VOCABULARY - IDIOMS

Babe In Arms

Meaning: A baby being carried

Babe In The Woods

Meaning: An innocent, naive person

Babe Magnet

Meaning: A man to whom women are attracted

Baby Blues

Meaning: Blue eyes.

Baby Boomer

Meaning: A person born in the years following World War II, when there was a temporary marked increase in the birth rate

Babysitter Test

Meaning: An evaluation of the ease of use of household appliances, especially remote control devices

Back And Forth

Meaning: Dialogue, negotiations

Back At You

Meaning: Same to you (used to return a greeting or insult)

Back Burner (On The)

Meaning: Not urgent; set aside until later

Back Forty

Meaning: Remote, inaccessible land

Back in the Day

Meaning: Formerly, when I was younger, in earlier times

Back Of Beyond

Meaning: A remote location

Back Office

Meaning: Support services for a business

Back on One’s Feet

Meaning: Physically healthy again

Back to Square One

Meaning: Back to the start

Back to Square One

Meaning: Forced to begin something again

Back to the Drawing Board

Meaning: Forced to begin something again

Back to the Salt Mine(s)

Meaning: We have to go back to work.

Back to the Salt Mines

Meaning: It’s time for me (us) to go back to work

Back the Wrong Horse

Meaning: To support the losing side

Backing and Filling

Meaning: Delaying a decision by making small changes or arguing about small details

Backseat Driver

Meaning: A passenger in a car who gives unwanted advice to the driver is called a backseat driver.

Backseat Driver

Meaning: Someone who likes to give (often annoying) advice to the driver of a car, or the leader of some other enterprise

Bad Apple

Meaning: A discontented, trouble making, or dishonest person

Bad Blood

Meaning: Enmity or hatred that stems from something in the past

Bad Egg

Meaning: Someone who is not to be trusted

Bad Taste In One’s Mouth

Meaning: Unease, a feeling that something unspecified is wrong in a situation

Bag of Tricks

Meaning: A collection of clever or deceptive strategies or tactics.

Bail Out

Meaning: To rescue someone from a bad situation, to shield someone from the consequences of his or her actions

Ball and Chain

Meaning: 1. One’s spouse (derogatory but often affectionate); 2. an ongoing burden

Ballpark Figure

Meaning: A rough estimate

Banner Year

Meaning: A year marked by strong successes

Bang for Your Buck

Meaning: Value for money

Bang for Your Buck

Meaning: Value for your money

Bang One’s Head Against the Wall

Meaning: Try repeatedly to do something without making progress

Baptism by Fire

Meaning: A difficult task given right after one has assumed new responsibilities

Bar Fly (or Barfly)

Meaning: Someone who spends much of his or her time in bars

Bare One’s Heart (Soul)

Meaning: To confess one’s deepest secrets

Bark Up the Wrong Tree

Meaning: Pursue a mistaken approach or belief; be wrong in a course of action

Basket Case

Meaning: So upset or stunned that one is unable to function; in a hopeless condition

Bat/Play for Both Teams

Meaning: To be bisexual.

Bat/Play for the Other Team

Meaning: To be homosexual.

Batten Down the Hatches

Meaning: Prepare for a storm

Batten Down the Hatches

Meaning: Prepare for a storm

Be A Barrel of Laughs

Meaning: To be fun, funny, and pleasant.

Be A Cold Day In Hell

Meaning: (Something that) will never happen

Be An Item

Meaning: Two people are an item when they are having a romantic relationship

Be Footloose and Fancy-Free

Meaning: To be free of responsibilities, including romantic commitments

Be Head Over Heels (In love)

Meaning: Be in love with somebody very much

Be in Seventh Heaven

Meaning: Extremely happy

Be in Two Minds

Meaning: To not be certain about something, or to have difficulty in making a decision

Be Like Chalk and Cheese

Meaning: two things are completely different from each other

Be Lovey – Dovey

Meaning: Expressing your love in public by constantly kissing and hugging

Be on the Mend

Meaning: Be improving after an illness

Be Snowed Under

Meaning:

• Be extremely busy with work or things to do
• To be overwhelmed with a large amount of work or tasks that need to be completed.

