IDIOMS MEANING EXAMPLE

“ So you think they’ll will get married

1 be on the cards be likely to happen
next year? ” “I think it’s on the cards.”

the person who someone loves most and His youngest daughter was the apple of
2 the apple of sb’s eye
is very proud of: bảo bối của ai his eyes.

3 turn sb’s head

a person who has done sth bad that

4 black sheep brings embarrassment or shame to his or He’s the black sheep of the family.
her family: phá gia chi tử

think/speak highly of sb to admire or say admiring things about He’s very highly thought of within the
5
≠ express disapproval of sb sb: đánh giá cao ai đó company.

We can’t do anything that will lend

give/lend color to sth =
6 provide evidence for ≠ give no proof of color to our opponents’t allegations
illustrate
about us.

 not operating because it is

broken I’m afraid we have to walk up the
out of order stairs- the elevator is out of order.
7  if sth someone says or does is out
≠ functioning well of order, it is unpleasant His behaviour in the meeting was out of
or not suitable and it order.
is likely to upset or offend people

not healthy or fit He was overweight and out of the

8 out of the condition
không vừa ( về cơ thể) condition.

not informed or not having the same

ideas as most people about sth, so that A few of the older teachers are
9 out of touch you make mistakes completely out of touch with their
students.
mất liên lạc với ai, không có tin tức về

The class ends at 2, and leaving before

out of the question then is out of the question.
10 không thể được, điều không thể
=impossible

You will be notified by email if any

11 out of stock hết hàng
part of your order is out of stock.

(not) having had a lot of practice recenty I haven’t playes the piano for months.
12 be in/out of practice
không/có thời gian để luyện tập I’m very out of practice.

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13 out of work=unemployed having no emplyment: thất nghiệp He’s been out of work for two months.

14 out of date hết hạn This coat is out of date.

= out of fashion
=outmoded/obsolete/outdated not fashionable Long skirsts are out of fashion at
15 /
lỗi thời, lạc hậu present.
old-fashioned

I sat on my head and it’s rather out of

16 out of shape unhealthy and stressed ≠ physically fit
shape.

17 out of season trái mùa Oysters are currently out of season.

The brakes failed and the car went out

18 out of control = out of hand ngoài tầm kiểm soát
of control.

Place the cookies out of reach, or the

19 out of reach ngoài tầm với
children will eat them all.

I’m out of breath after climbing all

20 out of breath = breathless hết hơi, thở dốc
these stairs.

out of the blue = He arrived out of the blue, without

21 hoàn toàn bất ngờ
suddenly=unexpectedly calling first.

drive sb to the edge He drives me to the edge because he

22 làm ai đó tức điên, phát cáu
= irritate sb never stop talking.

embarrassed or angry about sth= get When I suggested he was mistaken he

23 get hot under the collar
emotional≠remain clam got rather hot under the collar.

Stop whining. You’re getting on my

24 get on sb’s nerves disturb/annoy
nerves.

get nervous≠ stay confident I was going to try bungee jumping, but
25 get/have cold feet
mất hết can đảm, chùn bước I got cold feet.

When I hear stories of cruelty to

26 make sb’s blood boil làm ai sôi máu, giận dữ
animals, it makes my blood boil.

Dad will hit the roof when he finds out

27 hit the roof= hit the ceiling suddenly become angry
I dented the car.

He’s extremely irritable- he flies off the

28 fly off the handle dễ nổi giận, phát cáu
handle at the slightest thing.

29 play sth by ear = improvise don’t plan beforehand ≠ plan well He didn’t need sheet music. He could
advance play the piece by ear.

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 tùy cơ ứng biến

accept criticism or pusishment for sth If she lied to me, then she’ll just have
30 face the music
you have done to face the music.

Many small companies are tightening

spend less money= cut one’s
31 tighten one’s belt their belts because of the slow
expenditure=live more frugally
economy.

let the cat out of the bag I was trying to keep the party a secret,
32 =disclose/revise /reveal tiết lộ bí mật but John went and let the cat out of the
≠conceal the plan bag.

33 get/have a big mouth tiết lộ bí mật He has a big mouth.

behave in a way that other people should You should be setting a good example
34 set an example to/ for sb
copy: noi gương theo ai to your younger brothers.

35 rain cats and dogs heavy rain:mưa như trút nước It rains cats and dogs.

Don’t tell me it’s impossible. Where

where there’s a will, there’s a
36 có chí thì nên there’s a will, there’s a way. And we’re
way
going to find that way.

chalk and chese = My brother and I are like chalk and

37 khác biệt hoàn toàn
apples and oranges chese.

