[ English For WBCS, SSC, Rail ] 160 Most Important Idioms and Phrases

160 Most Important Idioms and Phrases are discussed here. Idioms and Phrases are an important part of most of the government exam. It is also important to write English well. It was not so hard and very interesting. I hope you would like it.

1. To turn over a new leaf: To change old habits and adopt new ones.
2. To keep one’s head: To keep calm
3. To cross swords ( তরবারি): To fight
4. A snake in the grass: Unrecognisable danger
5. To talk through one's hat: To talk nonsense (Not using one’s head to think)
6. To smell a rat: To suspect a trick or deceit.
7. Harp (বীণা বাজান) on: To keep on talking
8. To spill the beans: To reveal secret information (মটরশুটি ঝরা/খোসা ছাড়ানো)
9. To throw down the glove: To give a challenge
10. To be rolling in money: To be very rich
11. To throw dust in one's eyes: To deceive
12. To get into hot waters: To get into trouble
13. To wash one's dirty linen in public: To discuss dirty and scandalous matters of personal nature in the presence of strangers
14. To be at daggers drawn: To be the bitter enemy
15. To hit below the belt: To harm unfairly
16. To read between the lines: To grasp the hidden meaning
17. Hush money: Bribe paid to secure silence
18. To accept the Gauntlet: To accept a challenge
19. French leave: Absence without permission
20. To hit the jackpot: To make money unexpectedly
21. All and sundry: Everyone without distinction
22. To keep the ball roiling: To keep the conversation going
23. To pull one's socks up: To try hard
24. A red letter day: An important day
25. To push somebody to the wall: To defeat him
26. Spick and span: Natural and clean
27. To hit the nail on the head: To touch the exact point.
28. To show the white feather: To show signs of cowardice
29. The pros and cons: For and against of a thing
30. By fair means or foul: In any way, honest or dishonest
31. To break the ice: To start a conversation/ To say or do something that makes people feel more relaxed, especially at.
32. At one's beck and call: To be always at one's service
33. A fool's errand: A useless undertaking
34. To pour oil in troubled water: To calm a quarrel with soothing Words
35. To pull one's leg: To befool someone
36. To be the power behind the throne: To have real control and power
37. To have second thoughts: To reconsider one's decision, To consider changing a decision you have already made
38. To create bad blood: To create ill - feeling
39. To burn one's fingers: To suffer
40. To grease one's palm: To bribe someone
41. To take one to task: To 'reprimand someone
42. To be caught red-handed: To be caught in the act of committing a crime
43. At the eleventh hour: At the last minute
44. In a nutshell: In a simple and brief manner
45. To end in smoke: To come to nothing (Failure)
46. To die in harness: To die while still working
47. To be over head and ears: Completely
48. To take the rough with the smooth things: To accept unpleasant as well as pleasant
49. To make a mountain of a molehill (ঢিবি): To give great importance to trifles
50. To keep one's nose clean: To keep out of trouble
51. To have too many irons in the fire simultaneously: To be engaged in too many enterprises
52. To face the music: To face reprimand/consequences
53. To be at stake: In danger
54. To pay lip-service: To show only outward respect
55. To eat a humble pie: To apologize humbly
56. A wild goose chase: Futile search
57. By leaps and bounds: Rapidly
58. To end in fiasco: Complete failure
59. The gift of the gab: A talent for speaking
60. To sail close to the wind: To take a risk
61. Oily tongue: Flattery
62. To call a spade a spade: To be outspoken in language
63. To be at loggerheads: To differ strongly
64. To turn the corner: To pass the crisis.
65. To fish in troubled water: To take advantage of troubled condition for personal profit
66. To fight tooth and nail: To fight with strength and fury
67. To put one's foot down: Not to yield
1. Adopt a firm policy when faced with opposition or disobedience.
2. Accelerate a motor vehicle by pressing the accelerator pedal.
68. To paint the town red: To have a lively time/ Go out and enjoy oneself flamboyantly.
69. To rule the roost: To domineer (শাসন করা), Be in complete control.
70. To keep one's fingers crossed: To wait expectantly
71. In black and white: In written form
72. To make hay while the sun shines situation: To make the best use of a favorable
73. Yeoman service: Free, generous help
74. To lay down arms: To surrender
75. To make both ends meet: To earn enough
76. To bell the cat: To take lead in danger
77. To be as good as one's word: To be ready to fulfill one's promise
78. To set the Thames on fire: To do a heroic deed
79. To run into rough weather: To encounter difficulties
80. Hard and fast rule: Rule that cannot be broken or modified
81. To leave one in the lurch: To leave one when he is in need of help
82. Herculean task: Work requiring great effort
83. To cut both ends: To argue in support of both sides of the issue
84. To bear in mind: To remember
85. To be born with a silver spoon in the mouth: To be born in a wealthy family
86. To have a finger in every pie: To meddle in every affair
