Short answer
- An idiom is a phrase whose meaning cannot be guessed from the separate words in it. Break the ice has nothing to do with ice, and spill the beans has nothing to do with beans. The whole phrase carries one shared meaning that speakers learn as a unit. This article lists exactly 100 common idioms, grouped by theme, each with a short plain meaning and an original example sentence, so you can recognize the phrase when you meet it and use it correctly yourself. Use the list as a reference, not as a passage to memorize in one sitting. Pick a few idioms that fit situations you actually meet, try them in conversation or writing, and come back when you meet an unfamiliar phrase. Our guide to [how to learn English fast](/education-careers/how-to-learn-english-fast/) sets out a study plan this list can support, and our explainer on [literacy and digital literacy](/education-careers/literacy-and-digital-literacy/) covers the wider reading skills behind it. A note on origins: this list gives meanings only. Many idiom origins are debated or partly documented, so no origin is claimed here. For an origin, check the dictionary entry for that idiom.
How to Use This List
Read one themed group at a time. Say each idiom aloud once, read its meaning, then read the example and picture the scene. The example matters because idioms are learned in context: the same phrase can sound natural in friendly conversation and out of place in a formal letter. Learners who prefer a structured routine can pair this list with our guide to how to learn a language, taking one group per study session.
Getting Started and Speaking Plainly
1. Break the ice. To ease the awkwardness when people meet, so conversation can start and everyone relaxes. Example: At the new neighbors’ barbecue, Rosa broke the ice by asking everyone about the oldest house on the street. 2. Hit the nail on the head. To say exactly the right thing about a situation. Example: When Marta said the delays were a planning problem, not a people problem, she hit the nail on the head. 3. Beat around the bush. To avoid saying what you really mean, talking around the point instead. Example: Stop beating around the bush and tell me plainly whether the car can be fixed this week. 4. Cut to the chase. To skip the long build-up and get directly to the point. Example: We have ten minutes before the train, so cut to the chase and tell me the price. 5. Speak of the devil. Said, usually with humor, when a person you were just talking about suddenly appears. Example: Speak of the devil, we were just wondering when you would arrive, and here you are at the door. 6. Read between the lines. To understand a meaning that is suggested but not stated directly. Example: His email was polite, but reading between the lines, I could tell the offer was about to expire. 7. On the same page. In agreement, sharing the same understanding of a plan or situation. Example: Before we call the builder, let us make sure we are on the same page about the budget. 8. Make a long story short. To tell a story briefly, leaving out the less important details. Example: To make a long story short, the flight was canceled, we slept at the airport, and we arrived a day late. 9. In a nutshell. In summary, expressed in very few words. Example: In a nutshell, the roof is sound, the plumbing is old, and the kitchen needs new wiring. 10. Play devil’s advocate. To argue against an idea in order to test it, even when you may agree with it. Example: I support the plan, but let me play devil’s advocate and ask what happens if sales fall in winter.
Feelings, Luck, and Wellbeing
11. Under the weather. Feeling slightly ill or unwell. Example: I stayed home from the picnic because I was feeling under the weather and needed rest. 12. On cloud nine. Extremely happy. Example: After she heard that her sister had arrived safely, she was on cloud nine all evening. 13. Down in the dumps. Feeling sad or low in spirits. Example: He has been down in the dumps since his team lost the final, so we invited him for a walk. 14. Keep your chin up. To stay positive and hopeful during a hard time. Example: Keep your chin up, the second interview often goes better than the first. 15. Get cold feet. To suddenly become too nervous to do something you had planned. Example: He got cold feet the night before the marathon and almost stayed in bed. 16. Break a leg. Good luck, especially said to a performer before a show. Example: Break a leg tonight, you have rehearsed this dance more than anyone in the cast. 17. Blow off steam. To release built-up energy or frustration, often through activity or relaxation. Example: After a long week at the warehouse, he blows off steam by swimming twenty laps. 18. Hang in there. To keep going and not give up, despite difficulty. Example: Hang in there, the last mile of the trail is steep, but the view at the top is worth it. 19. Like a fish out of water. In an unfamiliar place or situation where you feel uncomfortable and out of place. Example: At the formal dinner, wearing a borrowed suit, he felt like a fish out of water. 20. Down to earth. Practical, realistic, and easy to talk to, without pretension. Example: Despite running a large company, she is down to earth and still answers the shop phone herself.
