Idiomatic Expressions

1. What Are Idiomatic Expressions?

Idioms are phrases or expressions where the meaning is not literal but figurative.
- Example: "Kick the bucket" → It means "to die," not to literally kick a bucket.

2. Commonly Used Idioms and Their Meanings

		IdiomMeaningExample in a Sentence
Break the ice	Start a conversation in a social situation.	To break the ice, she told a funny story.
Spill the beans	Reveal a secret.	He accidentally spilled the beans about the surprise party.
Piece of cake	Something very easy to do.	The math quiz was a piece of cake for her.
Hit the nail on the head	Say exactly the right thing.	His analysis hit the nail on the head.
Under the weather	Feeling sick or unwell.	She’s feeling under the weather and won’t come to work.
Burn the midnight oil	Work late into the night.	I burned the midnight oil to finish the project.
Bite off more than you can chew	Take on more responsibility than you can handle.	He bit off more than he could chew with two jobs.
Caught red-handed	Caught in the act of doing something wrong.	He was caught red-handed stealing the money.
Pull someone’s leg	Joke or tease someone.	Are you pulling my leg, or is this real?
Kill two birds with one stone	Accomplish two things with one action.	By studying on the bus, I killed two birds with one stone.

3. Idioms with Nature/Animals

		IdiomMeaningExample in a Sentence
Let the cat out of the bag	Reveal a secret.	She let the cat out of the bag about the wedding.
Raining cats and dogs	Raining heavily.	It’s raining cats and dogs outside!
Cry over spilled milk	Worry about something that cannot be undone.	Don’t cry over spilled milk—just fix the problem.
A fish out of water	Feeling out of place or uncomfortable.	He felt like a fish out of water in his new school.
Eager beaver	Someone who is very enthusiastic or hardworking.	That eager beaver finished the project early.

4. Idioms with Work/Business

		IdiomMeaningExample in a Sentence
Back to the drawing board	Start something over again.	The design failed, so it’s back to the drawing board.
Get the ball rolling	Start something.	Let’s get the ball rolling on the new project.
Think outside the box	Come up with creative ideas.	The solution required thinking outside the box.
By the book	Follow the rules exactly.	The accountant does everything by the book.
Burnout	Physical and mental exhaustion from overwork.	She experienced burnout after working long hours.

5. Idioms with Money

		IdiomMeaningExample in a Sentence
Cost an arm and a leg	Very expensive.	This phone cost me an arm and a leg!
Make ends meet	Manage finances with difficulty.	He works two jobs to make ends meet.
Pay through the nose	Pay too much for something.	She paid through the nose for that designer bag.
On a shoestring budget	With very little money.	They traveled Europe on a shoestring budget.
Money doesn’t grow on trees	Money is limited and must be earned.	I can’t buy you everything—money doesn’t grow on trees!

6. Exam Tips for Idioms

Understand the context in which idioms are used.
Familiarize yourself with common idioms that are likely to appear in exams.
Practice identifying whether idioms fit into sentences logically.
- Incorrect: He spilled the beans and then cleaned them up.
- Correct: He spilled the beans about the secret meeting.