CAE Idioms and phrases | Baamboozle - Baamboozle

be saved by the bell

escape from a difficult situation narrowly or by an unexpected intervention

Start From Scratch

To do it all over again from the beginning.

Spitting Image

The exact likeness or kind

Smell A Rat

To detect somone in the group is betraying the others.

Rule Of Thumb

A rough estimate or a guideline

Put a sock in it

To tell noisy person or a group to be quiet.

Pulling Your Leg

Tricking someone as a joke.

Over the Top

Very excessive.

Over My Dead Body

When you absolutely will not allow something to happen.

Out Of The Blue

Something that suddenly and unexpectedly occurs.

On The Fence

Undecided

Off the Record

Something said in confidence

Off The Hook

No longer have to deal with a tough situation.

Get Off On The Wrong Foot

Getting a bad start on a relationship or task.

No Room to Swing a Cat

An unsually small or confined space.

No Dice

To not agree

Bite The Hand That Feeds You

Attack someone that helps you.

Nest Egg

Savings set aside for future use

Mum’s the word

To keep a secret

Method To My Madness

Strange or crazy actions that appear meaningless but in the end are done for a good reason.

Loose Cannon

Someone who is unpredictable

Long in the Tooth

Old

Let The Cat Out Of The Bag

To share a secret

Let Sleeping Dogs Lie

To avoid revenge

Know the Ropes

To understand the details.

Knock On Wood

Knuckle tapping on wood in order to avoid some bad luck.

Knee Jerk Reaction

A quick and automatic response.

Kick The Bucket

Die

Keep your chin up

To remain joyful in a tough situation.

Keep An Eye On Him

You should carefully watch him.

To be in Your Face

An aggressive and bold confrontation.

Icing On The Cake

When you already have it good and get something on top of what you already have

Hold Your Horses

Be patient.

Hit The Nail on the Head

Do or say something exactly right

Hit The Hay / Hit The Sack

Go to bed or go to sleep.

living the life of riley

living the easy life

Hell in a Handbasket

Deteriorating and headed for complete disaster.

Gut Feeling

A personal intuition you get, especially when feel something may not be right.

Great Minds Think Alike

Intelligent people think like each other.

Go The Extra Mile

Going above and beyond whatever is required for the task at hand

Go Out On A Limb

Put yourself in a tough position in order to support someone/something

Go Down Like A Lead Balloon

To be received badly

Give Him The Slip

To get away from. To escape.

Get Your Walking Papers

Get fired from a job

Get Up On The Wrong Side Of The Bed

Someone who is having a horrible day.

Get Down to Brass Tacks

To get straight to the point

Fuddy-duddy

An old-fashioned and foolish type of person.

From Rags To Riches

To go from being very poor to being very wealthy.

French Kiss

An open mouth kiss where tongues touch.

Fools’ Gold

Something that seens vaulable but isn´t

Flesh and Blood

Family

Flash In The Pan

Something that shows potential or looks promising in the beginning but fails to deliver anything in the end.

Finding Your Feet

To become more comfortable in whatever you are doing.

Field Day

An enjoyable day or circumstance.

Excuse my French

Please forgive me for swearing.

Everything But The Kitchen Sink

Almost everything and anything has been included.

Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining

Be optomistic, even difficult times will lead to better days.

Dry Run

Rehearsal

Drive someone up the wall

To irritate and/or annoy very much.

Drink like a fish

To drink very heavily.

Down To The Wire

Something that ends at the last minute or last few seconds.

Don’t count your chickens before they hatch

Don’t rely on it until your sure of it.

Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket

Do not put all your resources in one possibility.

Don’t Look A Gift Horse In The Mouth

When someone gives you a gift, don’t be ungrateful.

Devil’s Advocate

Someone who takes a position for the sake of argument without believing in that particular side of the arguement.

Dead Ringer

100% identical. A duplicate.

Dark Horse

One who was previously unknown and is now prominent.

Crack Someone Up

To make someone laugh.

Come Hell Or High Water

Any difficult situation or obstacle

Cock and Bull Story

An unbelievable tale

Close but no Cigar

To be very near and almost accomplish a goal, but fall short.

Break A Leg

A superstitious way to say ‘good luck’ without saying ‘good luck’

Once in a Blue Moon

A rare event or occurance

Blood Is Thicker Than Water:

The family bond is closer than anything else

Bite Your Tongue

To avoid talking.

Bite Off More Than You Can Chew

To take on a task that is way to big.

Between A Rock And A Hard Place

Stuck between two very bad options

Bend Over Backwards

Do whatever it takes to help. Willing to do anything

Beating Around The Bush

Avoiding the main topic. Not speaking directly about the issue.

Beat A Dead Horse

To force an issue that has already ended.

Barking Up The Wrong Tree

You have completely misunderstood something or are totally wrong

Back To Square One / Back To The Drawing Board

Having to start all over again.

Back Seat Driver:

People who criticize without doing it themselves

At The Drop Of A Hat

Willing to do something immediately

Apple of My Eye

Someone who is cherished above all others

An Axe To Grind

To have a dispute with someone.

An Arm And A Leg

Very expensive. A large amount of money

All In The Same Boat

When everyone is facing the same challenges

All Greek/Dutch to me

Meaningless and incomprehensible to me

All Bark And No Bite

When someone is threatening but not willing to engage in a fight

Against The Clock

Rushed and short on time.

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

what someone actually does means more than what they say they will do.

A Toss-Up

A result that is still unclear and can go either way.

A Taste Of Your Own Medicine

When you are mistreated the same way you mistreat others.

A Slap on the Wrist

A very mild punishment.

A Piece of Cake

A task that can be accomplished very easily.

A picture is worth a thousand words

A visual presentation is better than a written description

A penny saved is a penny earn

Saving money is equivalent to earning money

A leopard can´t change his spots

You cannot change who you are

A fool and thier money are easily parted

It´s easy to steal money from a stupid person

A drop in the bucket

A very small part of something bigger

A doubting Thomas

A skeptic

A dime a dozen / Ten a penny

Something common and easy to get

A chip on your shoulder

Being upset for something that happened in the past

A blessing in disguise

Something good that you don´t recognise at first