American Popular Expressions "B"

                       

back to the drawing board: go back to the place where you started; to start over. Our ideas were rejected, so it looks like we're back to the drawing board.
(the) ball is in (one's) court: this reference to tennis means that it's someone's turn to respond in a situation that goes back and forth. We've made our offer. Now the ball is in their court. we've made = we have made This is the present perfect tense.
bang (one's) head against the wall: an expression used when someone is angry or frustrated. He's tired of banging his head against the wall when working with difficult customers online.
bark is worse than (one's) bite: to look or sound mean or dangerous, but in reality be relatively harmless; not really dangerous. Don't worry about Poco. He might look mean, but his bark is worse than his bite.
bark up the wrong tree: to waste one's time; to do something and not get a result. You're barking up the wrong tree if you think I can help you. You'll have to ask someone else.
batten down the hatches: get ready for something bad or a serious situation. Batten down the hatches. A big storm is coming.
be my guest: go ahead; it's okay; it's okay to use something that a person owns. A: Do you mind if I try your guitar? B: No, not at all. Be my guest.
be that as it may: this is true, but... A: There's a big storm ahead of us. B: Be that as it may, we're just going to have to drive right through it.
beat a dead horse: to make a point over and over again; to do something excessively without a result. Trying to get an answer from that company is like beating a dead horse. They just won't return my calls. What does the word "beat" mean?
beat someone at (one's) own game: to gain advantage over someone who is good at something or in a strong position. Sarah thinks she can beat her older coworkers at their own game by making use of the internet to increase sales.
beat the living daylights out of someone: to defeat; to beat up The U.S. military forces beat the living daylights out of the Taliban in Afghanistan.
been there, done that: to say that someone has already done something; to say that an experience is not new. (Be careful with this expression. It can sound a little rude.) Oh, he's going to the Mall of America? Big deal. Been there, done that.
begin to see the light: start to understand something. Americans are beginning to see the light when it comes to global climate change.
better late than never: it's better to be late than not to show up at all. Bob thought it was better to be late than never to meet Carol outside the movie theater. When he gave her some flowers, she forgave him for being so late. "Better late than never."
better safe than sorry: it's better to do anything that will keep you safe rather than do nothing and take a risk. Rhonda always wears her seat belt when she drives figuring it's better to be safe than sorry.
between a rock and a hard place: to be caught between two difficult situations; to make a decision between two possibly bad outcomes. Henry was between a rock and a hard place when he had to decide whether to stay with his wife and kids or go serve in the military.
a big fish in a small pond: a person whose circle of friends or business acquaintances is very small, thereby inflating his or her feeling of importance. Rodney would never move his business from Knoxville to New York City. He likes being a big fish in a small pond.
(the) bigger they come, the harder they fall: the larger the person or the thing, the more difficult it is to bring down. (This is usually used with people, but it can be used with things.) Chopping down this tree is going to be a challenge. The bigger they come, the harder they fall. You can find more expressions that use the word "big" on this page.
bite off more than (one) can chew: to try to do something that might be too difficult to accomplish.  Gordon thought he could build the house all by himself, but it looks like he bit off more than he could chew.
bite the hand that feeds you: to hurt someone who helps you; to go against the person or thing that provides something necessary. We were all surprised to hear Lisa say something so mean to her boss's face. It's not wise to bite the hand that feeds you.
blind leading the blind: to follow or lead people without necessary skills; to choose a bad leader. It's hard to believe that they chose him as their new leader. It's like the blind leading the blind.
(be) born with a silver spoon in (one's) mouth: to be born rich. He doesn't understand the financial difficulties faced by average people. He was born with a silver spoon in his mouth.
breathe new life into something: to make something new again. We're going to try to breathe new life into this old house by remodeling it.
bright-eyed and bushy tailed: ready to do something, especially early in the morning. I don't feel bright-eyed and bushy tailed until I've had a couple cups of coffee in the morning.
bring (someone) into the world:to have a baby. They can think of no greater responsibility than to bring a baby into the world. Learn how to use the modal verb "can" by clicking here.
bucks stops here, the: the responsibility for decisions and results is found at the top of an organization. (originated by President Harry Truman and used by U.S. Presidents who have followed him.) The buck stops here. If we lose money on this deal, I'll take the responsibility for the decision. What does the word "buck" mean?
burn (one's) bridges: By burning your bridges, you are unable to go back to a previous position; you do or say something that makes it impossible to return to the situation before. Victor was warned not to burn his bridges when he left his job to work at another company.
burn the candle at both ends:to work or play too much; not to get enough sleep because of activities. Daryl thinks he can burn the candle at both ends, but because he stays up so late he's having a hard time getting things finished during the day.
busy as a beaver: beavers are known to work very hard at building their homes, and so it seems as if they're always working. When someone works very hard or is always busy, we say.... He's busy as a beaver.
by the skin of (one's) teeth: to finish something just in time; to reach a goal but just barely. He made it on time to his meeting by the skin of his teeth.
* one's = my, your, his, her, its, our, your, their

