Idioms

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According to Oxford Languages, Idioms is a group of words established by usage as having a meaning not deducible from those of the individual words. Therefore, we have provided you with the list of idioms that we should memorize.

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Idioms List

Idioms	Meaning	Examples in Sentences
Above all	Mainly, especially	He is good at all subjects at school, above all, in Literature.
All at once	suddenly
All day long	The entire day, continuously through the day
All of a sudden	Suddenly	All of a sudden a creature appeared at the back door of the bungalow.
All right	Satisfactory, correct
All the same	Regardless of what has been said; also, to be equal, the same, to make no difference
As a matter of fact	In fact, really
As to	concerning, with reference to
As usual	As always, customarily
As yet	Up to the present time
At all ( usually with not )	To any degree, in the least	I don’t have any money at all right now.
At first	Originally, in the first instance
At last	Finally
At least	A minimum of	You have to walk at least for two hours a day.
At once	Immediately, very soon, right away
At times	Sometimes, occasionally	At times my mother feels better but then she becomes weak again.
By heart	By memory	We must learn the poem by heart.
By oneself	Alone
By the way	Incidentally
Day in, day out day after day	Daily , continuously
Every so often	Occasionally, every now and then
For good	Permanently, forever	Sue has returned to Boston for good.
For the time being	For the present, temporarily	For the time being we are living with our parents. Next year, we are going to move to our new house.
Had better	It is advisable to, it would be better to. Most often used in contracted form such as I’d better, you ‘d better, she’d better, he’d better, we’d better, they ‘d better.
In a hurry	Hurried, in a rush	I’m in a hurry to catch the bus. I don’t want to miss it.
In the long run	Finally, after a long period of time	In the long run, your friend can be your best partner.
In time	within or sometime before an appointed time or a deadline
In vain	useless, without result
Little by little	Gradually, by degrees, slowly
Never mind	Do not mind, do not bother or pay any attention
No matter	Regardless of
Now and then	occasionally
Off and on	Irregularly, occasionally	They go off and on.to see their parents.
Once in a while	occasionally, now and then
On purpose	Purposely, intentionally
On time	Exactly at or before an appointed time
Out of date	No longer available, current, or in use
Out of order	Not in working condition	Most of the public phone in this town are out of order. Nobody maintains them.
Over and over	Repeatedly	I have reminded you over and over again but you still do the same mistakes.
Quite a few	many
Right away	Immediately, at once, very soon	Come here right away.
Right here, Right there, Right now etc.	Exactly here, exactly there, immediately	I’m coming in right now.
So far	Up to the present time	So far he has treated me well.
Something the matter nothing the matter	Something wrong nothing wrong
Tired out	Extremely tired
To be about to	To be on the point of, ready
To be becoming	To suit, favor in appearance	The dress is very becoming to you.
To be better off	To be in a better condition or situation
To be bound for somewhere	To be going in a certain direction
To be bound to	Be certain to, sure to
To be bound to	Be certain to, sure to
To become of	To happen to (of someone or something missing )	What has become of my Samsung Galaxy? It’s gone.
To be in charge of	To manage be responsible for
To be in the way	Blocking or obstructing, thus causing inconvenience
To be named after:	To be given at birth the same name as another
To be out of the question	To be impossible
To be over	To be finished, to be ended
To be up	To be ended ( of a time )
To be up to someone	To depend on the decision of someone	It’s up to you whether we buy this house.
To be used to	To be accustomed to
To be well off	To be rich, well to do
To blow out:	To explode, go flat said generally of tires
To blow up	To destroy by Explosion, to explode
To break down	To stop functioning said generally of motors and similar mechanical objects
To break in	To adjust through usage of something which is new and stiff, To train a new employee	1.Just try to break in a new car slowly by driving carefully. 2. After our office boy is broken in, everything will be alright.
To break out	To occur suddenly
To bring up:	To rear, raise from childhood; also to present for attention or consideration
To burn down	To burn to the ground
To burn out	To stop functioning, become useless said of electrical equipment
To burn up	To burn completely
To call down	To reprimand, scold
To call for	To come to an office, home etc., in order to get someone or something	I’m going to call for my girlfriend at her house tomorrow morning.
To call off	To cancel	The football match was called off due to security reasons.
To call on	To visit
To call up	To telephone	Please call up the police when you see the wanted man!
To catch cold	To become sick with a cold	Don’t go out in the rain! Otherwise, you’ll catch cold.
To catch fire	To begin to burn	Nobody knew how the market caught the fire.
To change one’s mind	To alter one’s decision or opinion	I have changed my mind. I don’t like you anymore.
To come from	To originate in ( to refer to one’s home district )
To come to	To revive, to regain consciousness	My wife finally came to after she had fainted for two hours.
To come to	To revive, to regain consciousness	My wife finally came to after she had fainted for two hours.
To come true	To prove to be true or correct
To count on	To depend upon	Don’t count on him to do this job. He isn’t reliable.