Management often turn a blind eye to

38 turn a blind eye to sth pretend not to see or notice sth
bullying in the workplace.

get nowhere(fast)= make no He was trying to persuade her to let

39 progress= have no success= không đi đến đâu cả him drive, but he was getting nowhere
come to nothing fast.

I’m getting a bit tired now- let’s call it

40 call it a day= relax stop working
a day.

a small, noticeable part of a problem, the

These small local protests are just the
41 the tip of the iceberg total size of which is really much
tip of the iceberg.
greater.

try very hard to think of or remember I’ve been racking my brain all day
42 rack one’s brain sth trying
vắt óc cố nhớ về cái gì To remember her name.

continue to concentrate on sth I tried to keep my mind on my work,

43 keep one’s mind on sth but I couldn’t stop thinking about what
tiếp tục tập trung vào cái gì Jack said to me last night.

44 go in one ear and out the other forget quickly If I have to listen to something I don’t

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 understand, it just goes in one ear and
out the other.

45 make sense of sth logical and easy to understand These numbers don’t make sense.

 hope strongly that sth will

happen We’re keeping our fingers crossed that
46 keep one’s fingers crossed
he’ll be healthy again very soon.
 hope for good luck or success

make an effort to understand and deal I can’t seem to get grips with this
47 come/get to grips with sth
with a problem or situation. problem.

forget that sth you know, often I went blank and couldn’t think of a
48 go blank
temporarily singel example.

make a quick decision or give an answer I’d never heard about the company
49 think on one’s feet
quickly before, so I had to think on my feet.

from a bad difficult situation to one that Many kids who try to run away from
out of the frying pan into the is seven worse unhappy homes discover tht they’ve
50
fire jumped out of the frying pan into the
tránh vỏ dưa gặp vỏ dừa fire when they try to live on their own.

Her surgery went as well as we could

no longer be in danger or difficult,
51 be out of the woods have hoped, but she’s not out of the
though not entirely resolved (negative)
woods yet.

to be experiencing a bad situation or to

52 be down on one’s luck He’s been down on his luck recently.
have very little money

know all the details of (a subject)

thoroughly He has the history of the firm at his
53 have sth at one’s fingertips
fingertips.
nắm rõ cái gì

round the clock = continously the whole day and the whole night People work round the clock at the
54
≠ interuptedly cả ngày lẫn đêm airport.

55 snowed under having too much to do I am totally snowed under at school.

We have to decide, once and for all,

completely and finally= now and for the
56 once and for all whether we want to ask Dad for
last time=in the end
money.

I mentally patted myself on the back for

57 pat sb on the back to praise sb for doing sth good
managing to keep my cool.

58 have one’s hands full with sth having a lot to do I have my hands full with the kids at the
moment, so I can’t take on any more
have sth on one’s plate very busy work.

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 chasing one’ s tail
run round in circles
on the go
on the move
I’m up to my ears in my work.
up to one’s
He’s just busy as a bee, colouring and
ears/eyeballs/neck/eyes in
playing with his blocks.
run round like a headless
chicken
as busy as a bee
in the middle of sth

59 a piece of cake something that is very easy to do The exam was a piece of cake.

If you find yourself at a loose end, you

60 at a loose end having nothing to do
could always clean the bathroom.

look on the bright side = be Look on the bright side-no one was
61 find good things in a bad situation
optimistic badly hurt.

What a restaurant- the food was out of

62 out of this world extremely good
this world.

63 have a whale of a time to enjoy yourself very much We had a whale of a time on a holiday.

float/ walk on air= on the top

of the world= over the moon= very happy Mike was over the moon with/about her
64
on cloud nine=like a dog with rất sung sướng, vui vẻ, hạnh phúc new bike.
two tails= in seventh heaven

I was able to acquire the information at

65 at first hand (in) directly
first hand.

to be young and without experience The new student is wet behind the
66 be wet behind the ears ears , he hasn’t yet learned the tricks
non nớt, chưa có kinh nghiệm that the boys play on each other.

couch potato= an inactive

a person who watches a lot of television
67 person≠ a live wire/ an active
and does not have an active life
person/ a lazy person

something that is difficult or dangerous The abortion issue is a political hot

68 hot potato
to deal with: vấn đề nan giải potato in the United States.

We just have to finish this section, then

home and dry
69 successful we’re home and dry.
with flying colors
She passed the exam with flying colors.

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 to not like spending money≠ to spend My parents are really tight with their
70 tight with one’s money much money to easily/ money. They hate throwing away food
lavishly/extravagant/spendthrift and never eat out.

I got in hot water with my parents

71 in hot water gặp rắc rối
because I failed mathematics.

The director knew he’d be in deep

72 in deep water to be in or get into serious trouble water if he didn’t mention his wife in
his acceptance speech.

unwillling to make a deision≠able to

Hoa is on the horns of a dilemma: she
73 on the horns of a dilemma make a descision
just wonders whether to go for a picnic
tiến thoái lưỡng nan with her friends or to stay at home with
her family.

