Idioms and Phrases Examples in English with Pictures

Idioms and phrases are common parts of English that help people express ideas, feelings, and situations in interesting and meaningful ways. An idiom often has a figurative meaning different from the literal meaning of its words, such as “break the ice” or “a piece of cake.” Phrases are groups of words that work together to convey meaning and can be used in everyday conversations and writing. Learning idioms and phrases in English can improve vocabulary, reading comprehension, and communication skills. In this article, you will learn idioms and phrases examples in English with pictures, helping kids, students, beginners, and English learners understand their meanings and use them naturally.

Table of Contents

What is an idiom?

An idiom is a group of words that has a special meaning different from the actual meaning of each word. People use idioms in everyday conversations to express their thoughts in an interesting way. For example, “break the ice” means to make people feel comfortable when they first meet, not to break real ice. Similarly, “a piece of cake” means something that is very easy to do. Idioms make English more natural, expressive, and enjoyable to learn.

What is a Phrase?

A phrase is a group of words that work together to express an idea but do not form a complete sentence on their own. It does not have a complete meaning like a sentence. Phrases are used to add more information to sentences and make them clearer. For example, “in the garden,” “a beautiful flower,” and “under the table” are phrases. They help us describe people, places, things, and actions in a simple way.

Explore Idioms and Phrases in English

Idiom	Phrase
A blessing in disguise	As soon as you get home
Break the ice	In the middle of the day
Hit the nail on the head	At the end of the road
Once in a blue moon	For a very good reason
Bite the bullet	On the way to school
Every cloud has a silver lining	Before you make a decision
Let the cat out of the bag	After a long day
A piece of cake	In front of the whole class
Burn the midnight oil	As far as I remember
When pigs fly	At the right time
Spill the beans	In the back of the room
Go the extra mile	For the first time ever
Under the weather	At the top of the stairs
Pull someone’s leg	In a few simple words
Cost an arm and a leg	As quickly as possible
Keep an eye on	At the end of the lesson
Back to square one	In the early morning hours
Face the music	For your own safety
Kill two birds with one stone	On the other side of the street
A fish out of water	At the beginning of the week
Beat around the bush	In the best possible way
Get cold feet	Before the final examination
The ball is in your court	With the help of a friend
Add fuel to the fire	At the last possible moment
Read between the lines	In the same building
Make ends meet	For a short period
Barking up the wrong tree	As a matter of fact
Keep your chin up	At the front of the queue
Out of the blue	In the coming months
Let sleeping dogs lie	With all due respect

Explore Idioms and Phrases in English

Idiom and Phrase difference

Idiom	Phrase
Actions speak louder than words	In the light of day
A hard nut to crack	At your earliest convenience
Jump on the bandwagon	For the time being
Cry over spilled milk	In the middle of nowhere
Have a change of heart	On the left side of the road
Throw in the towel	At the end of the month
Don’t judge a book by its cover	As a result of this
Hold your horses	In the first place
A storm in a teacup	Before the sun goes down
Go back to the drawing board	At a later date
The last straw	For no apparent reason
Take the bull by the horns	In the course of the meeting
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush	At the back of the house
Miss the boat	On the other side of town
Speak of the devil	In the near future
Make a mountain out of a molehill	For a change of pace
Get your act together	At the earliest possible opportunity
A leopard cannot change its spots	In the middle of the night
Put all your eggs in one basket	With a little bit of luck
See eye to eye	At the end of the street
Go with the flow	In the usual course of events
Every dog has its day	On the first day of school
Have bigger fish to fry	For a long time to come
Turn over a new leaf	At the heart of the matter
The tip of the iceberg	In a different part of town
Get out of hand	As soon as the rain stops
A penny for your thoughts	At the bottom of the page
Make a long story short	For all practical purposes
Cross your fingers	In the middle of the afternoon
The early bird catches the worm	At the end of the waiting period

