100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams

100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams are the most frequently used idioms in the questions. Idioms are an important part of English in all competitive exams. An idiom is a group of words with a different meaning than individual words. Here is the list of 100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams with their meaning.

100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams.
100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams
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100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams

A Hot PotatoDifficult or dangerous to deal with
A penny for your thoughtsWay of asking what someone is thinking.
Achilles’ heelA fatal weakness
Actions speak louder than wordsWhat you do is more significant than what you say
Add insult to injuryTo make a bad situation worse
An arm and a legA lot of money
An armchair jobA job with high income and high comfort
An iron willStrong willpower
An old flameA lover from the past, A person with a romantic relationship from the past.
An old head on young shouldersA young person having more wisdom and experience for his age.
An olive branchSign of peace
Apple of discordA cause of dispute or quarrel
Apple of one’s eyeVery dear or lovable
At sixes and sevensDisorder, Chaotic, unorganized
At the drop of a hatImmediately, instantly
Back to the drawing boardStart something all over again.
Ball is in your courtIt is up to you to take the next step
Barking up the wrong treeLooking in the wrong place
Be glad to see the back ofBe glad to see someone leave
Beat around the bushNot speaking directly about the issue
Best of both the worldsSituation wherein one can enjoy two different opportunities
Best thing since sliced breadan excellent new invention
Bite off more than you can chewTo take on a task that is way too big
Blessing in disguiseSomething good that isn’t recognized at first
Blow one’s own trumpetSelf-praise, praising oneself
Bolt from the blueA sudden and unexpected trouble
Bone of contentionCause or reason of dispute
Broad daylightIn an open area where things can not be hidden
Burn the candles at both endsUseless expenses or wasting money
Burn the midnight oilTo stay up working, especially studying, late at night
Bury the hatchetEnd of enmity, End of hostility, end of animosity
By leaps and boundsRapid progress or growth
Castles in the airDay-dreaming, imagination
Caught between two stoolsWhen someone finds it difficult to choose between two alternatives
Clip one’s wingsTo weaken the strength of someone
Count chickens before they are hatchedTo anticipate profit beforehand
Crocodile’s tearFake display of grief or faking the sadness
Cross one’s mindSuddenly coming into mind
Cross that bridge when you come to itDeal with a problem if and when it becomes necessary
Cry over spilled milkTo be unhappy about something that cannot be undone
Curiosity killed the catBeing too curious can get you into trouble
Cut cornersTo take shortcuts
Cut the mustardTo succeed
Devil’s advocateTo present a counterargument
Dig one’s own graveDoing something that harms oneself
Don’t count your chickens before the eggs have hatchedDon’t make plans for something that might not happen
Don’t give up the day jobNot being very good at something
Don’t judge a book by its coverDon’t judge something primarily by its appearance
Don’t put all your eggs in one basketDon’t focus all of your attention on one thing or one area
Double-edged swordSomething that harms oneself as well as the others
Down in the dumpsUnhappy, depressed
Draconian lawExtremely severe and strict law
Drastic times call for drastic measuresWhen you’re extremely desperate you need to take drastic actions
Easy moneyBribe, black money
Eat one’s wordsAdmitting that the prediction was wrong
Elvis has left the buildingThe show has come to an end
Every cloud has a silver liningBe optimistic
Far cry fromA thing that is very different from something else
Feel a bit under the weatherFeeling sick or unhealthy
Flog a dead horseTo waste one’s energy on something
Go brokebecome bankrupt
Handle with kid glovesTo treat with extreme care
Hard and fastDefinite
Hear through the grapevineTo hear news from someone who heard that news from someone else
Heart to heartVery frankly
Hen-pecked husbandAn admirer of wife in a servile manner
Hit the nail on the headTo do or say exactly the right thing
Hit the sackTo go to bed
In the heat of the momentOverwhelmed by what’s happening at the moment
It takes two to tangoBoth people involved in a bad situation are responsible for it
Jump on the bandwagonJoin a popular trend or activity
Keep something at bayKeep something away
Keep the pot boilingTo keep going on actively
Left out in the coldIgnored
Let the cat out of the bagTo make a long story short
Look for a needle in a haystackTo search for a thing that is very difficult to locate
Make a beeline forGo straight to
Man in the streetA common man
Off the recordUnofficial; confidential
Oil someone’s handsTo give a bribe to someone
Old habits die hardPeople find it difficult to change their accustomed behavior
Oldest trick in the bookA well known and much-used trick/method
On the wrong side of (Age number)Age being more than
Open the floodgatesRelease something that was previously under control
Pocket an insultTo bear an insult
Reap the harvestBenefit or suffer as a direct result of past actions
Scratch one’s headTo be worried or perplexed
See eye to eyeTo be in agreement with
Sink your teeth intoDo something with a lot of energy and enthusiasm
Skating on thin iceDo or say something risky or something that could cause trouble
Snake in the grassHidden enemy
Stand in a good steadTo be useful or be of good service to someone
Take a back seatChoose to be less important in a role
Taste of one’s own medicineTreat people the same way they treated you
Till the cows come homefor a very long time, for an indefinite amount of time.
Tool in the hands ofBeing under the control or authority of another.
Touch and goUncertain
Up in armsTo be angry
With open armsWarmly, happily
Work against the clockTry to work quickly in a limited time.
100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams

You have learned 100 Common Idioms for Competitive Exams. Also read about Subject Verb Agreement.

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