English idioms, proverbs, and expressions are an important part of everyday English. They come up all the time in both written and spoken English. Because idioms don’t always make sense literally, you’ll need to familiarize yourself with the meaning and usage of each idiom. That may seem like a lot of work, but learning idioms is fun, especially when you compare English idioms to the idioms in your own language.
Here’s a list of “Common English Idioms” in English:
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A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
Meaning: What you have is worth more than what you might have later
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A penny for your thoughts
Meaning: Tell me what you’re thinking
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A penny saved is a penny earned
Meaning: Money you save today you can spend later
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A perfect storm
Meaning: the worst possible situation
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A picture is worth 1000 words
Meaning: Better to show than tell
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Actions speak louder than words
Meaning: Believe what people do and not what they say
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Add insult to injury
Meaning: To make a bad situation worse
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Barking up the wrong tree
Meaning: To be mistaken, to be looking for solutions in the wrong place
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Birds of a feather flock together
Meaning: People who are alike are often friends
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Bite off more than you can chew
Meaning: Take on a project that you cannot finish
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Break the ice
Meaning: Make people feel more comfortable
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By the skin of your teeth
Meaning: Just barely
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Comparing apples to oranges
Meaning: Comparing two things that cannot be compared
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Do something at the drop of a hat
Meaning: Do something without having planned beforehand
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Don’t cry over spilt milk
Meaning: There’s no reason to complain about something that can’t be fixed
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Get a taste of your own medicine
Meaning: Get treated the way you’ve been treating others (negative)
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He has bigger fish to fry
Meaning: He has bigger things to take care of than what we are talking about now
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Ignorance is bliss
Meaning: You’re better off not knowing
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Kill two birds with one stone
Meaning: Get two things done with a single action
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Look before you leap
Meaning: Take only calculated risks
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Play devil’s advocate
Meaning: To argue the opposite, just for the sake of argument
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Saving for a rainy day
Meaning: Saving money for later
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Take a rain check
Meaning: Postpone a plan
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The best thing since sliced bread
Meaning: A really good invention
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The elephant in the room
Meaning: The big issue, the problem people are avoiding
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There’s a method to his madness
Meaning: He seems crazy but actually he’s clever
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Throw caution to the wind
Meaning: Take a risk
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You can’t judge a book by its cover
Meaning: This person or thing may look bad, but it’s good inside
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There’s no such thing as a free lunch
Meaning: Nothing is entirely free
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The whole nine yards
Meaning: Everything, all the way.
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The devil is in the details
Meaning: It looks good from a distance, but when you look closer, there are problems
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The ball is in your court
Meaning: It’s your decision
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Spill the beans
Meaning: Give away a secret
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Once in a blue moon
Meaning: Rarely
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On thin ice
Meaning: On probation. If you make another mistake, there will be trouble.
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It takes one to know one
Meaning: You’re just as bad as I am
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He’s a chip off the old block
Meaning: The son is like the father
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Go on a wild goose chase
Meaning: To do something pointless
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Don’t put all your eggs in one basket
Meaning: What you’re doing is too risky
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Do unto others as you would have them do unto you
Meaning: Treat people fairly. Also known as “The Golden Rule”
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Add insult to injury
Meaning: To make a bad situation worse
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A penny saved is a penny earned
Meaning: Money you save today you can spend later
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A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
Meaning: What you have is worth more than what you might have later
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The whole nine yards
Meaning: Everything, all the way.
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There are other fish in the sea
Meaning: It’s ok to miss this opportunity. Others will arise.
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There’s a method to his madness
Meaning: He seems crazy but actually he’s clever
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There’s no such thing as a free lunch
Meaning: Nothing is entirely free
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Throw caution to the wind
Meaning: Take a risk
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You can’t have your cake and eat it too
Meaning: You can’t have everything
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You can’t judge a book by its cover
Meaning: This person or thing may look bad, but it’s good inside