87. To bury the hatchet: To end rivalry and make peace
88. To leave no stone unturned: To use all available means / make all possible efforts
89. To win hands down: To win easily
90. To be a great hand at one: To be an expert at something
91. To plough a lonely furrow: To do without the help of others.
92. To get hold of the wrong end of the stick: To misjudge a situation
93. A bolt from the blue: A sudden shock
94. To keep the pot boiling: To keep the controversy alive
95. To burn the candle at both ends: To overtax one's energies
96. To draw the long bone: To exaggerate
• Exaggerate: Represent (something) as being larger, greater, better, or worse than it really is.
97. To keep a good table: To entertain guests sumptuously
98. To put one's cards on the table: To conceal nothing
99. To let the bygones be bygones: To ignore the past
100. To lead one up the garden path: To deceive someone
101. To pay off old scores: To have one's revenge
102. To put heads together: To consult together.
103. A hard nut to crack: A difficult problem to solve
104. Helter Skelter: In a state of disorder
105. By the sweat of one's brow: By hard labor
106. By hook or crook: By any means
107. A man of spirit: A courageous man
108. A man of letters: A scholar
109. Null and void: Invalid
110. To throw in the towel: To admit defeat
111. Put your best foot forward: Give your best.
112. Curiosity killed the cat: Being inquisitive about other people matters may get you into trouble.
113. Cost (somebody) an arm and a leg: To be very expensive.
114. Pull a rabbit out of your hat: To do something surprising.
115. To tie the knot: To get married someone.
116. Achilles’ heel: Weakness or vulnerability.
117. Bite of more than you can chew: To take on a task bigger than your capacity.
118. Feeling blue: To feel very sad.
119. Fit of the blues: Depression
120. Getting into a row: Providing or giving unnecessary advice.
121. Lose your head:  be embarrassed.
122. Egg somebody on:  To encourage somebody to do something.
123. Not fit to hold a candle:  Someone is not as good as somebody.
124. Casting pearls before swine:  To give or offer valuable things to people who do not understand their value.
125. Look into something:  To examine something.
126. Fish in troubled waters:  Make a profit out of a disturbance
127. To play second fiddle:  to be treated as less important than somebody or something to have a less important position than somebody or something else.
128. Out of my wits:  To make someone very frightened or confused / greatly confused.
129. Jumping down my throat:  To react very angrily to somebody
130. For good / for good and all:  Permanently.
131. Cut the Gordian knot:  Solve a very complex problem in a simple way to remove the difficulty / to solve a problem boldly and decisively.
132. A leap in the dark:  something you do without being certain what will happen as a result.
133. A fish out of water:  a person who feels uncomfortable or awkward because he or she is in surroundings that are not familiar
134. Let the grass grow under their feet:  To waste time by delaying doing something / To do nothing
135. A live wire:  A person who is lively and full of energy
136. Cool his heels:  To have to wait for somebody or something.
137. Wet (his/your/one's) whistle:  To have a drink, take a drink.
138. Through thick and thin:  Even when there are problems or difficulties.
139. Let sleeping dogs lie:  To avoid mentioning a subject or something that happened in the past, in order to avoid any problems or arguments.
140. Look a gift horse in the mouth:  To refuse or criticize something that is given to you for nothing.
141. A cakewalk:  Something that is extremely easy to do.
142. Back to square one:  Back to the beginning.
143. Apple pie order:  Very well organized
144. A closed book:  A mystery.
145. In a month of Sundays:  Used to emphasize that something will never happen.
146. An axe to grind:  To have private reasons for being involved in something or for arguing for a particular cause.
147. Fight shy of something:  Unwilling to accept something or do something and try to avoid it / To attempt to avoid a thing or a person.
148. To cut a sorry figure (in my stomach):  To be ashamed / to create a bad impression.
149. Work against time/clock:  To work very fast because you know you only have a limited period of time to do something.
150. In high dudgeon:  In an angry or offended mood and showing other people that you are angry.
151. By the skin of teeth:  If you do something by the skin of your teeth, you only just manage to do it.
152. To go the whole hog:  To do something thoroughly or completely.
153. Feel the pulse:  To try to know someone's views.
154. Take to task: To criticize somebody strongly for something they have done.
155. Ruled the roost:  To be the most powerful member of a group.
156. Cock-sure:  very sure and certain.
157. Have a brush with something:  to have encountered.
158. Fall flat:  To have no effect / fail to amuse somebody.
159. Cheek by jowl:  Close together very close to somebody or something/side by side.
160. Pull all the stops out:  To make every effort to achieve something.

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