English Idioms: Verb + Noun (act your age, lower your sights…)

Co jest w środku

act your age

Behave suitably for your age.
When my little brother started throwing crayons at dinner, Mum told him to act your age.

bare your soul

Reveal deeply personal thoughts.
In her memoir, she bared her soul about the struggles she faced after losing her job.

be a devil

Act daringly or mischievously.
The weather's lovely—be a devil and order another beer.

be a sport

Be cooperative or good-natured.
Be a sport and lend me twenty quid till payday.

be my guest

Feel free to do something.
Feel free to raid the fridge—be my guest.

be the end

Be outstanding or exceptional.
That new thriller is the end—I couldn't put it down.

be the pits

Be terrible or the worst.
The food at that place was the pits; we left hungry.

be your scene

Suit your tastes or preferences.
Loud techno clubs just aren't my scene.

be your style

Match your way of doing things.
Fancy a quiet evening in with a book? That's more my style.

bear your cross

Endure a burden or hardship.
She's been bearing her cross ever since the accident.

beat a retreat

Withdraw or leave quickly.
When the rain started, we beat a retreat to the car.

beat the clock

Finish before the deadline.
We raced to beat the clock and filed the report at 11:59 pm.

beat the drum

Advocate strongly for something.
He's been beating the drum for tax reform all year.

beat the odds

Overcome unlikely odds.
Against all expectations, the rookie beat the odds and won the championship.

beat the path

Frequently travel the same route.
Generations of farmers have beaten the same path to the market.

beat your breast

Express deep regret or sorrow.
No use beating your breast over spilled milk—move on.

beg the question

Prompt a question needing an answer.
Saying he's a great leader because people voted for him begs the question of why they voted for him.

bend the knee

Submit or show respect.
We will not bend the knee to tyranny.

bend the rules

Loosen strict rules or protocols.
The teacher bent the rules and let him resubmit the assignment.

bide your time

Wait patiently for the right time.
He bided his time for years before launching the startup.

bite the bullet

Endure something difficult.
I hate the dentist, but I'll just have to bite the bullet.

bite the dust

Fail or be defeated.
Another of my plans bit the dust.

bite your fingernails

Be nervous or anxious.
She was biting her fingernails waiting for the exam results.

bite your lip

Suppress or refrain from speaking.
He bit his lip to keep from laughing out loud.

bite your tongue

Refrain from speaking.
I wanted to argue, but I bit my tongue.

blaze a/the trail/path

Be the first to do something innovative.
She blazed a trail for women in tech.

blot your copybook

Damage your reputation.
He blotted his copybook by lying about his qualifications.

blow a fuse

Lose temper or control.
Dad blew a fuse when he saw the dent in the car.

blow a raspberry

Make a mocking sound.
The kids blew raspberries at the magician.

blow the cobwebs

Refresh oneself or clear your mind.
A brisk walk will blow the cobwebs away.

blow the gaff

Reveal a secret.
Don't blow the gaff about the surprise party.

blow the lid

Expose a secret or scandal.
The investigation blew the lid off the corruption scandal.

blow the whistle

Report wrongdoing.
She blew the whistle on her boss for safety violations.

blow your cover

Expose someone's secret identity.
A single phone call nearly blew my cover.

blow your mind

Amaze or greatly impress.
The special effects in that film will blow your mind.

blow your top

Lose your temper.
When he heard the news, he blew his top.

break a leg

Good luck or encouragement.
Break a leg in your audition tomorrow!

break the bank

Spend too much money.
Let's not break the bank on dinner tonight.

break the ice

Start a conversation in a social setting.
He told a joke to break the ice at the meeting.

break the mold

Do something in a unique way.
She's an artist who really broke the mold.

break the news

Share important information.
I didn't know how to break the news to her.

break the silence

End a period of silence.
Finally, she broke the silence and asked the question.

break the spell

End a charm or enchantment.
The alarm clock broke the spell of the beautiful dream.

break your heart

Cause emotional pain.
It broke my heart to see him go.

break your words

Break a promise.
Don't break your words to the children.

breathe a word

Speak of something secret.
Don't breathe a word of this to anyone.

bridge the gap

Reduce differences or improve connections
The new policy aims to bridge the gap between rich and poor.

burn your boats

Commit to an irreversible decision.
He quit his job and burned his boats to start his own company.

burn your bridges

Destroy opportunities for return.
Don't badmouth your old employer—you'll just burn your bridges.

burn your fingers

Suffer consequences of a mistake.
He burned his fingers investing in tech startups.

bury the hatchet

Resolve a conflict; make peace.
After years of feuding, the two families finally buried the hatchet.

bust a gut

Work extremely hard.
I busted a gut trying to finish the project on time.

