English Idioms
Source : TalkEnglish.com
Bored to death: Very bored
You've got to be kidding: This is used when a true statement is ridiculous.
Sick and Tired: when you no longer enjoy something because you have done it too many times.
Call it a day: to express that the work day is over.
Get on one's nerves: Used when someone or something is bothering you.
Couch potato: someone watches too much television.
Read one's mind: someone says something that you were also thinking about.
Feel blue: Feel sad
Fender bender: A small car accident
Get foot in the door: Taking or passing the first step of a longer process; Generally used when referring to an entry level position that will eventually lead to better opportunities.
Chicken: Being afraid or scared
"Stop being a chicken and just go."
Give somebody a hard time: Make someone feel bad for making a mistake.
Stop giving me a hard time. There was nothing I could do about it."
Make up one's mind: Make a decision
"We don't got all day, make up your mind."
Go Dutch: Each person paying for themselves. For example, going Dutch on a date is indicating both guy and girl will pay for themselves instead of one buying for the other.
"You don't have to pay for me. Let's go dutch today."
Throw in the towel: Give up; quit; surrender
"I was ready to throw in the towel, but I stayed with it."
Goose bumps: The literal tiny bumps you get all over your body when you are experiencing intense emotions.
"I was so touched by the movie that I started getting goose bumps all over my arms."
"When she told me that she loved me, I got goose bumps."
Stay in touch: To stay connected
"Call me more often man. We got to stay in touch."
Have the guts: Brave; courage
"I don't have the guts to go bungee jumping."
Rain or Shine: Not allowing the weather to prevent you from doing something.
"We're going camping this weekend rain or shine."
I'm beat: Very tired
"I had a tough day today. I'm totally beat."
Easier said than done: This is used when something is easy to say but very hard to do.
"That's easier said than done."
It's about time: When you want to express that you waited a long time. A synonym of this would be, "finally."
"It's about time. I waited two hours for you."
"It's about time I got a chance to play."
Jump to conclusions: Making a conclusion without having all the details
"I incorrectly blamed Jeff for breaking my phone. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."
Keep an eye on: To watch after; to supervise; to take care of
"Can you keep an eye on my daughter while I go get the car?"
Out of the blue: Out of nowhere; spontaneously
"He's pretty funny because he will crack a funny joke out of the blue."
Know something inside out: Have knowledge of every detail of something.
"Ask Mary to help you with your homework. She knows calculus inside out."
Give someone a hand: To help someone
"Give a hand" also represent applauding, but this section is about helping someone.
"Can you give me a hand setting up the dining table?"
Now and then: Once in a while
"I go on a hike every now and then."
Nuke - Microwave: To cook something in the microwave oven.
"Don't nuke an egg. It will explode in the microwave."
On the dot: The exact time
"I don't want to be waiting for you, so you'd better be there at three o'clock on the dot."
Keeping my fingers crossed: Hoping for good luck
"Their team is not favored to win. But I hope they do. I'm keeping my fingers crossed."
Out of this world: Amazing
"That's the coolest thing I've ever seen. It's really out of this world."
Over one's head: When something is mentally too difficult to understand.
"I don't know the answer to that problem. The subject is over my head."
Pain in the ass: A source of trouble or annoyance; used to indicate that something bothers you very much. "Ass" can be seen as profanity, so another way of saying this would be "Pain in the butt" or "Pain in the neck."
"I had a customer who kept asking easy questions. It was a total pain in the ass."
Piece of cake: describes something that is easy to do.
"It's not that difficult. Actually, it's a piece of cake."
Sooner or later: Eventually
"Don't keep waiting for him to confess. He'll tell you sooner or later."
Pull someone's leg: Making someone believe something that is not true.
"You expect me to believe that? Stop pulling my leg."
Put oneself in one's place: To think from another point of view.
"What was I supposed to do? Try to put yourself in my place."
I can eat a horse: To express the desire to eat a lot of food.
"I'm so hungry that I can eat a horse."
Read between the lines: To understand the underlying meaning of something that is not completely clear.
"If you read between the lines, you would have understood what he was implying."
