Proverbs

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

You use this proverb to say that different people have different opinions about what is
good/beautiful/valuable.

The best advice is found on the pillow.

You use this proverb to say that if you have a difficult problem and cannot find the answer now, just go
to bed and have a good night's sleep. You may find it tomorrow morning. If someone says, "The best
advice is found on the pillow," he/she means that it might not be good to worry about your problem
now. You may be able to solve the problem after a good night's sleep. People often say "I'll sleep on it"
to express the same idea.

Better safe than sorry.

When you say, "Better safe than sorry," you mean that it is better to use some extra time, energy, and
effort to be careful than to take risks without doing anything.

The bigger, the better.

You use this proverb to say that if something is bigger than others, it is better. If someone says, "The
bigger, the better," he/she means that something is good because it is big.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

You use this proverb to say it is better to accept something that you have or you can use now than to try to
get something better that you might not be able to obtain. Sometimes people just say, "A bird in the hand."
If someone says, "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush," he/she means that it is better to be
satisfied with something you have than to risk losing it by trying to get something better you may not
succeed in getting.

Birds of a feather flock together.

People who are a lot alike tend to gather together and become friends. This can be used to mean that
people are alike in both good ways and bad ways.

Curiosity killed the cat.

If you are too interested in things you should not be interested in, you could be in danger. You may be
causing yourself problems by trying to find out things you don't need to know.

Don't count your chickens before they hatch.

If you are too interested in things you should not be interested in, you could be in danger. You may be
causing yourself problems by trying to find out things you don't need to know.

Don't cross your bridges before you get to them.

You use this proverb to tell someone not to worry about something until it actually happens. People
often say "I/We will cross that bridge when I/we come to it" to mean they will not worry about the
particular possible problem until it actually appears.

The early bird catches the worm.

This proverb is used to tell you to act early or right now to be successful. If someone says, "The early
bird catches the worm," he/she means that if you do something early or before anyone else, you will
have an advantage and be successful.

Good things come in small packages.

You can use this proverb to say that the size of things doesn't always indicate their quality, and small
things often have better quality than big ones. If someone says, "Good things come in small
packages," he/she means that something is small, but it has better quality than big ones.

The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence.

You use this proverb to say that the things other people have or their situations always look better than
your own, even when they are not really so. It is often shortened to "The grass is greener on the
other side," or even 'The grass is greener."

Home is where the heart is.

You use this proverb to say if you are with the person or at the place you love most, it becomes your
true home.

It's no use crying over spilled milk.

You use this proverb to say that you shouldn't worry about something that has already happened.
It is no use being angry over or upset about something that has already happened and/or you cannot
change.

A kite rises against the wind.

A person grows when he/she faces opposition and conquers it. People say this: Don't be afraid of
opposition; remember a kite rises against, not with the wind.

Money doesn't grow on trees.

You use this proverb to tell someone that he/she shouldn't waste money or there is not enough money
to buy something expensive. If someone says, "Money doesn't grow on trees," he/she means that it is
not easy to earn money, so it is valuable, and you have only a limited amount of money. You should be
careful how much money you spend.

Necessity is the mother of invention.

The meaning of this proverb is that if someone really needs something or has a problem, he/she will
find a way of doing or solving it.

Opposites attract.

People use this proverb to say people tend to be attracted to those who are not like them. People feel
those who have different talents, personality, appearance, etc. are attractive to them.

An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

You use this proverb to say that it is much easier to do something to prevent a problem than to deal
with it after it has happened.

The pen is mightier than the sword.

You use this proverb to say that you can solve problems or achieve your purpose better and more
effectively through communication with words than by violence with weapons.

A picture is worth a thousand words.

You use this proverb to say that a picture can give you as much information as a written or spoken text
with a lot of words can. If someone says, "A picture is worth a thousand words," he/she
means that you can describe something by drawing just one picture as well as you can by
writing or saying a lot of words.

Procrastination is the thief of time.

You use this proverb to say that you are wasting your time if you keep delaying something that must
be done instead of doing it today.

Safety lies in the middle course.

This proverb teaches us that it is best to act in a way between two opposite (especially extreme) ones
to solve a problem or to deal with something.

Silence is golden.
You use this proverb to say that saying/doing noting is better than saying/doing or trying to say/do
something when you face a difficult situation. People say "Silence is golden" to tell you not to say/do
anything when you cannot come up with something to say/do easily to handle a difficult situation.
People also say "Silence is golden, speech is silver."

A stitch in time saves nine.

You use this proverb to say that it is better to spend a little time to deal with problems or act right now
than wait. If you wait until late, things will get worse, and it will take much longer to deal with them.