To cross out	To cancel ( often by marking with crosses )	I finally crossed out the most important line of my love letter.
To cross out	To cancel ( often by marking with crosses )	I finally crossed out the most important line of my love letter.
To cut off	To remove by cutting the ends also to terminate abruptly
To cut off	Tear off, break off, bite off chew off, etc.	Do not cut off the cable.
To cut out	a. to remove by cutting; b. to stop doing something
To cut up	To break up to chop up to chew up, etc.
To do over	To repeat	Can you do your homework over, from no.1 to 5?
To do without	To get along without, to forego
To drive up to / to go up to / to walk up to / to run up to:	To approach
To fall in love	To begin to love	He fell in love with that beautiful girl.
To feel like	To have the desire to	I feel like going out tonight. How about you?
To feel sorry for	To pity, feel compassion for
To figure out	To calculate, To study carefully in order To understand	Nobody can figure out what has caused the disaster.
To fill out	To complete said of blanks, etc.
To find fault with	To criticize	Don’t find fault with others.
To find out	To get information, discover, learn
To get along	To do, succeed, make progress
To get along with	To live or work harmoniously with	She can get along well with her new neighbors.
To get back	To return	My husband got back from Copenhagen last night.
To get better, worse, etc.	To become better, worse etc.
To get in touch with	To communicate with
To get lost;	To lose one’s direction become lost
To get off	To leave , to descend from	I got off the bus and ran to school.
To get on	To enter or to board	Dai always gets on the bus at the station.
To get over	To recover from	I can’t get over the loss of my beloved wife. I cry and I cry and I cry.
To get rid of	To become free of, to escape from	Those salesman are not easy to get rid of.
To get sick, well, tired, wet, busy, etc.	To become sick, well, tired, wet, busy , etc.	Everyone has got busy because of these viruses.
To get through	To finish
To get to	To arrive at a place, home, work, etc.	I couldn’t get to the office on time because I had an accident.
To get up	To arise, To move from a lying, To a standing position
To get used to	To become used or adjusted to
To give up	To surrender, to renounce	One of our competitor gave up after attacking us wildly.
To go around	Be sufficient for everyone
To go around	Be sufficient for everyone
To go off	A. to explode; b. To leave suddenly
To go on	To continue, proceed
To go out	To leave also to cease burning
To go up in smoke	To come to no practical result	My effort to get the highest score in the final exam went up in smoke when I found out that I couldn’t answer more than ten out of forty questions.
To go with	To go out together, to keep company with ( have dates)
To go with	To match, harmonize in color or design
To grow out of	To outgrow , become too large and mature for
To hand in:	To submit or deliver something which is due
To hang up	To place upon a hook or coat hanger, to replace the telephone in its cradle	Don’t hang up the phone! I can give you an explanation!
To have a good time	To enjoy oneself, pass a period of time pleasantly
To have charge of, take charge of	To have or to take management of, to have or take responsibility for, attend to
To have got:	To have, to possess
To have got to do something :	To have to do something, must See note above on use of got with have
To have on	To be wearing	He was robbed by the gang and had just shorts on.
To have one’s way to get one’s own way	To do or obtain what one wishes, especially against opposition or contrary
To have time off, to take time off	To have free time, not to have to work	We have to work for six days a week and have Sundays off.
To hear from	To receive news from	I haven’t heard from my wife since she left for Arab two years ago.
To hear of	To know about, to hear mention of	Have you ever heard of John Lennon?
To hold good:	To remain valid or in force, continue to be good
To hold on	To grasp , hold tightly to something also, to pause
To hold still	To remain quiet with moving
To hold still	To remain quiet with moving
To hold up	A to rob at the point of a gun; b. to delay
To keep an eye on	To watch, guard
To keep house	To do the usual work of running a home cooking cleaning, etc.
To keep in mind to bear in mind	Not to forget remember
To keep in touch with	To continue in communication with; see also to get in touch with, lesson 9, No. 4
To keep on	To continue	We have to keep on walking until we reach the nearest village.
To keep out, off, away from, etc	To stay out, off, away from	“Keep off the grass”
To keep track of	To keep or maintain a record of
To keep up with	To maintain the same speed as
To know by sight	To recognize as a result of having seen someone previously
To leave out	To omit	Please leave my name out of your list.
To let go of	To release
To lie down	To recline, to take a lying position
To look after	To watch, to take care of	I’ll have to look after the house while my parents are away.
To look at	To direct the eyes toward, to watch
To look for	To search for, to seek
To look forward to	To expect, anticipate, usually pleasurably
To look into	To investigate, to examine carefully	The police are looking into his death.
To look out	To be careful or cautious	Look out for the motorcycle turning in your direction.
To look over	To examine	After looking over my application letter, I sent it to the Company.
To look up	To search for a word, a price, etc. especially in a dictionary	Please don’t look up your dictionary before you guess the meaning from its context.
To look up	To search for a word, a price, etc. especially in a dictionary	Please don’t look up your dictionary before you guess the meaning from its context.