Bean Counters

Meaning: Accountants, finance professionals in an organization

Bean Counters

Meaning: Accountants, finance professionals in an organization

Beat Around the Bush

Meaning: To speak in a roundabout way in order to avoid confronting an unpleasant topic; Avoid saying what you mean, usually because it is uncomfortable

Beat Someone To The Draw

Meaning: To accomplish or obtain something more quickly than someone else

Beat Someone to the Punch

Meaning: Do something before or faster than someone else

Beat the Drum for (Something)

Meaning: Speak in favor of something to try to generate support

Beauty Is Only Skin Deep

Meaning: External appearance is a superficial basis for judging someone

Bed of Roses

Meaning: A comfortable situation

Bedroom Eyes

Meaning: An expression of the eyes that seems to invite sex

Bee in One’s Bonnet

Meaning: Someone who has a bee in their bonnet has an idea which constantly occupies their thoughts.

Beggar Thy Neighbor

Meaning: To do something beneficial for oneself without worrying about how it affects others

Behind the Eight (or 8) Ball

Meaning: At a serious disadvantage

Behind the Scenes

Meaning: In a way not apparent to the public

Behind the Times

Meaning: Old-fashioned

Bell the Cat

Meaning: Take on a difficult or impossible task

Bells And Whistles

Meaning: Attractive but unnecessary features of a product

Belly Laugh

Meaning: Loud, hearty laughter

Bend an Elbow

Meaning: Drink alcoholic beverages at a tavern

Best (Greatest) Thing Since Sliced Bread

Meaning: An innovative development

Best of Both Worlds

Meaning: Combining two qualities that are usually separate

Bet One’s Bottom Dollar (On Something)

Meaning: Be certain that something will happen

Bet the Farm

Meaning: Risk everything; spend all one’s money on something in hopes of success

Better late Than Never

Meaning: Better to arrive late than not to come at all; It implies that a belated achievement is better than not reaching a goal at all.

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Meaning: Caught between two undesirable options

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

Meaning: In a difficult position

Beyond the Pale

Meaning: Too morally or socially extreme to accept

Beyond the Shadow of a Doubt

Meaning: Absolutely certain

Big Apple

Meaning: An informal name for New York City

Big Brother

Meaning: Government, viewed as an intrusive force in the lives of citizens; government spying

Big Cheese

Meaning: An important person in a company or organization

Big Deal

Meaning: An important event or accomplishment

Big Fish

Meaning: An important person

Big Picture

Meaning: A wide perspective; a broad view of something

Big time

Meaning: If you do something big time, you do it to a great degree.

Birds of a Feather

Meaning: People having similar characters, backgrounds, interests, or beliefs.

Bird’s-Eye View

Meaning: A view from above; a broad perspective on something

Bite Off More Than You Can Chew

Meaning: Try to do more than one is capable of doing

Bite the Bullet

Meaning: To do something even though it involves pain, discomfort, or difficulty

Bite the Hand That Feeds You

Meaning: Act badly toward someone who has helped you

Bitter Pill to Swallow

Meaning: An unpleasant fact that one must accept

Black and White

Meaning: A clear distinction between good and bad, positive and negative

Black Eye

Meaning: A mark of shame

Black Sheep

Meaning: A person who does not fit into a group, especially a family

Black-and-Blue

Meaning: Bruised, showing signs of having been physically harmed

Blank Check

Meaning: Permission to spend or do whatever one wishes; carte blanche

Blind Date

Meaning: When two people who have never seen each other before go on a date

Blinded by Love

Meaning: Unable to see the flaws or negative aspects of someone or something because of being in love

Blood and Thunder

Meaning: A dramatic, spectacular performance

Blow Away the Cobwebs

Meaning: If something blows away the cobwebs, it makes you feel more lively and refreshes your ideas.

