Useful American Idioms

This handout was used over a five-day period as part of a one week intensive English class.

Useful American Idioms

These American idioms will be discussed in class and used in everyday conversational phrases. Students are encouraged to make up their own conversations using the American idioms.

Definition of Idiom: a word or group of words established by usage and having a meaning not understood from the word or words themselves; a certain type of expression common to a language or people.

Directions: Listen to the teacher explain the idiom and write down the definition on the first line. On the second line write your original sentence using the idiom.

A nut / nuts
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All part of the game
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Backfire
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Back seat driver
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Bank on
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Bankroll
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Beer belly / Pot belly
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Behind the scenes
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Benchmark
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Better safe than sorry
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Big mouth
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Bite off more than you can chew
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Blown out
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Bottom line
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Brand new / Second hand
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Break the ice
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Breathing room
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Burn your bridges
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Business as usual
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By word of mouth
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Calm before the storm
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Chain-smoker
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Chicken
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Come out on the short end of the stick
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Count on
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Cover all the bases
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Do the trick
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Doggie bag
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DonÕt hold your breath
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Earmark
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Elbow room
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Fall through
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Fat chance
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Fed up with
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Flash in the pan
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Foot the bill
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Freak out
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Fried up
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From hand to mouth
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Gain ground / Lose ground
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Get away with murder
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Get burned
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Get in over your head
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Get the green light
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Get to first base
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Get your act together
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Give a hand / Lend a hand
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Go for broke
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Go from bad to worse
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Go off the deep end
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Go over like a lead balloon
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Gravy train
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Green thumb
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Handy
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Have your cake and eat it, too
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Head to head
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Hear it through the grapevine
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His days are numbered
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Hit home
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Hit the jackpot
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In a nutshell
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In one ear and out the other
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In the red / In the black
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In the same boat
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Iron out
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Just around the corner
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Kick start / Jump start
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Kill time
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Keep an eye on
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Landslide
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Lay down the law
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Long shot
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Make a scene
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Make both ends meet
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Nest egg
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New lease on life
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No brainer
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Nose-dive / Skyrocket
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Not so hot
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Odds and ends
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On the right track
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One track mind
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Out of hand
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Out of your mind
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Out on a limb
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Out to lunch
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Over the hill
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Par for the course
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Pass the buck
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Personal agenda
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Play it by ear
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Play with fire
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Pot calling the kettle black
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Pull no punches
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Read between the lines
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Red-light district
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Redneck
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Red tape
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Right under my nose
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Rock the boat
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Rub it in
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Run circles around
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Scapegoat
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Scratch the surface
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Slush fund
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Soapbox
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Step up to the plate
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Up the creek
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Uphill / Downhill
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Upper hand
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Upside / Downside
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Take it or leave it
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Tear jerker
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The ball is in their court
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The jury is still out
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The real world
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The whole nine yards
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Three time loser
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Tie up loose ends
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Tip of the iceberg
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To be in a bind / To be in a jam
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To blow up
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To check out
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To crack up
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To do oneÕs homework
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To draw a line
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To drink like a fish
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To fall back on
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To go through the motions
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To have one foot in the grave
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To pass away
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To play with fire
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Track record
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Treading on thin ice
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Turn the tables
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Wait and see
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Watch your step
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Water under the bridge
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Watered down
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Wear the pants
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Wet blanket
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When hell freezes over
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Where thereÕs smoke, thereÕs fire
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White elephant
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Windfall
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The Internet TESL Journal, Vol. IV, No. 2, February 1998
http://www.aitech.ac.jp/~iteslj/