letSpeak Up!: Expert-Level Idioms

Expert-Level Idioms

1. Bite the bullet – To endure a painful or difficult situation bravely

I didn’t want surgery, but I had to bite the bullet.
She didn’t like public speaking, but she bit the bullet and presented her report.
It’s time to bite the bullet and face the consequences.

2. Break the mold – To do something in a unique or different way

He broke the mold by creating a new business model.
She refuses to follow tradition and always breaks the mold.
Their new product completely breaks the mold in the industry.

3. Burn bridges – To damage relationships beyond repair

Be careful with your words; you don’t want to burn bridges.
After quitting his job angrily, he burned all his bridges with the company.
She regrets burning bridges with her former colleagues.

4. Cast the first stone – To be the first to criticize someone

No one is perfect, so don’t cast the first stone.
He cast the first stone, but he was just as guilty.
Before you judge, remember not to cast the first stone.

5. Come out swinging – To be aggressive in defending yourself or your position

The lawyer came out swinging in the courtroom.
She came out swinging during the debate.
If they attack us, we’ll come out swinging.

6. Cut to the chase – To get straight to the point

We don’t have time, so let’s cut to the chase.
He’s impatient and prefers people to cut to the chase.
I’ll cut to the chase—we need your help.

7. Dodge a bullet – To narrowly escape a difficult or dangerous situation

We almost invested in that failing company, but we dodged a bullet.
She dodged a bullet when she canceled her flight before the storm.
They dodged a bullet by avoiding that risky deal.

8. Eat crow – To admit being wrong in a humiliating way

After losing the bet, he had to eat crow.
She laughed at my idea, but now she’s eating crow.
If this fails, we’ll have to eat crow and apologize.

9. Feather in one’s cap – An achievement to be proud of

Winning the award was a feather in his cap.
Her promotion is another feather in her cap.
Finishing the marathon was a feather in his cap.

10. Fly off the handle – To lose temper suddenly

He flew off the handle over a small mistake.
She tends to fly off the handle when stressed.
Don’t fly off the handle—stay calm.

11. Give someone the slip – To escape from someone

The thief gave the police the slip and disappeared.
She gave him the slip and avoided the conversation.
He tried to follow me, but I gave him the slip.

12. Go against the grain – To do something different from the norm

His ideas go against the grain of tradition.
She likes to go against the grain and challenge expectations.
Sometimes, success comes from going against the grain.

13. Go down in flames – To fail spectacularly

Their plan went down in flames when funding was cut.
The company went down in flames due to mismanagement.
His speech went down in flames after a major mistake.

14. Hit below the belt – To act unfairly or cruelly

That insult was personal—it was hitting below the belt.
She hit below the belt with that comment.
Argue fairly; don’t hit below the belt.

15. Jump on the bandwagon – To follow a popular trend

Everyone’s investing in crypto now, but I won’t jump on the bandwagon.
He only supports the team when they win—he jumps on the bandwagon.
She jumped on the bandwagon when yoga became trendy.

16. Keep one’s nose to the grindstone – To work hard continuously

He kept his nose to the grindstone and earned his promotion.
She has her nose to the grindstone studying for exams.
If you keep your nose to the grindstone, you’ll succeed.

17. Leave no stone unturned – To search or try everything

The police left no stone unturned in the investigation.
She left no stone unturned in her job hunt.
We’ll leave no stone unturned to find a solution.

18. Make waves – To cause trouble or attract attention

His bold speech made waves in the industry.
She doesn’t like to make waves, so she stays quiet.
The new policy made waves among employees.

19. Off the beaten path – Uncommon or not mainstream

We love traveling off the beaten path to explore hidden gems.
His ideas are off the beaten path, but they work.
The small café is off the beaten path, but worth the visit.

20. Pull out all the stops – To do everything possible to succeed

We pulled out all the stops to make the event a success.
She pulled out all the stops for her wedding.
They pulled out all the stops to win the championship.

21. Read the riot act – To give a strong warning

The coach read the riot act to the lazy players.
He read the riot act when his employees missed deadlines.
The teacher read the riot act after the noisy class.

22. See the writing on the wall – To notice warning signs of failure

They ignored the signs, but I saw the writing on the wall.
She saw the writing on the wall and quit before the layoffs.
If you pay attention, you can see the writing on the wall.

23. The ball is in your court – It’s your turn to decide or act

I’ve done my part. Now the ball is in your court.
She apologized, so the ball is in his court to forgive her.
If you want change, the ball is in your court.

24. Throw caution to the wind – To take a risk

She threw caution to the wind and quit her job.
He threw caution to the wind and invested everything.
Sometimes, you need to throw caution to the wind and follow your dreams.

25. Up in arms – Very angry or upset

The workers are up in arms over the new policy.
Fans were up in arms after the bad referee decision.
She was up in arms about the unfair grade.

26. Walk on eggshells – To be very careful not to upset someone

Ever since their argument, I’ve had to walk on eggshells around her.
He was walking on eggshells at work, afraid of making mistakes.
I don’t want to walk on eggshells in my own house.

