Learn 20 Important And Common Idioms With Story

20 Common Idioms 20 Important Idioms Through Story! Native English Vocabulary Lesson

Read the story:

1. I woke up in the morning feeling a little under the weather. 

2. I took a deep breath, and tried to pull myself together. 

3. ‘You’ve got to bite the bullet and attend the interview!’ 

4. I went downstairs to have some breakfast. My mum asked me if I was hungry. I told her that I could eat a horse! 

5. She made me a big plate of eggs and I wolfed it down. 

6. I started to feel really nervous about the interview. Candidates like me are a dime a dozen! 

7. To add insult to injury, I’d been unemployed for 6 months. Why would anyone hire me? 

8. Perhaps I’m barking up the wrong tree. 

9. Or perhaps I should throw caution to the wind and just go! 

10. The ball is in my court! I have to do this! 

11. On the way to the interview, my bus got stuck in a traffic jam. I was really down on my luck. 

12. To make matters worse I spilt some coffee on my shirt. 

13. I arrived 10 minutes late, but the boss said, ‘Better late than never!’ 

14. She said that she would give me the benefit of the doubt, which I really appreciated. 

15. She was really on the ball, and asked me lots of relevant questions about my past experience. 

16. I managed to give her some good answers. ‘So far so good!’ I thought to myself. 

17. By the end of the interview, I felt a lot better. She said to me that her decision was a piece of cake. She wanted to offer me the position! 

18. I was over the moon! Finally, I had my dream job! 

19. I told her that I would give her my all. 

20. I was on cloud 9 for the rest of the day.

20 Common And Important Idioms

01) to feel under the weather

to feel ill or unwell 

I didn’t go into school today because I was feeling a bit under the weather. I hope to feel better tomorrow!

02) to pull oneself together 

to decide to do something difficult or unpleasant that you have been avoiding

I have been avoiding organising my finances, but I need to bite the bullet and open that spreadsheet!

03) to bite the bullet

to decide to do something difficult or unpleasant that you have been avoiding

I have been avoiding organising my finances, but I need to bite the bullet and open that spreadsheet!

04) I could eat a horse!

I could eat a lot!

After running the marathon I could have eaten a horse! I was so hungry!

05) to wolf something down

to eat something really quickly 

He wolfed down 2 plates of lasagne and still had room for dessert!

06) A dime a dozen

very common

I’m sorry but your stamp collection isn’t worth anything. Most of them are a dime a dozen!

07) to add insult to injury

to make something bad even worse

He broke up with me and then, to add insult to injury, he started dating my sister.

08) to bark up the wrong tree 

to be wrong about the reason for something or the way to achieve something

She thinks that spending some time apart will solve her marriage problems, but she’s barking up the wrong tree

09) to throw caution to the wind 

to act without thinking of the consequences

I was initially worried she would reject me, but soon I threw caution to the wind and asked her out.

10) the ball is in your court

it is up to you to make the next move 

I’ve done as much as I can. The ball is in your court now

11) to be down on your luck

to be experiencing a period of bad luck

I really hope that things improve for you. You’ve been down on your luck and you don’t deserve it!

12) to make matters worse

to make something bad even worse 

The thief stole my bag, and then to make matters worse he tripped me over! 

13) Better late than never!

It is better to do something after it was supposed to have been done than not to do it at all!

You lose 10% of your marks if you hand your coursework in late, but better late than never!

14) to give someone the benefit of the doubt

to decide that you will believe someone, even though you are not sure that what the person is saying is true/honest

I’m not sure if he’ll be able to deliver on his promises but I am going to give him the benefit of the doubt!

15) to be on the ball

to be organised and alert

You won’t be able to fool him. He is pretty on the ball when it comes to the latest tricks and scams!

16) So far so good!

Everything until now has gone well!

I don’t know if tomorrow’s shift will be as easy, but so far so good!

17) a piece of cake 

very easy

I thought that exam was a piece of cake. We should all get full marks!

18) to be over the moon 

to be very happy

I was over the moon when I found out that my favourite band was going to play in my city!

19) to give something my all

To give your full effort to something/someone

I gave it my all but I didn’t manage to win the race.

20) to be on cloud 9 

to be elated

After our wedding day we were on cloud nine. It was so lovely to finally tie the knot

Source From English With Lucy