Sr.

No Idioms/Foreign Phrases
1. Magnum opus Best work of an artist
2. Cock and bull story An unbelievable tale
3. Sine die Without fixing a date
4. Cortage A funeral procession
5. An above board person Trustworthy
6. To be at longgerheads To be in strong disagreement or dispute
7. A dark horse A unexpected winner
8. To take the bull by the horns To deal with a difficult situation in a direct way
9. To cast pearls before a swine To offer to a person a thing which he cannot appreciate
10. To have an axe to grind To have a personal interest in a mater
11. To cool one’s heels To be kept waiting
12. In a jiffy Without any delay
13. In camera Not in public
14. Per se By itself
15. To call a spade a spade To speak in plain terms
16. To bury the hatchet To make peace
17. To bear the brunt of To endure the main force or shock
18. To fish in troubled waters To go for a daunting task
19. ‘De Novo’ means? New
20. Cul-de-Sac A passage with only one outlet
21. Per se In itself
22. Prima Facie At first view
23. Status quo The same state as before
24. Sine die Indefinitely
25. To make amend for To compensate for damage
26. En route On the way
27. Inter-Alia In between
28. ‘To wipe out’ means Eradicate
29. To cut the cake Celebrate birthday
30. Mixed feelings’ means? Feelings of hate and love
31. ‘Alter ego’ means? A close friend
32. Gift of the Gab Fluency of speech
32. ‘To drive home’ means? To emphasize a point
33. ‘To clip wings’ means? Put limits

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34. Kith and Kin Blood relations
35. To face the music To bear the consequence
36. ‘Delible’ means? A writing that can be effaced
37. ‘Inexplicable’ means? That which cannot be explained
38. To introduce ideas. Instill (give idea)
39. Less than Infra (below)
40. Hide one’s light under a bushel To conceal one’s talents
41. Hobson’s choice Giving no choice at all
42. To lionize a person To treat a person as a celebrity
43. Keep one’s own counsel To preserve a discreet silence
44. Fair weather friends Person who cease to be friend when one is in trouble
(false friend)
45. Leading questions Questions suggesting an answer
46. ‘Keep tabs on’ means? To keep under observation
47. To cool one’s heels To be kept waiting
48. Cul-de-Sac A passage with only one outlet
49. ‘Laissez-Fair’ means? Non-interference of state in economy
50. ‘Bona Fide’ means? In good faith
Acting in good faith
51. Alma mater The place where someone was educated
52. ‘Eye wash’ means? Deceit
53. ‘Lingua Franca’ means? A common language
54. ‘To talk through one’s hat’ To talk through nonsense
means?
55. ‘Spick and span’ means? Clean and fresh
56. ‘A pipe dream’ means? An impracticable wish
57. ‘De Jure’ means? By law
58. ‘Malafide’ means? In bad faith
59. ‘Pros and cons’ means? Loss and profit
60. ‘De facto’ means? In practice
61. Amphibious Double life
62. Spain literally Land of rabbits
63. To loose face To be humiliated
64. To clip the wind Put limits
65. To hit the road Start journey

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66. To flex one’s muscles Show strength/ Authority
67. To carry the day To win a victory
68. To be green eyed Jealous
69. Inter-alia Among other things
In between
70. Affair de Coeur An affair of the heart
71. Ex-officio In virtue of one’s office
72. Modus operandi Plan of action
73. Beat about the bush To avoid the main topic
74. Cock and bull story An unbelievable tale
75. Have an axe to grind Selfish motive
76. Let’s sleeping dogs lie To avoid restarting a conflict
77. On the fence Undecided
78. Rule of thumb A rough estimate
79. To call a spade a spade To speak in plain terms
80. To bury the hatchet To make peace
81. Have an axe to grind Selfish motive
82. To husband one’s resources To manage one’s means with frugality
83. To bear the brunt of To endure the main force or shock
84. To fish in troubled waters To go for a daunting task
85. What is meant by ‘causeway’ A raised path
86. ‘Once a blue moon’ means? Rearly
87. Under a cloud Out of favour
88. To be above board To be honest in any business deal
89. To put one’s hand to plough To take a difficult task
90. Status quo Present state
91. Locus standi Right to intervence
92. To spill the beans To reveal secret information
93. To smell a rat To suspect a trick or detect
94. A chip of the old block Having characteristics of one’s ancestors
95. To make amend for To compensate for damage
96. Put/set the cat among the pigeons To say or do something that makes a lot of people angry
97. What is contraband All smuggled material
98. A bone of contention A cause of quarrel
99. House of cards A weak structure

