Idioms Beginning With R
The letter R gets your tongue rolling and your message revving up! Idioms that start with R offer a rich repertoire of expressions, from lighthearted fun to serious situations. Buckle up and get ready to ramp up your vocabulary with these fantastic Rs:
Idioms Beginning With R with Meaning and Example
Here’s a list of “Idioms Beginning With R” in English:
- Rack and ruin
- Meaning: Total destruction or collapse.
- Example: The old house had gone to rack and ruin after years of neglect.
- Rack one’s brain
- Meaning: To think very hard.
- Example: I’ve been racking my brain all day trying to remember where I left my keys.
- Rags to riches
- Meaning: A situation where someone rises from poverty to wealth.
- Example: Her journey from rags to riches is truly inspiring.
- Rain check
- Meaning: A promise to do something at a later date.
- Example: Can I take a rain check on that dinner? I have to work late tonight.
- Rain on someone’s parade
- Meaning: To spoil someone’s plans.
- Example: I don’t want to rain on your parade, but we can’t afford this trip right now.
- Raise a stink
- Meaning: To complain loudly.
- Example: The customers raised a stink when the store refused to give refunds.
- Raise eyebrows
- Meaning: To cause surprise or shock.
- Example: Her unconventional outfit raised a few eyebrows at the event.
- Raise the bar
- Meaning: To set a higher standard.
- Example: The new software raises the bar for ease of use.
- Rake over the coals
- Meaning: To scold someone severely.
- Example: The manager raked him over the coals for missing the deadline.
- Rake someone over the coals
- Meaning: To criticize someone harshly.
- Example: He was raked over the coals for his mistakes during the project.
- Rank and file
- Meaning: The ordinary members of an organization.
- Example: The rank and file of the company were not happy with the new policies.
- Rat race
- Meaning: A way of life in which people compete aggressively for wealth or power.
- Example: Tired of the rat race, he moved to the countryside for a quieter life.
- Read between the lines
- Meaning: To understand the hidden meaning.
- Example: You have to read between the lines to understand what she really means.
- Read someone the riot act
- Meaning: To give someone a severe warning.
- Example: The teacher read the students the riot act for their bad behavior.
- Red herring
- Meaning: Something that distracts from the main issue.
- Example: The detective knew the clue was a red herring meant to mislead them.
- Red letter day
- Meaning: A very important or happy day.
- Example: My graduation was a red letter day for my whole family.
- Red tape
- Meaning: Excessive bureaucracy.
- Example: The project was delayed due to all the red tape involved in getting approvals.
- Reign supreme
- Meaning: To be the best or most important.
- Example: In the tech industry, innovation reigns supreme.
- Reinvent the wheel
- Meaning: To waste time creating something that already exists.
- Example: There’s no need to reinvent the wheel; just use the existing system.
- Rest on one’s laurels
- Meaning: To be satisfied with past achievements and stop trying to achieve more.
- Example: After winning the championship, the team can’t afford to rest on their laurels.
- Ring a bell
- Meaning: To sound familiar.
- Example: That name rings a bell, but I can’t remember where I heard it.
- Rise and shine
- Meaning: A wake-up call.
- Example: Rise and shine! It’s time to start your first day at the new job.
- Road to hell is paved with good intentions
- Meaning: Good intentions do not guarantee good outcomes.
- Example: He meant well, but the road to hell is paved with good intentions.
- Rob Peter to pay Paul
- Meaning: To solve a problem in a way that creates a new problem.
- Example: Borrowing money to pay off your debt is just robbing Peter to pay Paul.
- Rock and a hard place
- Meaning: Facing two difficult choices.
- Example: She’s caught between a rock and a hard place, having to choose between her career and her family.
- Roll out the red carpet
- Meaning: To give special treatment.
- Example: The city rolled out the red carpet for the visiting dignitaries.
- Roll with the punches
- Meaning: To adapt to difficult circumstances.
- Example: You have to learn to roll with the punches in this unpredictable industry.
- Round the clock
- Meaning: All day and all night.
- Example: The hospital provides round-the-clock care for its patients.
- Rub elbows
- Meaning: To associate with.
- Example: At the gala, you’ll rub elbows with some of the most influential people in the industry.
- Rub salt in the wound
- Meaning: To make a bad situation worse.
- Example: Losing the game was bad enough, but hearing their taunts rubbed salt in the wound.
- Rub someone the wrong way
- Meaning: To irritate or annoy someone.
- Example: His arrogant attitude really rubs me the wrong way.
- Rule of thumb
- Meaning: A general principle based on experience.
- Example: As a rule of thumb, you should backup your data regularly.
- Run a tight ship
- Meaning: To manage something efficiently.