Idiom and Phrase Difference

Essential Idioms and Phrases Examples

Idiom	Phrase
All ears	In the back of my mind
A bitter pill to swallow	At the start of the journey
Break a leg	For a good cause
Keep your fingers crossed	In the public eye
A face like thunder	On the first floor
Get something off your chest	At the drop of a hat
All in the same boat	For your information
Have butterflies in your stomach	In the open air
Bite off more than you can chew	At the entrance to the building
A dime a dozen	In the final minutes of the game
Take it with a grain of salt	On the way back home
Go down in flames	For the sake of argument
A taste of your own medicine	At the end of the corridor
Know the ropes	In the absence of evidence
Put your foot down	At the time of arrival
The elephant in the room	In the middle of the discussion
Save for a rainy day	With a great deal of care
Be on cloud nine	At the centre of attention
Let bygones be bygones	For the rest of the day
Get a move on	In the right frame of mind
A watched pot never boils	At the back of the line
Give someone a hand	In the course of the day
Play it by ear	Before the start of the meeting
A chain is only as strong as its weakest link	With very little effort
Keep the wolf from the door	At the end of the school year
Make waves	In the middle of a conversation
Face the facts	For reasons best known to you
On thin ice	At the point of departure
The pot calling the kettle black	In the final stages of preparation
Get a taste of your own medicine	On the way to the office

Essential Idioms and Phrases Examples

Simple Idioms and Phrases in English

Idiom	Phrase
An open book	At the crack of dawn
Take a back seat	In the front row
A bolt from the blue	Beyond the reach of children
Go out on a limb	At the end of the path
Hit below the belt	In plain English
Get the hang of it	At a reasonable price
A breath of fresh air	Within a matter of minutes
Leave no stone unturned	In the years ahead
Have a lot on your plate	At the beginning of the story
Bend over backwards	On the same level
Out of sight, out of mind	At the first opportunity
Put your money where your mouth is	In the middle of the process
A golden opportunity	For the better part of the day
Get a second wind	At the edge of the water
Keep your cards close to your chest	With an open mind
Cut to the chase	At the end of the line
Walk on eggshells	In a friendly manner
A close shave	On the same occasion
Take something to heart	At the time of purchase
Break new ground	In the absence of help
Have a sweet tooth	At the dinner table
Turn a blind eye	In the public interest
A skeleton in the closet	Beyond the shadow of a doubt
Pull yourself together	At the end of the interview
Make a clean break	For a particular reason
Keep your nose clean	In the early hours of the morning
A wolf in sheep’s clothing	At the point of contact
Get your feet wet	In the opening scene
The writing is on the wall	At the back of the classroom
Throw caution to the wind	Within walking distance of the station

Simple Idioms and Phrases in English

Popular Idioms and Phrases in English

Idiom	Phrase
A needle in a haystack	At the height of summer
Add insult to injury	Without a doubt
Be a tough cookie	In the best interests of everyone
Break the bank	Across the street from here
Call it a day	At the earliest opportunity
Eat humble pie	In the public domain
Find your feet	Within walking distance of the park
Get the ball rolling	At the last minute
Have a heart of gold	In a cheerful mood
In hot water	Under difficult circumstances
Keep your head above water	At the back of the queue
Live and learn	Beyond the point of repair
Make a beeline for	At the centre of town
Not my cup of tea	Within a few hours
Off the beaten track	In the final analysis
Put the cart before the horse	From my point of view
Rain cats and dogs	In the same building
Sit on the fence	Under close supervision
Take the plunge	At the heart of the problem
Turn the tables	Beyond the original plan
Wear your heart on your sleeve	In a state of confusion
Work like a dog	At the end of the presentation
A fair-weather friend	Within the agreed period
Be caught red-handed	In the middle of the activity
Bring home the bacon	At the start of the competition
Get wind of something	Under the watchful eye
Have a bone to pick	At the end of the driveway
Leave someone high and dry	Within the city boundaries
Put your best foot forward	In the right direction
The whole nine yards	At the point of no return

