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.
skeleton in the cupboard
a hidden and shocking secret. (Often in the plural.)
You can ask anyone about how reliable I am. I don’t mind. I don’t have any skeletons in the cupboard.
slate something
to criticize something severely.
The critics slated the place.
slice of the cake
a share of something.
There’s not much work around and so everyone must get a slice of the cake.
slip of the tongue
an error in speaking where a word is pronounced incorrectly, or where something is said which the speaker did not mean to say.
I didn’t mean to tell her that. It was a slip of the tongue.
small hours
the hours immediately after midnight.
The dance went on to the small hours.
smell of the lamp
[for a book] to show signs of being revised and researched carefully and to lack spontaneity.
I preferred her earlier spontaneous novels. The later ones smell of the lamp.
snake in the grass
a low and deceitful person.
Sally said that Bob couldn’t be trusted because he was a snake in the grass.
something sticks in one’s craw
something bothers one.
Her criticism stuck in my craw.
speak of the devil
said when someone whose name has just been mentioned appears or is heard from.
Well, speak of the devil! Hello, Tom. We were just talking about you.
speak one’s mind
to say frankly what one thinks (about something).
Please let me speak my mind, and then you can do whatever you wish.
speak out of turn
to say something unwise or imprudent; to say something at the wrong time.
Excuse me if I’m speaking out of turn, but what you are proposing is quite wrong.
speak the same language
[for people] to have similar ideas, tastes, etc.
Jane and Jack get along very well. They really speak the same language about almost everything.
spend a penny
to urinate. (Informal. From the former cost of admission to the cubicles in public lavatories.)
Stop the car. The little girl needs to spend a penny.
spick and span
very clean. (Informal.)
I have to clean up the house and get it spick and span for the party on Friday night.
spike someone’s guns
to spoil someone’s plans; to make it impossible for someone to carry out a course of action. (From driving a metal spike into the touch-hole of an enemy gun to render it useless.)
The boss was going to sack Sally publicly, but she spiked his guns by resigning.
splash out on something
to spend a lot of money on something in an extravagant way. (Informal.)
Jack splashed out on a new car that he couldn’t afford.
split hairs
to quibble; to try to make petty distinctions.
They don’t have any serious differences. They are just splitting hairs.
split the difference
to divide the difference (with someone else).
You want to sell for £120, and I want to buy for £100. Let’s split the difference and close the deal at £110.
spoil the ship for a ha’porth of tar
to risk ruining something valuable by not buying something relatively inexpensive but essential for it. ( Ha’porth is a halfpenny’s worth. From the use of tar to make boats watertight.)
Meg spent a lot of money on a new dress but refused to buy shoes. She certainly spoilt the ship for a ha’porth of tar.
spoon-feed
to treat someone with too much care or help; to teach someone with methods that are too easy and do not stimulate the learner to independent thinking.
The teacher spoon-feeds the pupils by dictation notes on the novel instead of getting the children to read the books themselves.
sporting chance
a reasonably good chance.
If you hurry, you have a sporting chance of catching the bus.
spot on
exactly right or accurate. (Informal.)
Jack’s assessment of the state of the firm was spot on.
spread oneself too thin
to do too many things, so that one can do none of them well.
It’s a good idea to get involved in a lot of activities, but don’t spread yourself too thin.
square deal
a fair and honest transaction; fair treatment. (Informal.)
All the workers want is a square deal, but their boss underpays them.
square meal
a nourishing, filling meal. (Informal.)
All you’ve eaten today is junk food. You should sit down to a square meal.
square peg in a round hole
a misfit; one who is poorly adapted to one’s surroundings.
John just can’t seem to get along with the people he works with. He’s just a square peg in a round hole.
stack the cards (against someone or something)
to arrange things against someone or something; to make it difficult for someone to succeed. (Informal. Originally from card-playing. Usually in the passive.)
I can’t make any progress at my office. The cards are stacked against me.
stand a chance
to have a chance.
Do you think I stand a chance of winning first place?
stand corrected
to admit that one has been wrong.
I realize that I accused him wrongly. I stand corrected.
stand down
to withdraw from a competition or a position.
John has stood down from the election for president of the club.
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.
