Read this complete list of idiomatic expressions to learn and practise the best & most important Idioms and phrases for AFCAT CDS NDA Bank SSC English Paper. Idioms in this article are the latest, new & are updated from time to time, so keep visiting Military-Choice to prepare for English Idioms and Phrases and score maximum possible marks in your AFCAT CDS NDA Bank SSC Competitive Written Exam making your selection as easy as a cake walk. You can expect 10 to 15 idioms in various Competitive written exams like AFCAT CDS NDA SSC Bank written exam.
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BEST ENGLISH IDIOMS & PHRASES FOR AFCAT CDS NDA CAPF AC SSC CGL WRITTEN EXAM
Also Read 50+ Most Important Idioms with Hindi Meaning
Right Up Somebody's Street - to be exactly the type of thing that someone knows about or likes to do
Go Over Someone's Head - go to a more important or powerful person in order to get what you want
One For The Books - an outstanding, memorable, or record-breaking event or achievement
Powder Keg - a very dangerous situation or place in which something very bad could happen at any time
Wrap (One's) Head Around - to understand something that one considers challenging, confusing, or a foreign concept
Wide Of The Mark - something that isn't true or accurate, or it misses the target
Cat In Gloves Catches No Mice - sometimes you cannot get what you want by being careful and polite
Rub The Wrong Way - to irritate or annoy someone
Give Someone a Long Rope - to let someone commit mistake
Jump The Gun - to start something before it is permissible, appropriate, or advisable
At Sixes and Sevens - in a confused, badly organized, or difficult situation
Your Heart Out - if you work, dance, sing, etc your heart out, you do it with as much energy as possible
To Have A Chip On One's Shoulder - act of holding a grudge or grievance that readily provokes disputation
Up To Your Ears - very busy with or deeply involved in.
A Dog's Breakfast or A Dog's Dinner - something which is badly organized or very untidy
Clean As A Whistle - if something is as clean as a whistle, it's extremely clean, or for a person it can mean they have never done anything illegal
Put Someone's Nose Out Of Joint - upset someone by not treating them with as much respect or consideration as they think they deserve.
Bite The Bullet - to force yourself to do something unpleasant or difficult, or to be brave in a difficult situation
Snowball Effect - a situation in which the results or consequences of an action grow at an increasingly faster rate over time
Went South - something went wrong or bad from a certain point
Hitch Your Wagon To Someone/something - try to use someone or something to make themselves more successful
A Long Time Coming - arriving or happening after a lot of time has passed
Carte Blanche - give someone the freedom to do whatever they want in a situation
Go Up The Wall - to be, or to become angry or annoyed
Purple Patch - a period marked by much success or good luck
Come A Cropper - to make a mistake which has serious consequences
Nibble Away At - to gradually reduce the quantity, strength or value of something
Fall On One's Feet - to be in good condition or in a good situation after having a bad or difficult experience
Here's The Rub - here is the biggest problem or difficulty
Cooks The Books - keep inaccurate accounts for a business, usually in order to pay less tax
Not Hold A Candle To Someone/ Something - to not be as good as someone or something else
Vim And Vigor - have lots of energy and enthusiasm for life
Bell The Cat - to put yourself in a dangerous situation
Straight From The Horse's Mouth - hearing something directly from the person who knows the most about something
Spin One's Wheels - to make little or no progress despite putting much effort
Eat Humble Pie - to admit that you are in the wrong and behave apologetically
Under Your Own Steam - to do something without anybody's help
Have Feet Of Clay - to have a bad quality that you keep hidden
Earn Your Stripes - do something to prove that you have the skills or ability for a particular job or rank
Carte Blanche - give freedom to do whatever they want in a situation
Veg Out - to relax and take it easy
To Burn One's Finger - to suffer injury by acting rashly
A Shot In The Arm - if something gives a person or an organisation renewed energy or enthusiasm
Make Your Skin Crawl - make you feel afraid or full of disgust
Sadder But Wiser - unhappy but having learned from one's mistakes
The Jury Is Still Out - a decision still hasn't been made about something
Dead In The Water - no chance of succeeding or of making any progress
In One's Cups - drunk
Vent Your Spleen - express your anger
Worm Yourself/Your Way Into - to gradually achieve a position of trust, possibly by using trick or being dishonest
The Noose Is Hanging - preparations are complete
To Get On The Gravy Train - earns a lot of money without doing much work
Take A Leaf Out Of Someone's Book : to behave or to do something in a way that someone else would
Drive (One) Up The Wall - to annoy or frustrate one to the point of exasperation
Get In Under The Wire - to get somewhere or do something at the last possible moment
Throw In The Towel - to quit in defeat or to give up
Ear To The Ground - know what's really going on in a situation
Run-of-the-mill - not outstanding in quality or rarity : average, ordinary
Above Board - done in a legal and honest way
Kick The Habit - manage to stop doing something that has become a bad habit
Halcyon Days - a very happy or successful period in the past
Wake Up And Smell The Coffee - try to pay attention to what's going on
Balls In A Vice - when you do something super bad to yourself
Fall Flat - to produce no effect/ cause no argument/ cause no interest
Keep Your Nose Clean - stay out of trouble by making sure you don't do anything wrong
See Pink Elephants - see things incorrectly due to acute alcohol intoxication
French Leave - absence from work or duty without permission
Eat Humble Pie - make a humble apology and accept humiliation
Blue-eyed Boy - a person highly regarded by someone and treated with special favour
Neck Of The Woods - a neighbourhood or a district, usually rural
