How To Be Good At Idioms

English Idioms                              Ali Saad Mohammad   An  idiom is a special form of speech which has come to be peculiar to a peculiar language. Therefore, we cannot vary such expressions without spoiling them. Thus, cultivating an idiomatic style is of great importance. since to write idiomatically is to write vigorously, graphically, and naturally. How much less vigorous is " He performed his promise" than "He was as good as his word. How much less graphic is " I tried every means in my power" than"I left no stone unturned".   However, it is not easy to  avoid making mistakes when you try to write idiomatically. This is due mainly to three causes:-    I. Carelessness or ignorance of the true idiom.        II. The confusion of one idiom with another.  III. Attempts at originality in using idioms.       Some words and expressions have come to be restricted in their use, so that they can be idiomatically only in certain connexions or with certain meanings. Thus in modern English the word addicted is used always in relation to a bad habit; we say a man is addicted to gambling, but not that he is addicted to economy.   Anyway, I have tried to classify the most common  and shape idioms alphabetically so as to help you and myself find the expression we llok up easily. You can click Ctrl+F, and write the idiom you want to inquire about.   Please tell me if you can help with adding new idioms.    abound in/with something -to be found in great quantities.  The country abounds in valuable minerals. about to do something - on the point of doing something She was about to leave when the phone rang. about time - something that should have happened earlier It is about time that you returned that book to me. absent-minded - forgetful My grandfather is very absent-minded and often forgets his key. according to Hoyle - strictly by the rules, the usual and correct way to do something According to Hoyle you are not allowed to enter this room but if nobody is here I think it will be okay. add up - seem consistent or reasonable The things that he said about his boss don't really add up. ahead of time - early We started the meeting ahead of time so we could go home early. air one's dirty laundry (linen) in public - make public something embarrassing that should be kept secret The dinner party became uncomfortable when the host began to air his colleagues' dirty laundry in public. all along - all the time I knew all along that he would not get the promotion. all at once - suddenly, without warning All at once the fire alarm rang so we had to leave the building. all day long - the whole day She has been sitting and waiting for the mail to arrive all day long. all ears - eager to listen to someone Okay, I'm all ears, please tell me about the party. all in all - in summary, after considering everything We had a few problems but all in all the meeting was successful. all of a sudden - suddenly, without advance warning All of a sudden it became cloudy and began to rain. all right - okay, satisfactory She said that it would be all right for me to bring my friend to the party. all the time - continually She asks for money all the time but I don't like to give it to her. all thumbs - have difficulty fixing things or working with one's hands, clumsy He is all thumbs when it comes to fixing things around the house. an arm and a leg - (cost) a large amount of money His new car must have cost him an arm and a leg. apple of one's eye - one's favourite His youngest daughter is the apple of his eye. as a rule - usually, as a habit As a rule I usually get up at 7:00 AM every morning. as far as - to the extent or degree that As far as I know he will be here in a few minutes. ask for trouble - behave in a way that trouble is likely He is asking for trouble if he misses another class. asleep at the switch - not alert to an opportunity I think he was asleep at the switch. He didn't even know that the job was available so he never applied for it. as long as - provided that, on condition that As long as you promise to be careful you can borrow my car. as the crow flies - by the most direct way, along a straight line between two places As the crow flies it is about 6 kilometres between my house and my company. as usual - most of the time, as is the custom As usual, she forgot to bring her book to class. as well as - in addition to Please bring your swimming suit as well as your towel. as yet - until now, up to the present As yet, she has not told me about her plans to leave the company. at cross purposes - have opposite ways to do something, opposing goals They are at cross purposes and are always arguing about what to do. at fault - be responsible or to blame for something The truck driver was at fault in the terrible accident. at first - at the beginning At first she didn't want to go to a movie but later she changed her mind. at first blush - when first seen, without careful study At first blush he seemed like a good worker but later we had many problems with him. at heart - basically, fundamentally She is a very nice person at heart although many people dislike her. at home - in one's house I'm sorry but I left my money at home. Can