American Popular Expressions "A"

                                                                              

ace in the hole: something you can rely on; a back-up plan. The toy company is losing a lot of money, but their ace in the hole is a new game for children ages 8 and up. (The first part of this sentence uses the present continuous tense.)
add fuel to the fire: make a bad situation worse. When the man in the car behind him got too close, Tony slammed on his brakes, causing an accident. Then Tony got out of the car and smashed the man's headlights, which just added fuel to the fire.
add insult to injury: make someone feel worse than he or she already does. Samantha's sprained ankle meant that she couldn't walk on it for a few days. Adding insult to injury, she was unable to go to her waitress job during the busiest week of the year.
ahead of (one's) time: a person whose ideas are beyond what is popular at the present. His designs for a flying rocket chair show how far ahead of his time he is. What does the word "ahead" mean?
all for the best: a situation that might not seem good at first, but it is actually okay. Getting fired from his desk job was all for the best because he hated doing paperwork.
all of the above: this is a reference to multiple choice tests in which the answers are A, B, C, or D. Sometimes the answer is not one choice but all four choices. A: Should we go to a restaurant, go out to a nightclub, or go to Jim's party. B: How about all of the above? We'll stay out all night!
all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy: a person who always works and never takes a break to do other things becomes dull and boring. What does the word "dull" mean?
an eye for an eye: revenge; If you do something bad which hurts me, I'll do something to hurt you back. Elias is a firm believer in "an eye for an eye," so don't mess with him.
an apple a day keeps the doctor away: if you eat an apple every day, or if you take care of yourself by eating right, you won't get sick and have to see the doctor.
asleep at the wheel / switch: falling asleep while driving or while working. Because she fell asleep at the wheel, she lost control of her car and got into a big accident.
at your earliest convenience: do something when you have the opportunity. This is a very polite way of asking someone to do something soon.
at one time or another: at some time during your life; something is inevitable. Most people around the world have a chance to go to school at one time or another.
at the drop of a hat: to do something suddenly, usually at the request of someone else. Matt answers his supervisor's calls at the drop of a hat.
at this stage of the game: at this time in a person's life; a period of time. He'd like to become a professional golfer, but at this stage of the game it might be difficult to go pro. He'd like... = He would like...
avoid (something) like the plague: not to do something; to dislike something with intensity. Jill's kids avoid broccoli like the plague. What does the word "avoid" mean?
AWOL (absent without leave): to leave one's position without permission. Popularly used for the military but also for any responsibility that a person walks away from. As a soldier, Theodore got tired of killing other people, so he went AWOL.

American Popular Expressions

                                             

