Idiomatic Expressions

Anum Aziz
Humanities and Social Sciences
Bahria University, Islamabad
 Idioms
Idioms are phrases which people use in everyday
language which do not make sense literally, but we
understand what they mean.
 1. A Hot Potato
• Sentence:
– The upcoming cricket matches are a hot potato in
Pakistan these days.
 2. A Penny For Your Thoughts
• Sentence:
– I was so lost in thought that I was startled when
my friend brought me back to earth by nudging me
and saying, “a penny for your thoughts”.
 3. Actions Speak Louder Than Words
• Sentence:
– The government of Pakistan makes so many
promises before elections but nobody believes
them because actions speak louder than words.
 4. Add Insult To Injury
• Sentence
– The government did not provide protection to the
people of the city and then to add insult to injury
blamed the citizens for the loss of life.
 5. An Arm And A Leg
• Sentence
– The new camera cost an arm and a leg but as Jake
needed it for the photography contest so he
decided to get it anyway.
 6. At The Drop Of A Hat
• Sentence
– If you need my help, you can call me. I can come
at the drop of a hat.
 7. Back To The Drawing Board
• Sentence
– Our new petition might not be acceptable so in that
case, its back to the drawing board for we are not
giving up.
 8. Ball Is In Your Court
• Sentence
– They have told her that they are willing to
reconsider her position if she helps them so in
effect the ball is in her court now.
 9. Barking Up The Wrong Tree
• Sentence
– She had nothing to do with the missing files, the
detective is barking up the wrong tree this time.
 10. Be Glad To See The Back Of
• Sentence
– I will be really glad to see the back of this thesis, it
has been occupying my whole time.
 11. Beat Around The Bush
• Sentence
– The new director is very efficient. He immediately
stopped people from beating around the bush and
set them to specific tasks.
 12. Best of Both Worlds
• Sentence
– Sara did not want to choose between her work and
her studies, she wanted to keep both and have the
best of both worlds.
 13. Best Thing Since Sliced Bread
• Sentence
– Kindle is marketed as the best thing since sliced bread,
but to me it will never be able to replace books.
14. Bite Off More Than You Can Chew
• Sentence
– Her mother told her to drop a few subjects when
she saw that Sara had bitten off more than she
could chew.
 15. Blessing In Disguise
• Sentence
– Although losing her job seemed like a calamity at
the time, Sara found it a blessing in disguise when
it led her to find a better one.
 16. Burn The Midnight Oil
• Sentence
– Craig has an exam tomorrow so he is burning the
midnight oil.
 17. Cant Judge A Book By Its Cover
• Sentence
– The new manager does not look very intelligent
but you cannot judge a book by its cover.
 18. Caught Between Two Stools
• Sentence
– She was caught between two stools when she tried
to be both a parent and a professional and thus
failed both.
19. Cross That Bridge When You Come To It
• Sentence
– She keeps worrying about her future job so her
friends keep reminding her to cross that bridge
when she came to it.
 20. Cry Over Spilt Milk
• Sentence
– Maria never learns from her faults and is left
crying over spilt milk.
 21. Curiosity Killed The Cat
• Sentence
– When Adrian started asking nosy questions Maria
reminded him that curiosity killed the cat.
 22. Cut Corners
• Sentence
– The company keeps trying to cut corners and thus
their construction is second rate.
 23. Cut The Mustard
• Sentence
– His older brothers and sisters helped Max through
high school, but he couldn't cut the mustard in
college.
 24. Devil’s Advocate
• Sentence
– My sister always plays the devil’s advocate
whenever there is a discussion of a new case so
that we are better prepared for the other side.
 25. Don't Count Your Chickens Before The
Eggs Have Hatched
• Sentence
– Adam was already planning his winning
celebration before the test started, but he counted
his chickens before they hatched and ended up
with no prize at all.
 26. Don’t Give Up The Day Job
• Sentence
– My friend thinks she is cut out to be an actor but
we keep telling her not to give up the day job.
 27. Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket
• Sentence
– When she decided to apply to only one university,
her parents advised her not to put all her eggs in
the same basket.
28. Drastic Times Call For Drastic Measures
• Sentence
– The Army decided to launch a counter attack on
the country’s civilian population to protect the
country as drastic times call for drastic measures.
 29. Elvis Has Left The Building
• Sentence
– The manager told the crowd that Elvis has left the
building in order to disperse them.
 30. Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining
• Sentence
– On the darkest days of her life, she kept her hope
alive by telling herself that every cloud has a silver
lining.
 31. Far Cry From
• Sentence
– The property dealer said that the house was lovely
but the reality turned out to be a far cry from his
words.
 32. Feel A Bit Under The Weather
• Sentence
– She took the day off from work as she was feeling
a bit under the weather.
 33. Give The Benefit Of The Doubt
• Sentence
– Although her mother did not believe her but she
decided to give her the benefit of the doubt all the
same.
 34. Hear It On The Grapevine
• Sentence
– Clara heard the news circulating on the grapevine
rather than from her friend.
