happen until it has happened.
A: I'm sure that I'm going to win a lot of money in Las Vegas."
B: "Don't count your chickens until they hatch!"

Dicey: uncertain; taking too much of a chance.
A: A friend of mine says I can make a lot of money if I buy stock
in the XYZ company. Should I do it?
B: I wouldn't if I were you. The chances for success are too dicey."

Ditch class: skip class/play hookey.
"You shouldn't have ditched class yesterday. We had an unannounced test."




Do a bang-up job: do a very good job; do very well at something.
"Have you seen Frank's home page? He did a bang-up job with it."

Down in the dumps: depressed; "blue."
A: "Is something wrong?"
B: "Not really, but I feel kind of down in the dumps."

Drop someone a line: write to someone.
"I haven't written to my parents for a long time. I'd better drop them a line today or tomorrow."

Drag one's feet: delay; take longer than necessary to do something.
"Joe should have finished his project a week ago. Why is he dragging his feet?"

Idioms with 'A'

Ace: Get an "A" on a test, homework assignment, project, etc.
"Somebody said you aced the test, Frank. That's awesome!"

All right (1): Expression of reluctant agreement.
A: "Come to the movies with me. Please!"
B: "Oh, all right. I don't want to, but I will."

All right (2): Fair; not particularly good.
A: "How's your physics class?"
B: "It's all right, I guess, but it's not the best class I've ever had."

All right (3): Unharmed; in satisfactory condition.
A: "You don't look normal. Are you all right?"
B: "Yes, but I have a fever."

And then some: And much more besides.
A: "I'd guess your new computer cost about $3,000."
B: "It cost that much and then some because I also bought extra RAM and VRAM."

Antsy: Restless; impatient and tired of waiting.
"I hope Sandra calls soon. Just sitting around and waiting is making me antsy."

As easy as pie: Very easy.
"I thought you said this was a difficult problem. It isn't. In fact, it's as easy as pie."

At the eleventh hour: At the last minute; almost too late.
"Yes, I got the job done in time. I finished it at the eleventh hour, but I wasn't late.

Idioms with 'E'

An eager beaver: a person who is always willing to volunteer or do extra work.
"Jan is certainly an eager beaver. Any time there's work to be done,
she's the first to say she'll help."

Easy does it!: Be very careful! / Don't do anything too fast or too hard!
A: "I'm going to move the table just a little further from the window."
B: "Easy does it! If you move too fast, you might knock over the plant!"

An egghead: a very intelligent person.
"Jake didn't make very good grades in school, but his sister was a real egghead."

Elbow grease: hard work; effort.
"Yes, the car is pretty dirty, but it'll look nice again with a little elbow grease."

Every other _____ : alternately; omitting the second one in each group of two.
"In your essays, please write on every other line. That will make the essays much easier to read."

Idioms with 'F'

Far-fetched: difficult to accept; difficult to believe.
"That story's pretty far-fetched. Nobody's going to believe it."

Feel blue: feel sad and depressed.
"I'm feeling blue because I haven't had any mail except bills for a long, long time."

Fire someone: dismiss someone from a job because of poor performance.
"If you continue to be late for work, the company will fire you."




Feel puny: feel unwell, ill.
"Ted was feeling puny yesterday, so he decided not to go to work."

Fender-bender: automobile accident.
"Traffic was really slow on the freeway this morning because of a fender-bender in one of the westbound lanes."

For ages: for a very long time.
"Where's Marie? I haven't seen her for ages."

Idioms with 'G'

Get going: leave.
"Look at the time! I'd better get going!"

Get it: understand something (often negative).
"I don't get it. What do you mean?"

Get a kick out of something: find something amusing.
"I really get a kick out of listening to children talk. They say some very funny things."

Get lost!: go away
"I wish he'd get lost and stop bothering me. I don't want to talk to him!"

Get on one's nerves: irritate someone; make someone upset.
"I know you like that song, but it's getting on my nerves. Can you play something else?"



Get a move on: hurry
"If you don't want to be late, you'd better get a move on."

Get one's wires crossed: be confused or mistaken about something.
A: "Bill said there was a meeting this morning. Don't we have one?"
B: "No. The meeting's tomorrow. I guess Bill got his wires crossed."

Get out of hand: become out of control; become badly managed.
"Your absences are getting out of hand, Bob. You'd better do something quickly to improve the situation if you want to keep your job."

Get real!: Be realistic! / Don't be naive.
A: "I'm going to Las Vegas. I know I'll win a lot of money!"
B: "Get real! You'll probably lose a lot of money!"

Get up and go: energy.
"I'm really tired. I don't have any get up and go."

