IDIOM OF THE DAY
"CAST IN SOMEONE'S TEETH"
Meaning: To reprimand/reproach someone
Sentence: The teacher cast in student's teeth for coming late in the class.
"EAT HUMBLE PIE"
Meaning: To admit that you were wrong about something.
Sentence: After bragging that her company could surpass the industry's best, she has been forced to eat humble pie.
"BE (ONLY) FLESH AND BLOOD"
Meaning: To have normal human limits, requirements etc
Sentence: Every human being is a flesh and blood.
"CUT AND DRIED"
Meaning: A completely settled or decided situation which will not change
Sentence: Robert marrying Martha was cut and dried.
"LIE DOGGO"
Meaning: To remain hidden
Sentence: The culprit was lying doggo in order to avoid being captured by the authorities.
"NOT PULL ANY PUNCHES/PULL NO PUNCHES"
Meaning: To speak openly without trying to be kind
Sentence: The manager didn't pull any punches and called the report a trash.
Meaning: To happen very soon after something
Sentence: The ground invasion followed on the heels of aerial strikes.
"BROADEN/EXPAND/WIDEN SOMEONE'S HORIZONS"
Meaning: To increase one's knowledge or interests
Sentence: Travel can broaden/expand/ widen our horizon.
"KEEP ONE'S HEAD"
Meaning: To remain calm
Sentence: It's better to keep your head under pressure.
"DARK HORSE"
Meaning: Someone who has more capabilities than he shows
Sentence: New Zealand is often called as a dark horse of cricket.
Meaning: To prepare for a difficult situation
Sentence: In the upcoming budget the government is planning to raise taxes so the people must batten down the hatches.
"FALL ON THE GRENADE"
Meaning: To sacrifice oneself for the sake of others.
Sentence: Hayden's open offer to fall on the grenade provides an opening for other nominees to admit Iraq actions were unfounded without taking any blame.
"SWING AND A MISS"
Meaning: A sincere attempt to do something that ultimately fails
Sentence: Jordan's endeavour to get an scholarship was a swing and a miss.
"SPIN TALES"
Meaning: To make up a story
Sentence: The teacher scolded the student for spinning tales about her absence from the school.
"TO KEEP ONE'S HEAD"
Meaning: To remain calm
Sentence: It's better to keep your head under pressure.
"THINK THE WORLD OF"
Meaning: To like/admire/ someone or something very much
Sentence: I think the world of my mother.
The child thought the world of his bicycle.
Meaning: Sons resemble the characteristics of their father.
Sentence: My father is a soldier I also want to be a soldier. Like father, like son.
"DEAD RINGER"
Meaning: Someone or something which looks similar to an other person or thing.
Sentence: Christina is a dead Ringer for her late mother. IPhone 15 isn't a dead ringer for Samsung S24 Ultra.
"DEAD AS A DOORNAIL/ DODO/HERRING"
Meaning: To be completely dead
Sentence: The laptop was as dead as a doornail/dodo/herring.
Meaning: Someone with a lot of knowledge about a topic but with little practical experience of it.
Sentence: My grandfather is an armchair expert of economy.
"AN ARMCHAIR JOB"
Meaning: High paying job with great comfort
Sentence: Everyone wants to have an armchair job.
"EAT SOMEONE'S LUNCH"
Meaning: a) To defeat someone completely
b) to be more successful than someone else
Sentence: a) The football team ate the lunch of their opponent in the semi final.
b) Nvidia has eaten the lunch of Microsoft in the recent years.
"TO SPILL THE BEANS"
Meaning: To reveal a secret
Sentence: The mother forbade her son to spill the beans about the birthday party for her daughter.
"PIECE OF CAKE"
Meaning: Something which is very east to do
Sentence: Using internet has become a piece of cake over the years.
"HAVE EGGS ON YOUR FACE"
Meaning: To be embarrassed due to something you have done or said
Sentence: Melissa had egg on her face when she mentioned Lucy Infront of Stewart despite knowing that they have broken off last week.
"A BED OF ROSES"
Meaning: A situation, place or life full of comfort and luxury
Sentence: Children born into a rich family has a life of bad of roses.
"A SHORT CUT"
Meaning: A short or easy way to achieve something
Sentence: Those who find shortcut to success, they often fail in achieving their dreams.
"A BURNING QUESTION/ ISSUE"
Meaning: A burning question/issue is an important topic which requires urgent solution
Sentence: The Palestine and Israel conflict is a burning question/issue these days.