Popular Idioms and Phrases in English

Examples of Idioms and Phrases

Idiom	Phrase
A close call	In the back of the car
A wolf in sheep’s clothing	At the height of the crisis
All bark and no bite	Within the family circle
Be on the ball	Beyond the normal range
Castles in the air	In the absence of support
Come clean	At the head of the table
Cut corners	Within the next working day
Draw a blank	Beyond the point of recovery
Give it a shot	In the best possible condition
Go cold turkey	At the time of the incident
Have a whale of a time	Within the school premises
Keep a low profile	Under the bright lights
Make a killing	At the back of the building
Nip it in the bud	Beyond the shadow of doubt
Play with fire	In the middle of the crowd
Put two and two together	At the end of the corridor
Ring a bell	Within the next calendar year
Run out of steam	Beyond the point of no return
The icing on the cake	At the top of the stairs
Throw someone under the bus	Within the next month
Up to your neck in something	In the final chapter
Vanish into thin air	Under the open sky
Your hands are tied	At the end of the session
A can of worms	At the beginning of the presentation
Be in deep water	Beyond the limits of the city
Drop someone a line	At the end of the path
Get the short end of the stick	In the first part of the book
Keep your eyes peeled	Within the given guidelines
Out of your depth	In the final round
Smell a rat	At the heart of the city

Examples of Idioms and Phrases

English Idioms and Phrases

Idiom	Phrase
A step in the right direction	Beyond your control
Be all thumbs	In the middle of the night
Blow your own trumpet	At the front of the line
Bring something to the table	Within a reasonable time
By the book	In the years that followed
Come full circle	At the point of departure
Cross the line	Within the limits of the law
Don’t hold your breath	Beyond the boundaries
Get off on the wrong foot	In the current situation
Give someone the cold shoulder	At the end of the passage
Go the whole nine yards	In the early stages
Have a chip on your shoulder	At the final meeting
Make a mountain out of nothing	Beyond the usual routine
On the back burner	In the right frame of mind
Raise the bar	At the entrance to the park
Rock the boat	Within the next few weeks
Set the record straight	In the absence of a reply
Take a leaf out of someone’s book	At the end of the month
Walk the talk	Within the local area
Get your wires crossed	At the time of writing
A fool’s paradise	In the light of day
A little bird told me	At the edge of town
All Greek to me	Under the guidance of a teacher
At sixes and sevens	Within the family home
Be worth your salt	At the end of the presentation
Bite the dust	Beyond the final deadline
Bring the house down	In a cheerful mood
Catch someone off guard	At the top of the mountain
Cry wolf	Beyond the limits of patience
Get a raw deal	At the back of the house

English Idioms and Phrases

English Phrases and idioms

Idiom	Phrase
A backhanded compliment	At the point of entry
A bone of contention	Beyond the limits of the agreement
A clean slate	At the start of the project
A cut above the rest	Within the permitted period
A double-edged sword	Beyond the reach of the public
A flash in the pan	At the end of the performance
An old hand	At the start of the competition
Be a fly on the wall	Beyond the reach of the authorities
Be in seventh heaven	At the beginning of the month
Be the talk of the town	In the final stages of development
Blow your top	At the end of the discussion
Come to a standstill	Beyond the expected duration
Get a grip	In the absence of clear evidence
Go off the rails	At the height of the season
Have a heart of stone	Within the limits of the budget
Keep your head	At the start of the programme
On cloud nine	In the final part of the lesson
Pull strings	At the end of the waiting period
Take the world by storm	Within the first few days
The last laugh	Beyond ordinary understanding
A bird’s-eye view	At the end of the inspection
A shot in the dark	In the back of my mind
A stitch in time saves nine	At the end of the week
An uphill struggle	Beyond the original deadline
As sharp as a tack	At the head of the queue
Break someone’s heart	At the start of the ceremony
Come to grips with	Beyond the initial stage
Get a foot in the door	At the time of the announcement
Leave a bad taste in your mouth	Beyond the initial impression
Run the show	At the time of departure