- Example: She runs a tight ship and expects everyone to be on time.
- Run in the family
- Meaning: To be a common characteristic in a family.
- Example: Artistic talent seems to run in their family.
- Run out of steam
- Meaning: To lose energy or motivation.
- Example: The team ran out of steam after working for 12 hours straight.
- Run rings around
- Meaning: To outperform someone easily.
- Example: The young chess prodigy ran rings around her older opponents.
- Run the gamut
- Meaning: To cover a wide range.
- Example: His music runs the gamut from classical to rock.
- Run-of-the-mill
- Meaning: Ordinary, not special.
- Example: The restaurant was run-of-the-mill, nothing to write home about.
- Rush to judgment
- Meaning: To make a quick decision without enough thought.
- Example: Let’s not rush to judgment before we have all the facts.
- Race against time
- Meaning: To hurry to do something before a deadline.
- Example: It was a race against time to complete the project before the deadline.
- Rain cats and dogs
- Meaning: To rain very heavily.
- Example: It’s raining cats and dogs; I can’t go out in this weather.
- Rain on someone’s parade
- Meaning: To spoil someone’s plans or fun.
- Example: I hate to rain on your parade, but the concert has been canceled.
- Raise (someone’s) hackles
- Meaning: To make someone angry.
- Example: His rude comments raised my hackles.
- Raise one’s voice
- Meaning: To speak loudly, especially in anger.
- Example: Please don’t raise your voice at me.
- Raise red flags
- Meaning: To alert about potential problems.
- Example: The discrepancies in the report raised red flags for the auditors.
- Raise the roof
- Meaning: To make a lot of noise, especially by cheering.
- Example: The fans raised the roof when their team scored the winning goal.
- Rake (someone) over the coals
- Meaning: To criticize someone harshly.
- Example: The boss raked him over the coals for missing the deadline.
- Rake over the ashes
- Meaning: To bring up old issues.
- Example: There’s no point in raking over the ashes; let’s move on.
- Rake someone over the coals
- Meaning: To reprimand someone severely.
- Example: She was raked over the coals for her mistakes in the report.
- Read the tea leaves
- Meaning: To try to predict the future.
- Example: Investors are trying to read the tea leaves to anticipate market trends.
- Rear its ugly head
- Meaning: To appear or become noticeable in an unpleasant way.
- Example: The problem of inflation has reared its ugly head again.
- Rearrange the deck chairs on the Titanic
- Meaning: To make small changes that have no real effect.
- Example: Improving the website design without addressing the product flaws is just rearranging the deck chairs on the Titanic.
- Red flag
- Meaning: A warning sign.
- Example: His aggressive behavior was a red flag for the team.
- Red meat
- Meaning: Content or rhetoric intended to excite or inflame.
- Example: The politician’s speech was full of red meat to rally his supporters.
- Red-light district
- Meaning: An area known for its adult entertainment and illegal activities.
- Example: The tour guide advised us to avoid the red-light district at night.
- Riding high
- Meaning: Experiencing success or happiness.
- Example: The team is riding high after their recent victory.
- Right as rain
- Meaning: Perfectly fine.
- Example: After a good night’s sleep, I felt right as rain.
- Right under (one’s) nose
- Meaning: Very close but not noticed.
- Example: The solution was right under our noses the whole time.
- Right-hand man
- Meaning: A trusted assistant.
- Example: As the CEO’s right-hand man, he had a lot of influence in the company.
- Rob the cradle
- Meaning: To date or marry someone much younger.
- Example: People joked that he was robbing the cradle when he married his young girlfriend.
- Rock bottom
- Meaning: The lowest possible level.
- Example: After losing his job and his home, he felt like he had hit rock bottom.
- Rock the boat
- Meaning: To cause trouble or disrupt a situation.
- Example: He didn’t want to rock the boat by complaining about his workload.
- Roll the dice on
- Meaning: To take a risk.
- Example: They decided to roll the dice on a new business venture.
- Rome wasn’t built in a day
- Meaning: Important things take time.
- Example: Be patient with your training; Rome wasn’t built in a day.
- Rookie mistake
- Meaning: A beginner’s error.
- Example: Forgetting to save your work is a rookie mistake.
- Rotten to the core
- Meaning: Completely corrupt or bad.
- Example: The organization was found to be rotten to the core.
- Rub (something) in someone’s face
- Meaning: To boast or flaunt something in front of someone.
- Example: She kept rubbing her promotion in my face, even though I congratulated her.
- Rub it in
- Meaning: To emphasize someone’s failure or misfortune.
- Example: I know I made a mistake; you don’t have to rub it in.
- Rub someone’s nose in (something)
- Meaning: To force someone to confront an embarrassing or unpleasant situation.