get a kick out of (something): to think something is funny, amusing, entertaining, or interesting. She got a big kick out of watching her kids perform in the school play.
get a handle on (something): to understand; to figure something out. Valerie is trying to get a handle on how well her company did last month in sales.
get a load of this: look at this; this is amusing. Get a load of this! There are a couple of buffalo in that field over there. buffalo
(not) get a word in edgewise: to be able to say something in a conversation. (this is almost always used with the negative) This guy I met at a party dominated the conversation so much that I couldn't get a word in edgewise.
get down to brass tacks: communicate plainly; tell the truth or find the essence of a situation. Harold needs to get down to brass tacks and figure out a new strategy for his internet business.
get in on the ground floor: to be a new employee of a big company or organization. Kumar is happy to get in on the ground floor of the company that he works at. Someday he thinks he'll be able to rise into upper management.
get into hot water: to get into trouble; to have a troubled relationship. Simon got into some hot water with his boss when he forgot to turn in important paperwork.
get into the swing of things: to learn how to do something new; to adapt. He started working at his new job a few months ago, and now he's really starting to get into the swing of things.
get off on the wrong foot: to begin a relationship with a bad experience; to have a bad start. Dora got off on the wrong foot with a coworker, so she's trying to repair the damage.
get something off the ground: to start something; to start a business. They're trying to get a new software company off the ground.
get one's act together: to improve one's bad situation; to figure out a challenging problem and move forward for success. Leroy just can't get his act together. He's 42, he still lives with his parents, and he can't find a job.
get (one's) feet wet: to get some experience. Once Beth got her feet wet in the business of entertainment, she decided to become a talent agent.
get on (one's) nerves: to create disturbance; to cause irritation. Driving to work every day in heavy traffic is getting on Matt's nerves.
get on the bandwagon: to become part of a popular movement--usually used for sports and popular activities; to support someone after a series of successes. Also jump on the bandwagon. Now that the home team has won the division title, George is ready to get on the bandwagon.
get out from under something: to eliminate a problem, such as an abundance of work or debt. Once they get out from under all their debt and save some money, Tony and Lisa plan to buy a house.
get someone's goat: to make someone angry. This constant snowfall is starting to get his goat.
get someone out of one's mind: to try to stop thinking about someone. Harold can't get his old girlfriend out of his mind. He still thinks about her a lot.
get something on someone: to find evidence of wrongdoing; to prove criminal activity. The police finally got something on Eddie and took him to jail.
get the ball rolling: to get started; to begin a big project. Sam can't wait to get the ball rolling on his next construction project.
get the lead out: move faster; work harder. The coach told his players to get the lead out when he noticed that they weren't taking their practice seriously. "Come on! Get the lead out!"
get something through (one's) head: to understand; to learn from experience. Todd never got it through his head that a life of crime would result in going to prison.
get under (one's) skin: to bother; to cause discomfort; to feel squeamish. It gets under my skin whenever I find bugs in my house.
get up on the wrong side of the bed: to have a bad day; to feel irritable all day. Wendy must have gotten up on the wrong side of the bed today. She's mad at everyone, but no one knows why.
give someone a piece of (one's) mind: to express an opinion. Sometimes this is an expression of anger. He gave the person helping him on the phone a piece of his mind after he received a bill for something he didn't order.
give it (one's) best shot: to try one's best; to work hard at a challenge. Bobby knows that becoming a professional basketball player is not easy, but he's going to give it his best shot.
give someone a break: to help someone out; to offer support. We should stop and give this guy a break. It looks like he needs a ride.
give someone the evil eye: to look at someone in a way that creates fear; to stare at someone with malicious intent. Sarah has been giving her old boyfriend the evil eye all night. She's mad because he broke up with her.
give the benefit of the doubt: to believe that what someone says or claims is true. Tom is such a great boss. He's always willing to give his employees the benefit of the doubt.
give someone the finger: to express anger with your middle finger. (Caution: this is a very offensive gesture in the United States.) Someone gave me the finger today while I was driving, so I gave it right back at him.
give the go-ahead: to tell someone it's okay to do something; to permit activity. Okay. Dave is giving you the go-ahead to move your truck.
give the shirt off of one's back: to be very generous; to share past the limit of one's abilities. Jason was the kind of guy who would give you the shirt of his back. It's too bad he passed away.
go fly a kite: (This expression is used when you are angry at someone. It's similar to "get lost" or "go screw yourself.") Fatima's neighbors told her to go fly a kite when she asked them to turn down their music at night.
go jump in the lake: similar to "go fly a kite." This is an expression of anger or irritation. When a homeless man asked Tina for some money, she told him to go jump in the lake.
go in one ear and out the other: not to listen to what someone says. Jerry refuses to believe that riding a motorcycle is dangerous. It just goes in one ear and out the other.
gone with the wind: something disappears very quickly. After paying the rent and other bills, our paychecks are gone with the wind at the end of the month.
goodness gracious: Wow! (This expression is used when someone is surprised, excited, or upset about something. Goodness gracious! That's a tall building.
goody two-shoes: a person who is always on his or her best behavior; a person who is extremely well-behaved. Sometimes this expression is used in a negative manner as an insult. He got mad at another boy who called him a goody two-shoes, so he hit the boy just to prove that he wasn't so good.
go out of one's mind: to feel like someone is losing control or going crazy; this is often used as an exaggeration. She's going to go out her mind if she can't find a new job.
go out of fashion: a style of clothing, behavior, food, language, etc. is no longer popular; also, out of style. Covering a woman's body from head to toe went out of fashion in the United States many years ago. Now women can wear whatever they want to.
go over someone's head: to go beyond a person in authority, such as a supervisor or manager; to talk to a supervisor's supervisor. She decided to go over her boss's head when he refused to listen to her complaints.
go through the roof: to get really mad. His wife went through the roof when he told her he couldn't stop at the store to pick up some groceries.
go to great lengths: to work very hard at something; to try hard. Isabel has gone to great lengths to learn ballet.
the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence: sometimes we envy the things our neighbors have, but it's often the case that their situation is not as good as we think it is.
great minds think alike: to do or think as another person does. When Brian saw that Claudia had bought the same computing device that he had bought, he said to her, "Great minds must think alike."
grind to a halt: to stop completely; to stop a big project. When Mark got hit on the head with a brick, everything ground to a halt. Construction continued after the ambulance came and took him to the hospital.