There's no place like home.

Your home is a special place. Nothing can replace your own home.

Time flies.

You say "Time flies" when you are surprised to see minutes, hours, days, weeks, or years have passed
very quickly.

Too many cooks spoil the broth.

You use this proverb to say that if too many people do the same thing (job, project,, etc.), it will not be
done well. Sometimes people just say, "Too many cooks. " Another proverb "There is safety in
numbers" expresses the opposite idea.

Variety is the spice of life.

You use this proverb to say that if you do a lot of different things and meet different people, etc., your
life becomes more interesting. Having and experiencing a lot of different things is what makes your
life interesting.

You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

You can give someone the opportunity to learn or to do something, but you can never force him to
accept that opportunity.

You can't judge a book by its cover.

You use this proverb to say that you can't tell what something/someone is really like just by looking at
it. It might be different from what it looks.

You can't take it with you when you die.

You use this proverb to say you have to leave everything you have on earth when you die. Even if you
are very rich, you cannot take money, jewelry, a big house, or any other material things with you.This
proverb is often used to say some material things are not as valuable and important as you think, and
you don't have to worry about them too much.

Idioms
A bad apple

A (morally) bad person who makes a whole group bad. A bad apple is someone who has a bad effect
on a whole group or system. People also say, "One bad/rotten apple spoils the (whole)
bushel/barrel."

Be a piece of cake

To be very easy. If something is a piece of cake, it is very easy to do.

Be all ears

Be very intersted in what someone is about to say. If you are all ears, you are eager and ready to listen
to what someone is going to say.

Be the apple of someone's eye

Be loved very much by someone. If someone is the apple of your eye, you think he/she is very
important to you, and you love him/her very much. This idiom is used especially when someone is
loved by an older member of his/her family.

Be as American as apple pie

Be typically American. If something or someone is as American as apple pie, it/he/she is typically or

completely American.

Be as blind as a bat.

Be unable to see well or unable to see at all. If someone is as blind as a bat, he/she cannot see well or
cannot see at all because of his/her very bad eyesight.

Backfire

To produce an unexpected / undesired / opposite result. If your plan or action backfires, you get the
opposite result to the one you wanted.

Bark up the wrong tree

 To misunderstand a situation and complain to a wrong person or blame a wrong thing. If someone is
barking up the wrong tree, he/she has an incorrect idea about a situation, and his/her course of action
is wrong.

Beat around the bush

Avoid or delay talking about something unpleasant or embarrassing. If you beat around the bush,
you don't say something directly to someone because you are worried about his/her reaction and don't
want to upset him/her. Some people also say " beat about the bush. "

Beat it

Go away immediately. If you say "Beat it" to someone, you tell him/her to leave quickly because
he/she is annoying. This is an impolite command.

Bend over backward/backwards

Do as much as you can to help or please someone. If you bend over backwards, you do your best or
try harder than you need in order to please someone or do something he/she wants.

Bite off more than one can chew

To try to do something that is too difficult. If you bite off more than you can chew, you try to do
more than you are able to.

Bookworm

Someone who loves reading very much. If you describe someone as a bookworm, he/she likes reading
very much and reads a lot.

The bottom line

The most important factor in a situation or a decision to consider. If you say the bottom line is xxxx,
you mean xxxx is the most important or critical fact you want others to consider.The original meaning
of the bottom line is the final line of an accounting report of a company or an organization.
That line shows how much money the company/organization has earned or lost during a particular
period of time

Bring the house down

Make people (audience) excited, laugh, or enjoy a lot while performing or making a speech. If you,
your performance, or your speech brings the house down, your performance or speech is so good that
the audience enjoys it a lot, becomes excited, applauds (clap their hands), or laughs a lot.

Be broke

Without money. If you are broke, you don't have money.

Bug someone

Bother someone. If someone/something bugs you, he/she/it annoys you.

Butterflies in someone's stomach

Very nervous or excited before doing something important such as giving a speech and taking a test. If
you have butterflies in your stomach, you are very nervous and/or excited about something you are
going to do soon.

Can't make head nor tail (out) of something / someone

Not be able to understand. If you can't make head nor tail (out) of something or someone, you can't
understand it/him/her at all.

Cast pearls before swine

Offer or show something valuable, good, or beautiful to someone who does not understand its value. If
you are casting pearls before swine, you are wasting your time showing or offering something very
helpful or valuable to someone who does not understand or appreciate it.

Catch someone's eye

Attract someone and make him/her look at something. If someone or something catches your eye, you
look because of interest.

