Hi everyone.

Welcome back to
English with
Max. Today we are going to look
at 50
idioms that native speakers
commonly use.
Some people say that learning
idioms in
a foreign language isn't very
important,
but I disagree. You don't need to
use
them yourself, but if you want to
get to
an advanced level in English, you
should
at least understand the common
ones.
Okay, let's get started with the
idioms.
The first one is: the apple doesn't
fall
far from the tree. The apple doesn't
 fall
far from the tree. We say this if a
child
has similar qualities or talents to
one
of their parents. In practice it's
usually used for something
negative.
For example: Just like her father,
she's always dishonest. The apple
doesn't
fall far from the tree. The second
one is:
a bad apple. A bad apple is a
person who creates problems.
We often use it if the person's
behaviour
has a negative influence on others.
Frank was expelled from school
because
his teachers said that he was a bad
apple.
The third one is: to beat around the
 bush. To beat around the bush.
This means to talk a lot about
unimportant things to avoid talking
about the thing that's really
important.
Frank, please stop beating around
the
bush and tell me what the problem
is.
Number four: the best of both
worlds.
The best of both worlds.
This means a situation in which
you have
the advantages of two very
different things.
For example: She lives in a small
village,
but it isn't far from the city, so she
has the best of both worlds.
Number five:
to bite the bullet. To bite the bullet
means to force yourself to do
 something
that's unpleasant or difficult. I hate
getting Pap smears, but I know
they're
important, so I'll just have to bite
the bullet.
The next one is: a blessing in
disguise.
A blessing in disguise is something
that
seems bad or unlucky at first, but
actually results in a good outcome.
Frank got fired from his last job,
but it was a blessing in disguise
because now he has a much
better job working for me.
I wouldn't say that's entirely
accurate.
Number seven: break a leg.
This is an imperative phrase. We
use it
to wish somebody luck, especially
before
 a performance on stage. I know it
sounds
quite negative, but we use it
ironically.
It's just like saying "good luck". I
heard
you had an audition later. Break a
leg!
Number eight: to burn one' bridges.
To burn
one's bridges means to do
something with
the result that you cannot return to
a
previous situation. Often it's
because
you've offended somebody. When
Frank quit
his first job, he also swore at his
boss,
so he definitely burnt his bridges.
Number nine: By the skin of one's
teeth.
If you do something by the skin of
your
teeth, it means that you manage to
do something or succeed in doing
something,
but only just.
You almost fail, in other words.
Frank passed his driving test by the
skin of
his teeth. In other words, he almost
failed.
Number ten: To cost an arm and a
leg.
To cost an arm and a leg simply
means to be very expensive.
Frank crashed my car and it cost
an arm and a leg to get it fixed.
Number eleven is: a couch potato.
A couch potato is a person who is
not very
active and spends a lot of time on
the
couch watching television.
 Frank, stop being such a couch
potato
and go out and get some exercise.
Number twelve is: to cut corners.
To cut
corners means to do something as
easily
or as cheaply as possible, but in a
way
that usually has a negative effect
on the final result. The builders cut
corners when they renovated the
house
and now lots of things need to be
repaired. Thirteen: don't count your
chickens before they hatch.
Sometimes we shorten this and we
just
say "don't count your chickens".
This means
don't make plans based on a
positive
future event that might not happen.
 For example, if someone says, "I
think I'm
going to get a promotion at work,
so I'm
going to buy a new car," you could
say,
"Don't count your chickens before
they hatch."
Number fourteen: The elephant in
the room.
The elephant in the room is an
obvious
fact or problem that no one wants
to talk about. For example: At the
meeting
today nobody mentioned the
elephant in
the room, which was that our
boss was clearly drunk.
The next one is: fit as a fiddle.
Fit as a fiddle simply means in
good health. Some people also use
it to
mean fit and strong. I had surgery a
couple of months ago, but I feel as
fit
as a fiddle now. Her grandfather is
almost 90, but he's fit as a fiddle.