English Phrases and idioms

Best Idioms and Phrases in English

Idiom	Phrase
A fool and his money are soon parted	In the absence of evidence
A rolling stone gathers no moss	Beyond the immediate area
All roads lead to Rome	In the absence of supervision
An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure	At the start of the programme
Be in the same league	Within the next calendar year
Born with a silver spoon in your mouth	In the event of a delay
Get your feet wet	At the end of the journey
Give someone a piece of your mind	Beyond the scope of this lesson
Go belly up	In the middle of the afternoon
Keep your head above water	Within the next business day
Make a song and dance about something	At the time of purchase
No smoke without fire	At the end of the trial
Out of the woods	Within the boundaries of the property
Put the cat among the pigeons	At the start of the school term
Read the room	Beyond the limits of imagination
Shoot yourself in the foot	In the absence of a reply
Take the edge off	At the centre of attention
The proof of the pudding is in the eating	Within easy reach
Throw good money after bad	Beyond the reach of ordinary people
Two heads are better than one	In the final stages
A bad hair day	At a later stage
A house of cards	Beyond the call of duty
A slap on the wrist	In the back row
All hell breaks loose	At the height of summer
As blind as a bat	Beyond the reach of science
Burn the candle at both ends	In the absence of light
Call someone’s bluff	At the height of the crisis
Change horses in midstream	Within the family home
Come out of your shell	Beyond the limits of reason
Take someone for a ride	At the end of the road

Best Idioms and Phrases in English

Difference Between idioms and Phrases

Idiom	Phrase
A far cry from	At the beginning of the week
A long shot	Beyond the point of repair
A mixed blessing	In the final chapter
A rough diamond	At the end of the road
A tall order	At the beginning of the week
A feather in your cap	Within the next few days
All over the place	In the back of the room
An open secret	At the time of the announcement
As easy as pie	Within the specified period
Be in hot pursuit	Beyond the limits of the city
Get your hands dirty	In the middle of the task
Go through the roof	At the end of the presentation
Keep your wits about you	In the absence of proper planning
Make no bones about it	At the start of the operation
Play hardball	In the middle of the night sky
Pull the wool over someone’s eyes	At the end of the road
Run a tight ship	In the course of events
The die is cast	Within the agreed limits
Throw someone a lifeline	At the time of the request
A wild card	In the first few minutes
A change of pace	In the middle of the week
A matter of life and death	At the start of the day
Add up to something	In the centre of the room
Be in someone’s shoes	At the point of sale
Blow things out of proportion	Beyond the initial stage
Do a double take	In the middle of the road
Give someone the green light	At the time of the incident
Go off the deep end	Within the first week
Put your finger on something	In the middle of the process
You reap what you sow	Beyond the reach of memory

Difference Between idioms and Phrases

Everyday Idioms and Phrases list

Idiom	Phrase
A tough act to follow	At the beginning of the week
An eye for an eye	Beyond the reach of the average person
As busy as a bee	At the end of the journey
As clear as mud	Within the official guidelines
Bring to the boil	Within the next working day
Cast a long shadow	Beyond the point of recovery
Cook the books	In the best interests of everyone
Drop like flies	Within a short period
Give someone a heads-up	In the middle of the crowd
Go pear-shaped	Beyond the usual standards
Have a ball	At the end of the school day
Leave someone speechless	Beyond the point of recognition
On the fence	Within the next twenty-four hours
Put the brakes on	Beyond the scope of the project
Run a tight ship	At the front of the house
Take the high road	In the course of events
The die is cast	Within the agreed limits
Throw someone a lifeline	At the time of the request
Turn the corner	Beyond the reach of the hand
Keep the ball rolling	At the beginning of the month
A cat has nine lives	In the upper corner
A golden handshake	Beyond the point of agreement
A labour of love	At the end of the financial year
A red-letter day	Beyond the normal working hours
An axe to grind	At the edge of the cliff
Be left holding the bag	At the start of the ceremony
Between the lines	In the final paragraph
Bite the hand that feeds you	Beyond the scope of the discussion
Dance to someone’s tune	At the time of delivery
Make a name for yourself	In the course of the conversation

