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CAE Idioms and phrases

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  • A Piece of Cake
    A task that can be accomplished very easily.
  • Cock and Bull Story
    An unbelievable tale
  • Go The Extra Mile
    Going above and beyond whatever is required for the task at hand
  • Pulling Your Leg
    Tricking someone as a joke.
  • Nest Egg
    Savings set aside for future use
  • Icing On The Cake
    When you already have it good and get something on top of what you already have
  • Knee Jerk Reaction
    A quick and automatic response.
  • Go Out On A Limb
    Put yourself in a tough position in order to support someone/something
  • A chip on your shoulder
    Being upset for something that happened in the past
  • be saved by the bell
    escape from a difficult situation narrowly or by an unexpected intervention
  • Barking Up The Wrong Tree
    You have completely misunderstood something or are totally wrong
  • Blood Is Thicker Than Water:
    The family bond is closer than anything else
  • Let Sleeping Dogs Lie
    To avoid revenge
  • A Slap on the Wrist
    A very mild punishment.
  • Go Down Like A Lead Balloon
    To be received badly
  • Break A Leg
    A superstitious way to say ‘good luck’ without saying ‘good luck’
  • Hit The Hay / Hit The Sack
    Go to bed or go to sleep.
  • Smell A Rat
    To detect somone in the group is betraying the others.
  • Over the Top
    Very excessive.
  • Beat A Dead Horse
    To force an issue that has already ended.
  • Bite The Hand That Feeds You
    Attack someone that helps you.
  • A blessing in disguise
    Something good that you don´t recognise at first
  • Kick The Bucket
    Die
  • Bend Over Backwards
    Do whatever it takes to help. Willing to do anything
  • From Rags To Riches
    To go from being very poor to being very wealthy.
  • A drop in the bucket
    A very small part of something bigger
  • An Arm And A Leg
    Very expensive. A large amount of money
  • A doubting Thomas
    A skeptic
  • Get Your Walking Papers
    Get fired from a job
  • A picture is worth a thousand words
    A visual presentation is better than a written description
  • Apple of My Eye
    Someone who is cherished above all others
  • Keep your chin up
    To remain joyful in a tough situation.
  • A Taste Of Your Own Medicine
    When you are mistreated the same way you mistreat others.
  • Crack Someone Up
    To make someone laugh.
  • Loose Cannon
    Someone who is unpredictable
  • Start From Scratch
    To do it all over again from the beginning.
  • Back To Square One / Back To The Drawing Board
    Having to start all over again.
  • Let The Cat Out Of The Bag
    To share a secret
  • Get Off On The Wrong Foot
    Getting a bad start on a relationship or task.
  • Dark Horse
    One who was previously unknown and is now prominent.
  • Come Hell Or High Water
    Any difficult situation or obstacle
  • A fool and thier money are easily parted
    It´s easy to steal money from a stupid person
  • On The Fence
    Undecided
  • Drink like a fish
    To drink very heavily.
  • Put a sock in it
    To tell noisy person or a group to be quiet.
  • Rule Of Thumb
    A rough estimate or a guideline
  • Gut Feeling
    A personal intuition you get, especially when feel something may not be right.
  • Flash In The Pan
    Something that shows potential or looks promising in the beginning but fails to deliver anything in the end.
  • Hold Your Horses
    Be patient.
  • Devil’s Advocate
    Someone who takes a position for the sake of argument without believing in that particular side of the arguement.
  • Hit The Nail on the Head
    Do or say something exactly right
  • To be in Your Face
    An aggressive and bold confrontation.
  • A Toss-Up
    A result that is still unclear and can go either way.
  • Off The Hook
    No longer have to deal with a tough situation.
  • An Axe To Grind
    To have a dispute with someone.
  • Knock On Wood
    Knuckle tapping on wood in order to avoid some bad luck.
  • Down To The Wire
    Something that ends at the last minute or last few seconds.
  • Drive someone up the wall
    To irritate and/or annoy very much.
  • Mum’s the word
    To keep a secret
  • A leopard can´t change his spots
    You cannot change who you are
  • A dime a dozen / Ten a penny
    Something common and easy to get
  • Bite Off More Than You Can Chew
    To take on a task that is way to big.
  • Field Day
    An enjoyable day or circumstance.
  • Long in the Tooth
    Old
  • Get Down to Brass Tacks
    To get straight to the point
  • All Greek/Dutch to me
    Meaningless and incomprehensible to me
  • Method To My Madness
    Strange or crazy actions that appear meaningless but in the end are done for a good reason.
  • Dry Run
    Rehearsal
  • Beating Around The Bush
    Avoiding the main topic. Not speaking directly about the issue.
  • At The Drop Of A Hat
    Willing to do something immediately
  • French Kiss
    An open mouth kiss where tongues touch.
  • Give Him The Slip
    To get away from. To escape.
  • No Room to Swing a Cat
    An unsually small or confined space.
  • Keep An Eye On Him
    You should carefully watch him.
  • Bite Your Tongue
    To avoid talking.
  • Every Cloud Has A Silver Lining
    Be optomistic, even difficult times will lead to better days.
  • Close but no Cigar
    To be very near and almost accomplish a goal, but fall short.
  • Once in a Blue Moon
    A rare event or occurance
  • A penny saved is a penny earn
    Saving money is equivalent to earning money
  • Excuse my French
    Please forgive me for swearing.
  • Everything But The Kitchen Sink
    Almost everything and anything has been included.
  • Off the Record
    Something said in confidence
  • Between A Rock And A Hard Place
    Stuck between two very bad options
  • No Dice
    To not agree
  • Don’t count your chickens before they hatch
    Don’t rely on it until your sure of it.
  • Get Up On The Wrong Side Of The Bed
    Someone who is having a horrible day.
  • All In The Same Boat
    When everyone is facing the same challenges
  • Fuddy-duddy
    An old-fashioned and foolish type of person.
  • Out Of The Blue
    Something that suddenly and unexpectedly occurs.
  • Fools’ Gold
    Something that seens vaulable but isn´t
  • Flesh and Blood
    Family
  • Hell in a Handbasket
    Deteriorating and headed for complete disaster.
  • Great Minds Think Alike
    Intelligent people think like each other.
  • Don’t Look A Gift Horse In The Mouth
    When someone gives you a gift, don’t be ungrateful.
  • All Bark And No Bite
    When someone is threatening but not willing to engage in a fight
  • Finding Your Feet
    To become more comfortable in whatever you are doing.
  • Don’t Put All Your Eggs In One Basket
    Do not put all your resources in one possibility.
  • Spitting Image
    The exact likeness or kind
  • Back Seat Driver:
    People who criticize without doing it themselves
  • Actions Speak Louder Than Words
    what someone actually does means more than what they say they will do.
  • Dead Ringer
    100% identical. A duplicate.
  • Against The Clock
    Rushed and short on time.
  • living the life of riley
    living the easy life
  • Over My Dead Body
    When you absolutely will not allow something to happen.
  • Know the Ropes
    To understand the details.
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