27. Raise the bar – To set higher standards

The new smartphone has raised the bar in technology.
Her performance raised the bar for the rest of the team.
If we want to compete, we need to raise the bar.

28. Spill the beans – To reveal a secret

She accidentally spilled the beans about the surprise party.
Don’t spill the beans before the announcement!
He’s terrible at keeping secrets—he always spills the beans.

29. Go cold turkey – To suddenly quit a bad habit

He went cold turkey on smoking last year.
She decided to go cold turkey and stop drinking coffee.
It’s hard to go cold turkey, but sometimes it’s necessary.

30. Sweep under the rug – To ignore or hide a problem

You can’t just sweep your mistakes under the rug forever.
They tried to sweep the scandal under the rug, but the truth came out.
Instead of sweeping problems under the rug, address them directly.

31. Hit the nail on the head – To describe something accurately

His explanation hit the nail on the head.
You hit the nail on the head—that’s exactly the issue.
She hit the nail on the head with her analysis.

32. Stick to one’s guns – To maintain one’s position firmly

Despite criticism, she stuck to her guns.
He stuck to his guns and refused to lower his prices.
Sometimes, you need to stick to your guns even when others disagree.

33. A bitter pill to swallow – A hard truth to accept

Losing the competition was a bitter pill to swallow.
It’s a bitter pill to swallow, but you need to hear it.
Finding out he wasn’t promoted was a bitter pill to swallow.

34. Twist someone’s arm – To convince someone to do something

I didn’t want to go, but they twisted my arm.
She had to twist his arm to make him apologize.
He finally agreed after I twisted his arm a little.

35. Let the cat out of the bag – To accidentally reveal a secret

He let the cat out of the bag about the wedding proposal.
She didn’t mean to let the cat out of the bag, but she did.
Be careful not to let the cat out of the bag before the big reveal.

36. Play devil’s advocate – To argue against something for the sake of debate

She loves to play devil’s advocate in discussions.
I’m not against your idea—I’m just playing devil’s advocate.
He enjoys playing devil’s advocate to test people’s arguments.

37. Hit the ground running – To start something with energy and enthusiasm

The new manager hit the ground running on his first day.
We need to hit the ground running on this project.
She hit the ground running in her new job and impressed everyone.

38. Keep someone on their toes – To make someone stay alert

The boss likes to keep us on our toes with unexpected tasks.
Parenting toddlers really keeps you on your toes.
His unpredictable behavior keeps everyone on their toes.

39. Throw in the towel – To give up

After years of struggle, he finally threw in the towel.
She refused to throw in the towel, even when things got tough.
They almost threw in the towel, but then things turned around.

40. Bite off more than one can chew – To take on too much

I bit off more than I could chew with all these assignments.
He bit off more than he could chew by promising too much.
Don’t bite off more than you can chew—it’s okay to ask for help.

41. Jump through hoops – To go through great effort or difficulty

He had to jump through hoops to get the permit.
They made me jump through hoops before approving my loan.
She’s willing to jump through hoops for her dream job.

42. Leave someone in the lurch – To abandon someone in difficulty

He left me in the lurch when I needed him the most.
The company left its employees in the lurch with no severance pay.
Don’t leave your friends in the lurch when they need help.

43. Not one’s cup of tea – Something one doesn’t like or prefer

Horror movies are not my cup of tea.
She tried tennis, but it wasn’t her cup of tea.
That job isn’t his cup of tea—he prefers creative work.

44. Put all one’s eggs in one basket – To risk everything on one plan

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket—diversify your investments.
She put all her eggs in one basket and applied to only one college.
It’s risky to put all your eggs in one basket.

45. Take something with a grain of salt – To be skeptical about something

You should take his promises with a grain of salt.
The news sounded exaggerated, so I took it with a grain of salt.
She’s known for gossiping, so take what she says with a grain of salt.

46. The last straw – The final problem that makes a situation unbearable

His rude comment was the last straw for her.
Losing his job was the last straw—he decided to move abroad.
Her constant lateness was the last straw, so he ended the friendship.

47. Think outside the box – To think creatively

To solve this problem, we need to think outside the box.
She always thinks outside the box, which makes her a great designer.
The company encourages employees to think outside the box.

48. Throw someone under the bus – To betray someone for personal gain

He threw his colleague under the bus to save himself.
She threw me under the bus when the boss got angry.
They blamed me to protect themselves—totally threw me under the bus.

49. Water under the bridge – A past problem that is no longer important

Our fight was years ago—it’s water under the bridge now.
They had disagreements before, but it’s water under the bridge.
He apologized, so it’s water under the bridge.

50. Wear one’s heart on one’s sleeve – To show emotions openly

She wears her heart on her sleeve, so you always know how she feels.
He doesn’t hide his emotions—he wears his heart on his sleeve.
Some people prefer not to wear their heart on their sleeve.