Idioms help you sound more natural in English. They make your speaking clear, strong, and confident. This dictionary is made for idioms learners. You can search any idiom easily. You can also learn idioms from A to Z. Topics are simple too, such as daily life, work, money, time, emotions, relationships, health, travel, nature, and weather.
Each idiom has a simple meaning. It also has a clear definition. You will also see an easy sentence for real conversation. The goal is not to memorize everything at once. Learn a few idioms daily. Read the sentence. Understand the meaning. Then try to use the idiom when you speak.
This dictionary helps you build better vocabulary. It also helps you understand English expressions faster. Use it daily and improve your idioms step by step.
come out of nowhere
to appear suddenly.
Suddenly, a container lorry came out of nowhere.
come out of one’s shell
to become more friendly; to be more sociable.
Ann, you should come out of your shell and spend more time with your friends.
come round
finally to agree or consent (to something).
I thought he’d never agree, but in the end he came round.
come to a bad end
to have a disaster, perhaps one which is deserved or expected; to die an unfortunate death.
I just know that the young man will come to a bad end.
come to a head
to come to a crucial point; to come to a point when a problem must be solved.
Remember my problem with my neighbours? Well, last night the whole thing came to a head.
come to a pretty pass
to develop into a bad, unfortunate, or difficult situation.
Things have come to a pretty pass when people have to beg in the streets.
come to an untimely end
to come to an early death.
Poor Mr. Jones came to an untimely end in a car accident.
come to grief
to fail or be unsuccessful; to have trouble or grief.
The artist wept when her canvas came to grief.
come to light
to become known; to be discovered.
Some interesting facts about your past have just come to light.
come to the fore
to become obvious or prominent; to become important.
The question of salary has now come to the fore.
conspicuous by one’s absence
having one’s absence noticed (at an event).
We missed you last night. You were conspicuous by your absence.
contradiction in terms
a seeming contradiction in the wording of something.
A wealthy pauper is a contradiction in terms.
cook someone’s goose
to damage or ruin someone. (Informal.)
I cooked my own goose by not showing up on time.
cook the books
to cheat in bookkeeping; to make the accounts appear to balance when they do not.
Jane was sent to jail for cooking the books of her mother’s shop.
cool one’s heels
to wait impatiently (for someone). (Informal.)
I spent all afternoon cooling my heels in the waiting room while the doctor talked on the telephone.
cost a pretty penny
to cost a lot of money.
I’ll bet that diamond cost a pretty penny.
cost an arm and a leg
to cost too much.
It cost an arm and a leg, so I didn’t buy it.
cost the earth
to cost an enormous sum of money. (Compare with pay the earth.)
That huge car must have cost the earth!
count heads
to count people.
I’ll tell you how many people are here after I count heads.
crack a bottle
to open a bottle. (Informal.)
Let’s crack a bottle of champagne to celebrate.
cramp someone’s style
to limit someone in some way.
Having her young sister with her rather cramped her style on the dance floor.
cross a bridge before one comes to it
to worry excessively about something before it happens.
There is no sense in crossing that bridge before you come to it.
cross one’s heart (and hope to die)
to pledge or vow that the truth is being told.
It’s true, cross my heart and hope to die.
cross swords (with someone)
to enter into an argument with someone.
I don’t want to cross swords with Tom.
cross the Rubicon
to do something which inevitably commits one to a following course of action. (The crossing of the River Rubicon by Julius Caesar inevitably involved him in a war with the Senate in 49 b.c. )
Jane crossed the Rubicon by signing the contract.
crux of the matter
the central issue of the matter. ( Crux is Latin for “cross.”)
All right, this is the crux of the matter.
cry one’s eyes out
to cry very hard.
When we heard the news, we cried our eyes out with joy.
cry over spilled milk
to be unhappy about having done something which cannot be undone. ( Spilled can also be spelled spilt. )
I’m sorry that you broke your bicycle, Tom. But there is nothing that can be done now. Don’t cry over spilled milk.
cry wolf
to cry out for help or to complain about something when nothing is really wrong.
Pay no attention. She’s just crying wolf again.
culture vulture
someone whom one considers to be excessively interested in the (classical) arts.
She won’t go to a funny film. She’s a real culture vulture.
How To Use Idioms Dictionary
- You can use this dictionary in different ways. Start with the idioms you hear often in movies, conversations, or online posts. Search them here and understand their real meaning. Then read the example sentence and try to speak your own sentence.
- You can also learn idioms by topic. Choose daily life idioms for normal conversation. Choose work and business idioms for office English. Choose money, time, emotion, relationship, health, travel, nature, and weather idioms to improve your topic-based vocabulary.
- A good way to learn is to save your favorite idioms in a notebook. Write the idiom, its meaning, and your own sentence. Review them after a few days. This will help you remember them better.
- Do not use idioms everywhere. Use them only when they fit the situation. The goal is to sound natural, not forced.
- Keep learning slowly. A few useful idioms daily can improve your English speaking a lot.
Here’s a separate section for kids: 100 Common Idioms for Kids
FAQs about Idioms Dictionary
An idiom is a group of words with a special meaning. You cannot always understand it by translating each word.
Type the full idiom or any main word in the search box. The dictionary will show matching idioms with meaning and sentence.
Start with a few idioms daily. Read the meaning, understand the sentence, and try to make your own sentence.
Yes. You can learn idioms by topics like daily life, work, money, time, emotions, relationships, health, travel, nature, and weather.
Yes. The meanings and sentences are written in simple English, so beginners can understand and practice easily.
Idioms help you sound more natural in English. Use them in the right situation to make your speaking more confident.
No. Use idioms only when they fit the situation. The goal is to sound natural, not forced.
