Idiom | Meaning | Example Sentence |
all ears | fully listening | Give me a minute to finish my work and then I'll be all ears to hear about your project. |
break a leg | good-luck | Today's the big game, eh? Break a leg! |
cold feet | nervous just before a big event | My sister didn't get cold feet until she put her wedding gown on. |
cost an arm and a leg | be very expensive | These cakes are delicious, but they cost an arm and a leg. |
cry your heart out | cry very hard | I cried my heart out when my best friend moved away. |
face the music | meet, stand up to unpleasant conseqences, for example criticism or punishment | I stayed out all night. When I eventually got home I had to face the music from my wife. |
(my) flesh and blood | relative | I have to hire Mia. She's my own flesh and blood. |
get something off one's chest | tell someone your problems | Thanks for listening to me complain about my boss. I just needed to get this off my chest. |
give a hand, lend a hand | help (someone) do something | I can give you a hand when you move if you like. |
have one's head in the clouds | be unaware or unrealistic about something | Amy has her head in the clouds if she thinks she's going to pass her exams without studying. |
head over heels | deeply in love | My brother is head over heels for his new girlfriend. |
head start | an earlier start | The kids gave Anthony a head start in the bicycle race because he was the youngest. |
in over one's head | taking on a task that you can't handle | I was in over my head when I agreed to babysit the triplets and the dogs. |
keep an eye on | take care of, watch in order to protect | I'll keep an eye on the dinner while you're on the phone. |
keep one's chin up | try to be cheerful | Keep your chin up. I'm sure you'll make some friends soon. |
learn by heart, know by heart | memorize | I learned my multiplication tables by heart in the fourth grade. |
let one's hair down | relax, have fun | Go to the cottage and let your hair down this weekend. |
(my) lips are sealed | promise to keep a secret | Don't worry, I won't tell your mother how much you spent. My lips are sealed. |
makes my blood boil | makes me very angry | It makes my blood boil when people don't tie up their dogs. |
neck of the woods | nearby location or region | I heard that they might be opening a post office in our neck of the woods soon. |
(an) old hand | an experienced person | My uncle's an old hand at car repair. He'll know what the problem is. |
over my dead body | not unless I'm dead and can't stop you | My daughter wants a tatoo. I told her she'd get one over my dead body. |
pat on the back | recognition or a thank-you | The party organizers deserve a pat on the back for a job well done. |
play something by ear | do something without a plan | We don't know if the weather will be good enough for camping. We'll have to play it by ear. |
pull one's leg | joke or tease someone | I was just pulling your leg. I'm not really a police officer. |
rule of thumb | basic rule (not always followed) | The rule of thumb is that the students wear black pants and white shirts. |
see eye to eye | agree | The couple don't see eye to eye on how to train their pets. |
(by the) skin of one's teeth | just barely | I passed my exam by the skin of my teeth. |
stick your neck out | help someone a lot, with possible bad consequences for oneself | I stuck my neck out for Bessie when she was thrown out of her house. |
sweet tooth | a love of sugar or sweet things | I need three spoonfuls of sugar in my tea. I have a sweet tooth. |
thick in the head | not very intelligent | I'm a bit thick in the head when it comes to reading a map. |
wash one's hands of something | stop dealing with an issue or problem | I'm washing my hands of Mary's addiction. She is going to have to get some professional help. |