Every language has its expressions and idiom that are usually not understandable with the help of their literal meaning. you might have heard a lot of idioms while watching TV, listening to podcasts, or even while enjoying English songs. And you might have always wondered what they mean because directly translating each word of the idiom does not always give any clear meaning. Therefore, if you too want to understand and speak English like native speakers, we recommend you to learn and try to master common idioms.
What is an Idiom?
The idiom is a type of figurative language which are not always taken literally. Idioms are used to express special meanings as the literal meaning of individual words in an idiom are taken. Thus, an idiom is an expression, phrase, or saying whose meaning can not be understood from the meaning of the individual words.
Common English Idioms Used in Daily Conversation
60 Most Common English Idioms Native Speakers Use Daily
English idioms are very common in daily life conversations. So, if you want to sound like a native speaker, here are the 50 most common English idioms and expressions for you to learn and enrich your vocabulary skills and sound more like a native speaker.
- A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush
Used to say that what you have is more valuable than what you might get in the future - A dime dozen
Something very common - A blessing in disguise
Something which seemed bad in the beginning but later turned out to be good - Adding insult to injury
To make a bad situation worse - A penny for your thoughts
Used to ask someone about what they are thinking - Best of both worlds
A situation in which one can enjoy the advantages of two very different things at the same time - Beat around the bush
To discuss a matter without coming to the point - Beating a dead horse
To give time and energy to something that is already over - Bite the bullet
To get done an unpleasant work that you have been postponing - Biting off more than you can chew
To commit to something that one can not fulfill - Break a leg
Used to say good luck - Big cheese
Used to indicate someone who is in charge of something - Cutting corners
To take risks to save time and money - Caught between a rock and a hard place
To choose between two unpleasant and difficult choices - Call it a day
To decide or agree to stop working on something - Cut somebody some slack
To not judge or criticize someone severely because they have a bad day - Don’t judge a book by its cover
To not judge someone or something by how they look - Do something at the drop of a hat
To do something without any delay - Devil’s advocate
Someone who expresses a controversial opinion to provoke debate - Don’t count your chickens before they hatch
Not to count on something - Easy does it
Used to advise someone to do something carefully and slowly - Egg someone on
To encourage someone to do something they should not be doing - Getting a taste of your own medicine
Being treated the way you have been treating others - Get something out of your system
To get out of your anxiety by doing something pleasant - Give someone the benefit of the doubt
To decide to trust someone even if you are not sure - Get your act together
To either work better or leave - Get out of hand
To get out of control - Go back to the drawing board
To start over - Hit the sack
To go to sleep or rest - Hang in there
To not give up - Hit the nail on the head
To find the exactly correct answer - Hard nut to crack
Used to indicate that someone or something difficult to figure out or understand - In a nutshell
Used to sum things up or conclude - It’s not rocket science
It is not complicated - It takes two to tango
Used to say that one person is not solely responsible for something - It’s always darkest before the dawn
Used to say that things always get worse before they get any better - Let someone off the hook
To stop holding someone responsible for something - Like riding a bike
Used to indicate something that you never forget how to do - make matters worse
To make a situation worse - Miss the boat
Used to say that it is too late for something - To make a long story short
To tell something briefly - No pain, no gain
Used to say that one needs to work harder or suffer to get success - Once in a blue moon
Something which does not happen very often - On the ball
Alert to new trends, ideas, and methods - Pull someone’s leg
To joke with someone - Speak of the devil
Used when the person you have been talking about arrives - So far so good
Used when things are doing well - Spill the beans
To reveal a secret - Straight from the horse’s mouth
Either hearing or reading something straight from the source - Time flies when you are having fun
Used when you are enjoying something, time seems to pass more quickly - Time is money
Using time efficiently - The whole nine yards
Used to indicate everything that is possible or available - The last straw
The last act that you take which makes the whole situation more bearable - Through thick and thin
Used to indicate that every person goes through difficult times - To get bent out of shape
To get worried or upset - Under the weather
Sick or unwell - We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it
To not worry about a possible problem that has yet not happened - Wrap your head around something
To understand a complicated thing - Your guess is as good as mine
Used to that you have no idea about something - You can say that again
Used to indicate that something is true and you agree with it
Most Used English Sentences And Phrases in Daily Life
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