you lend me some money? at last - finally, after a long time I was waiting all morning for her call but at last it came. at loggerheads - having a quarrel, opposing each other We have been at loggerheads over their plans to build a new office complex. at odds - in disagreement He has been at odds with his boss over the new sales territory. at someone's beck and call - always ready to serve somebody His eldest daughter is always at his beck and call when he spends an evening at home. at the end of one's rope - at the limit of one's ability to cope I am at the end of my rope about what to do about my current situation at work. attend to someone - take care or deal with someone The doctor attended to the other patient before he got to my mother. back on one's feet - return to good financial or physical health He is finally back on his feet after his company went out of business. back out - withdraw from an agreement or promise The company backed out of the deal with the foreign firm.   back to the drawing board - go back to start a project or idea from the beginning The boss doesn't like our idea so I guess we must go back to the drawing board.   bail someone or something out - help or rescue The government has decided to bail out the troubled bank. bank on - be sure of, count on You can bank on them to come and help the company. his bark is worse than his bite - someone isn't as bad as they sound Don't worry if he gets angry - his bark is worse than his bite. bark up the wrong tree - make a wrong assumption about something The police are barking up the wrong tree in their investigation of that person. beat around the bush - speak indirectly or evasively Stop beating around the bush and give us your final decision. beat someone to the punch (draw) - do something before others He beat me to the punch and arrived at the interview first. (have a) bee in one's bonnet - have an idea that continually occupies one's thoughts. He has a bee in his bonnet over whether or not to build a new house or not. (do something) behind someone's back - without someone's knowledge He is very angry because they borrowed the car behind his back. behind the times - old fashioned My aunt is a little behind the times. to blame for - be responsible for something bad or unfortunate He's not to blame for breaking the computer. bend over backwards to do something - try very hard If I can, I will bend over backwards to help you get a promotion in the company. beside one's self - very upset or excited about something He was beside himself with joy at winning the contest. beside the point - not relevant to the subject that you are considering or discussing "What you are saying is beside the point. We are not talking about salary now." bet on the wrong horse - misjudge a coming event, misread the future I think that he bet on the wrong horse by putting all of his money into that new stock. better off - be in a better situation than before He would be better off if he sold his old car and bought a new one. beyond the pale - outside the bounds of acceptable behaviour What they are doing is totally unacceptable and beyond the pale. bide one's time - patiently wait for an opportunity to occur. He is biding his time as he waits to become president of the company. big shot - an important and powerful person He is a big shot in the oil and gas industry. birthday suit - completely naked, no clothes on The little boy was running down the street in his birthday suit. bite off more than one can chew - try to do more than one is able to do I think I bit off more than I can chew by taking on the new assignment. bite the bullet - endure in a difficult situation, face a difficult situation bravely I have decided to bite the bullet and begin studying for my Master's degree. bite the dust - be killed, break down, be defeated I think that my car has finally bitten the dust. bite the hand that feeds you - turn against a friend or supporter, repay kindness with wrong He is biting the hand that feeds him if he continues to criticize and fight against his boss.   blind leading the blind - someone who doesn't understand something trying to explain it to others It is like the blind leading the blind watching him try and explain how to operate the new computer. blow it (something) - fail at something I tried hard but I am sure that I blew the final math exam last week.   blow one's own horn - praise oneself He is always blowing his own horn and is very annoying at times. blow over - die down or calm down The problem with the lost invoices has finally blown over and everyone is working hard again.   