Secrets, Honesty, and Trust
21. Let the cat out of the bag. To reveal a secret, usually by accident. Example: Tom let the cat out of the bag when he asked where we should hide the birthday cake. 22. Spill the beans. To give away secret information, often by accident. Example: Please do not spill the beans about the surprise visit until Grandma is actually on the train. 23. Pull someone’s leg. To tease or joke with someone in a friendly way. Example: I am only pulling your leg, the meeting was moved to Friday, not canceled completely. 24. Give the benefit of the doubt. To trust someone despite uncertainty, rather than assuming the worst. Example: When the package arrived late, I gave the driver the benefit of the doubt because of the storm. 25. Take it with a grain of salt. To not fully believe something you are told, because it may be exaggerated or untrue. Example: Take his fishing stories with a grain of salt, the fish seems to grow every time he tells it. 26. Face the facts. To accept an unpleasant truth instead of avoiding it. Example: We need to face the facts, the old truck will cost more to repair than it is worth. 27. Face the music. To accept the consequences of your own actions. Example: He forgot the deadline and had to face the music when his manager asked for the report. 28. Eat humble pie. To admit you were wrong, with embarrassment. Example: After insisting the map was wrong, I had to eat humble pie when it led us straight to the lake. 29. Catch someone red-handed. To catch someone in the very act of doing something wrong. Example: The guard caught the boys red-handed, still holding the spray cans beside the fence. 30. Give someone the cold shoulder. To deliberately ignore someone, or treat them in an unfriendly, distant way. Example: After the argument, she gave him the cold shoulder for two days before she was ready to talk.
Ease, Difficulty, and Risky Spots
31. A piece of cake. Something that is very easy to do. Example: For a former electrician, changing that light fitting was a piece of cake. 32. Bite the bullet. To face something unpleasant with courage and get on with it. Example: I finally bit the bullet and booked the dentist appointment I had been putting off for months. 33. By the skin of your teeth. To only just succeed, by a very small margin. Example: She passed the driving test by the skin of her teeth, with exactly the minimum score. 34. Caught between a rock and a hard place. Stuck between two difficult choices, with no good option. Example: With rent due and the car broken, he was caught between a rock and a hard place. 35. On thin ice. In a risky situation where one more mistake could cause serious trouble. Example: After missing two deadlines, he knew he was on thin ice with his supervisor. 36. In hot water. In trouble, usually for something you have done. Example: The clerk landed in hot water after he sent the contract to the wrong client. 37. Cross that bridge when you come to it. To deal with a problem only when it actually arises, not in advance. Example: We may need a bigger van next year, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it. 38. Sit on the fence. To avoid taking sides in a disagreement or decision. Example: You cannot sit on the fence forever, the committee needs your vote by Friday. 39. Up in the air. Undecided or not yet settled. Example: Our holiday dates are still up in the air until my sister confirms her work schedule. 40. A wild goose chase. A useless search for something that is hard or impossible to find. Example: We drove to three closed shops looking for that battery, a complete wild goose chase.
Effort, Work, and Persistence
41. Burn the midnight oil. To work or study late into the night. Example: The accountants burned the midnight oil finishing the tax files before the deadline. 42. Hit the books. To begin studying seriously. Example: The exam is in six weeks, so it is time to hit the books every evening. 43. Leave no stone unturned. To try every possible course of action to achieve something. Example: The rescue team left no stone unturned, searching every barn and ditch along the river. 44. Bend over backwards. To try very hard to help someone or to do something. Example: The hotel staff bent over backwards to find us a quiet room away from the wedding party. 45. Go the extra mile. To make more effort than is required or expected. Example: Our teacher goes the extra mile, recording extra lessons for students who miss class. 46. Pull your weight. To do your fair share of the work in a group. Example: Everyone on the cleaning rota needs to pull their weight, not leave it to the same two people. 47. Know the ropes. To understand how a job or system works, through experience. Example: After a year at the bakery, she knows the ropes and can run the morning shift alone. 48. Bite off more than you can chew. To take on more work or responsibility than you can handle. Example: By volunteering for three committees, he bit off more than he could chew and fell behind on all of them. 49. Take the bull by the horns. To deal with a difficult situation directly and bravely. Example: She took the bull by the horns and told the landlord about the leaking roof that same morning. 50. Put your foot down. To take a firm stand and refuse to give in or allow something. Example: When the children demanded a third hour of games, their father put his foot down.
