Butterflies in your stomach
Feeling nervous. “I had butterflies in my stomach before the speech.”
Bend over backwards
Try very hard to help. “She bent over backwards to make her guests comfortable.”
The ball is in your court
It’s your turn to take action. “I’ve given you all the info. Now the ball is in your court.”
Throw in the towel
Give up. “He almost threw in the towel, but kept trying.”
Keep your chin up
Stay positive. “I know it’s hard, but keep your chin up!”
Hit the road
Start a journey. “We packed up and hit the road at sunrise.”
Hit the books
Study hard “I can’t hang out tonight - I need to hit the books.”
Kick the bucket
Die (informal/slang - use with care!) “The old computer finally kicked the bucket.”
Cut corners
Do something badly or cheaply to save time or money. “They cut corners and now the app doesn’t work properly.”
See eye to eye
Agree completely. “They don’t see eye to eye on politics.”
Think outside the box
Be creative or original. “To solve this puzzle, you need to think outside the box.”
A shot in the dark
A wild guess. “I didn’t study, so my answers were a shot in the dark.”
Get cold feet
Become too nervous to do something. “He got cold feet before giving his performance.”
Throw someone under the bus
Blame someone to protect yourself. “He threw his teammate under the bus during the interview.”
Put all your eggs in one basket
Rely on one plan only. “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket - apply to more than one university.”
Break the ice
Start a conversation in a friendly way. “He told a joke to break the ice at the party.”
In the same boat
In the same difficult situation as others “We’re all in the same boat - we’ve got exams next week.”
Under the weather
Feeling sick. “I’m staying home today - I’m a bit under the weather.”
Burn the midnight oil
Work or study late at night. “She burned the midnight oil to finish her essay.”
Back to the drawing board
Start again after a failed plan. “Our project didn’t work - back to the drawing board.”
Hit the nail on the head
Say exactly the right thing. “You hit the nail on the head with your answer.”
Actions speak louder than words
What you do is more important than what you say. “Don’t promise - just show me. Actions speak louder than words.”
A blessing in disguise
Something good that seemed bad at first. “Missing the bus was a blessing in disguise - I avoided a traffic jam.”
Bite your tongue
Stop yourself from saying something. “I had to bite my tongue to avoid arguing with him.”
Piece of cake
Very easy. “That English test was a piece of cake!”
Put your foot in your mouth
Say something awkward or embarrassing. “I really put my foot in my mouth when I forgot her name.”
Have a lot on your plate
Be very busy. “I’ve got a lot on my plate this week with school and work.”
A fish out of water
Feel uncomfortable or out of place. “He felt like a fish out of water at the fancy dinner.”
Blow off steam
Let out anger or stress. “He plays basketball to blow off steam after school.”
Down in the dumps
Feeling sad. “She’s down in the dumps because she failed her test.”
Cost an arm and a leg
Very expensive. “That new phone costs an arm and a leg.”
Speak of the devil
The person you were just talking about appears. “Speak of the devil - there she is!”
In hot water
In trouble. “He was in hot water after skipping class.”
Let the cat out of the bag
Reveal a secret. “She let the cat out of the bag about the surprise party.”
The last straw
The final problem that makes you give up. “When she lost her phone, it was the last straw.”
On top of the world
Feeling extremely happy. “She felt on top of the world after winning the contest.”
Add fuel to the fire
Make a bad situation worse. “Yelling at him just added fuel to the fire.”
Cry over spilled milk
Be upset about something you can’t change. “Don’t cry over spilled milk. Just try again.”
Go the extra mile
Do more than what is expected. “She went the extra mile to help her friend with homework.”
Bite off more than you can chew
Take on too much. “He bit off more than he could chew with all those club activities.”