blue in the face - very angry or upset, excited and very emotional I argued with him until I became blue in the face but I couldn`t change his mind. bone of contention - a reason for quarrels, the subject of a fight The family cottage was a major bone of contention when their father died. boot out - make someone go or leave, get rid of someone, dismiss He was booted out of high school for smoking on the school grounds. born with a silver spoon in one's mouth - born rich, provided from birth with everything you need He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and has never worked in his life. brand new - absolutely new He was finally able to buy a brand-new car. break down - stop working because of mechanical failure The car broke down on the lonely road so nobody knew about it. break down - analyse We must break down these figures for further study. break fresh ground - deal with something in a new way The researchers were able to break fresh ground in their search for a cancer cure. - win all the money at a casino gambling table He didn't really break the bank but he did win a lot of money. break the ice - relax and start a conversation in a formal situation Nobody was enjoying the party until the host finally was able to break the ice. break the news - tell some information first He is planning to break the news to her about his transfer tomorrow. break up (with someone) - stop a relationship She broke up with her boyfriend last June. bring home the bacon - work and earn money for your family He is out bringing home the bacon and is very busy. bring home the importance of something to someone - make someone fully realize something He was unable to bring home the importance of arriving early for the meeting. bring some new facts to light - discover some new facts, make some new facts known The lawyers were able to bring some new facts to light in the trial of the killer. bring someone into line - persuade someone to agree with you He was finally able to bring the other members of the committee into line. bring something on - cause to develop rapidly I don't know what brought on his anger but you should avoid him until he calms down. bring the house down - cause much laughter in the audience The comedian brought the house down with his jokes about the lost dog. bring to mind - recall something Her perfect acting brought to mind some of the great actresses of the past. bring up - introduce a subject into a discussion They brought up the subject at the meeting but nobody wanted to talk about it. bring up - raise or care for a child My grandmother brought up ten children. bring up the rear - be at the end of the line or in the last position The runner from the other school was bringing up the rear in the school relay race. broke - have no money I spent all of my money on my holiday and I am now broke. brush up on something - review something one has already learned I'm going to brush up on my English before my trip to New York. brush with the law - a brief encounter or experience with the police because of a crime He had a brush with the law when he was young but now he is totally honest. bull in a china shop - someone who is clumsy and upsets other people or plans He was like a bull in a china shop when I saw him at the meeting last week. bundle up - put on warm clothes, dress warmly We bundled up and went for a walk in the park.   burn a hole in one's pocket - money that you want to spend quickly I just got paid today and this money is burning a hole in my pocket. burn down - burn completely (usually used for buildings) The neighbour's house burnt down completely during the night. burn one's bridges behind one - do something that makes going back impossible He burned his bridges behind him and is unable to work in the same industry again. burn the candle at both ends - work or play too hard without enough rest He has been burning the candle at both ends with his work and his studies. That is why he became sick. burn the midnight oil - study until very late at night We burned the midnight oil for three nights in a row in order to study for the exam. burn up - burn completely (usually things not buildings) The uniforms burned up in the fire. bury (hide) one's head in the sand - refuse to see or face something, keep from seeing or knowing something unpleasant He always buries his head in the sand and never wants to deal with his family problems at all. bury the hatchet - stop quarrelling and become friendly with someone He decided to bury the hatchet with his brother and they are now on friendly terms again. butter someone up - flatter someone He is trying to butter up his boss so that he can leave early on Friday. buy a pig in a poke - buy something without seeing it or knowing if it will be satisfactory You shouldn't buy that car without first inspecting it. It is like buying a pig in a poke. by and large - on the whole, considering everything By and large we had a good meeting even though it was a little short. by and by - before long By and by they will come and we can go out for dinner. by far - greatly, by a great margin He is by far the smartest person in the company. by fits and starts - irregularly, with many stops and starts By fits and starts the company was finally able to begin business. by hook or by crook - in any way necessary She says that she will go to Italy this year by hook or by crook. by the way - incidentally By the way, could you please bring your computer tomorrow. by the skin of one's teeth - by a very small margin, barely I made the application date for the job by the skin of my teeth. by the sweat of one's brow - by hard work He managed to make enough money to buy the farm by the sweat of his brow.

How To Be Good At English

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