| 100 popular Idioms in English Language |
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| Believe it or not: You might not believe this but… |
| Bites more than he/she can chew: Takes more responsibility than he/she can handle |
| Break a leg!: Good luck! |
| Business as usual: Things are the same as usual |
| Costs arm and a leg: Costs a lot |
| Dawn till dusk: From morning till the evening |
| Dozen a dime/dime a dozen: So easy to find, not so valuable |
| Nitty gritty: The most essential part of |
| Nuts and bolts: Details |
| On the flip side: On the other hand |
| Party animal: A person who likes partying |
| Sounds like a broken record: Repeating the same things over and over |
| Speaking of which: I like apple, speaking of which I will grab some apple juice for my self |
| Strike a balance: Have a good balance of |
| Testing the waters: Experimenting, assessing the reaction |
| The bottom line is: Simply put…It all comes down to |
| Think outside the box: Think differently |
| You gotta be kidding me: you must be joking |
| 1 o’clock “sharp”: “Exactly” at 1 o’clock |
| Back to the grind: Back to the usual |
| Chicken: Coward/ afraid or nervous about doing things |
| Don’t joke with me: Are you serious?? Don’t mess with me |
| Down to earth: Realistic |
| Get a life: Try to be like a normal person, pay attention to things that are important |
| Get to the point: Don’t beat around the bush |
| Give somebody a hard time: Bothering someone |
| Give someone a hand: Help someone |
| Go Dutch: Splitting the bill, paying 50/50 |
| Good for nothing: Not good |
| Hold on a second: Just wait a moment |
| I beg to differ: I’d rather take a different stance on this topic |
| I blew it: I wasted my chance |
| I’m hosed: I am in a bad situation |
| I’m on my way to…: I am heading towards to… |
| In terms of X: When X is evaluated. |
| It’s a long story: What you are asking me is a complicated matter |
| It’s a piece of cake: So easy |
| Keep me in the loop: Keep me posted, keep me updated |
| Keep your cool: Just stay calm |
| Know something inside out: Know every detail, know by heart |
| Make up one’s mind: Making a decision |
| Now and then: Sometimes, once in a while |
| Pie in the sky: Ridiculous |
| Play it by ear: Decide about something when it happens instead of making a decision in advance |
| Rings a bell: Sounds familiar |
| Rise and shine: parents tell this to their children to wake them up |
| Sleep on it: Think about it little more |
| Sort of: Kind of, |
| Take a hike: Just get away, get out of here |
| Throw in the towel: Give up, quit |
| Under the radar: Without attracting notice |
| When it comes to X: If we talk about X… |
| You Bet: I agree with you |
| You’re telling me!: Yes! I totally agree with you |
| a red flag: a sign that makes someone/something unreliable |
| I don’t get it: I don’t understand |
| Round the clock: 24 hours a day |
| … You name it: Anything related that you can imagine |
| ….You never know: Don’t leave your door open, you never know what might happen |
| …and what not.: ..And so on, anything you can imagine |
| Beats me: I don’t know how it happened but it makes me feel bad |
| Behave yourself: Act politely, properly |
| Big deal: Important thing |
| Broke: Have no money |
| By and large: Generally |
| Call it a day: Finish working |
| Couch potato: Someone sits in front of TV all the time |
| Don’t be a stranger: We are friends, please stop by whenever you can |
| Don’t sweat it: Don’t worry about it, don’t make a big deal out of it |
| Easier said than done: It is always easier to say/claim something, but hard to do/execute |
| Even Steven: Equal, fair |
| Fair enough: What you recommend is OK |
| Feel blue: Feel sad or depressed |
| Fender bender: Very small, trivial damage |
| First come first served: People will be served in the order of arrival |
| Get a foot in the door: Start something, enter the organization |
| Get on one’s nerves: You are getting on my nerves: you are annoying me |
| Get out of here!: Are you serious?? |
| Getting goosebumps: Getting excited |
| Give It to me straight: Please tell me straightforward |
| Go for it: Yes, you should try it |
| Go with the flow: Doing things like everyone else, trying not to stand out |
| going nuts: Going crazy/ insane |
| Got It: Got it: I understood what you said |
| Grab a bite: Eat, have a meal |
| The grass is greener on the other side: Things we don’t own always look more attractive |
| Hang in there: Just keep what you are doing, don’t give up |
| Have the guts: Have courage |
| He lost it: He lost his temper |
| Hop In: Get in the car, jump in the car |
| I blew it!: I wasted my chance |
| I can eat a horse: I am so hungry |
| I don’t buy it: I don’t believe it |
| I had a second thought about it: I changed my mind |