"BLACK SHEEP"
Meaning: Someone who brings shame to the other members of his/her family
Sentence: Jordan is the black sheep of the family as he is the first person in the family to do time in prison.
"AN OPEN SECRET"
Meaning: A thing which is supposed to be a secret but everyone knows about it
Sentence: It is an open secret now that the USA invaded Iraq for personal means and not because Iraq had WMD.
"ALL IN ALL"
Meaning: After taking everything into consideration
Sentence: All in all, the students did pretty well in their annual examinations.
"AT THE ELEVENTH HOUR"
Meaning: At the last possible moment
Sentence: I got on the bus at the eleventh hour.
"ADD FUEL TO THE FIRE"
Meaning: To make an already bad situation worse
Sentence: The government's decision to hike gas prices was like adding fuel to the fire as people are already suffering from inflation.
"TO BREAK THE ICE"
Meaning: To initiate a discussion
Sentence: It's very hard to break the ice with strangers.
"BRING TO AN END"
Meaning: To finish, stop or complete something
Sentence: The meeting came to an end with a unanimous decision on the climate change.
"FOR GOOD"
Meaning: Forever, for always
Sentence: The mother advised her son to give up smoking for good.
"DAY IN AND DAY OUT"
Meaning: Regularly for a long period of time
Sentence: I have been learning grammar day in and day out
"TO CRY OVER SPLIT MILK"
Meaning: To feel sorry for what has already happened
Sentence: We shouldn't cry over spilt milk and should work hard to make things better.
"BE IN A FIX/PICKLE/SPOT"
Meaning: To be in a difficult situation
Sentence: After taking so much loan, John was now in a fix/pickle/spot as he had no means to payback the loan.
"BAG AND BAGGAGE"
Meaning: With all one's belongings
Sentence: The guest came bag and baggage.
"BLOW HOT AND COLD"
Meaning: a) To keep changing your opinions, ideas, or course of action b) To be inconsistent
Sentence: Those students who blow hot and cold in their studies they are likely to fail.
"BE IN HIGH SPIRITS"
Meaning: Very happy and excited
Sentence: Afghanistan cricket team was in high spirits after they qualified for the semi finals.
"COME TO BLOWS"
Meaning: To start fighting physically
Sentence: The two teams came to blows when one team accused the other of cheating.
"CUT A SORRY FIGURE"
Meaning: To make a poor impression
Sentence: Jackson cut a sorry figure at the job interview because he wore jeans.
"BUILD CASTLES IN THE AIR"
Meaning: To make plans which are unlikely to succeed
Sentence: Mark's wish to amass one million dollars by the end of 2024 seems like building castles in the air.
"FRENCH LEAVE"
Meaning: To be absent from school or work without informing them.
Sentence: The school administration has strictly forbidden French leaves.
"END IN SMOKE"
Meaning: To fail without any success
Sentence: Despite preparing so well, Kirby couldn't appear for the interview and all his efforts ended in smoke.
"TAKE TO HEART"
Meaning: To take something seriously and be affected by it.
Sentence: She became sad when she took the failure to her heart.
"FAR AND WIDE"
Meaning: Over a large area: Everywhere
Sentence: The police is searching far and wide to arrest the culprit.
"FROM HAND TO MOUTH"
Meaning: To have just enough money to survive
Sentence: Majority of the people in third world countries are living from hand to mouth.
"IN HOT WATER"
Meaning: In difficult situation
Sentence: After getting caught red while cheating in the exams, Rutherford was in hot waters now.
"GIVE EAR"
Meaning: To listen carefully
Sentence: The teacher asked the students to give ear to her instructions.
"HUE AND CRY"
Meaning: A loud protest or outcry about something
Sentence: There is a hue and cry in the city about the rising street crimes.
"KEEP IN THE DARK"
Meaning: To keep someone unaware about something
Sentence: The manager fired his secretary who kept him in the dark about the nature of the signed project.
"KEEP AN EYE ON"
Meaning: To watch someone/ something carefully
Sentence: The invigilator kept an eye on the students during the exams.
"HARD AND FAST"
Meaning: The strict and unchangeable rules
Sentence: Hard and fast rules shouldn't be violated.
"FAIR PLAY"
Meaning: According to the rules
Sentence: The opposition team accused the umpire of not giving them fair play.
Meaning: A selfish aim to fulfil
Sentence: People nowadays aren't sincere, they have only their axes to grind.