Give someone a hand (1): help someone.
"I can't do this alone. Can you give me a hand?"

Give someone a hand (2): applaud (to show respect or appreciation for someone/something).
"Bob's done a wonderful job with the presentation. Let's give him a hand!"

Idioms with 'H'

Had ('d) better: be obliged to; should (strong).
"You'd better leave soon. If you don't, you'll miss your bus."

Hassle (noun): a troublesome situation; something troublesome that interrupts one's normal routine.
"I know it's a hassle to complete this form now, but Mr. Rogersneeds it in his office by the end of the day."

Hard feelings: anger; animosity; bitter feelings.
A: "I'm sorry that Jim got the job instead of you."
B: "I have no hard feelings toward him; I know that he had stronger qualifications."



Hard-headed: stubborn; inflexible; unwilling to change.
"I don't think Julie will change her mind. She's pretty hard-headed."

Hassle (verb): annoy; bother; interrupt one's normal routine.
"If you'd stop hassling me, I might get this finished on time!"

Have one's hands full: be extremely busy.
A: "Will you be able to help us this afternoon?"
B: "I'm afraid not. I'll have my hands full trying to finish my research paper."

Have/has ('ve/'s) got: have/has.
"Nick's got a son whose name is Jasper and a daughter whose name is Sandra."

Have something down pat: know/understand something completely and thoroughly.
"I know I did well on the test. I had all the material down pat."

Head honcho: person in charge; top boss.
"Jake's the head honcho of the real estate business."

Hit the books: study.
"I wish I could go to the movies, but I've got to hit the books."

Hit the hay: go to bed; go to sleep.
"It's late, so I guess I'll hit the hay."

Hit the sack: go to bed.
"I'm really tired. I think I'll hit the sack."

How come?: Why? (statement word order).
"How come you weren't at the party?"

Idioms with 'I'

If I had my druthers: if I could do what I wanted/preferred.
"If I had my druthers, I'd stay home from work today."


In over one's head: in a situation that is too much / too difficult for one to manage.
"Do you have time to help me? I thought I could do this myself,
but I'm afraid I'm in over my head. I just can't handle things alone."

Inside out: with the inner part on the outside and the outer part on the inside.
"Why are you wearing your tee shirt inside out?"

In stock: in supply and available to buy / sell.
"I'm sorry, but we just sold our last pair of hiking boots. If you come back at the end of the week, however, we should have some more in stock.




In the black: profitable; not showing a financial loss.
"What did you do to increase profit and eliminate losses? We've been in the black for two months in a row."

In the red: unprofitable; showing a financial loss.
"We have to do something to increase profit and decrease losses.
We've been in the red for two months in a row."

In time: not late.
"I thought I was going to be late for my flight, but it was delayed, so I was still in time."

Idioms with 'J'

Jump all over someone: severely criticize / find fault with someone.
A: "What's wrong with Joe?"
B: "He's feeling bad because his boss jumped all over him this morning."

Jump the gun: do something before it's time to do it.
A: "How did Sandra know about the party? It was supposed to be a surprise."
B: "Martin jumped the gun. Without thinking, he said, 'I'm bringing the cake at your party; I hope you like it!"





Jump to conclusions: decide something too quickly and without thinking about it or considering all the facts.
A: "Angela just doesn't like me. She won't even say hello."
B: "You're jumping to conclusions. Actually, she's very shy."

Junk mail: unsolicited mail (usually advertisements for something you're not interested in).
"I didn't have any letters today--only junk mail."

Idioms with 'K'

Keep an eye on: check something regularly.
"You're busy, so you'll need to keep an eye on the time. Remember that we have to leave at 4:30."

Keep an eye out for: watch for.
"I'll keep an eye out for John. If I see him, I'll tell him you want to talk to him."

Keep one's chin up: remain brave and confident in a difficult situation; don't despair or worry too much.
"I know that things have been difficult for you recently, but keep your chin up. Everything will be better soon."




Keep one's nose to the grindstone: stay diligent; steadily work hard, without breaks or an uneven pace.
"If I keep my nose to the grindstone, I should be finished by the end of the day."

Keep/stay in touch (with someone): remain informed (about someone) / in contact (with someone) by writing, calling, sending e-mail, etc. on a regular basis.
"I haven't seen Frank for two or three years but we keep (stay) in touch by e-mail."

Keep one's fingers crossed: hope for the best.
A: "How did you do on the test?"
B: "I think I passed, but I won't know until tomorrow. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!"

Kid (noun): child.
A: "You have three kids, don't you?"
B: "That's right. I have two girls and a boy."



Kid (verb): playfully say something that isn't true.
"I was kidding when I said my teacher was a monster. She's strict,
but she's actually a very nice person."

