Glossary of Idioms

Over the hill – getting too old

Pain in the neck, a – something or someone that annoys or bothers a person

Pan out, to – to succeed, to have a good result

Peach, a – a very nice person

Peanuts – a very small amount of money

Piece of cake, a – something that is very easy to do

Pigheaded – not taking advice, stubborn

Pitter-patter – sound of quick, light taps, like the sound of rain or children’s feet

Potluck – a meal in which everybody brings a food to eat

Pull someone’s leg, to – to joke, to kid or trick someone

Put one’s cards on the table, to – not to hide anything, to explain the situation fully and honestly

Put two and two together, to – to finally understand something, to come to a conclusion

Quite a few – many

Rain cats and dogs, to – to rain very hard

Real McCoy, the – a true example of something

Red carpet, the – special honors for a special or important person

Red tape – complicated official procedures and forms

Right and left – in large numbers, from every side

Right off the bat – immediately, without delay

Run in the family, to – to be characterized by something common to many members of a family

Safe and sound – with no damage or injury

Save something for a rainy day, to – to prepare for trouble, usually by saving money

Second nature – easy and natural to someone

Second to none – the very best

See eye to eye, to – to agree completely

Shake a leg, to – to hurry up, move faster

Sick and tired – very annoyed, very tired of doing something

Sink or swim – fail or succeed, no matter what

Six of one, half a dozen of the other – no difference, either choice okay

Sixth sense – a special feeling for something, or a special understanding of things

Smart aleck, a – someone who acts as if he or she knows everything and is often rude about it

Smell a rat, to – to think there may be something wrong

Snowed under – having a lot of work to do

Soap opera – a drama on TV or radio that continues over time and in which the characters have many problems

Song and dance, a – a long explanation, a long excuse that is often not true

Sooner or later- eventually, after some time

Spick-and-span – very clean

Sponge off, to – to take money or hospitality and never pay anything back

Stuffed shirt, a – someone who lives by the rules and is very formal

Take it easy – calm down, relax, and don’t worry

Take one’s time, to – not to hurry

Take pains, to – to take a lot of trouble to do something

Take steps, to – to do something

Take turns, to – first you do it, then someone else does it, then you, then the other person, and so on

Talk turkey, to – to talk openly and directly

Through the grapevine – from what one person said to another, by rumor

Throw in the towel, to – to accept defeat or loss

Tied to someone’s apron strings – always following a stronger person

Time is right, the – it is a good time to do something

Tip of the iceberg, the – small part of a larger problem

Top-top – best

Tom, Dick, or Harry- nobody special, just any person

Topsy-turvy – not organized, messy

Turn over a new leaf, to – to start over again, to start a new and better life

Under the table – secretly, usually doing something against the law

Under the weather – sick

Up a tree – in a difficult situation from which you cannot find a way out

Up the creek – in trouble

Wear and tear – damage that happens as something gets old and used

Weather the storm, to – to wait and be patient until things get better

Wet blanket, a – a person who doesn’t enjoy things and keeps others from enjoying them

Wheeler-dealer, a – a person who is always making business deals and trying to get the best deal

White lie, a – something that is not true but that causes no harm

Win by a landslide, to – to get almost all of the votes

Wise guy, a – someone who acts as if he or she knows everything and is often rude about it

Wishy-washy – undecided, weak, not definite and clear

Work like a dog, to – to work very hard