Everyday Idioms and Phrases list

List of Idioms and Phrases with Pictures

Idiom	Phrase
A leopard’s spots never change	At the beginning of the new term
A picture is worth a thousand words	In the middle of the school year
All that glitters is not gold	Under the current circumstances
As cool as a cucumber	At the end of the working day
Be on the same wavelength	In the middle of the conversation
Better safe than sorry	At the first sign of danger
Burn your bridges	Before the opportunity disappears
Come rain or shine	In every possible situation
Don’t bite the hand that feeds you	At the start of the next lesson
Every dog has its day	When the right time comes
Get a taste of your own medicine	After a difficult experience
Give the benefit of the doubt	Until further notice
Go against the grain	In the face of opposition
Have your head in the clouds	At the back of your mind
It takes two to tango	In a matter of seconds
Keep your fingers crossed	Before the final result
Leave no stone unturned	During the entire process
Make a mountain out of a molehill	In the eyes of the public
No pain no gain	At the end of the training period
Out of the frying pan into the fire	From one difficult situation to another
Practice makes perfect	With regular effort and patience
Rome wasn’t built in a day	Over a long period of time
Strike while the iron is hot	Before the chance passes
The grass is always greener on the other side	In someone else’s position
Time flies when you’re having fun	During a pleasant experience
Two wrongs don’t make a right	In response to unfair treatment
Variety is the spice of life	In everyday situations
Waste not, want not	For future use
Where there’s a will, there’s a way	In the face of difficulty
You can’t have it both ways	When making a difficult choice

List of Idioms and Phrases with Pictures

500 Idioms and Phrases Examples

Idiom	Phrase
A chain reaction	At the centre of the debate
A double take	Before you know it
A fish rots from the head down	In a poorly managed organisation
A house divided cannot stand	In times of serious disagreement
A leopard cannot change its spots	Despite repeated attempts to change
A rolling stone gathers no moss	Without settling in one place
A sight for sore eyes	After a very long absence
All’s well that ends well	At the conclusion of the matter
An apple a day keeps the doctor away	As part of a healthy routine
Any port in a storm	When no better option exists
Barking up the wrong tree	Based on a false assumption
Beating a dead horse	After the matter has been settled
Between the devil and the deep blue sea	When both choices are difficult
Blood is thicker than water	When family relationships matter
Curiosity killed the cat	Without thinking about the risks
Don’t put all your eggs in one basket	When planning for uncertain outcomes
Fortune favours the brave	When taking a calculated risk
Good things come to those who wait	After a period of patience
Haste makes waste	When acting without proper care
Honesty is the best policy	In every difficult situation
If the shoe fits, wear it	When a description applies to you
Let the chips fall where they may	Whatever happens as a result
Look before you leap	Before taking an important step
Many hands make light work	When everyone shares the task
Out of sight, out of mind	When someone is no longer present
The squeaky wheel gets the grease	When persistent complaints receive attention
Too many cooks spoil the broth	When too many people control a task
You can’t make an omelette without breaking eggs	When progress requires some sacrifice
Your guess is as good as mine	When neither person knows the answer
A stitch in time saves nine	Before a small problem grows larger