To make clear	To explain, to clarify	After making everything clear, I can take her out again.
To make friends	To win or gain friends	He can make friends with everyone very easily. He is friendly.
To make fun of	To laugh at, joke about
To make good	To succeed
To make good time	To travel rapidly at good speed
To make no difference	To be of equal importance
To make sure	To be sure, become sure or certain of
To make the best of	To accept a bad situation cheer fully and to do the best that one can under the circumstances
To make up one’s mind	To decide	Please make up your mind! You want to go with us or not.
To mix up, To be mixed up, to get mixed up	To confuse, to be confused, to become confused	We got mixed up in our directions, took the wrong turning and lost.
To pay attention	To give attention To, place importance upon
To pick out	To choose, to select
To pick up	To take especially with the fingers
To play tricks on / To play jokes on	To make someone the victim of a trick or a joke	They tried to play tricks on the Minister but he was too clever for them.
To point out	To indicate
To put away	To set aside, to return something to its proper place	Put your books away. It’s time for dinner.
To put off	To postpone
To put on	To place on oneself (clothes)	My girlfriend often puts on too much make up on her face.
To put out	To extinguish	Please put out your cigarette here before you enter the room.
To put together:	To assemble
To put up	To construct erect
To put up with	To tolerate
To run away	To leave without notice or permission
To run errands	To act as an errand boy , go to a store to buy thing
To run out of	To exhaust the supply of	We ran out of gas in the middle of the jungle.
To run over	To strike or pass over with a moving vehicle
To see about	To attend to, to take care of	They are going to see about our accommodation.
To see someone off	To go to a plane, a ship, a train in order to say good-bye to someone)	I was so sad to see my boyfriend off at the airport.
To set fire to / to set on fire	To start burning	That crazy man set fire to his own bed.
To shake hands	To exchange greetings with a clasp of the hands	We introduced each other and shook hands.
To show off	To display to excess one’s ability or possessions
To shut off	To stop something which runs, such as water , gas electrical current, etc. similar to turn off
To shut up	To close also to be quiet, stop talking
To sit down	To take a sitting position after standing
To stand to reason	To be clear and logical
To stand up	To rise, to take an upright or standing position after being seated
To take advantage of	To use an opportunity, also to impose upon or to profit at the expense of another person
To take after	To resemble a parent or close relative
To take a look at	To look at	When I took a look at her, she smiled at me beautifully.
To take apart:	To separate the different parts of an object or mechanism
To take a seat	To sit down	Come in and take a seat!
To take a walk	To go for a walk, to promenade	Let’s take a walk. It’s a nice day.
To take believe	To pretend
To take care of	To watch, give attention to
To take charge of	To assume direction or responsibility for; see also to be in charge of, lesson
To take hold of	To grasp
To take into account	To take into consideration	We are going to take into account your proposal for two days.
To take off	To remove ( clothes )	She took off her coat because it’s too hot in the room.
To take one’s time	To work or go leisurely, to avoid hurrying
To take out	To remove, extract	The man took out a gun and shot wildly.
To take part	To participate	Many people are not willing to take part in the General Election.
To take pity on	To pity	My son always takes pity on beggar he sees and he always gives them some money.
To take place	To happen, to occur	The football match took place in Barcelona.
To take someone by surprise:	To surprise, come as unexpected
To take someone for	To mistake a person for someone else
To take something for granted	To accept as true with out investigation
To take something up with	To consult generally with
To take turn	To alternate
To take up	To study , begin a course leading to a career
To talk over	To discuss, to consider
To tear down	To demolish
To tear up	To tear completely into small pieces, to cancel
To tell time	To be able to know the hour by looking at a watch or clock.	My four year old son can tell time.
To tell two things or two persons apart to tell one from the other	To distinguish between
To think of	To have an opinion about	What did you think of the way he played football?
To think over	To consider carefully before making decision	Let me think over your offer. I’ll give you a call tomorrow.
To think up :	To invent, discover, find
To throw away	To discard
To try on	To test, to try before buying clothes	Try these shoes on before you buy them.
To try out	To test, use during a trial period
To turn around	To make a complete turn in order to face in the opposite direction
To turn down	To reduce in speed or volume, to reject	1. Turn down the cd player. It is too loud. 2. She’s turned down my offer many times.
To turn off	To stop, to terminate
To turn on	To start	She opened the door and turned on the light.
To turn out	To become or result, to eject	He turned out to be the best artist in our country.
To wait for	To expect
To wait on/upon	To serve, to attend to-in a store or a shop	The shop assistant waited on me nicely.
To wake up	To awaken
To watch out for	To look out for, guard against
To wear out	To become shabby and useless from wear
Up to date	Timely , modern, brought up to the present time
Used to	indicates an action or habit which continued for some period of time in the past but eventually ended
Would rather	To prefer to

