Here are Idioms and Phrases, uses of Idioms and Phrases, Examples of Idioms and Phrases, and exercises of Idioms and Phrases for competitive exams.
IDIOMS AND PHRASES
ABC: basic/ fundamental rules
Above board; honest
Against a rainy day: for hard times
All in all: complete master
All and sundry: everyone without distinction
An apple of one’s eye: very dear
An apple of discord: cause of quarrel
An axe to grind: selfish motive to serve
At an arm’s length: at a sufficient distance
At all events: at every cost
At large: free
At close quarters: near
At stake: in danger of being lost
At the top of: very loudly
At a stone’s throw at a short distance
At hand: near
At random: without any aim
Ai a stretch: without break
At sixes and sevens: in disorder
At one’s fingers’ ends: thorough knowledge
At home in: expert
At home to: to give feast
At home: to feel comfortable
At a loss: unable to decide
At daggers drawn: bitter enemies
At logger heads; on hostile terms
At the eleventh hour: at the very last moment
At any rate: in any case
A good many: a considerable number
A black sheep: a mean person
A blockhead: stupid person
A blue book: a government report
A brainwave: a sudden clever idea (P-09)
A bolt from the blue: a sudden calamity
A bosom friend: a fast-friend
A bed of roses: very comfortable
At times: sometimes
A bird’s eye view: a general view
A cock and bull story: a false story
A cry in the wilderness: useless talk
A cat and dog life: a quarrelsome life
A child’s play: an easy work
A feather in one’s cap: a thing of distinction
A Fool’s paradise: false hopes
A fair hand: good hand writing
A fair-weather friend: a friend of prosperous days
A flying visit: a very short visit (P-09)
A good or great deal of: much
A dead letter: no longer in use
A fish out of water: quite uncomfortable
A drop in the ocean: very small amount
A hard nut to crack: a difficult task
A lion’s share: great portion
A man of letters: a literary man
A man in the street: an ordinary man
A rap on the knuckles: severe criticism (P-02)
A red letter day: an important day
A sleeping partner: inactive partner
A thankless job: without any credit
A gala day: a day of merriment or festivity
As a matter of fact: truly speaking
A maiden speech: first public speech
At sea: perplexed
A man of iron will: a man of strong will
Bad blood: ill-will, unfriendliness (P-04)
Be-all and end-all: the whole and soul (P-2000)
By and by: gradually
By the by\way: Ty: incidentally
Bad bargain: bad compromise
Bag and baggage: with all belongings
Bread and butter: livelihood
Birds of the same feather: persons of the same kind.
Blue blood: high birth
Behind the scene: not openly
Burning question: main topic
By dint of: by virtue of, by force of
By fits and starts: irregularly
By all means: surely
By leaps and bounds: very rapidly
By hook or by crook: by any means
Black and white: in writing
By far: to a large degree
By degrees: gradually
By himself alone, without help
Crocodile tears: false tears
Chicken-hearted: cowardly
Castles in the air: imaginary schemes
Cry something out: to continue doing something (P. 13)
Dead as the door nail: quite dead
Dispense with: to get rid of, do away (P-04)
Double dealing: duplicity
Double Dutch: speech or writing that makes no sense (P-05)
Enough and to spare: plenty
End and aim: sole purpose
Eye opener: suggestive warning
Ever and anon: occasionally
Far and near: Everywhere
From hand to mouth: with great difficulty
For good: for ever
Fair and square: just or honest
Face to face: before each other
From time to time: occasionally
From bad to worse: much worse
First water: thorough
Foul play: dishonestly
First and foremost: above all
Flesh and blood: human nature
Gift of the gab: a talent for speaking (P-02)
Golden opportunity: a good chance
Good for nothing: useless
Head and heart: mental and spiritual
Head and tail: meaning
Hard and fast: strict
Hale and hearty: healthy
Heart and soul: with full energy
Heart to heart: intimate
Hand and glove: close friends
Hand in hand: close together (P-04)
High and low: everyone
High hand: dictatorial way (P-05)
High time: proper occasion
Hue and cry: great noise
Hole and corner: a secret policy
Hard times: bad days
Head and ears: completely –
Hush money: bribe given for hiding crime (P-09)
Ins and outs: full details (P-05)
In accordance with: according to (P-04)
In a nutshell: in brief
In fair weather and foul: in happiness and sorrow
In the air: prevalent
In the nick of time: at the right moment
In cold blood: deliberately, cruelly (P-05) –
In lieu of: in place of
In vogue: in fashion –
In the long run in the end
Into the bargain: into the contract
In a fix: to be confused
In the prime of life: in youth
In the teeth of opposition: in the face of great opposition
In full swing: with full force
In spite of despite
In token of: as a sign of
In addition to besides
In the twinkling of an eye: in a moment
In keeping with: suitable to
In hot water: in trouble –
In proportion to: according to (size, quantity, etc.