Timing, Chances, and Decisions
51. Once in a blue moon. Very rarely, almost never. Example: We eat at that expensive restaurant once in a blue moon, usually only on anniversaries. 52. Jump the gun. To act too soon, before the right moment. Example: He jumped the gun and announced the result before the votes had finished being counted. 53. Miss the boat. To miss an opportunity by acting too late. Example: If you wait until spring to apply, you will miss the boat, the course fills up in January. 54. Down to the wire. Continuing until the very last possible moment. Example: The house sale went down to the wire, with the final papers signed an hour before the deadline. 55. The last straw. The final problem in a series that makes a situation unbearable. Example: When the landlord raised the rent a third time, it was the last straw, and they decided to move. 56. Saved by the bell. Rescued from a difficult situation at the last moment, originally by a bell ending a round or a class. Example: I had no answer ready, but I was saved by the bell when the fire drill emptied the classroom. 57. Call it a day. To stop working for the day. Example: We have painted two rooms already, let us call it a day and finish the hall tomorrow. 58. Hit the road. To leave, or to start a journey. Example: If we hit the road by six, we can reach the coast before the traffic builds up. 59. Hit the sack. To go to bed. Example: After the long drive home, he ate a quick supper and hit the sack. 60. Back to the drawing board. To start again from the beginning after a plan has failed. Example: When the prototype failed its safety test, the team went back to the drawing board.
Money, Value, and Everyday Costs
61. Cost an arm and a leg. To be very expensive. Example: Repairing the gearbox cost an arm and a leg, almost as much as the car itself. 62. Break the bank. To cost more than you can afford, or to spend all your money. Example: A small wedding will not break the bank if we cook for the guests ourselves. 63. A dime a dozen. Very common, and therefore of little special value. Example: Phone cases like that are a dime a dozen at the market, so do not pay boutique prices for one. 64. Make ends meet. To manage financially, with just enough money to cover what you need. Example: On a single wage, the family makes ends meet by cooking in bulk and cycling to work. 65. A piece of the pie. A share of something, especially money, profits, or benefits. Example: Every partner in the bakery gets a piece of the pie when the Christmas orders come in. 66. Add insult to injury. To make a bad situation even worse. Example: The flight was canceled, and to add insult to injury, the airline lost our suitcase. 67. Cut corners. To do something quickly or cheaply in a way that lowers the quality. Example: The builder cut corners on the insulation, and the house was cold all winter. 68. The best of both worlds. The advantages of two different situations at the same time. Example: Working from the village gives her the best of both worlds, a city salary and a country garden. 69. In the same boat. In the same difficult situation as other people. Example: When the factory cut hours, the whole town was in the same boat, looking for extra work.
People, Loyalty, and Getting Along
70. Rain on someone’s parade. To spoil someone’s plans or enthusiasm by saying or doing something unwelcome. Example: I hate to rain on your parade, but the park closes an hour before your picnic is planned to end. 71. Let sleeping dogs lie. To avoid restarting an old argument or problem that is currently quiet. Example: We disagree about that sale, but it is settled now, so let sleeping dogs lie. 72. Through thick and thin. Through good times and bad times, staying loyal throughout. Example: They stayed friends through thick and thin, across forty years, three moves, and two businesses. 73. Lend a hand. To help someone with a task. Example: Could you lend a hand carrying these boxes up to the attic this afternoon? 74. It takes two to tango. Both people involved share responsibility for a situation, especially a conflict. Example: She started the argument, but it takes two to tango, and he kept it going for an hour. 75. See eye to eye. To agree with someone, or share the same view. Example: The twins run the shop well because they see eye to eye on prices and hours. 76. Keep an eye on. To watch something or someone carefully, or look after it for a while. Example: Please keep an eye on the soup while I answer the door. 77. Draw the line. To set a clear limit on what you will accept or allow. Example: I will lend tools to neighbors, but I draw the line at lending my car. 78. Cut someone some slack. To be less strict or critical with someone, and allow them some leeway. Example: Cut her some slack on the late homework, she has been caring for her sick father all week. 79. Jump on the bandwagon. To join something mainly because it has become popular with others. Example: After the team won five games in a row, half the town jumped on the bandwagon and bought scarves. 80. Have a heart. To show compassion and be kind, especially when someone is asking for understanding. Example: Have a heart, let the new driver finish his route early on his first day in the snow.
Outcomes, Setbacks, and Surprises
81. Kill two birds with one stone. To achieve two things with a single action. Example: By cycling to the shops, she kills two birds with one stone, getting exercise and finishing the errands. 82. A blessing in disguise. Something that seems bad at first but turns out to be good in the end. Example: Losing that job was a blessing in disguise, because it pushed him to start the bakery he now loves. 83. Burn your bridges. To destroy any possibility of going back to an earlier situation or relationship. Example: Resign calmly and thank your manager, never burn your bridges on your last day. 84. Cry over spilled milk. To waste time regretting something that has happened and cannot be changed. Example: The tickets have sold out, so there is no use crying over spilled milk, let us find another concert. 85. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch. To not assume that something will succeed before it actually has. Example: The buyer sounds keen, but do not count your chickens before they hatch, nothing is signed yet. 86. Go down in flames. To fail completely and spectacularly. Example: His plan to cook a five course dinner for twenty guests went down in flames when the oven broke. 87. Steal someone’s thunder. To take the attention or praise that someone else deserved, often by announcing their news first. Example: She announced my promotion at lunch before I could, completely stealing my thunder. 88. The elephant in the room. An obvious, major problem that everyone present avoids mentioning. Example: At the meeting, the falling sales were the elephant in the room that nobody wanted to name. 89. Throw in the towel. To give up and admit defeat. Example: After three failed attempts to fix the leak himself, he threw in the towel and called a plumber. 90. Tie the knot. To get married. Example: After seven years together, they finally tied the knot in a small ceremony by the lake.
