Important idioms

Idioms

1. A big cheese- an important or a powerful person in a group or family

Apparently her father is a big cheese in one of the major banks.

2. A bird’s eye view- a view from a very high place which allows you to see a large areaWe had a bird's eye view of the old town from the top of the city walls.

3. A bone of contention- something that people argue for a long time
The main bone of contention was deciding who would take care of the children 

after the divorce.

4. A cock and a bull story- a story or an explanation which is obviously not true.
I cannot believe on his cock and bull story.

5. At the crack of the dawn- very early in morning
 Jane was always awake at the crack of dawn. (Or) The birds start singing at the crack of dawn.

6. A cuckoo in the nest- someone in a group of people but not liked by them.For Peter, his new father was a cuckoo in the nest.

7. A litmus test- a method which clearly proves something
His views on abortion are effectively a litmus test of his views on women's rights.

8. As the crow flies- measuring distance between two places in a straight line.
It's only a mile as the crow flies, but about three miles by this mountain road.

9. A dead letter- an argument or law not followed by anyone.The ceasefire agreement was a dead letter as soon as it was signed since neither 

side had any intention of keeping to it.

10. An early bird- someone who gets early in the morning
Ellen is the early bird in this house. 

11. At the eleventh hour- be too late.

She always turned her term papers in at the eleventh hour. 

We don't worry about death until the eleventh hour.

12. A queer fish- a strange person
I cannot understand the ways of Mr. Arif. He is a queer fish.

13. A wake-up call- an event done to warn someone
The World Trade Center bombing served as a wake up call to the FBI on terrorism.

14. A worm’s eye view- having very little knowledge about something
Set in the Paris underworld, the novel provides us with a worm's eye view of 

society.

 15. A closed fisted man- a miser who spends too little money

Aslam is a close fisted man as he never spends a penny on entertainment.

16. At the heels of- to follow someone
We should go at the heels of Quaid-e-Azam if we have to make Pakistan a great nation.

17. A child’s play- an easy task

To pass CSS examination is not a child’s play.

18. A fresh water sailor- an inexperienced person

In business, he is a fresh water sailor.

19. A man of letters- an educated person

Prof. Anjum is a man of letters.

20. A busy bee- a very busy person

Amina works from dawn to dusk without interval. She is a busy bee.

21. A wet blanket- a person who spoils the charm of fun and or talk

A selfish person is a wet blanket.

22. Afraid of one’s own shadow- to become easily frightened
Richard constantly worries about security; he's afraid of his own shadow.

23. Against the clock- to be in a hurry to do something before a particular time
In a race against the clock, they rushed the accident victim to the hospital.

24. An arm and a leg- a large amount of money  Everything the restaurant offers tastes good, and it doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

25. Appear out of now here- to appear suddenly without warning.

Without warning, the storm came out of nowhere.

26. Apple of someone’s eye- someone loved very much.
The youngest was the apple of his father's eye.

27. Asleep at the switch- not to be alert on opportunity
The security guard fell asleep at the switch and a robber broke in.

28. At sixes and sevens- to be lost and bewildered
The new college admissions tests were poorly explained, leaving the students at 

sixes and sevens.

29. At someone’s beck and call- to be always ready to serve
There were dozens of maids and waiters at our beck and call.

30. At the bottom of the ladder- at the lowest level
After Ann got fired, she had to start all over again on the bottom rung.
31. A house of cards- a poor plan
The organization that looked so solid and dependable turned out to be a house of 
cards.

32. At an arm’s length- to keep at a distance
John always keeps his friends at arm's length, so that no one gets close enough
to hurt his  feelings.

33. At sixes and sevens- in disorder
When I entered the room, everything was at sixes and sevens.

34. A bull in a China shop- an awkward person
Lester felt like a bull in a china shop; reaching for an orange, he made several 
elaborate pyramids of fruit tumble down.

35. A red-letter day- an important day
The day Pakistan was born is a real red-letter day for us.

36. A nine-days wonder- pleasure for a short time
 His music was derided by an older generation convinced that he was a nine-day wonder.