"A THANKLESS TASK"
Meaning: A work which is not appreciated enough
Sentence: Teaching has become a thankless task these days.
"FAIR WEATHER FRIEND"
Meaning: Selfish friends who contact you when they require something from you
Sentence: Nicole has promised himself not to communicate with his fair weather friends anymore.
"MAKE UP ONE'S MIND"
Meaning: To decide something
Sentence: Christina has made up her mind to pursue a career in medicine.
"BRING TO LIGHT"
Meaning: To disclose/reveal something
Sentence: The Panama papers brought to light foreign properties of many people in different countries.
"BEAT ABOUT THE BUSH"
Meaning: To avoid the main topic
Sentence: The culprits often beat around the bush in their defence.
"WOLF IN SHEEP'S CLOTHING"
Meaning: Someone who pretends to be harmless but infact he/she is dangerous.
Sentence: The limping man was a wolf in sheep's clothing as he robbed the guy who gave him lift.
"FIGHT TOOTH AND NAIL"
Meaning: To fight with all your power
Sentence: The Australian team fought tooth and nail but couldn't win the game.
"TURN A DEAF EAR"
Meaning: To ignore something what someone has said
Sentence: The pupil turned a dead ear to the teacher's advice and didn't complete his assignments
"LOOK DOWN UPON"
Meaning: To see others with contempt
Sentence: We shouldn't look down upon the poor.
"NIP IN THE BUD"
Meaning: To destroy an evil in its early stage
Sentence: The corruption in the government departments should be nipped in the bud.
"PAY BACK IN THE SAME COIN"
Meaning: To do the same something with someone what he has done to you.
Sentence: After getting eliminated by Australia in 2023, England paid back in the same coin and eliminated Australia from 2024 World Cup.
"POCKET ONE'S INSULT"
Meaning: To tolerate insult
Sentence: It's very hard to pocket your insult when you're insulted Infront of a large number of people.
"TAKE TO ONE'S HEELS"
Meaning: To run away
Sentence: The thieves took to their heels when they heard the sirens of the police van.
"UP TO THE MARK"
Meaning: Good and satisfactory
Sentence: The employees' performance was up to the mark and thus the company was in the black.
"BURY THE HATCHET"
Meaning: To end a conflict and make peace
Sentence: India and Pakistan must bury the hatchet for good.
"CALL A SPADE A SPADE"
Meaning: To say what's true
Sentence: In the court of law calling a spade a spade has become quite difficult.
"CATCH RED HANDED"
Meaning: To catch someone while committing a crime
Sentence: The bomber was caught red handed when he was just about to press the button of the controller.
"DIE IN HARNESS"
Meaning: To die while doing your duty
Sentence: The miner died in the harness.
"FALL TO THE GROUND"
Meaning: To fail
Sentence: Jacob's plan to study in the USA fell to the ground when he couldn't get the scholarship.
"GO HAND IN HAND"
Meaning: People or things work or come together
Sentence: Unemployment and poverty go hand in hand.
"MIND ONE'S OWN BUSINESS"
Meaning: To do your work without interfering in others' work/life
Sentence: The Jimmy rudely said to the stranger to mind his own business rather than preaching him about the consequences of smoking.
"MAKE THE BEST"
Meaning: To utilize an opportunity to the fullest.
Sentence: The boss advised Donald to make the best of his internship opportunity in his company.
"BIRD'S EYE VIEW"
Meaning: a) A general view from an elevated position
b) A general view on a topic
Sentence: a) The Prime Minister in a helicopter took a bird's eye view of the devastation caused by the floods.
b) The teacher gave us a bird's eye view on the topic.
"POISON THE EARS"
Meaning: To say nasty things about someone which are not true
Sentence: Sonia scolded me for poisoning her ears against her son.
"MAKE ROOM/SPACE/WAY"
Meaning: To move your body to create a space for something or someone
Sentence: I made room for the senior citizen to sit beside me.
"PULL ONE'S LEGS"
Meaning: To joke or tease someone
Sentence: Arnold pulled Katherine's legs by saying that her fiance was dating her friend.
"A FAR CRY"
Meaning: To be completely different from something
Sentence: The life after technological advancement is a far cry from the life before it.
"FOOL'S PARADISE"
Meaning: A state of happiness based on false hopes or beliefs
Sentence: Undermining your opponents in a competition is like living in fool's paradise.
"CROCODILE'S TEARS"
Meaning: An insincere expression of grief
Sentence: Superpowers often shed crocodile's tears on the plight of the people of the countries they have invaded themselves.