Blow Hot and Cold

Meaning: Shift one’s level of enthusiasm repeatedly

Blow Off Steam

Meaning: To express anger and frustration in a way that does no damage

Blow One’s Top

Meaning: Lose one’s temper

Blow One’s Stack

Meaning: To lose one’s temper and explode in anger

Blow the Cobwebs Away (or Out of Something)

Meaning: Make space for fresh ideas, encourage something new

Blow the Whistle

Meaning: Reporting an illegal or unacceptable activity to the authorities

Blow Up

Meaning: Explode

Blow Your Own Trumpet

Meaning: Brag; emphasize one’s own contributions

Blue Blood (adj. blue-blooded)

Meaning: Person of aristocratic background

Blue Eyed Boy

Meaning: A person who is a favorite of those in authority; someone whose mistakes are forgiven

Blue Light Special

Meaning: 1. a temporary sale at a discount store. 2. a traffic stop by the police.

Bob’s Your Uncle

Meaning: The rest is easy; you’re almost finished

Bolt From the Blue

Meaning: Something completely unexpected

Bone Dry

Meaning: Completely dry, totally without moisture

Born on The Wrong Side of the Blanket

Meaning: Born to parents who were not married

Borrow Trouble

Meaning: Take needless risks, invite problems

Bottom of the Barrel

Meaning: Low-quality choices

Boy Toy

Meaning: A young man who is the lover of an older, often wealthier woman (see toyboy)

Boys will be Boys

Meaning: A phrase of resignation used when boys get into trouble or are stereotypically reckless or rowdy

Brainstorm

Meaning:

• To come up with new ideas or solutions through discussion and creative thinking, often in a group setting.
• A spontaneous group discussion to produce ideas and ways of solving problems.
• To generate many ideas quickly

Break a Leg

Meaning: Good luck! This is used for a stage performer-or for anyone else who is about to give some kind of a performance, such as an important speech

Break Out in A Cold Sweat

Meaning: To perspire from fever or anxiety

Break the Bank

Meaning: Exhaust one’s financial resources

Break The Ice

Meaning: To get something started, particularly by means of a social introduction or conversation

Break up/ Split up (With Somebody)

Meaning: End the relationship

Bring Home the Bacon

Meaning: Earn money for one’s family

Bringing a Knife to a Gunfight

Meaning: Underequipped or unprepared

Brush Under the Carpet

Meaning: Attempt to temporarily conceal a problem or error

Bucket List

Meaning: Things you want to see or do before you die

Bull in a China Shop

Meaning: A clumsy or tactless person

Bump in the Road

Meaning: A minor problem or setback

Bundle Up

Meaning: Put on lots of warm clothing

Burn One’s Bridges

Meaning: Leave a job or a relationship on such bad terms that one does not stay in contact

Burn the Candle at Both Ends

Meaning: To work too hard, with possible bad consequences for one’s health; Work very long hours;

Burn the Candle at Both Ends

Meaning: To work too hard, with possible bad consequences for one’s health; Work very long hours;

Burn the Midnight Oil

Meaning: To work late into the night

Burn the Midnight Oil

Meaning: Working late into the night

Bury (Hide) One’s Head In the Sand

Meaning: Ignoring something that’s obviously wrong, not facing reality

Bury the Hatchet

Meaning: Make peace, agree to end a dispute

Business as Usual

Meaning: A normal situation (whether related to business or not), typically restored after some change

Busman’s Holiday (UK)

Meaning: A working vacation

Busman’s Holiday

Meaning: A vacation where you do the same thing you do at work, a working vacation

Busted Flush

Meaning: A failure, someone or something that seemed promising but did not develop well

Butter Wouldn’t Melt in (Someone’s)

Meaning: Mouth This person is cool in manner, prim and proper

Buy a Pig in a Poke

Meaning: To buy something with no prior inspection

Buy Time

Meaning: Cause a delay in something with the aim of improving one’s position

By a Whisker

Meaning: By a very short distance

By All Means

Meaning: Of course, certainly

By Hook or by Crook

Meaning: By some possibly dishonest means

By the Skin of One’s Teeth

Meaning: Barely escaping disaster

By Word of Mouth

Meaning: Via personal communications rather than written media

buckle down

Meaning: - make sure something stays in place - giving a task a hundred percent - to focus - determination to finish a task - to settle - trying hard