Be chicken

Coward. If you are chicken, you are not brave enough to do something

Cold feet

Suddenly become (be) very nervous about doing something that you were going to do. If you get cold
feet, you become afraid to do something that you planned to do or agreed to do.

Quit Cold turkey

Quit a bad habit such as smoking or drinking alcohol suddenly, without any gradual adjustment. If you
quit something (smoking, etc.) cold turkey, you stop it suddenly and completely.

Cook someone's goose

Get someone in trouble. Keep someone from succeeding. If you cook someone's goose, you get
him/her into trouble or prevent him/her from succeeding at something.

Be (as) cool as a cucumber

Very calm and relaxed even in a difficult situation. If someone is (as) cool as a cucumber, he/she is
very relaxed and/or calm when you expect him/her to be nervous or upset.

Cool someone's heels

Wait for a long time. If you cool your heels, someone makes you wait for a long time with nothing to
do, so you get bored or impatient.

Couch potato

A person who spends a lot of idle time sitting and watching television. If a person is a couch potato,
he/she is not active and spends most of his/her time sitting and watching TV. He/she doesn't do
anything productive.

Be cut from the same cloth

Be very similar, act in a very similar way. If you say two or more people are cut from the same cloth,
you mean they are very alike or act in a very similar way.

Dear John letter

A letter from a woman to her boyfriend or husband telling him that she doesn't love him anymore. If a
woman writes a Dear John letter to her boyfriend (or husband), she tells him that she wants end their
relationship.

Don't let the grass grow under your feet.

Act now without any delay. If you say "Don't let the grass grow under your feet" to someone, you
tell him/her not to waste time and to do something immediately. If someone doesn't let the grass
grow under his/her feet, he/she does something right now without waiting.

Be down in the dumps

Be very sad and depressed. If you are down in the dumps, you feel very sad and miserable. You don't
have much interest in life.
Drive someone up the wall

Annoy or irritate someone very much. Put someone into an extreme position or situation. (= force
someone up the wall) If someone or something drives you up the wall, he/she/it annoys you very
much or pushes you to an awkward or extreme position.

Easy as pie

Very easy. If something is (as) easy as pie, it is very easy to do.

Eat one's words

Admit that what you said was wrong. If you eat your words, you admit that the statements or
predictions you made were wrong.

Feel like a fish out of water

Feel uncomfortable because you are in an unfamiliar situation. If you feel like a fish out of water, you
feel awkward or uncomfortable because you are in an unusual or unfamiliar situation.

Be fishy

Seem not to be true / honest; be suspicioius. If a situation or something/someone is fishy, you mean it
seems someone is not completely honest or someething is not true.

Food for thought

Ideas that make you think carefully. If something gives you food for thought, it gives you insights or
new information, and makes you think about something carefully.

A frog in someone's throat

If you have a frog in your throat, you have a sore throat, or your throat is dry, and have difficulty
speaking because you want to cough.

Get over something

to begin feel better again after being sick or having an unhappy experience. If you get over sickness or
a sad experience, you start to feel better again after that.

Get up (Wake up) on the wrong side of the bed

Feel a little angry and annoyed. If you got up (woke up) on the wrong side of the bed, you feel a bit
angry and irritated for no particular reason right from the start of the day.
Give someone a hand

Help someone when he/she is doing something difficult. If you give a person a hand, you give
him/her assistance because he/she is trying to do something difficult.

Be glued to something

Cannot stop watching / looking at something. If you are glued to something, you cannot stop
watching / looking at it because it is very attractive. You look at it with all your attention. TV is a
typical thing you are glued to.

Go nuts

Become very excited because a very good thing happened. Become very angry. If you go nuts, you
behave in an excited, crazy, or angry way.

Grab a bite

Get and eat food quickly. If you grab a bite (to eat), you buy or get food and eat quickly because you
are busy.

Great minds think alike.

This is a humorous expression that is used when you found out someone else was thinking about the
same thing as you were. If you say, "Great minds think alike," you say, jokingly, that you and
someone else must be very intelligent or great because both of you thought of the same thing or agree
on something.

A hand-me-down

A shirt, dress, pants, etc. that an older person (especially your older brother or sister) in your family
has given to you because it is too small or he/she doesn't want to wear it anymore. A hand-me-down
is a piece of clothing that has been worn by someone (especially your older brother/sister) and given to
you.

(Somebody's) heart sinks

Feel disappointed and hopeless. If your heart sinks, you become sad and unhappy because you have
lost hope.

Hit the books

Study very hard. If you hit the books, you start to study hard seriously with determination
Hit the ceiling / roof

Become extremely angry. If you hit the ceiling / roof, you get very angry.