bust a move

Perform a dance or take decisive action.
Come on, let's bust a move before the bus leaves.

button your lips

Keep quiet or stop talking.
Button your lips—this is a library!

buy a lemon

Purchase something that is defective or disappointing.
I bought a lemon of a used car and it broke down within a week.

buy the farm

Die (often humorously or euphemistically).
He always joked he'd buy the farm on a golf course.

call a halt

Stop an activity.
The referee called a halt to the match.

call the bluff

Challenge someone to prove their claim or threat.
I called his bluff and he backed down.

call the shots

Make the decisions or take control of a situation.
In this office, she calls the shots.

call the tune

Be in charge and set the terms.
The marketing team calls the tune on product launches.

call your bluff

Challenge someone to prove their claim.
She called his bluff and demanded proof.

call your name

Insult or criticize someone.
The report calls your name as the person responsible.

carry the can

Take responsibility for something, especially blame.
Everyone else was too scared to speak up, so I was left to carry the can.

carry the day

Succeed or prevail, especially in an argument or contest.
Her impassioned speech carried the day and the bill was passed.

carry the load

Bear a heavy burden, responsibility, or workload.
Don't worry about the heavy lifting—I'll carry the load this time.

carry the torch

Continue or support a cause, tradition, or passion.
After the founder retired, his daughter carried the torch for the family business.

carry your cross

Endure suffering or hardship.
She's been carrying her cross alone since her husband fell ill.

Cast the net

Expand the scope of a search or effort.
We cast the net wide in our search for a new CEO.

cast the stone

Criticize or condemn someone, often hypocritically.
Those who cast the first stone should be sure of their own innocence.

catch a cold

Contract an illness, usually a minor one.
I caught a cold after walking home in the rain.

catch the break

Experience a fortunate opportunity or lucky chance.
He finally caught the break he'd been waiting for and got the job.

catch the bug

Become very interested or enthusiastic about something.
She caught the gardening bug and now spends every weekend at the nursery.

catch the drift

Understand the general meaning or point of something.
I didn't hear every word, but I caught the drift.

catch the light

Reflect light in an appealing or noticeable way.
Her diamond ring caught the light as she raised her glass.

catch the sun

Get sunburned.
We lay on the beach too long and really caught the sun.

catch the vibe

Understand or connect with the mood, feeling, or atmosphere.
The new café has a great atmosphere—you walk in and just catch the vibe.

catch the wave

Take advantage of a current trend or opportunity.
Early investors who caught the wave of AI stocks made a fortune.

catch your breath

Pause to recover.
Wait a minute—let me catch my breath before we keep climbing.

catch your death

Catch a severe illness.
Don't go out in the snow in that T-shirt—you'll catch your death.

catch your fancy

Appeal to someone’s interest.
Take a look around the menu and see what catches your fancy.

chance your arm

Take a risk.
I wasn't sure it'd work, but I decided to chance my arm and ask for a raise.

change the subject

Switch topics.
Every time the conversation gets awkward, she changes the subject.

change your tune

Change your attitude or opinion.
He was bragging about his team, but after the loss he changed his tune fast.

chew the fat

Engage in casual or leisurely conversation.
Come over for a cuppa and we'll chew the fat for a bit.

choose your moment

Wait for the right time.
He chose his moment carefully before telling her the bad news.

clear the air

Resolve misunderstandings or eliminate tension.
We need to sit down and clear the air about what happened.

clear the deck

Remove obstacles to prepare for action.
Let's clear the deck of these small tasks before tackling the big project.

clear your throat

Clear your throat to prepare to speak.
He cleared his throat before stepping up to the microphone.

clip the wings

Limit someone's freedom.
The new regulations clipped the wings of the startup founders.

close the deal

Finalize an agreement or negotiation successfully.
After three rounds of negotiation, we finally closed the deal.

close your mind

Refuse to consider new ideas.
Don't close your mind to ideas just because they come from younger people.

cock a snook

Show open disrespect or defiance (often by a rude gesture).
He cocked a snook at the boss by walking out in the middle of the meeting.

coin a phrase

Invent a new phrase or term.
The journalist coined a phrase that quickly went viral on social media.

collect your wits

Gather composure or focus.
It took me a moment to collect my wits after the shock.

come a cropper

Suffer a misfortune or failure.
Their first restaurant came a cropper, but the second one thrived.

come your way

Experience or encounter something.
Good things come your way if you're patient.

concentrate the mind

Force someone to focus.
Nothing concentrates the mind like a deadline looming.

connect the dots

Understand how different ideas or facts are related.
Once you connect the dots, the whole story makes sense.

control the pursestrings

Manage financial resources.
In their marriage, she controls the pursestrings.

cook the books

Falsify financial records or accounts.
The CEO was fired when it was discovered he'd been cooking the books for years.

