100+ Useful Idioms with Examples | Idioms and usage
Idiom Meaning: An idiom is a group of words that are used as a common expression whose meaning is not deducible from that of the literal words.
Idioms are used frequently in both written and spoken English. So let’s take a look at the most popular idioms and common idioms in the English language and what they mean.
| Idiom | Meaning | Usage |
|---|---|---|
| A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush | What you have is worth more than what you might have later | by itself |
| A penny for your thoughts | Tell me what you're thinking | by itself |
| A penny saved is a penny earned | Money you save today you can spend later | by itself |
| A perfect storm | the worst possible situation | as part of a sentence |
| A picture is worth 1000 words | Better to show than tell | by itself |
| Actions speak louder than words | Believe what people do and not what they say | by itself |
| Add insult to injury | To make a bad situation worse | as part of a sentence |
| Barking up the wrong tree | To be mistaken, to be looking for solutions in the wrong place | as part of a sentence |
| Birds of a feather flock together | People who are alike are often friends (usually used negatively) | by itself |
| Bite off more than you can chew | Take on a project that you cannot finish | as part of a sentence |
| Break the ice | Make people feel more comfortable | as part of a sentence |
| By the skin of your teeth | Just barely | as part of a sentence |
| Comparing apples to oranges | Comparing two things that cannot be compared | as part of a sentence |
| Costs an arm and a leg | Very expensive | as part of a sentence |
| Do something at the drop of a hat | Do something without having planned beforehand | as part of a sentence |
| Do unto others as you would have them do unto you | Treat people fairly. Also known as "The Golden Rule" | by itself |
| Don't count your chickens before they hatch | Don't count on something good happening until it's happened. | by itself |
| Don't cry over spilt milk | There's no reason to complain about something that can't be fixed | by itself |
| Don't give up your day job | You're not very good at this | by itself |
| Don't put all your eggs in one basket | What you're doing is too risky | by itself |
| Every cloud has a silver lining | Good things come after bad things | by itself |
| Get a taste of your own medicine | Get treated the way you've been treating others (negative) | as part of a sentence |
| Give someone the cold shoulder | Ignore someone | as part of a sentence |
| Go on a wild goose chase | To do something pointless | as part of a sentence |
| Good things come to those who wait | Be patient | by itself |
| He has bigger fish to fry | He has bigger things to take care of than what we are talking about now | by itself |
| He's a chip off the old block | The son is like the father | by itself |
| Hit the nail on the head | Get something exactly right | by itself |
| Ignorance is bliss | You're better off not knowing | by itself |
| It ain't over till the fat lady sings | This isn't over yet | by itself |
| It takes one to know one | You're just as bad as I am | by itself |
| It's a piece of cake | It's easy | by itself |
| It's raining cats and dogs | It's raining hard | by itself |
| Kill two birds with one stone | Get two things done with a single action | by itself |
| Let the cat out of the bag | Give away a secret | as part of a sentence |
| Live and learn | I made a mistake | by itself |
| Look before you leap | Take only calculated risks | by itself |
| On thin ice | On probation. If you make another mistake, there will be trouble. | as part of a sentence |
| Once in a blue moon | Rarely | as part of a sentence |
| Play devil's advocate | To argue the opposite, just for the sake of argument | as part of a sentence |
| Put something on ice | Put a projet on hold | as part of a sentence |
| Rain on someone's parade | To spoil something | as part of a sentence |
| Saving for a rainy day | Saving money for later | as part of a sentence |
| Slow and steady wins the race | Reliability is more important than speed | by itself |
| Spill the beans | Give away a secret | as part of a sentence |
| Take a rain check | Postpone a plan | as part of a sentence |
| Take it with a grain of salt | Don’t take it too seriously | as part of a sentence |
| The ball is in your court | It's your decision | by itself |
| The best thing since sliced bread | A really good invention | as part of a sentence |
| The devil is in the details | It looks good from a distance, but when you look closer, there are problems | by itself |