Idioms Exercises

Exercise I

Fill in the blanks with the words/phrases provided to make correct idioms.

a seat, last, fell in love, over, get along, down, turn, after, off, worn, in

Please come in and take …..
Rome …. with Juliet so he would do anything for her.
My eldest brother do not …… well with my sister. They often quarrel about even small things.
The tyre has ………out. You need to replace it.
I’ll think it ……. I’ll let you know as soon as we have agreed on something.
Can you turn the radio ……..? I’m preparing my exam.
Please take …… carrying this heavy bag. So, you’ll have a chance to rest your muscle.
I take ….. my father a lot. Very often, people think that I am my Dad.
Never put …. what you can do today until tomorrow.
At ………. I could do the Math exercises after I struggled for an hour.

Answers

Exercise I

Please come in and take a seat.
Rome fell in love with Juliet so he would do anything for her.
My eldest brother do not get along well with my sister. They often quarrel about even small things.
The tyre has worn out. You need to replace it.
I’ll think it over I’ll let you know as soon as we have agreed on something.
Can you turn the radio down? I’m preparing my exam.
Please take turn carrying this heavy bag. So, you’ll have a chance to rest your muscle.
I take after my father a lot. Very often, people think that I am my Dad.
Never put off what you can do today until tomorrow.
At last I could do the Math exercises after I struggled for an hour.