Kind of: rather; more or less; a little.
"I'm feeling kind of hungry. I think I'll make myself a sandwich."

A klutz: an awkward, uncoordinated person.
"Don't ask Jeff to dance with you. He's a real klutz and will probably step on your feet!"

A know-it-all: someone who acts as if he/she knows everything--as if no one can tell him/her anything that he/she doesn't already know.
"Don't try to make any suggestions to Bob. He's a know-it-all and won't pay attention to anything you say."

Know something backwards and forwards: know/understand something completely and thoroughly.
"If you have a question about html tags, ask Susan. She knows html
backwards and forwards."

Know something inside out: know/understand something thoroughly.
"If you have a question about grammar, ask Dr. Martin. She knows grammar inside out."

Idioms with 'L'

Lend someone a hand: help someone.
"I can't do this alone. Can you lend me a hand?"

Leave well enough alone: do nothing (because doing something would make things worse).
"Don't tell Jim how to discipline his children. Leave well enough alone."

A let-down: a disappointment; something that's very disappointing.
"It must've been quite a let-down not to be chosen for that job. I know you really hoped you would get it."




Let sleeping dogs lie: Don't cause problems by doing something when it isn't necessary.
"I know that what Julie said made you angry, but let sleeping dogs lie. If you say or do anything, you'll only make things worse."

Live from hand to mouth: survive on very little money; have only enough money to pay for basic needs.
"Chuck and Alice are living from hand to mouth since Chuck lost his job."

Live and let live: don't unnecessarily make things difficult; do as you wish and let others do as they wish.
"I'm not going to criticize Alice's family just because their habits are a little strange. My motto is 'Live and let live.'"




A low blow: a big disappointment.
A: "Fred seems depressed. Is he OK?"
B: "He's OK, but not good. It was a low blow for him to be laid off from his job."

Lousy: terrible; very bad.
"Why did you speak so rudely to your grandmother? That was a lousy thing to do!"

Idioms with 'N'

No way!: Absolutely not! / Definitely not!
A: "You didn't open this letter addressed to me, did you?"
B: "No way! I'd never read look at else's mail!"


Nosh: snack.
"There's plenty in the refrigerator if you want something to nosh on."

Not on your life!: Absolutely not! (a strong "no").
A: "Someone said you cheated on the test. Did you?"
B: "Not on your life!"




Now and then: occasionally; from time to time.
A: "Do you see Jennifer often?"
B: "No, not really. I see her now and then, but not regularly."

Nuke: heat in a microwave.
"If your coffee's cold, just nuke it for about a minute."

Nuts: crazy.
A: "Stuart says some really strange things sometimes."
B: "Sometimes? All the time! He's nuts!"

Idioms with 'O'

OK: (1) yes (to show agreement--often reluctant agreement).
A: "Come on, Al. We really need your help!"
B: "Oh, OK; I may be crazy, but I'll help you."


OK: (2) neither good nor bad; so-so.
A: "How was the movie?"
B: "OK, I guess, but I've seen better ones."

OK: (3) in satisfactory condition; well.
A: "You look awfully pale. Are you OK?"
B: "Actually, I'm not. I have a terrible headache. "




OK: (4) approve (verb).
A: "Did your boss OK your vacation plans?"
B: "No, but he said that taking them two weeks later would be all right.

On the dot: exactly at a given time.
"We're leaving at 9:00 on the dot. If you're late, we'll go without you."

On time: at the scheduled time.
"It's getting late. You'd better hurry if you want to get to work on time."

(on the) cutting edge: using the most recent technology.
"The university's computer lab is (on the) cutting edge. It has
all the latest hardware and software."




Once in a while: occasionally; from time to time.
A: "Would you like coffee or tea?"
B: "Coffee, please. I drink tea once in a while, but I generally drink coffee."

Over one's head: too difficult or complicated for someone to understand.
"This explanation is over my head.
Can you explain it in a less technical way?"

Idioms with 'R'

R and R: rest and relaxation (a vacation).
"I think you're working too hard, Dave. You need some R and R."

Rain or shine: (describing something scheduled) no matter what the weather is.
"We're leaving tomorrow, rain or shine."

Rain cats and dogs: rain very hard.
"You can't leave just now! It's raining cats and dogs and you don't have an umbrella or raincoat!"




Read someone's mind: know what someone is thinking.
A: "I'll be you're thinking of what you're going to have for dinner."
B: "Hey, did you read my mind?"
A: "No. I just know that you're always hungry and lunch was several hours ago!"

Rub someone the wrong way: irritate someone; bother or annoy someone.
"All my little brother says is 'Why?' Usually I'm patient with him,
but sometimes all his questions rub me the wrong way."