Number sixteen: Food for thought.
Food for
thought is something that makes
you
think carefully. My economics
class today
definitely gave me some food for
thought.
Thank you for your suggestion. It
has
provided us with food for thought.
Number seventeen: to give
somebody the benefit
of the doubt. To give somebody the
benefit of the doubt means to treat
somebody as if their words or
actions
are correct or honest, even if
 you're not sure about it.
For example: There was a good
chance that Frank was lying to me,
but I decided to give him
the benefit of the doubt.
Eighteen: to give somebody the
cold
shoulder. To give somebody the
cold
shoulder means to treat somebody
in an
unfriendly way or to deliberately
ignore somebody.
For example: Ethel is annoyed with
Frank,
so now she's giving him the cold
shoulder.
The next one is: to go cold turkey.
To go cold turkey means to stop
something suddenly and
completely.
It's almost always used for
addictions.
Sometimes if somebody's addicted
to something they will gradually
decrease
their consumption. But if you go
cold turkey, you just stop all of a
sudden.
She used to smoke two packets of
cigarettes
a day, but then she went cold
turkey and
never smoked again.
Number 20: to go with the flow.
To go with
the flow means to just allow things
to
happen or to do what other people
want
without trying to control what
happens.
I'm not going to make any plans
today,
I'm just going to relax and go with
the flow.
 21: to grin and bear it. To grin and
bear it
means to accept something that's
difficult or unpleasant without
complaining.
Our flight has been delayed 10
hours.
We'll just have to grin and bear it.
I really don't want to go to my
cousin's
wedding, but I'll have to grin and
bear it.
Number 22: to have a sweet tooth.
To have
a sweet tooth just means to like
eating
sweet things, like chocolate or cake
or
sweets. For example: I know it was
Ethel
who ate all the cookies at the party,
because she definitely has a sweet
tooth.
 23: to have one's head in the
clouds.
To have one's head in the clouds
means to
not be aware of what's happening
around
you or not be practical or sensible
about things. I wouldn't start a
business
with him if I were you, because he
always has his head in the clouds.
24: to hit the books.
To hit the books simply means to
study,
usually intensely. For example: I
have an
important exam next week so I
really
need to hit the books this weekend.
25: to hit the nail on the head. To
hit
the nail on the head means to be
exactly right about something.
 When George said that most
people want
to learn English without making
any
effort, he hit the nail on the head.
Number 26: in hot water.
In hot water means in trouble
or a difficult situation that will
probably result in punishment.
For example: That company is in
hot water
because it didn't pay its taxes.
Frank is frequently in hot water.
27: Don't judge a book by its
cover. You can
also say: You can't judge a book by
its cover.
This means you shouldn't form an
opinion of something or someone
only from their
appearance. She seemed rather
serious
based on her clothes and
 expression,
but don't judge a book by its cover.
Frank looks very innocent, but you
can't judge a book by its cover.
28: to keep one's chin up. To keep
one's
chin up means to make an effort to
stay brave and happy in a difficult
situation.
For example: She lost her job
recently,
but she's trying to keep her chin up.
29: to kill two birds with one stone.
This expression is a little dark, but
normally
we don't think about the literal
meaning
when we say it. To kill two birds
with
one stone means to achieve two
things
with one action or at the same
time.
 Cycling to work allows you to
keep fit
and save money at the same time.
It's killing two birds with one
stone.
Number 30: the last straw.
You can also say the final straw.
The last straw is the last of a
series of problems which finally
causes someone to get angry or
impatient.
When he arrived late the third time,
it was the last straw
and his boss fired him.
31: to let the cat out of the bag.
To let the cat out of the
bag means to reveal a secret,
normally without intending to.
We had organised a surprise
birthday
party for George, but Frank
let the cat out of the bag the day
before.
 32: to be like riding a bike.
To be like riding a bike. This is
said of
something that you never forget
how to do.