| The early bird gets the worm | The first people who arrive will get the best stuff | by itself |
| The elephant in the room | The big issue, the problem people are avoiding | as part of a sentence |
| The whole nine yards | Everything, all the way. | as part of a sentence |
| There are other fish in the sea | It's ok to miss this opportunity. Others will arise. | by itself |
| There's a method to his madness | He seems crazy but actually he's clever | by itself |
| There's no such thing as a free lunch | Nothing is entirely free | by itself |
| Throw caution to the wind | Take a risk | as part of a sentence |
| You can't have your cake and eat it too | You can't have everything | by itself |
| You can't judge a book by its cover | This person or thing may look bad, but it's good inside | byexamples |
100+ Useful Idioms with Examples | Idioms and usage
By the skin of your teeth
Meaning: Just barely making it
Don’t judge a book by its cover
Meaning: Not judging something by its initial appearance
Doing something at the drop of a hat
Meaning: Doing something at the moment of being asked
Don’t count your chickens before they hatch
Meaning: Not to count on something happening until after it’s already happened
Caught between a rock and a hard place
Meaning: Making a choice between two unpleasant choices
Costs an arm and a leg
Meaning: Something that is overpriced or very expensive
Cutting corners
Meaning: Not performing a task or duty correctly in order to save time or money
Devil’s advocate
Meaning: To take the side of the counter-argument, or offer an alternative point of view
Feeling under the weather
Meaning: Not feeling well, or feeling sick
Fit as a fiddle
Meaning: Being in good health
Getting a taste of your own medicine
Meaning: Being treated the way that you have been treating others
Getting a second wind
Meaning: Having energy again after being tired
Giving the benefit of the doubt
Meaning: Believing someone’s story without proof even though it may seem unbelievable
Giving someone the cold shoulder
Meaning: Ignoring someone
Going on a wild goose chase
Meaning: Doing something that is pointless
Heard it on the grapevine
Meaning: Hearing rumors about someone or something
Hitting the nail on the head
Meaning: Performing a task with exactness
Killing two birds with one stone
Meaning: Accomplishing two different tasks in the same undertaking
Letting someone off the hook
Meaning: Not holding someone responsible for something
Letting the cat out of the bag
Meaning: Sharing information that was intended to be a secret
No pain, no gain
Meaning: You have to work hard in order to see results
On the ball
Meaning: Doing a good job, being prompt, or being responsible
Once in a blue moon
Meaning: Something that doesn’t happen very often
100+ Useful Idioms with Examples | Idioms and usage
People also ask
What are the uses of idioms?
Oftentimes, idioms can help express a large or abstract idea in a way that is succinct and easy to understand. For instance, you could say that two things are impossible to compare to one another, because they possess different traits or meanings.
Why is it important to learn idioms?
Learning idiomatic expressions helps non-native speakers of a language become more fluent, and sound more native-like. Learning idiomatic expressions increases the vocabulary and lexicon of the English Language learner.
Why do idioms matter?
Idioms are words or phrases that enable us to express ourselves in a distinctive and innovative way. They promote cultural and historical information while also helping people in improving their language skills.
Are idioms still relevant?
Idioms are particularly useful because they give you a new, creative way to express yourself. Rather than saying 'You're correct', you could say 'You hit the nail on the head', which is a more complex and interesting expression
What are idioms and phrases in English?
Idioms are a collection of words or phrases which have a figurative meaning that is generally well established and known. So these words can't be taken at their literal meanings since they would sound farcical. Idioms, at times, seem grammatically unusual as well. Idioms are a useful tool in linguistics
Related searches
- 20 idioms with their meanings and sentences
- 100 idioms and their meanings
- important idioms and phrases
- idiom examples
- idioms with meaning and sentence
- idioms examples for students
- idioms and usage
- usage and idioms meaning in telugu
- usage and idioms in telugu
- idioms and their usage
- usage of idioms and phrases
- usage and idioms pdf download
- idioms with origin meaning and usage
- usage and idioms in english pdf