cook your goose

Ruin someone's plans or chances of success.
Telling the boss about his mistake really cooked his goose.

cool your heels

Wait patiently, often for a long time.
We cooled our heels in the lobby for almost an hour.

cop an attitude

Adopt a defensive or confrontational attitude.
Don't cop an attitude with me—I'm trying to help.

corner the market

Dominate a market or industry.
That brand has cornered the market for organic snacks.

cost the earth

Be very expensive.
A decent apartment in the city centre would cost the earth.

count the cost

Consider consequences.
Before you quit, count the cost of losing your income.

count your blessings

Be grateful for the positive things in life.
When you're feeling low, just count your blessings.

cover your tracks

Hide evidence or actions.
He tried to cover his tracks by deleting his browsing history.

crack a joke

Make a humorous comment.
He always cracks a joke whenever the meeting gets tense.

crack the whip

Enforce discipline or take strict action.
The new manager really cracked the whip and productivity shot up.

cramp your style

Interfere with someone's ease.
Having my parents over really cramps my style.

cross the line

Behave inappropriately or cross boundaries.
His jokes went too far and crossed the line.

cross your fingers

Hope for good luck or a favorable outcome.
I'm crossing my fingers that I get the job.

cross your mind

Occur to you suddenly.
It never crossed my mind that she might be lying.

cross your path

Unexpectedly meet someone.
If you ever cross my path again, I'll call the police.

cut a dash

Present oneself stylishly or attractively.
He cut a dash in his new suit at the wedding.

cut the cackle (Based on BNC)

Stop unnecessary talking.
Come on, cut the cackle and tell us what really happened.

cut the chase

Get straight to the point or focus on essentials.
Let's cut to the chase—are you taking the job or not?

cut the cord

End dependence or emotional attachment.
He finally cut the cord and moved out of his parents' place.

cut the crap

Stop speaking or behaving dishonestly or foolishly.
Cut the crap—I know you took the money.

cut the mustard

Meet expectations or standards.
The new player just didn't cut the mustard and was dropped from the team.

cut your losses

Minimize further losses.
The project is clearly failing—time to cut our losses.

cut your teeth

Gain initial experience.
She cut her teeth at a small law firm before starting her own practice.

deliver the goods

Deliver what is expected or promised.
We promised results, and we delivered the goods.

die the death

Fail or end unsuccessfully.
His last film died the death at the box office.

do a bunk

Leave suddenly, especially to avoid trouble.
The tenants did a bunk in the middle of the night.

do a runner

Flee or run away, often to evade responsibility.
He did a runner before the bill came.

do the honors

Perform a formal or ceremonial duty.
Could you do the honors and carve the turkey?

do the job

Perform the required task effectively.
A little glue should do the job.

do the rounds

Circulate or become widely known.
The flu is doing the rounds at the office.

do the trick

Achieve the desired result or solution.
A few drops of lemon juice should do the trick.

do your bit

Contribute your part.
Everyone should do their bit to help the community.

do your damnedest

Try your absolute hardest.
I'll do my damnedest to finish it before Friday.

do your homework

Prepare thoroughly in advance.
If you want to nail the interview, do your homework first.

do your nut

Become extremely angry.
Dad did his nut when he saw the broken window.

do your stuff

Perform your skills or abilities.
Watch this space—the new manager will soon do his stuff.

do your utmost

Do everything possible to achieve something.
She did her utmost to comfort the grieving child.

do your worst

Do the most damage you can.
Do your worst—the truth is already out.

drag your feet

Procrastinate or act slowly.
Stop dragging your feet and get the report done.

drag your heels

Delay intentionally.
The government has been dragging its heels on the new policy.

draw a blank

Be unable to think of an answer or solution.
I asked her about the meeting and she drew a blank.

draw the crowd

Attract a large audience or attention.
The street performers drew quite a crowd.

draw the curtain

End an activity or performance.
It's time to draw the curtain on this chapter of our lives.

draw the line

Set boundaries or limits for acceptable behavior.
I don't mind helping out, but I draw the line at lying for you.

drop a brick

Say something embarrassing or inappropriate.
He dropped a brick by mentioning her ex at dinner.

drop a clanger (Based on BNC)

Make an obvious mistake or faux pas.
I dropped a clanger in the meeting and called the CEO by the wrong name.

drop a/the hint

Give an indirect suggestion or clue.
She's been dropping hints that she'd like a new job.

drop the act

Stop pretending or being insincere.
Just drop the act and tell me what you really think.

drop the ball

Make a mistake or fail to fulfill responsibilities.
The marketing team really dropped the ball on this campaign.

drop the curtain

Conclude an event or activity.
After thirty years on stage, it was time to drop the curtain.

