Discover the meanings and fascinating origins behind the quirky expressions that make English such a colorful language.
To endure a painful or unpleasant situation that is unavoidable.
Example Sentence
"I hate going to the dentist, but I just need to bite the bullet and make an appointment."
Etymology (Origin)
Before anesthesia was invented, soldiers were given a bullet to bite down on during surgery to help them endure the pain without screaming.
If you translate these word-for-word, they make no sense. Here's what they actually mean.
🌧️ 🐱 🐕
Raining animals
Raining very heavily.
🪶 ✈️
Flying with feathers
To be very fast or successful.
🦵 💥
Breaking a limb
Good luck (usually in theater).
The phrases you'll hear constantly in movies, TV shows, and conversations.
Something that is very easy to do.
To accidentally reveal a secret.
To join others in doing something fashionable.
To describe exactly what is causing a situation.
Something that happens very rarely.
A good thing that seemed bad at first.
The bizarre historical reasons we say the things we say.
Before cameras, portrait painters charged by the limb. Painting a face was cheap, but painting arms and legs took more time and paint, making it much more expensive.
In 15th century Scotland, a law stated that if someone butchered an animal that didn't belong to him, he had to be caught with the animal's blood on his hands to be convicted.
Pirates would sail under false flags (colors) to get close to enemy ships. Right before attacking, they would hoist their true pirate flag, revealing their real identity.
In Ancient Greece, people voted using white and black beans. If the jar was accidentally knocked over, the beans were spilled, revealing the secret vote prematurely.
Explore our extensive dictionary using different filters and categories.
Take this 50-question quiz to test your vocabulary knowledge.
1. What does it mean to 'burn bridges'?
2. If you are going to 'hit the books,' what are you going to do?
3. In the US, if you 'shoot the breeze', what are you doing?
4. Who is your 'flesh and blood'?
5. If you 'take it with a grain of salt', how do you view something?
6. If you 'stir the pot', what are you doing?
7. What does 'cross my heart' mean?
8. If you do something by 'the sweat of your brow', how do you do it?
9. What does it mean if it is 'raining cats and dogs'?
10. If a business is 'in the red', it is...
11. What does it mean to be 'down in the dumps'?
12. What does 'young blood' bring to a group?
13. What does the British idiom 'Bob's your uncle' mean?
14. If you are 'kept in the dark', what is happening?
15. If you are 'feeling blue,' how are you feeling?
16. If someone is 'under the weather,' how are they feeling?
17. If something 'costs an arm and a leg,' what is true about it?
18. What does 'clean slate' mean?
19. What does the idiom 'bite the bullet' mean?
20. What happens when you 'drop the ball'?
21. What does 'crunch time' refer to?
22. What does it mean to 'march to the beat of a different drummer'?
23. What is the 'green-eyed monster'?
24. If you are 'fighting a losing battle', what are you doing?
25. If you 'jump the gun,' what have you done?
26. What does it mean to 'take the bull by the horns'?
27. What does 'by and large' mean?
28. If someone is 'six feet under', where are they?
29. What does 'fight like cats and dogs' mean?
30. What does the idiom 'bottom line' refer to in business?
31. What does it mean to "read between the lines"?
32. What does the 'red mist' refer to?
33. If something 'costs an arm and a leg', what is it?
34. If a boss says 'wake up and smell the coffee', what is he implying?
35. What does 'the bottom line' refer to in a business context?
36. If you are 'on thin ice', what is your situation?
37. If you are learning by "trial and error," how are you learning?
38. What kind of job does a 'blue-collar' worker typically have?
39. What does it mean to argue 'until you're blue in the face'?
40. What does it mean to 'bury the hatchet'?
41. If there is a 'fat chance' of something, what is the probability?
42. What happens when someone 'screams blue murder'?
43. If you 'play hard to get', what are you doing?
44. If you 'jazz up' something, what do you do?
45. If you 'get along like a house on fire', how is your relationship?
46. What do 'idle hands' supposedly do?
47. What does it mean to have an 'ace in the hole'?
48. What does 'stan' mean in internet slang?
49. What does the idiom 'spill the beans' mean?
50. If you 'go with the flow', what do you do?
Idioms are expressions whose meaning cannot be understood from the literal definitions of the words that make them up. For example, if someone says 'it's raining cats and dogs', they mean it is raining heavily, not that animals are falling from the sky.
Idioms are essential because native English speakers use them constantly in daily conversation, writing, and movies. Learning idioms helps you understand natural English, sound more fluent, and grasp the cultural context of the language.
An idiom is a phrase whose meaning is different from the literal words (e.g., 'spill the beans' means to reveal a secret). A proverb is a short, well-known saying that gives advice or states a universal truth (e.g., 'A penny saved is a penny earned').
The best way to learn idioms is by understanding the context in which they are used rather than just memorizing lists. Reading English books, watching TV shows, and practicing with our idiom quizzes above can make learning them fun and natural.
No, idioms usually cannot be translated word-for-word into other languages because they are culturally specific. Translating them literally often results in nonsense, so it is important to learn their actual figurative meanings.
