Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 1 Commonly-Used Idioms, Sayings and phrasal verbs What is the meaning of idioms? Words that come together and change the whole meaning of the statement like "it rains cats and dogs", did you ever seen cats and dogs falling off from the sky?! Of course not, but it simply mean "it is raining too hard". I hope that you got the whole idea by now. Enjoy! Mr. Doody A abide by (something) - to follow the rules of something The cleaning staff must abide by the rules of the school. able to breathe easily again - to be able to relax and recover from a stressful time or event My friend was able to breathe easily again when his company did not go bankrupt. able to do (something) blindfolded - to be able to do something easily and quickly The car was easy to fix and we were able to do it blindfolded. able to do (something) standing on one's head - to be able to do something easily and quickly The boy is good at fixing his bicycle. He can do it standing on his head. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 2 able to take a joke - to be able to let others laugh and joke about you Our boss is not able to take a joke. We must be careful what we say to him. about time - to be something that should have happened earlier "It is about time that you returned that book to me." about to (do something) - to be on the point of doing something I was about to leave my house when the phone rang. above all else - most importantly of all Above all else, I plan to go to the Natural History Museum when I visit the city. above and beyond - to be more than is required The work that the man did on our house was above and beyond what was required. above reproach - to be not deserving of blame or criticism The actions of the police officer were above reproach. above suspicion - to be very honest so that nobody will suspect you The man's actions are always above suspicion. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 3 absent-minded - to be forgetful My grandfather is very absent-minded and he often forgets his keys. according to Hoyle - doing something strictly by the rules, doing something the usual and correct way "According to Hoyle, we should not use this room but probably nobody will complain if we do use it." according to (someone or something) - as said or told by someone, in agreement with something, in the order of something, in proportion to something According to our teacher, there will be no class next week. We did everything according to the terms of our agreement. account for (something) - to provide an answer/explanation for something The bad weather accounts for the fact that only a few people came to the meeting. acid test - a test where the conclusions are beyond doubt The problem was an acid test of our faith in the new manager. acquire a taste for (something) - to learn to like something We acquired a taste for classical music during our trip to Europe. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 4 across the board - equally for everyone or everything The taxes increased across the board and everyone must pay more. act high and mighty - to act proud and powerful The woman always acts high and mighty and nobody likes her. act one's age - to behave as a mature person, to behave equal to one's age My friend never acts her age in public. act up - to misbehave The children began to act up during the field trip. add fuel to the fire - to make a problem worse, to make an angry person more angry The company added fuel to the fire when they criticized the workers. add insult to injury - to make a person who already feels bad to feel worse, to make a bad situation worse Our boss added insult to injury when she refused to let us use the telephone and computers during lunch. add up - to total up to a certain amount I plan to add up the money that I owe to my father. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 5 add up (to something) - to mean something, to result in something The things that my friend said about his boss do not add up. advise against (something) - to suggest that something should not be done We were advised against swimming in the river. afraid of one's own shadow - to be easily frightened The small dog is afraid of his own shadow. after Idioms after a fashion - poorly, barely adequate The cleaning staff cleaned the room after a fashion but not very well. after all - in spite of what was expected I have decided to take swimming lessons after all. after all - because of the reason given, something needs to be considered "You don't need to phone him. After all, he never phones you." Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 6 after all is said and done - finally, when everything is settled After all is said and done the mayor of our city is doing a very good job. after hours - after the regular closing or finishing time The library has a place to return books after hours. after the fact - after something has happened The man said that he was sorry but it was after the fact. He had already caused many problems. . against one's will - to be without a person's consent or agreement The police took the man to jail against his will. against the clock - to hurry to do something before a particular time We worked against the clock to finish the project. ahead of one's time - to have ideas or attitudes that are more advanced than those of others The ideas of the politician were ahead of his time. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 7 ahead of schedule - before the time on a schedule that has been decided We finished our work ahead of schedule. ahead of the game - to have done more than necessary We worked hard all week in order to be ahead of the game on Monday morning. ahead of time - earlier than arranged or planned We started the meeting ahead of time so that we could go home early. aim at (something) - to plan or try to reach a target We are aiming at a big increase in sales next year. air one`s dirty laundry/linen in public - to make public something embarrassing that should be a secret The dinner party became uncomfortable when the host began to air his colleague's dirty laundry in public. air one's grievances - to complain (often publicly) We aired our grievances during the monthly meeting. air (something) out - to freshen something by putting it in the open air We put the blankets outside in order to air them out. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 8 alive and kicking - to be well and healthy My aunt is 87 years old and she is very much alive and kicking. alive and well - to be well and healthy The worker is alive and well after the accident. all Idioms all along - all the time, throughout I knew all along that my friend would not get the promotion. all at once - suddenly, without warning All at once the fire alarm rang and we had to leave the building. all day long - the whole day The girl is happy to wait all day long for the mail to arrive. all ears - to be eager to listen to someone "I`m all ears, please tell me about the party." Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 9 all for (someone or something) - to be very much in favor of someone or something The woman is all for the manager and she never criticizes her. all important - most important, urgent or necessary The meeting is all important and I plan to attend it. all in - to be tired, to be exhausted I am all in and will go to bed early tonight. all in a day's work - to be part of what is expected It was all in a day's work when the firefighters rescued the cat. all in all - in summary, after considering everything We had a few problems but all in all the meeting was successful. all in one piece - safely, without damage Our furniture arrived all in one piece after we moved. all manner of (someone or something) - all types of people or things There were all manner of people at the party. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 10 all night long - throughout the whole night We could hear the people next door talking all night long. all of a sudden - suddenly, without advance warning All of a sudden it became cloudy and began to rain. all or nothing - everything, one hundred percent of something It is all or nothing. If I cannot fully participate in the meeting I will not attend. all-out-effort - a very good and thorough effort We are making an all-out-effort to finish our work. all over but the shouting - to be decided and finished It was all over but the shouting for the football fans after their team moved to another city. all over the place - everywhere We traveled all over the place on our holiday. all right - okay, satisfactory I think that it will be all right for me to bring my friend to the party. . Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 1 Commonly- Used Idioms, Sayings and phrasal verbs What is the meaning of idioms? Words that come together. something) - all types of people or things There were all manner of people at the party. Mr_doody2004@yahoo.com 10 all night long - throughout the whole night We could hear the people. something has happened The man said that he was sorry but it was after the fact. He had already caused many problems. . against one's will - to be without a person's consent