English Expressions and Idioms

8/14/2019 English Expressions and Idioms

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$ara%hrasing/ !o . . . (re%hrase the other %erson's ideas) In other words . . . (%ara%hrase) I

understand. (You're saying that . . .) 5h. I see. (You want to say that . . . ) I get it. (You

mean . . .) !o, what you mean is . . . -et me see if I understand you correctly. . . What I thin

you're saying is . . . If I'm hearing you correctly . . .

Idioms

ll set

If you're all set, you are ready for something.

ll sin and boneIf a %erson is ery underweight, they are all sin and bone, or bones.

ll6singing, all6dancing

If something's all6singing, all6dancing, it is the latest ersion with the most u%6to6datefeatures.

lways a bridesmaid, neer a brideIf someone is always a bridesmaid, neer a bride, they neer manage to fulfill their

ambition6 they get close, but neer manage the recognition, etc, they crae.n old flame

n old flame is a %erson that somebody has had an emotional, usually %assionate,

relationshi% with, who is still looed on fondly and with affection.round the cloc

If something is o%en around the cloc, it is o%en 78 hours a day. or e#am%le, an air%ort

is o%en around the cloc.s cold as ice

This idiom can be used to describe a %erson who does not show any emotion.

t the to% of your oiceIf you tal, shout or sing at the to% of your oice, you do it as loudly as you can.

9are your heart

If you bare your heart to someone, you tell them your %ersonal and %riate feelings.

('9are your soul' is an alternatie form of the idiom.)9eat your brains out

If you beat your brains out, you thin hard about something but cannot sole, understand

or remember it.9een there, done that

$eo%le say this when they hae already e#%erienced what is being discussed.

9ehind bars

When someone is behind bars, they are in %rison.9ehind someone's bac

If you do something behind someone's bac, you do it without telling them.

9etter halfYour better half is your husband or wife.

9etter safe than sorry

This idiom is used to recommend being cautious rather than taing a ris.9ite your tongue
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If you bite your tongue, you refrain from s%eaing because it is socially or otherwise

better not to.

9itter endIf you do something to the bitter end, you do it to the ery end, no matter how

unsuccessful you are.

9lac shee%!omeone who is the blac shee% doesn't fit into a grou% or family because their behaiour

or character is not good enough.

9lin of an eyeIf something ha%%ens in the blin of an eye, it ha%%ens so fast it is almost im%ossible to

notice it.

9ottom line

In accountancy, the bottom line is net income, and is used idiomatically to mean theconclusion.

9rea a leg

This idiom is a way of wishing someone good luc.

9rea the iceWhen you brea the ice, you get oer any initial embarrassment or shyness when you

meet someone for the first time and start conersing.9ull6headed

If you're a bull6headed, you're stubborn or infle#ible.

9urn your fingersIf you burn your fingers, you suffer a loss or something un%leasant as the result of

something you did, maing you less liely to do it again.

9y heart

If you learn something by heart, you learn it word for word.Change of heart

If you change the way you thin or feel about something, you hae a change of heart.

Clean hands!omeone with clean hands, or who ee%s their hands clean, is not inoled in illegal or

immoral actiities.

Close to your heartIf something is close to your heart, you care a lot about it.

Come what may

If you're %re%ared to do something come what may, it means that nothing will sto% or

distract you, no matter how hard or difficult it becomes.Crac of dawn

The crac of dawn is ery early in the morning.

ead and buriedIf something is dead and buried, it has all long been settled and is not going to be

reconsidered.

ee% %ocetsIf someone has dee% %ocets, they are wealthy.

on't %ush my buttons:

This can be said to someone who is starting to annoy you.

own and out
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If someone is down and out, they are des%erately %oor and need hel%.

own6to6earth

!omeone who's down6to6earth is %ractical and realistic. It can also be used for things lieideas.

raw the line

When you draw the line, you set out limits of what you find acce%table, beyond whichyou will not go.

"arn a liing

To mae money "#/ We need to get a good ob to earn a decent liing."asier said than done

If something is easier said than done, it is much more difficult than it sounds. It is often

used when someone adises you to do something difficult and tries to mae it sound easy.

"asy come, easy goThis idiom means that money or other material gains that come without much effort tend

to get s%ent or consumed as easily.

"ery man for himself

If it's eery man for himself, then %eo%le are trying to sae themseles from a difficultsituation without trying to hel% anyone else.

ace lie thunderIf someone has a face lie thunder, they are clearly ery angry or u%set about something.

all on our feet

If you fall on your feet, you succeed in doing something where there was a ris of failure.eel at home

If you feel rela#ed and comfortable somewhere or with someone, you feel at home.

eeling blue

If you feel blue, you are feeling unwell, mainly associated with de%ression orunha%%iness.

eet on the ground

%ractical and realistic %erson has their feet on the ground.our6eyes

%erson who wears glasses

+et away with murderIf you get away with murder, you do something bad and don't get caught or %unished.

('+et away with blue murder' is also used.)

+et the %icture

If you get the %icture, you understand a situation fully.+ie me a hand

If someone gies you a hand, they hel% you.

+o hand in handIf things go hand in hand, they are associated and go together.

+o round in circles

If %eo%le are going round in circles, they ee% discussing the same thing without reachingany agreement or coming to a conclusion.

+reen light

If you are gien the green light, you are gien a%%roal to do something.

1ae a go
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If you hae a go, you try to do something, often when you don't thin you hae much

chance of succeeding.

1ae a tric u% your sleeeIf you hae a tric u% your sleee, you hae a secret strategy to use when the time is

right.

1ae the floorIf someone has the floor, it is their turn to s%ea at a meeting.

1ae your fill

If you hae had your fill, you are fed u% of somebody or something.1ere today, gone tomorrow

&oney, ha%%iness and other desirable things are often here today, gone tomorrow, which

means that they don't last for ery long.

1it and miss!omething that is hit and miss is un%redictable and may %roduce results or may fail.

1it the road

When %eo%le hit the road, they leae a %lace to go somewhere else.

1old all the acesIf you hold all the aces, you hae all the adantages and your o%%onents or rials are in a

wea %osition.1ow come

If you want to show disbelief or sur%rise about an action, you can as a 2uestion using

'how come'. 1ow come he got the ob? (You can't beliee that they gae the ob tosomebody lie him)

In a flash

If something ha%%ens in a flash, it ha%%ens ery 2uicly indeed.

In cold bloodIf something is done in cold blood, it is done ruthlessly, without any emotion.

It taes a illage to raise a child

It taes many %eo%le to teach a child all that he or she should now.It taes two to tango

This idiom is used to suggest that when things go wrong, both sides are inoled and

neither side is com%letely innocent.;ust around the corner

If something is ust around the corner, then it is e#%ected to ha%%en ery soon.


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-arger than life

If something is e#cessie or e#aggerated, it is larger than life.

&ae my dayIf something maes your day, it satisfies you or maes you ha%%y.

&ar my words

&ar my words is an e#%ression used to lend an air of seriousness to what the s%eaer isabout to say when taling about the future. You often hear druns say it before they

delier some %articularly s%urious nonsense.

&oe mountainsIf you would moe mountains to do something, you would mae any effort to achiee

your aim. When %eo%le say that faith can moe mountains, they mean that it can achiee

a lot.

&usic to my earsIf something someone says is music to your ears, it is e#actly what you had wanted to

hear.

&y way or the highway

This idiom is used to say that if %eo%le don't do what you say, they will hae to leae or2uit the %roect, etc.

5ff the chartIf something goes off the chart, it far e#ceeds the normal standards, good or bad, for

something.
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