Broadening Horizons. Brightening Futures
9.4
Beginning to understand idioms
Why is this important?
An idiom is a phrase where the words, when put together, have a meaning
which is different from that of the words when used individually (e.g. ‘Pull
your socks up’ has nothing to do with the action of pulling or socks). This
makes idioms tricky to understand and learn, but there are lots of them in
the English language.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
What to do
• Compile a list of idioms/phrases/sayings that are used on a regular basis, e.g.
★ ‘On the other hand.’ ★ ‘Don’t cry over spilt milk.’
★ ‘Raining cats and dogs.’ ★ ‘Pulling your leg.’
★ ‘A piece of cake.’ ★ ‘Feeling under the weather.’
• Choose one idiom at a time and write down two or three alternatives to the
meaning (e.g. for ‘Pull your socks up’):
★ Make sure your socks are always tidy. ★ Try harder.
★ Put your socks away tidily.
• Ask the child to say what he/she thinks the idiom means. Talk through the options. Put the idiom in a scenario. For example, a girl is doing her numbers in school. The teacher knows she is good at number work and says ‘Come on Emily, pull your socks up and then you can go out to play’.
• Work through various idioms and try to use examples in everyday conversation
which illustrate how idioms are used and what they mean. If you hear someone
use an idiom, comment on it and explain the meaning.
Here is a selection of commonly used idioms, their meanings, and examples of how they can be used in sentences.
A blessing in disguise
- Meaning: A good thing that seemed bad at first.
- Usage: Losing that job was truly a blessing in disguise, as it led me to pursue my dream career.
A dime a dozen
- Meaning: Something common.
- Usage: In this part of the city, coffee shops are a dime a dozen.
Beat around the bush
- Meaning: Avoid saying what you mean, usually because it is uncomfortable.
- Usage: Stop beating around the bush and just tell me what you think about the project.
Better late than never
- Meaning: Better to arrive late than not to come at all.
- Usage: Better late than never.
Bite the bullet
- Meaning: To get something over with because it is inevitable.
- Usage: I decided to bite the bullet and finally start writing my dissertation.
Break a leg
- Meaning: Good luck.
- Usage: Break a leg in your performance tonight!
Call it a day
- Meaning: Stop working on something.
- Usage: After reviewing the presentations, let’s call it a day and resume tomorrow.
Cut somebody some slack
- Meaning: Don't be so critical.
- Usage: I think you should cut him some slack; he’s going through a tough time.
Cutting corners
- Meaning: Doing something poorly in order to save time or money.
- Usage: The team received criticism for cutting corners on the project to meet the deadline.
Easy does it
- Meaning: Slow down.
- Usage: Easy does it! We don't want to rush and make mistakes.
Get out of hand
- Meaning: Get out of control.
- Usage: The party got out of hand when uninvited guests arrived.
Get something out of your system
- Meaning: Do the thing you've been wanting to do so you can move on.
- Usage: I had to go on that holiday to get my travel cravings out of my system.
Get your act together
- Meaning: Work better or leave.
- Usage: If you want to stay in the team, you need to get your act together.
Give someone the benefit of the doubt
- Meaning: Trust what someone says.
- Usage: I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt; perhaps she had a good reason for being late.
Go back to the drawing board
- Meaning: Start over.
- Usage: Our initial proposal was rejected, so it’s back to the drawing board for us.
Hang in there
- Meaning: Don't give up.
- Usage: I know the job search is tough, but hang in there; something will come along.
Hit the sack
- Meaning: Go to sleep.
- Usage: I’m exhausted; I think I’ll hit the sack early tonight.
It's not rocket science
- Meaning: It's not complicated.
- Usage: Just follow the instructions; it's not rocket science.
Let someone off the hook
- Meaning: To not hold someone responsible for something.
- Usage: The teacher decided to let him off the hook this time for forgetting his homework.
Make a long story short
- Meaning: Tell something briefly.
- Usage: To make a long story short, we managed to resolve the issue without any chaos.
Miss the boat
- Meaning: It's too late.
- Usage: You really missed the boat on that one; applications closed last week.
No pain, no gain
- Meaning: You have to work for what you want.
- Usage: Remember, no pain, no gain, especially when it comes to studying for exams.
On the ball
- Meaning: Doing a good job.
- Usage: She is really on the ball; her projects are always completed ahead of schedule.
Pull someone's leg
- Meaning: To joke with someone.
- Usage: Are you pulling my leg, or did you really win the lottery?
Pull yourself together
- Meaning: Calm down.
- Usage: You need to pull yourself together before the presentation; you'll do great!
So far so good
- Meaning: Things are going well so far.
- Usage: So far so good; the project is on track for completion this week.
Speak of the devil
- Meaning: The person we were just talking about showed up!
- Usage: Speak of the devil, there’s Tom now!
That's the last straw
- Meaning: My patience has run out.
- Usage: When he didn’t show up again, that was the last straw for me.
The best of both worlds
- Meaning: An ideal situation.
- Usage: Working from home offers the best of both worlds: peace and flexibility.
Time flies when you're having fun
- Meaning: You don't notice how long something lasts when it's fun.
- Usage: Time flies when you're having fun; I can't believe the weekend is already over!
To get bent out of shape
- Meaning: To get upset.
- Usage: Don’t get bent out of shape over a small mistake; everyone makes them.
To make matters worse
- Meaning: Make a problem worse.
- Usage: To make matters worse, the meeting was postponed again.
Under the weather
- Meaning: Sick.
- Usage: I'm feeling a bit under the weather today; I might take a sick day.
We'll cross that bridge when we come to it
- Meaning: Let's not talk about that problem right now.
- Usage: I’m sure we will find a solution; we'll cross that bridge when we come to it.
Wrap your head around something
- Meaning: Understand something complicated.
- Usage: It took me a while to wrap my head around the new policies, but I think I finally get it.
You can say that again
- Meaning: That's true, I agree.
- Usage: You can say that again; this project has been more challenging than I anticipated.
Your guess is as good as mine
- Meaning: I have no idea.
- Usage: I’m not sure what happened to the project; your guess is as good as mine.