Uses of idioms

 

Paragraph with 50 Common Idioms:

Last week, our teacher gave us a big group project. At first, we thought it would be a piece of cake, but soon we realized it was no bed of roses. We were all in the same boat, trying to beat the clock.

When our leader didn’t show up, it was a bolt from the blue. It really added fuel to the fire. We didn’t want to throw in the towel, so we decided to put our heads together. Still, nothing worked. We were back to square one and felt like we were chasing our tails.

Some of us started to drag our feet, but I said, “Let’s bite the bullet and get the ball rolling!” We worked around the clock and didn’t cut corners. We were burning the midnight oil but were careful to dot the i’s and cross the t’s.

At one point, someone made a silly mistake, but we didn’t make a mountain out of a molehill. We stayed calm and didn’t cry over spilled milk. Even though the pressure was through the roof, we decided to go the extra mile.

When we finally finished, we were on cloud nine. Our teacher said our project was top-notch! We all let our hair down and celebrated. It was a tough week, but every cloud has a silver lining.

I learned that actions speak louder than words, and if you break a sweat, you can move mountains. It’s important not to put all your eggs in one basket and always have a plan B.

We were told we could call the shots for the next class activity. That was the icing on the cake! We wanted to hit the ground running, so we made sure to stay on the same page.

Some students who didn’t help tried to take credit, but we knew the truth. We just smiled and played it cool. Sometimes, you have to let sleeping dogs lie.

In the end, we were proud because we had given it our best shot. We didn’t beat around the bush, we got straight to the point, and we learned not to judge a book by its cover. That project was a blessing in disguise—a hard task that helped us grow.

Now we’re ready to face the music for our next big test. We won’t sweep problems under the rug. We’ll keep our fingers crossed, keep our chin up, and do our best to turn over a new leaf every day!

50 Idioms & Meanings:

1. Piece of cake – Very easy

2. No bed of roses – Not easy

3. In the same boat – In the same situation

4. Beat the clock – Finish something before time runs out

5. Bolt from the blue – A big surprise

6. Add fuel to the fire – Make things worse

7. Throw in the towel – Give up

8. Put our heads together – Think as a team

9. Back to square one – Start over

10. Chasing our tails – Busy but not getting results

11. Drag our feet – Move slowly on purpose

12. Bite the bullet – Do something hard bravely

13. Get the ball rolling – Start something

14. Around the clock – All day and night

15. Cut corners – Do something too quickly or cheaply

16. Burning the midnight oil – Working late

17. Dot the i’s and cross the t’s – Do everything carefully

18. Make a mountain out of a molehill – Make a small problem big

19. Cry over spilled milk – Be sad about something that can’t be changed

20. Through the roof – Very high

21. Go the extra mile – Do more than expected

22. On cloud nine – Very happy

23. Top-notch – Excellent

24. Let our hair down – Relax and have fun

25. Every cloud has a silver lining – Good can come from bad

26. Actions speak louder than words – What you do matters more than what you say

27. Break a sweat – Work hard

28. Move mountains – Do something difficult

29. Put all your eggs in one basket – Depend on one thing

30. Have a plan B – Have a backup plan

31. Call the shots – Be in control

32. Icing on the cake – An extra good thing

33. Hit the ground running – Start quickly and well

34. Stay on the same page – Agree and work together

35. Take credit – Say they did something they didn’t

36. Play it cool – Stay calm

37. Let sleeping dogs lie – Don’t bring up old problems

38. Give it our best shot – Try our hardest

39. Beat around the bush – Avoid the main topic

40. Get straight to the point – Say what’s important right away

41. Judge a book by its cover – Judge by looks only

42. Blessing in disguise – Something that seems bad but is good

43. Face the music – Accept the result of your actions

44. Sweep under the rug – Hide a problem

45. Keep fingers crossed – Hope for the best

46. Keep your chin up – Stay strong and happy

47. Turn over a new leaf – Start fresh

48. In hot water – In trouble

49. Jump on the bandwagon – Do what everyone else is doing

50. Hold your horses – Wait or be patient

Happy learning with Noor E Alam

University of Dhaka