In the wake of behind
In small hours: between midnight and dawn
In view of: considering
Jack of all trader one who knows something of
Keep quiet: bold tongue (P-03)
Kith and kint near relations
Long and short gist, substance
Lock and key: safe
Loaves and fishes, material gains
Length and breadth all over
Last though not least, last but not less important
Man of letters, a scholar
Narrow escape: close shave
Null and void: useless, ineffective
Nonetheless nevertheless, yet
Out of sorts: unwell
Once for all: forever
Out and out: completely
-On the alert: ready to act (P-2000)
On the wane: gradually decreasing
On the point of near, about to
On and on continuously
Of no avail: useless
Off and on: now and then
Of one’s own accord: willingly
On behalf of: in favour of
On the eve of just before the event
On the look out: looking for
On one’s guard: careful
On the verge of about to
On pain of death at the cost of life
Out of date: out of fashion
Out of question: improbable
Out of order: not working
Out of the way: remote
Out of packet: without money
Over and over again repeatedly
Order of the day: a common occurrence
Pandora’s Bor: a process that once begun creates many complicated problems (P-09)
Penelope’s web: a complicated situation (P-05)
Point blank: at very close range, clear
Petticoat government: female rule
Part and parcel: an essential rule
Pick holes: find faults, criticize (P-03)
Pros and cons: arguments for and against
Rack and ruin: complete ruin
Rank and file: common soldiers/people
Red tapism: delay due to office routine
Royal road: an easy way
Rolling stone: an unsteady person
Roaring trade: a profitable business
Red rag to a bull: a displeasing thing
Sum and substance: main idea
Safe and sound: safely
Slip of tongue: mistake
Silver lining: the ray of hope
Storm in a tea-pot: quarrel for nothing
Skin and bone: skeleton
Screw-loose: derangement of mind (madness)
Tall talk: boasting
Through and through: completely
To and fro: here and there
Time and again: repeatedly
Tooth and nail: with full force
Tit for tut: blow for blow
Tip-top, first class
Ups and downs: rise and fall
Up to the mark: up to the standard:
Under one’s nose: in the presence of
Under the thumb of: under control
Up-to-date: Modern
Ways and means: resources
Weal and woe: happiness and sorrow
Wear and tear: depreciation
With open arms warmly
Well-to-do: rich
Wet behind the ears: inexperienced (P-05)
White elephant: expensive but not useful
Wild goose chase: useless effort
Yeoman’s service: excellent service (P-09)
VERB PHRASES
To add fuel to fire: to make the matter worse
To add insult to injury: to harm as well as insult
To beat black and blue: to beat severely (P-05)
To beat the air: to make useless efforts
To beat a retreat: to go back
To bear in mind: to remember
To bear the palm: to become victorious
To blow hot and cold: to favor and oppose a thing at the same time
To blow one’s own trumpet: to boast
To bell the cat: to do a risky job
To break the ice: to break the silence
To break the news: to carry sad news first
To breathe one’s last: to die
To bring to light: to make known
To bring home: to explain
To build castles in the air: to make imaginary schemes
To bury the hatchet: to forget the past enmity
To burn the candle at both ends: to spend money lavishly
To burn the midnight oil: to work late at night
To be in one’s good books: to get the favor of a person
To be laid up: to be confined to bed
To be caught red-handed to be caught while doing an evil act
To call a spade a spade: to speak clearly
To come across: to meet by chance
To call one name: to abuse
To come true: to become true
To come off with flying colours: to get success
To carry through/to carry out to bring to completion
To call to account: to demand an explanation
To call on: to request
To call upon: to pay a brief visit
