An IDIOM is a group of words or a phrase that differs from their literal meaning. Idioms enrich the language.
In this post, we present you the top 50 Idioms with their Meanings and Sentences.
50 Idioms with their Meanings and Sentences
| No. | Idioms | Meanings | Sentences |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | At arm’s length | keeping a safe distance | She kept the poisonous snake at arm’s length. |
| 2. | Bag and baggage | with all belongings | She left the apartment with her bags and baggage. |
| 3. | Beat about the bush | avoid getting to the point | Can you please stop beating about the bush and tell me what happened? |
| 4. | Bed of roses | easy and comfortable situation | Life is never a bed of roses; one must face challenges. |
| 5. | Bolt from the blue | a sudden and unexpected event | The news of the company’s bankruptcy came as a bolt from the blue. |
| 6. | Build castles in the air | indulge in unrealistic dreams | Instead of building castles in the air, let’s focus on our goals and work hard to achieve them. |
| 7. | Call in question | doubt | The evidence presented calls in question the suspect’s alibi. |
| 8. | Cats and dogs | raining very heavily | It’s been raining cats and dogs all day. |
| 9. | Crocodile tears | fake tears | I don’t trust her crocodile tears, she’s just trying to manipulate us. |
| 10. | Die in harness | die while working | He died in harness a month before his retirement. |
| 11. | Dark horse | relatively unknown | The political newcomer surprised everyone by winning the election, he was a real dark horse. |
| 12. | End in smoke | fail to materialize | The company’s plans to expand overseas ended in smoke due to lack of funding. |
| 13. | Far and away | by far or significantly | She was far and away the best singer in the competition. |
| 14. | Fish out of water | unfamiliar situation | Being the only vegetarian at the barbecue, she felt like a fish out of water. |
| 15. | Flesh and blood | human or physical existence | She was just flesh and blood, and couldn’t work 24/7 without getting tired. |
| 16. | Get by heart | to memorize something | In order to pass the exam, she had to get the formulas by heart. |
| 17. | Give one’s word | to make a promise or give an assurance | He gave his word that he would always be there to support her. |
| 18. | Heart and soul | with all energy | She poured her heart and soul into her performance, impressing the judges. |
| 19. | In cold blood | done intentionally and without emotion | The murder was committed in cold blood and shocked the community. |
| 20. | In a nutshell | briefly summarizing something. | In a nutshell, the company’s profits have been declining for the past year. |
| 21. | Jail Bird | a repeat criminal | The detective recognized the suspect as a jailbird who had been in and out of prison for years. |
| 22. | Kith and kin | near and dear ones | She prefers to spend time with her kith and kin. |
| 23. | Kill two birds with one stone | achieve two things in one stroke | She listened to an audiobook while doing house chores, killing two birds with one stone. |
| 24. | Keep the wolf from the door | manage to survive financially | Her part-time job helped her keep the wolf from the door. |
| 25. | Laughing stock | object of amusement | His clumsy dancing made him the laughingstock of the party. |
| 26. | Lion’s share | the major part | The CEO took the lion’s share of the company’s profits. |
| 27. | Long and short | bottom line | The long and short of the matter is that we need to increase our sales revenue. |
| 28. | Make both ends meet | live frugally | They had to make both ends meet after losing their jobs. |
| 29. | Man of straw | an insignificant person | The small-time crook was a man of straw compared to the big-time criminals. |
| 30. | Nip in the bud | to stop something at an early stage | The company nipped the security breach in the bud before any sensitive information was compromised. |
| 31. | Null and void | having no legal or binding effect | The contract became null and void when one of the parties breached the terms. |
| 32. | Off and on | intermittently or irregularly | I have been practising yoga off and on for the past year. |
| 33. | Out of the wood | no longer in a difficult or dangerous situation | The patient is out of the woods and is expected to make a full recovery. |
| 34. | Pros and cons | the advantages and disadvantages of a situation | Before making a decision, it’s important to weigh the pros and cons of the options. |
| 35. | Pure and simple | plain and straightforward | His answer was a lie, pure and simple, and he got caught. |
| 36. | Red-letter day | special occasion | Winning the championship was a red-letter day for the team. |
| 37. | Run into debt | accumulate debt | He kept spending money on unnecessary things and ran into debt. |
| 38. | Salt of the earth | a good and honest person | My grandfather was the salt of the earth, always helping others in need. |
| 39. | Stone’s throw | a short distance away | The grocery store was just a stone’s throw from his apartment. |
| 40. | Three R’s | elementary education | Many schools in underdeveloped countries focus on teaching the three R’s. |
| 41. | To and fro | back and forth | She paced to and fro in her office, trying to come up with a solution to the problem. |
| 42. | To the backbone | completely | She is a feminist to the backbone and fights for women’s rights. |
| 43. | Under the thumb | to be controlled by someone | She realized that she was under the thumb of her overbearing boss. |
| 44. | Under one’s nose | happening in front of someone without their knowledge | The thief stole the purse right under the woman’s nose. |
| 45. | Vexed question | a complex and much-debated issue | Climate change remains a vexed question among policymakers. |
| 46. | Wild goose chase | an unsuccessful pursuit | Searching for the lost ring in the park proved to be a wild goose chase. |
| 47. | Widow’s mite | a small but meaningful contribution | The donation of a single dollar may seem small, but it can be a widow’s mite to someone in need. |
| 48. | With a view to | with the intention of | She enrolled in college with a view to pursuing a career in medicine. |
| 49. | Yeoman’s service | diligent and valuable work | The volunteer organization provided yeoman’s service to the community after the natural disaster. |
| 50. | Zenith of power | the peak of one’s authority or influence | The president’s approval ratings were at the zenith of power after his successful foreign policy initiative. |
Also, Read
What are Idioms?
20 Sentences of Noun Phrases
50 Conjunction Sentences