Hit the nail on the head

Say exactly a right thing. Answer to a question in exactly the right way. Be exactly right about
something. If you say someone has hit the nail on the head, you mean he/she has answered to a
question or described something in exactly the right way.

Hold one's horses

Wait; be patient and careful; Wait and listen to what someone's saying. You say "Hold your horses" to
someone when he/she is impatient or wants to do something immediately without thinking about
his/her action and consequences carefully.
You tell him/her to be patient and wait.

Hit the sack/hay

Go to bed. If you hit the sack, you go to bed in order to get some sleep.

Be in a pickle

Be in a difficult situation. If you are in a pickle, you are in a situation that is awkward and/or difficult
to solve.

Be in the same boat

Be in the same situation or have the same problem as another person. If you and I are in the same
boat, we are in the same bad or unpleasant situation.

It's easier said than done.

It's easy to suggest, but hard doing. You say "It's easier said than done" when someone suggests
something, and you think it would actually be hard to do.

Be in hot water

Be in trouble. If you are in hot water, you are in a difficult situation because you have said or done
something wrong.

It's about time

You say "It's about time" when you think. Something should happen or should have happened. (It
hasn't happened yet.) or something should have happened earlier than it actually happened. You often
use this expression when you are annoyed.
Keep an eye on someone/something

Watch someone/something carefully to make sure everything is all right. If you keep an eye on
someone or something, you watch him/her/it carefully because you don't trust him/her or want to see
what happens.

Keep one's bed

Stay in bed because of sickness or other cause. If you keep your bed, you keep lying on bed because
you are sick

Kick the bucket

Die. If you say someone kicked the bucket, you mean someone died. This is an informal expression.
(a kind of slang)

Kill time

Do something that is not very useful to keeps yourself busy while you are waiting for something to
happen. If you kill time, you do something that is not important or interesting you don't want to get
bored while waiting for something.

Know by heart

To know something perfectly. If you know something by heart, you know it very well and remember
everything about it.

The last/final straw

The last in a series of unpleasant or undesirable events that makes you unable to accept a situation any
longer. If an event that follows a series of bad events or experience makes you feel you cannot tolerate
a situation any more and finally decide to leave it or do something to change it, you call the event the
last or final straw. People also call it the last/final straw that broke the camel's back.

Be like taking candy from a baby

To be very easy to do. If something is like taking candy from a baby, it is very easy to do.

Be like the cat that got the cream

(about a person) To be pleased with his/her ability or what he/she has done. If you are like the cat
that got the cream, you are very happy because you are happy about or satisfied with your own talent,
accomplishment, or what has happened to you. People also say, "You look like the cat that ate the
canary."

Low-key

Quiet, on a small scale, and not attracting a lot of attention. If something (an event, etc.) is low-key, it
is not intended to be big, look important, or involve a lot of activities.

Make ends meet

Have or earn enough (often only enough) money to live. If you make ends meet, you get enough
money to pay for something you need, especially in order to live

Feel / Look like a million dollars

Feel very happy. Look very attractive. If you feel like a million dollars, you feel extremely good,
often because you are doing something luxurious.

Not hold water

Not seem reasonable or correct. If something such as an arguments or a statement does not hold
water, it is not reasonable or true.

Be on the tip of someone's tongue

Cannot remember something such as a word or the name of a person although you think you know it
and you will remember it soon. If you say something is on the tip of your tongue, you mean you can
almost remember it but not right away.

Once in a blue moon

Rarely, almost never. If you say something happens once in a blue moon, you mean it happens very
rarely. A blue moon is the second of two full moons in the same month, which happens rarely.

Out of the blue

Suddenly and unexpectedly. If someone does something or something happens out of the blue, it
happens suddenly and surprises you because you didn't expect it.
Out of the frying pan and into the fire

This idiom is used to say that someone gets out of a difficult or bad situation, but eventually goes into
a more difficult or worse one. If you say "Out of the frying pan and into the fire", you mean
someone has moved from a bad or difficult situation to a worse one.

Be over the hill

To be too old to do something. If you call someone to be over the hill, you say rudely that he/she is
old and no longer attractive or productive, not suitable for something, or not capable of doing
something useful.

Pop the question

To ask someone to marry you. Culturally, it is usually the man who pops the question to a woman.

Play it by ear

Decide what to do or say according to a situation as it develops. If you play it by ear, you act by
responding a situation as it happens, rather than following a plan you made in advance.

Pop quiz

A short test that is given in class without any warning beforehand. A pop quiz is a quiz (a short test)
that your teacher gives you without any advance notice to check if you have been studying.