To cut a sorry figure: to leave a poor impression
To cry for the moon: to wish for an impossible thing
To cut one’s coat according to one’s cloth: to live within one’s means
To carry coal to Newcastle: to do a useless thing
To cry over spilled milk: to repent
To die in harness: to die while on duty
To do away with: to abolish
To drink to the health of to express good wishes
To end in smoke: to be unsuccessful
To end in a draw: to end without result
To fall flat: to produce no effect
To fight shyness of: to avoid
To fish in troubled waters: to take advantage of others’ difficulties
To follow suit: to act in a like manner
To gain ground: to make progress
To get wind: to be known to the public
To get rid of: to get free of
To get the better of: to gain superiority
To get into hot water: to fall into difficulties
То get off scot-free: to escape without punishment
To give oneself airs: to feel superior
To give up the ghost: to die
To give false coloring: to misrepresent
To go to the dogs: to be ruined grease the palm: to bribe
To harp on the same string: to repeat the same topic
To have an edge on: to be slightly better than
To have clean hands: to be innocent
To hit below the belt: to strike unfairly
To hold good: to apply to
To hold water to be correct
To hold fast: to secure firmly
To hold one’s tongue: to keep quiet
To keep an eye: to watch
To keep body and soul together: to maintain life
To keep pace with: to walk at the same speed
To keep up appearances to maintain an outward show
To kill two birds with one stone: to get two objects in one effort
To keep the wolf from the door to avoid poverty
To laugh in one’s sleeves: to laugh inwardly
To leave no stone unturned: to make all possible efforts
To lick the dust: to be badly defeated
To leave in the lurch: to leave a person in difficulty
To let bygones be bygones: to forget the past
To leap in the dark: to take a risk deliberately
To lose heart: to give up courage
To look sharp: to look smart
To lead a dog’s life: to have a miserable life
To make up or make good: to compensate, to cover loss
To make both ends meet: to earn one’s living with difficulty (P-04)
To make a clean breast: to confess
To make amends for: to make compensation
To make the most of: to utilize to the full
To make a mountain of a molehill: to attach undue importance to the matter
To meet one’s Waterloo: to meet one’s final defeat (P-09)
To move heaven and earth: to make a great effort
To nip in the bud: to destroy in the very beginning
To play a double game: to deceive
To play a second fiddle: to play a subordinate role
To play truant: to absent oneself from school or other duty
To pour oil on troubled waters: to pacify the anger
To poison one’s ears: to say things secretly against someone
To put one’s shoulders to the wheel: to work earnestly
To put the cart before the horse: to reverse the natural order of things
To put up with: to bear/tolerate
To put an end to: to stop
Putting two and two together: drawing a conclusion from the given data
To pocket an insult: to bear an insult without opposing
To poke one’s nose: to interfere
To play ducks and drakes: to waste money
To rain cats and dogs: to rain heavily
To rise to the occasion: to act as the occasion demands
To run short: to be insufficient
To shell a rat: to suspect a trick
To split hair: to indulge in over-refined arguments
To stand in good stead: to be helpful in need
To strike a terror: to frighten
To take to task: to scold, rebuke
To take to one’s heels: to run away
To talk big: to boast, brag of
To take to heart: to take seriously
To throw cold water: to discourage
To throw down the gauntlet: to challenge
To turn over a new leaf; to be completely changed
To turn the tables: to reverse the condition
To turn a deaf ear: to pay no attention
To wash one’s hands of: not to do anything with
To win laurels: to win distinction