Run-down: (1) not well; weak; fatigued.
"Are you eating regularly and getting enough sleep? You look run-down."

Run-down: (2) in poor condition; needing repair.
"This must be a poor neighborhood. All the buildings look really run-down."

Idioms with 'Q'

Quite a few: several; numerous.
"I don't think I can meet you after work. I have quite a few errands that I have to do."

A quick study: someone who learns new things quickly and easily.
A: "Annie seems to be doing well at her new job."
B: "I'm not surprised. She's a quick study."

Idioms with 'M'

Macho: super masculine / masculine to an extreme (in appearance and behavior).
"Her husband would never agree to help with the housework; he's too macho to do that."


Make a mountain out of a molehill: make something seem much more important than it really is.
"Calm down. There's really nothing to worry about. You're making a mountain out of a molehill."

Make up one's mind: decide what to do.
A: Where are you going on your vacation?
B: Maybe Canada, maybe Mexico. I can't make up my mind."

Idioms with 'B'

Bad-mouth: say unkind, unflattering, embarrassing (and probably untrue) things about someone.
A: "I don't believe what Mary said. Why is she bad-mouthing me?"
B: "He's probably jealous of your success."


Be a piece of cake: be very easy.
A: "Bob said the test was difficult, but I thought it was a piece of cake.""

Be all ears: be eager to hear what someone has to say.
A: "I just got an e-mail message from our old friend Sally."
B: "Tell me what she said. I'm all ears!"

Be broke: be without money.
"No, I can't lend you ten dollars. I'm completely broke until payday."

Be fed up with (with someone or something): be out of patience (with someone or something); be very tired of someone or something.
"Bill, you're too careless with your work. I'm fed up with apologizing for your mistakes!"

Be in and out: be at and away from a place during a particular time.
"Could we postpone our meeting until tomorrow? I expect to
be in and out of the office most of the day today."

Be on the go: be very busy (going from one thing or project to another).
"I'm really tired. I've been on the go all week long."

Be on the road: be traveling.
"You won't be able to contact me tomorrow because I'll be on the road."

Be over: be finished; end.
"I can't see you until around 4 o'clock. My meetings won't be over until then."

Be up and running: (for a technological process) be operational; be ready to use .

"English Planet has been up and running since December 2018."

Be used to (+Ving/noun): be accustomed to; not uncomfortable with.
"It won't be hard to get up at 5:00 AM. I'm used to getting up early."

Beat: exhausted; very tired (adj.).
"This has been a long day. I'm beat!"


Beat around the bush: evade an issue; avoid giving a direct answer.
"Quit beating around the bush! If you don't want to go with me, just tell me!"

Beat one's brains out: try very hard to understand or do something.
"Can you help me with this problem? I've been beating my brains out with it, but I just can't solve it."

Beats me: I have no idea.
A: "What time's the party?"
B: "Beats me!"

Before long: soon.
A: "I'm really tired of working."
B: "Just be patient. The weekend will be here before long."

Bent out of shape: needlessly worried about something.
"I know you're worried about your job interview, but don't get bent out of shape. You'll do just fine."

Bite off more than one can chew: take responsibility for more than one can manage.
"I'm really behind with my project. Can you help me? I'm afraid I
bit off more than I could chew!"



Blabbermouth: a very talkative person--especially one who says things that should be kept secret.
"Don't say anything to Bob unless you want the whole office to know. Bob's quite a blabbermouth."

Blow one's top: become extremely angry.
A: "Was your father upset when you came home at 3 AM?"
B: "He was more than upset. He blew his top!"

Boom box: portable cassette/CD player.
"Don't forget to bring your boom box to the picnic!"

Idioms with 'P'

Pay the piper: face the consequences for something you've done.
"I stayed up too late tonight. Tomorrow I'll have to pay the piper."

Plastic: credit card(s).
"Oh, no! I forgot to get any cash! I hope this restaurant accepts plastic!"

Pooped: very tired; exhausted.
"I went to bed really early last night. I was pooped!"

Pop quiz: unannounced short test.
"You shouldn't have missed class yesterday. We had a pop quiz."




Pretty (adv.): rather; somewhat.
"That car's pretty expensive. Are you sure you can afford it?"

Pull an all-nighter: study or work all night without getting any sleep.
A: "You look really tired."
B: "I am. I pulled an all-nighter to get ready for the meeting this morning."

Pull someone's leg: tease someone by trying to make her/him believe something that's exaggerated or untrue.
A: "Wow! Carl has done some really amazing things!"
B: "Don't believe everything he tells you. He was probably pulling your leg."