- By Anshika Verma
- Tue, 02 Sep 2025 04:36 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
Top Idioms Students Must Know: Learning English is important for everyone, but there are various idioms, phrases or sentences that are tough to understand. In addition to grammar and vocabulary, the phrases of idioms are a crucial component that is commonly used in today’s world. Idioms are unique commands that are used in English sentences and have different or unique meanings that aren't clear from the individual words. Here we bring to you the list of the top 20 English idioms with their meaning as well as sentences. Check out this article.
What are Idioms?
Idioms are a collection of phrases or words whose proper meaning is different from the meanings of each word in that phrase. Idioms are described as ‘a group of words in a fixed order that has a particular meaning that is different from the meanings of each word in it.’ Idioms are those expressions that cannot be understood literally.
Top 20 Idioms with Meanings and Sentences:
S.No. | Idioms | Meanings | Sentences |
1. | Under the weather | Not feeling well | I won't be able to attend the meeting as I am a bit under the weather. |
2. | Apple of my eye | a person of whom you are extremely fond and proud | I am extremely fond of him, he is the apple of my eye. |
3. | Cold feet | Becoming nervous | Mridul was getting cold feet when the truth came out. |
4. | Set the record straight | To get some clarity | XYZ set the record straight when employees questioned its policies. |
5. | To break someone’s bubble | To break belief about unexpected truth | Nehal broke my bubble when she told me the whole story. |
6. | Snowed under | To become busy | I won’t be able to attend the party as I am snowed under at work. |
7. | Snowed underKill two birds with a stone | Achieve two results by doing one thing | None of us understood that he was trying to kill two birds with one stone only. |
8. | Bite the bullet | Finishing something no matter how difficult it is | Natasha was nervous at first but then she bite the bullet and gave a speech. |
9. | Walk on eggshells | Be careful with your actions and words | Having conversation with him feels like walking on eggshells. |
10. | Make two ends meet | To earn enough money for all your needs | After laying off he is working very hard to make two ends meet. |
11. | To be at loggerheads with someone | To strongly disagree | Naina is a bold girl, she always loggerheads with Akashima on many issues |
12. | Pretty penny | Too much money or expensive | The dress Radhika wants for her birthday will cost a pretty penny. |
13. | Break a leg | Wishing good luck | The professor asked us to break a leg at the annual day dance. |
14. | Through thick and thin | Good and bad times | Vishu are always there to help through thick and thin. |
15. | Beat around the bush | Not saying directly | Raj, don’t beat around the bush, say directly about the team meeting. |
16. | Call it a day | Done for today | Aanchal, I am getting a bit tired now - let's call it a day. |
17. | Better late than never | To complete something rather than not doing it | Aayesha, it's better late than never to finish this particular assignment. |
18. | Hang in there | Stay determined in tough situations | Hang in there, I know you will attain success soon. |
19. | Cut corners | To do something quickly | I often cut corners in order to buy something for my sister. |
20. | Steal someone’s thunder | Doing something to gain appreciation | Manav stole thunder from Rahul when he said he is leading the project. |
Also Read: Teachers’ Day 2025 Essay Ideas And 10 Lines For Students And Kids