For example: I haven't been
swimming
in years. Don't worry. It's like
riding a bike.
33: to be like two peas in a pod.
We say this if two people are very
similar in appearance or character.
They're like two peas in a pod, so
it's not surprising that people often
think they're brothers.
34: to make ends meet.
To make ends meet means
to have just enough
money to buy the things that you
need.
For example: She needs to work
two jobs to make ends meet.
Number 35: no pain, no gain. This
 means
that you need to work hard
to achieve something.
My gym sessions are exhausting,
but no pain, no gain.
36: to not be one's cup of tea.
To not be one's cup of tea
means to not be the type of
thing that one likes.
Sports aren't really his cup of tea.
I won't go to the karaoke night.
Watching people humiliate
themselves isn't my cup of tea.
Number 37: to be on the ball. To
be on the
ball means to be alert and quick to
react to things competently.
She's a great employee. Even under
pressure she's always on the ball.
38: once in a blue moon. Once in a
blue
moon simply means very rarely.
For example: His sister lives
 abroad,
so he only sees her once in a blue
moon.
Franck exercises once in a blue
moon.
Number 39: to play devil's
advocate.
To play devil's advocate means to
argue
against something, even if you
agree
with it, to start an argument
or an interesting discussion.
I don't actually disagree with you.
I'm just playing devil's advocate.
Number 40: to pull somebody's
leg.
To pull somebody's leg means to
tell somebody
something that is not true as a joke.
Frank, did you really run a
marathon
or are you pulling my leg?
 Number 41 is: rain or shine.
You can also say "come rain or
shine".
This can be used literally or
figuratively depending on the
context.
So it can mean whatever the
weather is like, or whatever
happens.
In other words, no matter
what the circumstances are.
Bring a raincoat because we're
going camping rain or shine.
I wouldn't go camping even if the
sun
was shining. It's not my cup of tea.
I've been quite busy lately, but I'll
be at the party rain or shine.
Number 42: to sit tight.
To sit tight has two meanings.
Firstly it can mean to physically
not move and stay where you are.
It can also
 mean to not do anything new or
change
your mind until the right time.
Just sit tight. The doctor will
see you in a moment.
Investors have been told to sit
tight until the economy improves.
Number 43: to spill the beans.
To spill the beans means to reveal
something
that was supposed to be a secret.
John was having an affair and his
colleague spilled the beans to his
wife. 44: to take a rain check.
This is used to say that you will not
accept an
offer now, but you might in the
future.
Would you like to go for a drink
later?
Sorry, I have to work.
Can I take a rain check?
45: to teach somebody a lesson.
 This means that somebody is
punished for
something they have done so they
will not do it again. Her parents
didn't give
her pocket money for a month to
teach
her a lesson. With this expression
it's not necessarily people who do
the punishing. It might be an event.
I left my windows open and the
rain
soaked my carpet. That taught me a
lesson.
46: through thick and thin.
Through thick and thin means in
all situations, even the difficult
ones. Good friends support us
through thick and thin.
47: under the table.
Under the table means secretly and
illegally.
Normally it's for financial
 payments.
He gets paid under the table
so he doesn't have to pay tax.
Now we have "under the weather".
Under the weather means slightly
sick or unwell.
Frank went bar-hopping last night
and
today he's feeling a bit under the
weather.
Number 49: up in the air.
Up in the air means uncertain or
not yet decided on.
We use it for plans and decisions.
For example: George is
considering going
back to university, but his
plans are still up in the air.
And yes, guys, we have reached
number 50.
This one is: your guess is as good
as mine. Your guess is as good as
mine basically just means "I don't
 know".
It means that you don't know more
than
the person you are talking to.
So if George says to me, "Why is
Frank
trying to climb into the neighbour's
window?"
I could say, "Your guess is as good
as mine."
That's it, guys. Don't forget that
if you want to properly remember
something, repetition is very
important,
and so is actively using the
language.
I'll see you next time.

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