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Make or Break It: Do You Have What It Takes to Master 60 English Idioms?

Simon Mitchell

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Published in Idiom Attack 2: Key Qualifications ESL Flashcards For Doing Business Vol 6: ~ Make Or Break It Do You Have What It Takes? Master 60+ English Idioms ESL Flashcards For Doing Business 1)

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If you're serious about improving your English, then you need to master idioms. These are phrases that have a figurative meaning that is different from the literal meaning of the words. They can be tricky to learn, but they're essential for sounding like a native speaker.

In this article, we'll introduce you to 60 of the most common English idioms. We'll also provide you with examples of how to use them in conversation.

Idiom Attack 2: Key Qualifications - ESL Flashcards for Doing Business vol. 6: ~ Make or Break it - Do You Have What It Takes?… Master 60+ English Idioms ... ESL Flashcards for Doing Business Book 1)

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What are idioms?

Idioms are phrases that have a figurative meaning that is different from the literal meaning of the words. For example, the idiom "kick the bucket" literally means to kick a bucket, but it figuratively means to die.

Idioms can be tricky to learn because they're not always logical. However, they're essential for sounding like a native speaker. If you want to speak English fluently, then you need to be able to use idioms correctly.

How to learn idioms

There are a few different ways to learn idioms.

Read books and articles in English.
Watch movies and TV shows in English.
Listen to music in English.
Talk to native English speakers.

As you're exposed to idioms, you'll start to pick up on their meanings. You can also look up idioms in a dictionary or online.

60 common English idioms

Here are 60 of the most common English idioms:

Idiom	Meaning	Example
A piece of cake	Something that is easy to do	That test was a piece of cake.
At the drop of a hat	Immediately	I can be there at the drop of a hat.
Back to square one	To start over	We had to go back to square one after the experiment failed.
Beat around the bush	To avoid talking about something directly	Stop beating around the bush and tell me what you're thinking.
Bend over backwards	To make a great effort	I'll bend over backwards to help you.
Bite off more than you can chew	To take on more than you can handle	I bit off more than I could chew when I agreed to do all that work.
Blow hot and cold	To be indecisive	She's been blowing hot and cold about whether or not to go to the party.
Break a leg	To wish someone good luck	Break a leg on your test!
Burn the midnight oil	To stay up late studying or working	I had to burn the midnight oil to finish my paper.
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