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100. To hit the nail on head Exact point
101. To face the music To bear the consequences
102. Make away with Depart in haste to steal
103. Eye wash Misleading statement
104. Helter-skelter In disorderly confusions
105. Heat up Angry and agitated
106. Turncoat One who abandons his principles
107. Once in a blue moon Rarely
108. As the crow flies Directly
109. To give one the sack To dismiss a person
110. Alter ego A close friend
111. Alma mater Once college or university
112. To plough the sand To work in vain
113. Torque A force that tends to cause of rotation
114. Modus vivendi Arrangement
115. A buffer state A small state between two big hostile states
116. To be at arm’s length At a distance
117. ‘To lose heart’ means to become? Discouraged
118. Tour de force Forceful tour
119. Burn midnight oil Work hard
120. Bear the brunt Face the task
121. Dutch courage Great courage
122. Podium An elevated platform
123. Acumen Mental sharpness
124. A fair weather friend False friend
125. To wipe out Eradicate
126. To take with a pinch of salt To take with some reservation
127. To run amuck To run about in frenzy
128. To pull strings To tease someone
129. To set free To release someone
130. A piece of cake An easy task
131. A Gordian knot A difficult or complex problem
132. Spill the beans To reveal secret information
133. To fish in troubled waters Get involved in a dangerous situation
134. To cry wolf To give false alarm

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135. Never-never land An idea place (imaginary land)
136. A slap on the wrist Working or small punishment
137. Amicus curiae Friend of the court and disinterested advisor
138. To be in two minds To be uncertain
139. A wet blanket Someone presence damps enthusiasm
140. To hit the nail on the head To say just the right thing
Exact point
141. The alpha and omega Beginning and end
142. To pass by Over look
143. Hold one’s horse Have patience
144. At sea Puzzled
145. Fender bender A small car accident
146. Debut First appearance as performance
147. By fits and starts Irregularly
148. Tie the knot Getting married
149. Feel blue Feel sad
150. To cut long story short Come to the point
151. Get your goat To irritate someone
152. A penny wise pound foolish To ask someone that they are thinking about
153. Just good enough Good for circumstances
154. Burn the midnight oil Stay awake or study late into the night
155. Putting the cart before the horse To do something contrary to conventional order
156. Star crossed Unlucky
157. To break a lance with To engage in a competition
158. Between sylla and charybids Between two great difficulties
159. Leave into Lurch To leaves someone in difficulty
160. In the blue funk In a state of terror
161. Above Board Trustworthy
162. Subjudice Under judicial condition
163. Pros and Cons For and against
164. Dejure By law
165. An above board person Trustworthy
166. A fair weather friend False friend
167. Alter Modify
168. In camera Not in public

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169. Per se By itself
170. Sine die Indefinitely
171. En route On the way
172. Inter-Alia In between
173. Denovo New
174. Alter ego Close friend
175. Ins and Out All the detail
176. At sixes and sevens Bewildered
177. Blue-eyed-boy Favourite person
178. Eye-wash Deceit
179. Magnum opus Best work of an artist
180. Modus operandi Plan of action
181. A queer fish A strange person
182. Eye wash Deceit
183. Lingua franca A common language
184. Eye wash Misleading Statement
185. Modus vivendi Arrangement
186. Pro bono For good
187. At sea Puzzled
188. Modicum Great amount
189. Cue-de-sac A blind alley, A passage with one outlet.
190. Ibid In the book
191. Interse Among/ between thousand
192. Sinedie Without fixing a date
193. Viz-a-viz That is to say
194. Modus operanoli Plane of action
195. Coup d ‘etat’ To change a government by rebellion
196. Inter Alia Among other things
197. Faux pas An embassassing mistake
198. Star eclecisis Rule of law
199. Modus uivand Arrangement