500 Idioms and Phrases Examples

Basic Idioms and Basic Phrases in English

Idiom	Phrase
A bird’s-eye view	From a different perspective
A clean bill of health	After a thorough medical examination
A cold shoulder	Without showing any warmth
A drop in the bucket	Compared with the total amount
A flash of inspiration	At an unexpected moment
A golden opportunity	Before the chance is lost
A leopard’s spots	Despite the passage of time
A new lease on life	After a major positive change
A shot across the bow	As a warning before action
A whole new ball game	Under completely different circumstances
All hands on deck	When everyone must help
As right as rain	After a good night’s sleep
Be the apple of someone’s eye	In the eyes of a loving parent
Break the mould	In a completely different way
Bring something to light	After a careful investigation
Come to a head	When a problem reaches its peak
Cut someone some slack	When they are having a difficult time
Get something out of your system	After expressing strong feelings
Give someone a run for their money	In a closely fought competition
Go down memory lane	While remembering earlier experiences
Have a field day	When given plenty of opportunity
Keep a straight face	While trying not to laugh
Leave someone in the lurch	Without offering the promised help
Make a clean sweep	By winning every available contest
On the spur of the moment	Without any advance planning
Play your cards right	If you make sensible decisions
Put your thinking cap on	Before solving a difficult problem
Set in stone	Without allowing any future changes
Take a rain check	On another suitable occasion
Turn heads	Wherever you happen to go

Basic Idioms and Basic Phrases in English

Learn Idiom and Phrase difference

Idiom	Phrase
A bad apple spoils the bunch	When one person sets a poor example
A bird in the hand	Rather than risking what you have
A blessing in disguise	Despite the initial disappointment
A bitter end	Until the very last moment
A breath of fresh air	After a period of dull routine
A can of worms	Once the issue has been raised
A change of heart	After thinking things over
A fool’s errand	Without any realistic chance of success
A friend in need	When genuine support is required
A long face	After receiving disappointing news
A means to an end	In order to achieve a goal
A narrow escape	Just before the danger became serious
A rough patch	During a difficult period
All bark and no bite	Despite making many threats
An uphill battle	Against considerable difficulties
As fresh as a daisy	After getting enough rest
Be in two minds	Before making a final choice
Be quick on the uptake	When learning something new
Blow off steam	After a stressful day
Break someone’s heart	After a painful separation
Come to terms with something	After accepting an unpleasant reality
Get the wrong end of the stick	After misunderstanding what was said
Give it your best shot	Even if success is uncertain
Go the extra mile	To provide better than expected service
Keep something under wraps	Until the official announcement
Make a fresh start	After learning from past mistakes
Put a brave face on something	Despite feeling upset inside
Take the rough with the smooth	Throughout both good and bad times
The calm before the storm	Just before a difficult period
The world is your oyster	When many opportunities are available

Learn Idiom and Phrase difference

Idioms vs Phrases for kids English

Idiom	Phrase
A bad workman blames his tools	Rather than accepting personal responsibility
A bird never flew on one wing	When two people need to cooperate
A leopard cannot change its spots	Even after many years have passed
A little knowledge is a dangerous thing	Without understanding the full subject
A miss is as good as a mile	When even a small failure matters
A penny saved is a penny earned	By avoiding unnecessary spending
A picture-perfect moment	When everything looks just right
A red herring	To distract attention from the real issue
A rolling stone	When someone never settles down
All good things must come to an end	When a pleasant experience finishes
As blind as a bat	Without being able to see clearly
As light as a feather	Without carrying much weight
Be careful what you wish for	Before pursuing something desirable
Better late than never	Even if you arrive after the expected time
Don’t make a mountain out of a molehill	When a minor problem seems overwhelming
Every man for himself	When everyone must look after themselves
Give someone the benefit of the doubt	Until stronger evidence becomes available
Good things come in small packages	Even when something looks small
It never rains but it pours	When several problems happen together
Keep your powder dry	Until the right moment arrives
Let the good times roll	While everyone is enjoying themselves
Make hay while the sun shines	While conditions remain favourable
Never say never	When future possibilities remain open
No news is good news	When no worrying update has arrived
Nothing ventured, nothing gained	If you never take a chance
One good turn deserves another	After someone has helped you
The best-laid plans often go awry	When unexpected problems disrupt preparations
The proof is in the pudding	When results show whether something works
There is no place like home	After spending time away
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks	When changing established habits is difficult