My father always keep us on a tight

74 keep a tight rein on sb/sth have a lot of control over sb/sth
rein.

If we don’t do something soon, the

75 grind to a half/ standstill stop slowly
industry could grind to a half.

someone who is experienced and skilled I’ve been a bus driver for ten years, so
76 an old hand
in a particular area of activity I’m an old hand at this.

to be viewed with suspicion, distrust or The cabinet minister left office under a
77 under a cloud
disapproval cloud after a fraud scandal.

done in a place where things can be kept The meeting was held behind closed
78 behind closed doors
secret from the public doors.

to become much worse in quality or After Linda retired, the business went
79 go to the dogs
character to the dogs.

We didn’t have any money for a taxi,

80 thumb a lift hitch-hike: vẫy xe đi nhờ
so we had to thumb a lift home.

in a place where few people go, far from

The farmhouse we stayed in was
81 off the beaten track any main roads and towns: ở nơi xa xôi,
completely off the beaten track.
hẻo lánh

far away from any towns and cities and He lives in a tiny house in the middle of
82 in the middle of nowhere
where few people live nowhere.

It only cost $2. That’s not going to

83 break the bank to cost too much
break the bank.
I hate living out of a suitcase. For my next
thích di chuyển, không thích ở một chỗ
84 live out of a suitcase vacation, I want to go to just one place and
quá lâu stay there the whole time.

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 After three years in the job she began
85 itchy feet a desire to travel and see different places
to get itchy feet.

If you want to ask her something, just

to waste one’s time and energydoing or
86 go (all) round the houses aske her directly- there’s no need to go
asking sth in a very complicated way
all round the houses!

You want $50 for the bike and I say it’s

chia đôi sự chênh lệch/ phần tiền
87 spilt the different worth $30 – let’s split the different and
chênh→lấy số trung bình, thõa hiệp
I’ll pay you $40.

We were supposed to provide safety

88 at one’s expense used for saying who pays for sth
equipment at our own expense.

89 on the house được phục vụ miễn phí All the drinks were on the house.

I took most of the big things to new

việc lặt vặt, không quan trọng, ít có giá
90 odds and ends house, but there are a few odds and
trị
ends left to pick up.

The loud noise made me jump out of

91 jump/leap out of one’s skin to be extremely surprised by sth
my skin.

to accept that a particular fact will

We try to make allowances for our
92 make allowances for sth change a situation: chiếu cố, tha thứ hay
student’s different backgrounds.
chấp nhận ai trong trường hợp đặc biệt

The prime minister has been at the

to change your mind about sth in the helm throughout the crisis. I just don’t
93 change horses in midstream
middle of doing it think we should change horses in
midstream.

chỉ mối quan hệ rất thân thiết I was worried that they wouldn’t each
94 get on like a house on fire other but in fact they’re getting on like
làm thân rất nhanh với ai đó a house on fire.

to be unable to decide about sth: lưỡng I was in two minds whether or not to
95 be in two minds
lự, phân vân come this morning.

There may be specific features causing

bear a striking resemblance
96 giống với, tương tự với two accusations to bear a striking
to
resemblance.
 to visit sb in order to welcome or
We went to pay our respects to our
talk to them
neighbours.
97 pay one’s (last) respects to  to honour sb after their death,
Friends and relatives came to pay their
usually by going to the person’s
funeral
last respect to Mr Smith.

I haven’t seen hide nor hair of her

98 not see hide nor hair of sb to not see sb at all ovet a period of time
since last Monday.

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 You’d better take it easy until you feel
99 take it easy rest, relax, or be calm
better.

100 off the peg quần áo may sẵn I bought the suit off the peg.

It’s important to apply research in a

101 on the shelf not noticed or not used practical way and ot leave it on the
shelf.

I’m meeting her parents tonight, and I

get butterflies in one’s a feeling being very nervous or
102 have a bad case of butterflies in my
stomach frightened about sht
stomach.

He’s been working late with her every

103 smell a rat to believe sth is wrong
night this week- I smell a rat!

to work or do other from early in the You really burn the candle at both
104 burn the candle at both ends morning until late at night and so get ends. You’ve got to start taking it easy,
vey little rest: overworking or you’ll end up in th hospital.

to act in a way that is very dangerous You’re playing with fire if you try to
105 play with fire
and to take risks cheat on the test.

I killed two birds with one stone and

to succeed in achieving two things in a
106 kill two birds with one stone picked the kids up on the way to the
single action: một công đôi việc
supermarket.