"BY LEAPS AND BOUNDS"
Meaning: It means something is progressing very quickly
Sentence: China is progressing by leaps and bounds.
"AT ARM'S LENGTH"
Meaning: a) to remain something away from your body at a distance your arm can reach
b) to keep people away from you.
Sentence: a) The snake charmer held the snake at an arm's length.
b) Jessica keeps her colleagues at an arm's length.
"ALL AND SUNDRY"
Meaning: Everyone
Sentence: The wedding ceremony will be attended by all and sundry from my family.
"IRON WILL"
Meaning: An extremely strong wish to do something
Sentence: The USA has an iron will to preserve its hegemony in the world.
"FAR AND NEAR"
Meaning: Everywhere
Sentence: People came from far and near to attend the ceremony of the coronation of Prince Williams.
"FEW AND FAR BETWEEN"
Meaning: Something happens or appearing infrequently and not regularly
Sentence: Snow in my city is few and far between.
"HARD UP"
Meaning: Someone who doesn't have enough of something important or valuable especially money
Sentence: Due to inflation, many people are hard up these days.
"GOLDEN AGE"
Meaning: Period of great success
Sentence: 1960s is called the golden age of Pakistan's economy.
"RAINY DAY"
Meaning: A time in the future when you will need money
Sentence: The mother advised her daughter to save money for the rainy days.
"KEEP BODY AND SOUL TOGETHER"
Meaning: To have enough money to survive
Sentence: The poor face extreme difficulty in keeping the body and soul together.
"GRASP/CATCH/CLUTCH AT STRAWS"
Meaning: To try to get help from anything no matter how weak it's.
Sentence: The culprit was grasping/ catching/clutching at straws when he appealed to the president for mercy.
"HEART AND SOUL"
Meaning: With full energy and enthusiasm
Sentence: Melissa is fighting for the women's cause with her heart and soul.
"TURN THE TABLES"
Meaning: To change a situation in your favour
Sentence: The recovery of their main player before the important game has turned the tables for them
"RED TAPE"
Meaning: Lengthy and complicated bureaucratic rules and formalities
Sentence: The red tape must be abolished for swift and efficient supply of services.
"TAKE INTO ACCOUNT/ TAKE ACCOUNT OF"
Meaning: To consider something
Sentence: The government must take inflation into account when it increases salaries.
The government must take account of inflation when it increases salaries.
"MAKE ONE'S MOUTH WATER"
Meaning: An smell or sight of food which makes your mouth water, it makes you want to eat it
Sentence: Chicken Tikka is always makes my mouth water.
"MAKE ONE'S MARK"
Meaning: To be successful and famous
Sentence: Jessica has made her mark in the field of journalism.
"Make Both Ends Meet"
Meaning: To have just enough money to spend on things you need
Sentence: Nowadays multiple members of a family work so that they can make both ends meet.
"KEEP PACE WITH"
Meaning: To proceed and progress as the same speed as something or someone else
Sentence: Nokia failed because it couldn't keep pace with the changing technology.
"TAKE ONE'S CHANCE"
Meaning: To do something even though it may not be successful/To take a risk
Sentence: The scientist aren't afraid of taking chances in their research and experiments.
"KISS SOMETHING GOODBYE"
Meaning: To lose something which you will not get back
Sentence: I don't want to kiss this job opportunity goodbye.
"BY FITS AND STARTS"
Meaning: In an irregular way: Sporadically
Sentence: Those who study by fits and starts don't get good marks in the exams.
"BY HOOK OR BY CROOK"
Meaning: By acceptable or unacceptable ways
Sentence: The USA brings weaker states into submission by hook or by crook.
"BOSOM FRIEND"
Meaning: Best friend
Sentence: Rafael is my bossom friend.
"OUT OF DATE"
Meaning: Old fashioned
Sentence: Landlines are out of date now.
"PAIN IN THE NECK"
Meaning: Someone or something which makes you irritated
Sentence: Loudspeaker can sometimes be a real pain in the neck.
"APPLE OF DISCORD"
Meaning: Reason of the quarrel or fight
Sentence: The ancestral property became an apple of discord among the five brothers.
"APPLE OF ONE'S EYE"
Meaning: A person a things that someone likes very much
Sentence: Melina's youngest daughter is the apple of her eyes.
"A BONE OF CONTENTION"
Meaning: A reason of the quarrel or fight
Sentence: Kashmir issue is a bone of contention between India and Pakistan.
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