Don't sweat it: To tell someone not to worry
"You can't do anything about it, so don't sweat it."
Rings a bell: To remember something
"I can't put my finger on it, but it definitely rings a bell."
Bug: To annoy
"I need to concentrate on this, so stop bugging me."
Sleep on it: To take time to think about something.
"I've been thinking about this problem for two hours. I think I will sleep on it. It might come to me in the morning."
Play it by ear: To decide to do something as the situation develops; choosing to deal with a situation as more events unfold.
"I'll have to play it by ear because I don't know how long they want me to work."
Speak of the devil: When someone appears just as you are talking about that person.
"I was at a party last night, and I saw Jake play the guitar in front of an audience...speak of the devil, there's Jake right now."
Grab a bite: To get something to eat
"When do you want to go grab a bite?"
Take it easy: To relax; to stop working so hard; to calm down
"You're pushing yourself too hard. Take it easy."
Go with the flow: To do things as other people are doing it because it is easier to do; to not go against the common way of doing things
"Why do you do everything differently? You should just go with the flow."
Twenty-four seven: Constantly; always available; every minute of the day and night
"7-11 is a great store because they are open twenty-four seven."
Under the weather: Feeling sick; not well
"I'm going to stay home because I'm feeling under the weather today."
You can say that again: Completely agreeing with a statement
A: "Britney Spears is so hot!"
B: "You can say that again."
Broke: To have no money
"I'm flat broke."
Beats Me: To not know; to not understand
"It beats me how they finished before us."
I Don't Buy it: Disagree; to not be convinced
"He said he didn't do it but I don't buy it."
Keep Your Cool: To act normal
"I know you're upset but you have to keep your cool."
Sort Of: A little; kind of
"Dinner was sort of expensive."
"I sort of like her."
Get foot in the door: Taking or passing the first step of a longer process; Generally used when referring to an entry level position that will eventually lead to better opportunities.
Chicken: Being afraid or scared
"Stop being a chicken and just go."
Give somebody a hard time: Make someone feel bad for making a mistake.
Stop giving me a hard time. There was nothing I could do about it."
Make up one's mind: Make a decision
"We don't got all day, make up your mind."
Go Dutch: Each person paying for themselves. For example, going Dutch on a date is indicating both guy and girl will pay for themselves instead of one buying for the other.
"You don't have to pay for me. Let's go dutch today."
Throw in the towel: Give up; quit; surrender
"I was ready to throw in the towel, but I stayed with it."
Goose bumps: The literal tiny bumps you get all over your body when you are experiencing intense emotions.
"I was so touched by the movie that I started getting goose bumps all over my arms."
"When she told me that she loved me, I got goose bumps."
Stay in touch: To stay connected
"Call me more often man. We got to stay in touch."
Have the guts: Brave; courage
"I don't have the guts to go bungee jumping."
Rain or Shine: Not allowing the weather to prevent you from doing something.
"We're going camping this weekend rain or shine."
I'm beat: Very tired
"I had a tough day today. I'm totally beat."
Easier said than done: This is used when something is easy to say but very hard to do.
"That's easier said than done."
It's about time: When you want to express that you waited a long time. A synonym of this would be, "finally."
"It's about time. I waited two hours for you."
"It's about time I got a chance to play."
Jump to conclusions: Making a conclusion without having all the details
"I incorrectly blamed Jeff for breaking my phone. I shouldn't have jumped to conclusions."
Keep an eye on: To watch after; to supervise; to take care of
"Can you keep an eye on my daughter while I go get the car?"
Out of the blue: Out of nowhere; spontaneously
"He's pretty funny because he will crack a funny joke out of the blue."
Know something inside out: Have knowledge of every detail of something.
"Ask Mary to help you with your homework. She knows calculus inside out."
Give someone a hand: To help someone
"Give a hand" also represent applauding, but this section is about helping someone.
"Can you give me a hand setting up the dining table?"
Now and then: Once in a while
"I go on a hike every now and then."
Nuke - Microwave: To cook something in the microwave oven.
"Don't nuke an egg. It will explode in the microwave."