- Example: There’s no need to rub his nose in his past mistakes.
- Rubber-stamp
- Meaning: To approve something without proper consideration.
- Example: The committee just rubber-stamped the proposal without reviewing it.
- Run into a buzz
- Meaning: To encounter unexpected problems.
- Example: We ran into a buzz trying to get permits for the event.
- Run off at the mouth
- Meaning: To talk excessively or indiscreetly.
- Example: He’s always running off at the mouth about his personal life.
- Run on fumes
- Meaning: To continue with very little energy or resources.
- Example: After working all night, I’m running on fumes.
- Run the table
- Meaning: To win all the matches or games.
- Example: The team ran the table in the tournament, winning every game.
- Run-of-the-mill
- Meaning: Ordinary, average.
- Example: The hotel was run-of-the-mill, nothing special.
- Rush to judgment
- Meaning: To make a hasty decision.
- Example: Let’s not rush to judgment before hearing both sides of the story.
- Rake over the ashes
- Meaning: To revisit and discuss past problems.
- Example: It’s unproductive to keep raking over the ashes of past failures.
- Rain on your parade
- Meaning: To spoil someone’s plans.
- Example: I hate to rain on your parade, but we can’t go on vacation this year.
- Read between the lines
- Meaning: To understand the hidden meaning.
- Example: You need to read between the lines to understand what he’s really saying.
- Rock the boat
- Meaning: To disturb a situation.
- Example: He didn’t want to rock the boat at work by asking for a raise.
- Rake over the coals
- Meaning: To scold someone severely.
- Example: The teacher raked the student over the coals for cheating.
- Rub salt in the wound
- Meaning: To make a bad situation worse.
- Example: Losing the game was bad enough, but hearing their taunts rubbed salt in the wound.
- Right on the money
- Meaning: Exactly correct.
- Example: His prediction was right on the money.
- Roll up your sleeves
- Meaning: To prepare to work hard.
- Example: It’s time to roll up our sleeves and get to work.
- Raise the bar
- Meaning: To set higher standards.
- Example: The new project raises the bar for future initiatives.
- Ride out the storm
- Meaning: To survive a difficult situation.
- Example: We need to ride out the storm until the economy improves.
- Running on empty
- Meaning: Having little energy left.
- Example: After working all night, I’m running on empty.
- Reach for the stars
- Meaning: To aim for ambitious goals.
- Example: Don’t be afraid to reach for the stars in your career.
List of Idioms Beginning With R
- Rack and ruin
- Rack one’s brain
- Rags to riches
- Rain check
- Rain on someone’s parade
- Raise a stink
- Raise eyebrows
- Raise the bar
- Rake over the coals
- Rake someone over the coals
- Rank and file
- Rat race
- Read between the lines
- Read someone the riot act
- Red herring
- Red letter day
- Red tape
- Reign supreme
- Reinvent the wheel
- Rest on one’s laurels
- Ring a bell
- Rise and shine
- Road to hell is paved with good intentions
- Rob Peter to pay Paul
- Rock and a hard place
- Roll out the red carpet
- Roll with the punches
- Round the clock
- Rub elbows
- Rub salt in the wound
- Rub someone the wrong way
- Rule of thumb
- Run a tight ship
- Run in the family
- Run out of steam
- Run rings around
- Run the gamut
- Run-of-the-mill
- Rush to judgment
- Race Against Time
- Rain Cats And Dogs
- Rain Cats and Dogs
- Rain on Someone’s Parade
- Raise (Someone’s) Hackles
- Raise One’s Voice
- Raise Red Flags
- Raise the Bar
- Raise the Roof
- Rake (Someone) Over the Coals
- Rake Over the Ashes
- Rake Someone Over the Coals
- Rank and File
- Read Between the Lines
- Read the Tea Leaves
- Rear Its Ugly Head
- Rearrange the Deck Chairs on the Titanic
- Red Flag
- Red Herring
- Red Meat
- Red Tape
- Red-Light District
- Reinvent the Wheel
- Riding High
- Right as Rain
- Right Under (One’s) Nose
- Right-Hand Man
- Ring a Bell
- Rob Peter to Pay Paul
- Rob the Cradle
- Rock Bottom
- Rock the Boat
- Roll the Dice On
- Roll With the Punches
- Rome Wasn’t Built in a Day
- Rookie Mistake
- Rotten to the Core
- Rub (Something) in Someone’s Face
- Rub It In
- Rub Someone’s Nose in (Something)
- Rubber-Stamp
- Rule of Thumb
- Run a Tight Ship
- Run in the Family
- Run into a Buzz
- Run off at the Mouth
- Run on Fumes
- Run Out of Steam
- Run the Table