Vivid Pictures and Everyday Sayings
91. Barking up the wrong tree. To pursue a mistaken idea, or to accuse or blame the wrong person. Example: If you think I took the keys, you are barking up the wrong tree, I have been out all day. 92. The ball is in your court. It is now your turn to act or make a decision. Example: I have sent you my offer in writing, so the ball is in your court now. 93. Off the hook. Free from blame, trouble, or an obligation you expected to face. Example: The rain canceled the outdoor duty, so the volunteers were off the hook for Saturday. 94. Under your nose. Right in front of you, but unnoticed. Example: The missing letter was under my nose the whole time, tucked inside the cookbook on the counter. 95. Get out of hand. To become difficult or impossible to control. Example: The small bonfire got out of hand when the wind rose, so we called the fire service at once. 96. Dead as a doornail. Completely dead, or completely finished and no longer working. Example: I tried charging the old phone overnight, but the battery is dead as a doornail. 97. Keep your fingers crossed. To hope strongly that something will turn out well. Example: Keep your fingers crossed for dry weather on Saturday, the school fair is outdoors. 98. No pain, no gain. You must accept hard work or discomfort in order to achieve something worthwhile. Example: The training hurts some mornings, but no pain, no gain, as her running coach keeps reminding her. 99. Play it by ear. To deal with a situation as it develops, without a fixed plan in advance. Example: We have no fixed schedule for Sunday, let us just play it by ear and see how everyone feels. 100. Raining cats and dogs. Raining very heavily. Example: It was raining cats and dogs by the time the bus came, and we were soaked within a minute.
How to Use Idioms Without Sounding Forced
Use idioms sparingly. One idiom in a paragraph adds color and sounds natural. Three or four in a row sound rehearsed and can confuse a reader who does not share the same set of phrases. Match the idiom to the setting as well. Most of the idioms in this list are informal, so they fit everyday conversation, friendly emails, and stories far better than formal reports or serious official letters. When in doubt, plain language is clearer than a clever phrase, and clarity should win. Pay attention to the exact wording, too. Idioms are fixed phrases, so small changes can sound wrong: it is break the ice, not break an ice, and by the skin of your teeth, not by the skin of your tooth. Learning the whole phrase as one block, the way this list presents it, protects you from those slips. Short texting abbreviations work the same way, as our explainer on LMSS meaning in text shows, and fixed phrases in other languages do too, as in our guide to ya qalbi meaning.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is an idiom?
An idiom is a phrase whose overall meaning differs from the literal meanings of its separate words. You have to learn the meaning of the whole phrase as a single unit.
Why are idioms hard for language learners?
Because the literal words mislead. Knowing every word in spill the beans tells you nothing about secrets, so each idiom has to be learned with its shared meaning and a real example of its use.
How many idioms are in this list?
Exactly 100. They are grouped into ten themed sections, covering speaking, feelings, secrets, difficulty, effort, timing, money, people, outcomes, and vivid everyday sayings.
Should I use idioms in formal writing?
Rarely. Most common idioms are informal. In formal writing, plain direct language is usually clearer, safer, and more appropriate than a colorful phrase.
How can I learn idioms so they stick?
Learn a few at a time in context. Read the meaning, study the example, then use the idiom in a sentence about your own life the same day. Reviewing small groups over time works far better than memorizing a long list at once.
Do idioms have the same meaning everywhere English is spoken?
Most idioms in this list are widely understood across English speaking countries, but a few are more common in American or British English. If an idiom sounds unfamiliar to your audience, a plain alternative is always safe.
Keep reading: how to learn English fast Keep reading: literacy and digital literacy
Sources & references
- * Cambridge Dictionary (Cambridge University Press), idiom entries consulted first-hand during adaptation, including break the ice, by the skin of your teeth, be a dime a dozen, and take something with a grain of salt.
- * Merriam-Webster Dictionary, idiom entries consulted first-hand during adaptation, including bite the bullet and elephant in the room.