drop the hammer

Take decisive or forceful action.
The regulator dropped the hammer on the rogue bank.

drop the subject

Stop discussing or arguing about a topic.
I tried to drop the subject but he kept bringing it up.

drop your aitches

Pronounce words without the "h" sound.
His upbringing was such that he dropped his aitches in public.

drown your sorrows

Forget problems with drinking.
After the breakup, she went out to drown her sorrows with her best friend.

earn your keep

Earn your share or justify your place.
You'll have to earn your keep around here—nobody gets a free ride.

eat your words

Retract something you previously said, especially if it was wrong.
He had to eat his words when his predicted disaster never happened.

enter your head

Occur to your mind.
It never entered my head that she might be in danger.

escape your notice

Be overlooked or unnoticed.
I see the typo escaped your notice.

excuse my french

Apologize for using offensive or inappropriate language.
Excuse my French, but what the hell is he doing?

expose the truth

Reveal hidden or confidential information.
The investigation exposed the truth about the missing funds.

face the facts

Accept and deal with reality or the truth.
You've got to face the facts: she's not coming back.

face the music

Accept the consequences of your actions.
If you cheat in the exam, eventually you'll have to face the music.

face the truth

Confront and accept reality or honesty.
It took her years to face the truth about her father's illness.

fan the embers

Revive a dormant situation or emotion.
His letters fanned the embers of their old friendship.

fan the fire

Intensify an existing situation or conflict.
His inflammatory comments only fanned the fire.

fan the flames

Make a situation worse by adding provocation.
Don't fan the flames of the dispute by taking sides.

fancy your chances

Believe you have a good chance.
Do you fancy your chances of winning the competition?

feather your nest

Secure personal gain unfairly.
He feathered his nest with company funds before the business collapsed.

feel the burn

Experience physical or emotional discomfort or strain.
After the first day of training, my legs really felt the burn.

feel the draught

Feel financial or emotional hardship.
After losing his job, he really started to feel the draught.

feel the heat

Face pressure or intense criticism.
The manager is under pressure and starting to feel the heat.

feel the pinch

Experience financial difficulty or hardship.
Small businesses are starting to feel the pinch of higher taxes.

feel the sting

Suffer emotional pain or discomfort.
His cruel remark left her feeling the sting for days.

feel your age

Realize you're not young anymore.
After climbing three flights of stairs, I really felt my age.

feel your way

Proceed cautiously or tentatively.
We're still feeling our way with the new system.

fight your corner

Defend your position or beliefs.
Don't be afraid to fight your corner in the meeting.

fill the bill

Meet the requirements or expectations.
This new model fills the bill perfectly.

fill the void

Fill an emotional or physical gap.
After she moved away, I tried to fill the void with work.

fill your shoes

Take over someone's role or responsibilities effectively.
It'll be hard to find someone to fill your shoes.

find your bearings

Orient yourself in a situation.
Give me a moment to find my bearings in this new city.

find your feet

Become confident and comfortable in a new situation.
It took her a few months to find her feet in the new job.

find your match

Meet someone who equals or challenges you.
He's good, but in the final he finally found his match.

fire the imagination

Inspire creativity or enthusiasm.
The science fair fired the children's imagination.

fit the bill

Be suitable or appropriate for a specific purpose.
This laptop fits the bill for what I need.

flex your muscles

Show off your strength or ability.
The new player flexed his muscles in the second half.

flip the bird

Make an obscene gesture of defiance.
He flipped the bird at the driver who cut him off.

flip the switch

Make a sudden change in behavior or situation.
Something just flipped the switch in him and he became a different person.

flip your lid

Become very angry or upset.
Mom flipped her lid when she saw the mess.

fly a kite

Waste time on something trivial or unimportant.
He flew a kite about moving to a new city, just to see how his family reacted.

fly the flag

Show loyalty or support for a cause or group.
She wasn't afraid to fly the flag for women's rights.

foot the bill

Pay for something, especially unwillingly.
Who is going to foot the bill for the wedding?

force the pace

Push events to happen more quickly.
The new manager is really forcing the pace of change.

force your hand

Compel someone to act by removing their choice.
The shareholders forced his hand and he resigned.

gather your wits

Compose yourself and think clearly.
It took her a minute to gather her wits after the shock.

get a grip

Stay calm and regain self-control.
Get a grip—we're going to be late.

get a life

Stop wasting time and focus on meaningful activities.
Honestly, you need to get a life—go out and meet people.

get the boot

Be dismissed from a job or position.
He got the boot from his job last Friday.

get the eye

Catch someone's attention in a flirtatious or critical way.
She got the eye from the guy at the bar all night.

get the hump

Become annoyed or upset.
He got the hump because nobody invited him.

get the idea

Understand the general concept.
I get the idea—you want me to leave, right?

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