Pull someone's leg

Tease someone by saying something shocking as a joke. If you pull someone's leg, you tell him/her
something that is not true as a joke.

Put all your eggs into one basket

Depend totally on one single person or course of action. If you put all your eggs into one basket, you
put all your energy and time to one thing or purpose. If it fails, you will have no other possibilities left.

Put yourself in someone's shoes

Try to understand someone's situation. If you put yourself in someone's shoes, you try to understand
what his/her situation is like and think about it as if you were in the same situation.

Race against the clock/time

Work or do something very fast to finish it before a deadline. If you have a situation in which you have
to finish doing something very quickly by a deadline, you call that situation a race against the clock /
time.

Rain cats and dogs

To rain very heavily.

If you say "It's raining cats and dogs," you mean it is raining very heavily.
Read between the lines

Guess what someone's real thoughts, feelings, or intentions from what you hear or read.

If you read between the lines, you understand the real meaning of something a person says or writes
even though you are not given details.

Rings a bell
If you say something (a word or a phrase, especially a name) rings a bell (with you), you mean you
have heard it before, or it reminds you of something.
See the light

Understand or believe something that you didn't before

If you see the light, you suddenly understand something that you didn't before, something that other
people have been trying to persuade you to understand.

Shake a leg

Hurry or do something now.

If you say "Shake a leg" to someone, you tell him/her to hurry, do something more quickly, or start to
do something right now.

Be shaking like a leaf

Be shaking your body a lot because you are cold, nervous, or frightened
If you are shaking like a leaf, you are shaking a lot especially when you are very cold, nervous or
frightened.

Speak of the devil

You say "Speak of the devil" when someone you have been talking about comes in the room
unexpectedly.

Stuffed shirt

person who behaves in a very formal way and is often self-important. A very conservative person.

If someone is a stuffed shirt , his/her behavior is very formal, and he/she thinks he/she is a very
important person.

Take a leaf out of someone's book

Do something in the same way as someone else does to be like him/her or successful as he/she is.

If you take a leaf out of someone's book, you behave like him/her because you will gain advantages
from it.

Take to something like a duck to water

To learn how to do something very easily, quickly, and well when doing it for the first time, especially
because of the person's natural ability.

If someone takes to something like a duck to water, he/she finds it very easy to do when he/she
learns it for the first time. He/She finds that he/she is good at it naturally.
Tearjerker

A tearjerker is a movie, book, or story that makes you sad and cry.
That makes two of us.

Agree with you. I understand what you feel.

If you say "That makes two of us," you tell someone that you agree with him/her or that you are in
the same situation,
or understand his/her situation or feeling.
That's that.

You say "That's that" when you want to say:

something is ended and you cannot change it.

you refuse to do something and nothing will not persuade you to do it.
Throw in the towel

Give up doing something because it is too difficult to continue.

If you throw in the towel, you stop trying to do something because you have found that you won't
succeed.
The tip of the iceberg

Something that shows or suggests a much larger problem.

If you say "It is just the tip of the iceberg," you mean that what you see is just a small part of
something that is actually much bigger than it seems.
Time will tell.

Something will be clear sometime in the future, not now, whether it is good, bad, successful, a
mistake, etc.

If you say "Time will tell," you mean that you will not know whether something is good or bad until
sometime in the future.

People also say "Only time will tell."

Be tongue-tied

Unable to speak.

If you are tongue-tied, you cannot speak and express yourself easily because you are shy, nervous, or
embarrassed.
Top dog

The person or the group that has the most power or authority

If someone or an organization is top dog, he/she/it has the highest authority or power in a group.
Turn over a new leaf

Start to do someting again in a better way, forgetting past errors.

If you turn over a new leaf, you will start to behave better or become a better person.
Turn your back on (someone)
To tell people that you will not help them even though they need your help very badly

Be up and running

be working well

If something, especially a system or a machine is up and running, it is functioning.

Be up in the air

Be not decided yet

If something is up in the air, it is uncertain because no decision has been made about it yet.

Wear one's heart on one's sleeve

Show emotions or feelings openly.

If you wear your heart on your sleeve, you openly express your feelings or emotions to others.
When it rains, it pours.

When one thing goes wrong, many other things also go wrong.

You say, "When it rains, it pours" when several similar, especially bad or annoying things happen at
the same time.

When pigs fly

Never.

If you you say when pigs fly, you mean something will never happen.

People sometimes say, "And pigs might fly" to mean something a person just said will never happen
or is impossible.

You can say that again.

Strongly agree with someone.

If you say "You can say that again," you express your strong agreement with what someone has just
said.

This expression is used especially when you are complaining about something.