I’ve told him that he’s heading for

107 (like) water off a duck’s back nước đổ đầu vịt trouble, but he doesn’t listen – it’s just
water off a duck’s back.

to become more comfortable and It took Larry a few weeks to come out
108 come out of one’s shell
friendly with people of her shell, but she’s doing well now.

Thanks for inviting me, but ballet isn’t

109 not be sb’s cup of tea not be the kind of thing you like
really my cup of tea.

Kevin hit the nail on the head when he

110 hit the nail on the head do or say sth exactly right
said Cherry’s argument lacks evidence.

Her Spanish has come on in leaps and

111 by/in leaps and bounds improve very quickly
bounds this year.

a special, happy, and imprtant day that The day I first set food in A merica was
112 red-letter day
you wil always remember a red-letter day for me.

to show no sign of surprise or worry She told him she’d spent all her saving
113 not bat an eyelid
when sth unexpected happens but he did not bat an eyelid.

At this high rate of pay, I’m sure they

114 burn the midnight oil to work late into the night
will burn the midnight oil every night.

115 throw in the towel to admit that you are defeated or can’t Jim beat me for the fourth time, so I
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 do sth any more threw in the towel.

to make people who have not met before I tried to break the ice by talking to the
116 break the ice
feel more relaxed with each other people next to me about the weather.

He may be getting old but he’s still full

117 full of beans have a lot of energy and enthusiasm
of beans.

Stop pulling my leg – you didn’t have

118 pull someone’s leg chọc ghẹo ai
lunch with Bono!

đừng chê bai hoặc từ chối những gì mà I know you don’t like the dress very
never look a gift horse in the
119 người khác biếu tặng cho dù nó không much, but it was a gift; you should not
mouth
hoàn hảo a gift horse in the mouth.

We paid through the nose to get the car

120 buy through the nose to pay too much money for sth
fixed.
to control a business or other Ruth runs a tight ship and has no time
121 run a tight ship
organization firmly and effectively for shirkers.

Don’t give up on universit. It will be

cut/loosen/let go of the apron
122 become independent good for her as well as you for you to
strings
cut the apron strings now.

on the spur of the moment

On the spur of the moment, we decided
123 =suddenly/without previous suddenly without any planning
to go to the beach.
thought≠intentionally

have a good run for your I’ve achieved a lot in my life and I feel
124 to have a good enough time
money I’ve had a good run for my money.

He stayed with me throughout the time

a friend in need is a friend a person who helps at a difficult time is
125 I was in the hospital, a friend in need is
indeed a truly realiable person
a friend indeed.
at the last possible moment≠with much
126 in the nick of time We got there just in the nick of time.
time to spare

to believe sth strongly although you It’s going to be a good summer - I can
127 feel it in one’s bones
can’t explain why: cảm nhận rõ rệt feel it in my bones.

You must me off your head going out

128 be off one’s head to be crazy
in this weather!

A lot of people must be scratching

129 scratch one’s head to think hard about sth
their heads about which way to vote.

can’t make head nor tail of I can’t make head nor tail of these
130 to not be able to understand sth
sth instructions on the packet.

131 bite the hand that feeds you= ăn cháo đá bát, vô ơn If you say bad things about the person
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 who give a job you bite the hand that
be ungrateful≠be thankful
feeds you.

I took it for granted that I would find

cho điều gì là đúng, là hiển nhiên, xem the perfect job.
132 take sb/sth for granted thường, không biết quý trọng, cho rằng
cái gì đó là mặc định, là sẵn có It’s easy to take your parents for
granted.
to consider or remember sth when The report doesn’t take into account
take sth into
133 judging a situation: để ý, cân nhắc, suy the problems of people who don’t
account/consideration
xét tới speak English.

have a good/high/low/bad to think that someone or something is They have a very high opinion of
134
opinion of sth/sb very good or very bad Paula’s work.

the time when you are most sucessful in She was at the height of her careerwhen
135 at the height of
what you do he first met her.

This exam is no problem. I could do it

136 do sth standing on one’s head do sth very easily
standing on my head.

137 go over one’s head vượt quá khả năng

138 have one’s head in the clouds

139 Come to a head

140 Enter one’s head

141 Keep one’s head

Be on good terms with

Tied the knot

A smash hit
Bury the hatchet

Just skin and bones

Rise/come to one’s feet

Shoot the breeze

Have a long face

Kick in the pants

The last traw= a nail in one’s

coffin

A shot in the dark

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An open and shut case

A couple of hours

Leave high and dry

Down in the dumps

As cool as a cucumber

As fit as a fiddle

As old as the hills

As dry as a bone

As fresh as a daisy

Break the mold

Alive and kicking

A rough diamond

Tough it out

On the double

A cog in a machine

A bee in one’s bonnet

Lose heart at

Put the cart before the horse

Doom and gloom

Other fish to dry

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