99 Idioms

no daylight

between two people/groups/ideas = complete agreement, strong alignment, unity

to catch lightning in a bottle

to achieve something extremely rare, almost impossible to reproduce

to be up the creek

in serious trouble with no easy solution

to go south

to deteriorate quickly, become much worse

to shoot the breeze

to talk casually about unimportant things

to open up clear blue water

a clear and obvious difference between two positions, often political

out of this world

extremely good, impressive, exceptional

sunset clause

a clause that makes a law or agreement automatically expire at a set time

the sky is the limit

there is no limit to what can be achieved

not cricket

unfair, dishonest, unsportsmanlike

a good innings

a long, successful, fulfilling life

out of left field

very surprising, unexpected, unusual

off my own bat

to do something on your own initiative, without being told

step up to the plate

accept responsibility or a challenge; take action when needed

to throw someone a curveball

surprise someone with something difficult or unpleasant

ballpark figure

rough estimate, approximate number

to hit something out of the ballpark

do something extremely well; achieve outstanding success

to move the goalposts

change the rules unfairly while something is in progress

Hail Mary

last‑ditch effort with very little chance of success

to run interference

clear obstacles for someone; help by removing difficulties

to punt

delay or avoid adressing an issue

to play ball

cooperate with someone; agree to work together

to pip something to the post

succeed / defeat someone at the last possible moment

par for the course

not good but normal, expected, not surprising even if unpleasant

up to par

meeting the expected standard; good enough

a chip shot

something very easy to do or achieve

a bellwether

a leader or indicator of trends

like a bat out of hell

very quickly, extremely fast

crickets

total silence; no reaction or response

to bell the cat

to do a daring or risky deed

to set the cat among the pigeons

to say or do something likely to cause trouble or controversy

the cat's whiskers

an excellent person or thing, highly enjoyable

to cry wolf

to give alarm unneccessarily, warn about danger that isn't real

to be loaded for bear

to be prepared for action, to argue

for the birds

worthless, not to be taken seriously

water off a duck's back

having no effect on someone

a red herring

misleading clue, something that distracts from the real issue

a white elephant

a waste of money, useless possession

red tape

excessive bureaucracy that slows things down

a silver bullet

simple solution to a complicated problem

blue sky laws

anti-fraud regulations

to get the pink slip

to lose one's job, to be laid off

no fear

strong refusal, emphatic expression of refusal

show a leg

used to tell someone to get out of bed

way to go

expression of praise: well done

to get 86'd

to get dismissed, ejected, get rid of something/someone

to deep‑six

to get rid off, discard, eliminate

to be at sixes and sevens

to be in a state of total confusion or disaray

a catch‑22

a dilemna or difficult circumstance with no escape

a close shave

a narrow escape

the body politic

the people of a country/area considered as a single organized system

the powers that be

those in control, the authorities

salt-of-the-earth

very good, honest, and reasonable, and not thinking you are special in any way

the nuts and bolts

the practical facts about a particular thing, rather than theories or ideas about it

high‑handed

having or showing no regard for the rights, concerns or feelings of other

aboveboard

free from all traces of deceit or duplicity, openly, in a straightforward manner

underhanded

marked by secrecy and deception, not honest

backhanded

seems pleasant but may really be a criticism, sarcastic

too cute by half

to be too confident of your own intelligence in a way that annoys other people

with bells on

enthusiastically

all bets are off

impossible to say how a particular situation may develop

neither here nor there

unimportant or irrelevant

to go through the motions

to do something that you are expected to do but without any effort or enthusiasm

to up sticks

go to live elsewhere, to move to a different place

taking off

to imitate humorously or satirically

putting in

apply officially for something

to put the skids on

to make something/someone likely to fail

to pull rank

to use the power that your position gives you over someone in order to make them do what you want

to pull out all the stops

to make every possible effort, use all available resources to achieve an end

to throw into relief

to make something more noticeable

to cut to the quick

to deeply hurt someone's feelings

to ruffle feathers

to upset or offend people

to kick something into touch

to halt or stall something (project, plan…)

to push the envelope

to behave in more extreme ways, try new things that haven't been tried before

to ride on

to depend on something or someone

to vouch for

to support the truth of something or the good character of someone, based on your knowledge or experience

to carry a torch

to feel passion, devotion and tenderness

to give chapter and verse

to give exact information about something

to give the slip

to escape from someone following/chasing you

toe‑to‑toe

a close and intense competition, conflict

to get his/her own back

to do something bad to someone who has armed you, as a way of revenge

first refusal

if something is being sold, right to decide wether to buy it or not before it is offered to anyone else

to toe the line

to conform to a rule or standard

to make it second nature

something that is so familiar that it is done without having to think about it

to ride shotgun

to sit in the passenger seat next to the driver, accompany someone in order to assist

to batten down the hatches

to prepare for a difficult situation

to buttonhole

to stop someone and make the person listen to you

honeycombed

to penetrate into every part, decorated with

to be in the vanguard

to be in the most advanced position of development

out of one's depth

in a situation much too difficult to handle

brassed off

annoyed, fed up, bored

to be in the zone

to be in a mental state where you are completely absorbed in a task

to go off the deep end

to lose your temper, to lose control

let out

to come to an end (class, movie, meeting…)

to be doubled up with

to bend over from pain or laughter

to visit with

to spend time talking with someone in a casual way

to up the ante

to increase demands or risks to get a better result

to come at someone

to move towards someone aggressively, in a threatening

to look up

to improve, to get better