| I owe you one: You just helped me and I have to help you with something else in the future |
| In a nutshell: In summary, briefly |
| It totally slipped my mind: I totally forgot about it |
| It’s a Deal: Yes, I agree to your offer |
| It’s written all over your face: You are lying, your facial expression gives you away |
| Jump to conclusions: Making conclusions/generalizations too quickly |
| Keep an eye on: Making sure something is safe or OK. Can you keep an eye on my computer while I’m outside? |
| Keep in touch: Keeping in contact |
| Keeping my fingers crossed: I’m keeping my fingers crossed: I hope for the best outcome |
| My two cents: That’s my opinion |
| Nature calls: I have to run to the bathroom |
| No strings attached: There is no trick or future negative consequences |
| Now you’re talking: I agree with you. What you just said is better than the other things you said |
| Oh! Shoot: Oh no! |
| Out of the blue: Unexpectedly |
| Out of this world: So good, great |
| Over my dead body: You have to kill me to do that, I will not let that happen |
| Over my head: Beyond my understanding, difficult for me to understand |
| Pain in the a../neck: Tough to do, something that is difficult. Doing this homework is a pain in the neck |
| Piece of cake: Very easy |
| Pulling my leg: Tricking me, playing a joke |
| Put yourself in my place/shoes: Presume that you are me, what if you were me |
| Rain or shine: Regardless of the weather |
| Read between the lines: Understand what others intend to say without words |
| Sick and tired of something: Feeling bad about Something that has been happening all the time |
| Silver Lining: Every difficult situation has an advantage |
| Sooner or later: Eventually …, one day … |
| Take it easy: Don’t try so hard, enjoy what you are doing |
| Taking something for face value: Accepting something automatically, not thinking deeply about it |
| Thank Goodness: Luckily |
| Under the weather: Not feeling good |
| What a small world: What a coincidence |
| What gives?: What is the matter? What is the reason …? |
| You can say that again: What you just said was great |
| You made it!: You succeeded, you arrived on time |
| You snooze, you lose!: Don’t hesitate to do it |
| You’ve got to be kidding: You must be joking |
| Before you know it: Before you realize what’s happening |
| Close call: Usually said after something just misses the target |
| Crashed at/into: To stay without formal notice |
| Dire Straights: Difficult financial situation |
| Down the road: In the future |
| Drama Queen: Girl/woman who wants to be the center of attention and causes troubles all the time |
| Drop the ball: Making a mistake |
| if you connect the dots: If you look at the big picture |
| in a sense that: From a different perspective |
| It depends…: Depends on a situation |
| Judgment call: The rules are not clear |
| Jury is out: The final decision still hasn’t been made |
| Let me put it this way: Let me try to explain in different words |
| Pay it forward: A favor received should be done to others |
| Perse: Only this/these |
| R.I.P.: Abbreviation for “Rest In Peace”, e.g. R.I.P. Michael Jackson |
| Raising eyebrows: Hard to believe /trust |
| Right around the corner: Soon |
| RSVP: Abbreviation for “Please reply” |
| Self-explanatory: Easy to understand without an explanation |
| So be it: Let it happen |
| So to speak: In other words |
| Stakes are high: Many people/organizations have an interest in this matter |
| Step up the plate: Take a responsibility |
| Technically speaking: In technical terms |
| the bogeyman: ghostly, monstrous creature |
| the bottom line is: the most simple thing that should be taken into account |
| the holy grail: an important object or goal |
| The other day.: Recently, a few days ago, sometime in the near past |
| think outside the box: Try to think about unconventional/unusual solutions |
| this is baloney: This is nonsense, over exaggeration |
| when pigs fly: It’s never going to happen |
| Wishful thinking: Subjectively thinking what we want to happen |
| You know the drill: You know how it is done |
| You nailed it: You completed the task perfectly |
| You scratch my back I’ll scratch yours/tit for tat: If you do me a favor, I’ll also do you a favor |
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| Learning idioms can be tricky, but it’s also one of the most fun parts of mastering English! With Dinolingo, kids can explore over 50 languages, including English, through thousands of engaging activities like animated videos, songs, worksheets, and interactive games. Designed for ages 2–14, Dinolingo’s child-friendly platform makes learning phrases, idioms, and expressions feel natural—just like native speakers use them. |
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