On the dot: The exact time
"I don't want to be waiting for you, so you'd better be there at three o'clock on the dot."
Keeping my fingers crossed: Hoping for good luck
"Their team is not favored to win. But I hope they do. I'm keeping my fingers crossed."
Out of this world: Amazing
"That's the coolest thing I've ever seen. It's really out of this world."
Over one's head: When something is mentally too difficult to understand.
"I don't know the answer to that problem. The subject is over my head."
Pain in the ass: A source of trouble or annoyance; used to indicate that something bothers you very much. "Ass" can be seen as profanity, so another way of saying this would be "Pain in the butt" or "Pain in the neck."
"I had a customer who kept asking easy questions. It was a total pain in the ass."
Piece of cake: describes something that is easy to do.
"It's not that difficult. Actually, it's a piece of cake."
Sooner or later: Eventually
"Don't keep waiting for him to confess. He'll tell you sooner or later."
Pull someone's leg: Making someone believe something that is not true.
"You expect me to believe that? Stop pulling my leg."
Put oneself in one's place: To think from another point of view.
"What was I supposed to do? Try to put yourself in my place."
I can eat a horse: To express the desire to eat a lot of food.
"I'm so hungry that I can eat a horse."
Read between the lines: To understand the underlying meaning of something that is not completely clear.
"If you read between the lines, you would have understood what he was implying."
Don't sweat it: To tell someone not to worry
"You can't do anything about it, so don't sweat it."
Rings a bell: To remember something
"I can't put my finger on it, but it definitely rings a bell."
Bug: To annoy
"I need to concentrate on this, so stop bugging me."
Sleep on it: To take time to think about something.
"I've been thinking about this problem for two hours. I think I will sleep on it. It might come to me in the morning."
Play it by ear: To decide to do something as the situation develops; choosing to deal with a situation as more events unfold.
"I'll have to play it by ear because I don't know how long they want me to work."
Speak of the devil: When someone appears just as you are talking about that person.
"I was at a party last night, and I saw Jake play the guitar in front of an audience...speak of the devil, there's Jake right now."
Grab a bite: To get something to eat
"When do you want to go grab a bite?"
Take it easy: To relax; to stop working so hard; to calm down
"You're pushing yourself too hard. Take it easy."
Go with the flow: To do things as other people are doing it because it is easier to do; to not go against the common way of doing things
"Why do you do everything differently? You should just go with the flow."
Twenty-four seven: Constantly; always available; every minute of the day and night
"7-11 is a great store because they are open twenty-four seven."
Under the weather: Feeling sick; not well
"I'm going to stay home because I'm feeling under the weather today."
You can say that again: Completely agreeing with a statement
A: "Britney Spears is so hot!"
B: "You can say that again."
Broke: To have no money
"I'm flat broke."
Beats Me: To not know; to not understand
"It beats me how they finished before us."
I Don't Buy it: Disagree; to not be convinced
"He said he didn't do it but I don't buy it."
Keep Your Cool: To act normal
"I know you're upset but you have to keep your cool."
Sort Of: A little; kind of
"Dinner was sort of expensive."
"I sort of like her."
"I sort of know how to cook."
Good For You: Expressing that you are happy for a person
"Good for you, you finally passed your test."
Good Luck: Wishing someone well. Also can mean that it is not possible.
"Good luck on your interview tomorrow."
Shotgun: To claim the front seat in a car.
"Why does he always get to ride shotgun?"
Who Cares: express something is not important to you
"Who cares if they win or lose?"
Big Deal: Something really important. Often times used with "no" to express that the event is not as important as they think.
"Passing my driver's test was no big deal."
Good For You: Expressing that you are happy for a person
"Good for you, you finally passed your test."
Good Luck: Wishing someone well. Also can mean that it is not possible.
"Good luck on your interview tomorrow."
Shotgun: To claim the front seat in a car.
"Why does he always get to ride shotgun?"
Who Cares: express something is not important to you
"Who cares if they win or lose?"
Big Deal: Something really important. Often times used with "no" to express that the event is not as important as they think.
"Passing my driver's test was no big deal."