 35. Hit The Nail On The Head
• Sentence
– Jerry hit the nail on the head when he accused Rick
of creating issues in order to make Jerry appear
small in front of the committee.
 36. Hit The Sack/ Sheets / Hay
• Sentence
– She was so tired that she decided to hit the sack
without taking her dinner.
 37. In The Heat Of The Moment
• Sentence
– Grey said a lot of things in the heat of the moment
which he later regretted.
 38. It Takes Two To Tango
• Sentence
– I assured my mother that I would not get into an
argument with my brother so I didn't reply to his
comments as it takes two to tango.
 39. Jump On The Bandwagon
• Sentence
– She jumped on the bandwagon when she started
acting in the same way as all her class fellows did.
 40. Keep Something At Bay
• Sentence
– General Musharraf kept the American attack at bay
by helping them start a fight against terrorism.
 41. Kill Two Birds With One Stone
• Sentence
– Jenny says that she kills two birds with one stone if
she does her own housework because she gets the
house clean and she gets some exercise at the same
time.
 42. Last Straw
• Sentence
– He has been late before, but this time its the last
straw for he has ruined the entire program.
 43. Let Sleeping Dogs Lie
• Sentence
– When my brother decided to tell my parents that he thought
he had had a terrible childhood, I warned him that he
should let sleeping dogs lie but he would not listen and a
huge argument followed.
 44. Let The Cat Out of The Bag
• Sentence
– Don't forget that this is a secret, so whatever you
do, don't let the cat out of the bag.
 45. Make a Long Story Short
• Sentence
– To make a long story short,
I never got back the money that I lent him.
 46. Method To My Madness
• Sentence
– What I'm doing may look strange, but there is
a method in my madness.
– Wait until she finishes; then you'll see that she has
method to her madness.
 47. Miss The Boat
• Sentence
– There were tickets available last week, but he
missed the boat by ​waiting till today to try to buy
some.
 48. Not A Spark Of Decency
• Sentence
– The person who does not have a spark of decency
is of no use.
 49. Not Playing With A Full Deck
• Sentence
– The way she behaves, you would think she wasn't
playing with a full deck.
 50. Off One’s Rocker
• Sentence
– He acted so strangely, she thought he was off his
rocker.
 51. On The Ball
• Sentence
– If you were on the ball, this wouldn't have happened.
 52. Once In A Blue Moon
• Sentence
– We hardly ever go out these days, though once in a
blue moon we might go and see a movie.
53. A Picture Paints A Thousand Words
• Sentence
– Just show him the photos and he will understand;
You know a picture paints a thousand words.
 54. Piece Of Cake
• Sentence
– I had no trouble finding your house; it was
a piece of cake.
 55. Pull Wool Over Eyes
• Sentence
– You can't pull the wool over my eyes. I know what's
going on.
 56. See Eye To Eye
• Sentence
– We see eye to eye on all important issues.
 57. Sit On The Fence
• Sentence
– When Jane and Tom argue, it is best to sit on the fence
and not make either of them angry.
 58. Speak Of The Devil!
• Sentence
– Did you ​hear what ​happened to Anna ​yesterday -
oh, ​speak of the devil, here she is.
 59. Steal Someone’s Thunder
• Sentence
– Someone stole my thunder by leaking my announce
ment to the press.
 60. Take With A Grain Of Salt
• Sentence
– Uncle Bill tells some great stories, but we take
what he says with a grain of salt because he
sometimes exaggerates or makes things up.
 61. Taste Of Your Own Medicine
• Sentence
– She is always turning up late for me so I thought
I’d give her a taste of her own medicine and see
how she likes it.
 62. To Hear Something Straight From The
Horse’s Mouth
• Sentence
– If you don't believe me, go talk to him and hear
it straight from the horse's mouth.
 63. Whole Nine Yards
• Sentence
– David was willing to go the whole nine yards for
his family.
 64. Wouldn't Be Caught Dead
• Sentence
– I wouldn't be ​caught dead wearing a dress like that
– it's like something my ​grandmother would ​wear!
 65. Your Guess Is As Good As Mine
• Sentence
– I asked Jenny when the new office would be ready
and she said, "Your guess is as good as mine."
 66. The Pot Calling The Kettle Black
• Sentence
– Elliott accused me of being ​selfish - Talk about the
pot calling the ​kettle black!
 67. Grey Area
• Sentence
– Many people think they know what right and
wrong are, but on closer examination it's usually a
grey area.
 68. White Knuckle
• Sentence
– I had a white knuckle ride when I taught my young
son to drive.
 69. Green Thumb
• Sentence
– Catelyn has a green thumb – she can make the
desert bloom!”
 70. Green Around The Gills
• Sentence
– Some of the ​passengers looked kind of ​green
around the ​gills after the trip!
 71. In The Red
• Sentence
– State government has been operating in the red for
five straight years.
 72. Red Tape

• Sentence
– Red tape prevented Jack's wife from joining him
abroad.
 73. Rose Tinted Glasses
• Sentence
– She has always looked at life through rose-tinted
glasses.
 74. Paint The Town Red
• Sentence
– It was the end of term and students decided to
celebrate by painting the town red.