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English Idioms - display all

 

Idioms Home >> display all

a bundle
a lot of money

a drop in the ocean
insignificant

a little bird told me
I'm not saying who told me

all ears
really want to hear

all thumbs
clumsy

at the eleventh hour
almost too late

barking up the wrong tree
wrongly believe something

be in stitches
to laugh uncontrollably

beat about the bush
avoid answering

bite off more than you can chew
start something you cannot finish

blow your top
be very angry

burn the midnight oil
work very late

bury the hatchet
be friends after an argument

call a spade a spade
speak plainly and truthfully

can't make head nor tail of
can't understand

catch someone's eye
attract someone's attention

chicken
a coward

crocodile tears
false tears

cross your mind
think of

dark horse
surprise achiever

dead of night
the middle of the night

dog's breakfast
a mess

don't count your chickens
don't assume anything until it actually happens

donkey's years
a long time

drag your feet
take a long time to do something

drinks like a fish
a heavy drinker

drop someone a line
write a letter to someone

excuse my French
I'm sorry I swore

face the music
accept the consequences of a bad deed

fall on your sword
resign for doing something wrong

fiddling while Rome burns
neglecting something very important

field day
very happy of successful time

get cold feet
become nervous

get the sack
be dismissed from a job

golden handcuffs
large sum of money paid to someone for staying in a job

golden handshake
large sum of money paid to someone leaving a job

keep an eye on
look after

kick the bucket
die

let the cat out of the bag
reveal a secret

let your hair down
be informal

like a bat out of hell
very fast

makes my blood boil
makes me angry

many happy returns
happy birthday

money for old rope
money that is easily obtained

nice as pie
very nice

off the record
don't tell anyone I told you

once in a blue moon
very rarely

pass the buck
pass responsibility to someone else

pay through the nose
pay an unreasonably high price

piece of cake
very easy

pull someone's leg
joke

salad days
youth

save someone's bacon
save someone from trouble

shut the stable door after the horse has bolted
do something too late

stick in the mud
unadventurous person

take it with a pinch of salt
doubt its truthfulness

turn over a new leaf
change for the better

wet behind the ears
inexperienced

when the cat's away the mice will play
without supervision people misbehave

wouldn't hurt a fly
very gentle