By Fits And Starts - to do something intermittently (रुक रुक कर) or sporadically (कई मायनों)
Just What The Doctor Ordered - it was exactly what was needed
Keep The Wolf From The Door - have enough money to be able to eat and live
Dark Horse - someone or something whose abilities, plans, or feelings are little known to others
A Whale Of A Time - have a great time and really enjoy yourself
Give Someone The Creeps - make someone feel nervous, afraid or uncomfortable
Talk Through One's Hat - talk foolishly, wildly, or ignorantly
Hide Your Light Under A Bushel - to not tell anyone about your abilities or what you have achieved
Whip Out - to take out or present something suddenly or quickly
Take To One's Heels - to quickly run away
Heads Will Roll - some people will be punished because of something that has happened
Feeling The Pinch - finding it harder to survive on your income
Take Something With A Grain Of Salt - to understand that something is likely to be untrue or incorrect
Throw The Baby Out With The Bathwater - reject an idea completely, even though some parts of it are good
Up A Gum Tree - you're in trouble or have a serious problem
Kangaroo Court - a court that is created quickly and is not official, and conducts unfair trials
Warm The Cockles Of One's Heart - to cause a feeling of affectionate happiness
Fill Somebody's Shoes - replace somebody and do what they do
Keep (One's) Powder Dry - to be ready for a challenge with little warning
A Nest Egg - to have money put away for the future
Hem In - to trap, enclose or surround someone or something
Yellow Streak - act in a cowardly way and not be very brave
Call Someone Out - to challenge someone to a fight
Cutting Corners - doing something poorly in order to save time or money
Beat The Rap - avoid being found guilty of a crime
Don’t Give Up The Day Job - don't leave your current employment in the hopes that something better will come along
Pay Through The Nose - pay more than the usual price for it
Can't See The Forest For The Trees - cannot see, understand, or focus on a situation in its entirety due to being preoccupied with minor or small details
Play It By Ear - to decide how to deal with a situation as it develops, rather than acting according to plans made earlier
Put A Sock In It - an impolite way of telling someone to be quiet
Above Board - done in a legal and honest way
Make A Song And Dance About Something - make a big deal out of, or a fuss over, something that isn't very important
Get Cracking - to start doing something quickly
At A Loose End - to have nothing to do
Rub It In - keep talking about something or doing something that makes you upset or embarrassed
Bought The Farm - died
Get Your Act Together : to start to organize yourself so that you do things in an effective way
Out Of The Wood - to no longer be in difficulties and danger
Caught Red-handed - caught in the act of doing something wrong such as cheating or stealing
The Year Dot - a very long time ago
A Cut Above - someone who is superior or of a higher social class
Greatest Thing Since Sliced Bread - something which is the best and most useful innovation or development invented for a long time
Play Ducks and Drakes - to behave recklessly; to idly squander one's wealth
Wide Of The Mark - something that isn't true or accurate, or it misses the target
In The Cross Hairs - in a position in which other people are eager to criticize or attack
Spick And Span - totally clean and/or organized
Feel Under The Weather - to feel ill, sick, depressed or low in spirit
Green Around The Gills - someone who looks ill or pale
Show (Someone) A Clean Pair Of Heels - to run or move away from someone at great speed
Have An Ace Up (One's) Sleeve - to have a secret plan, idea, or advantage that can be utilized if and when it is required
Sit On The Fence - to avoid saying which side of an argument you support
Quick On The Uptake - if you are quick on the uptake, you are smart and can understand things quickly
Put The Cart Before The Horse - to have things in the wrong order; to have things confused and mixed up
In A Fit Of Pique - do something suddenly because you are annoyed at being not treated properly
Kill The Goose That Lays The Golden Egg - to destroy something that has made you a lot of money
Spill The Beans - to tell people secret information
Vote With Your Feet - show your opinion of something by acting, such as by buying something if you like it, or by not buying it if you don't like it
Wet Behind The Ears - don't have much experience of life
Plain Sailing - very easy to do and there are no problems to overcome
Can't See The Forest For The Trees - can't see the whole situation clearly because you're looking too closely at small details
Egg Someone On - to encourage, urge, or dare someone to continue doing something
Pie In The Sky - an impossible, unlikely, or fanciful idea or plan
A Fig Leaf - something used to hide an embarrassing or shameful problem
Sleep On (Something) - to postpone a decision until the following day so that one has additional time to consider it
Cheek By Jowl - used to express when two things are close to each other
Zero-sum Game - a situation in which any gain by someone is at the expense of a loss to someone else involved in the situation
Weak At The Knees - to feel an emotion so strongly that it makes you feel unstable on your feet
Get The Boot - be dismissed from your job or position
Upset The Applecart - do something that causes trouble or upsets someone's plans
Blind Man's Holiday - phrase that refers to the inability to work at night
No Spring Chicken - someone who is no longer young but sometimes doesn't realize it and tries to look younger than his age
An End Run - something that you do in order to avoid something
Dirt Cheap - if something costs very little money
Have The Floor - have the right or opportunity to speak in a group, especially at a formal event or gathering
Lay Down The Law - to tell people what they should do in a forceful and stern way
Stave Something Off - to stop something bad from happening, or to keep an unwanted situation or person away
Bone Of Contention - a subject or an issue over which there is a continuing disagreement
Have Your Head In The Clouds - to be separate from reality, to dream
You Could Have Knocked Me Over With A Feather - one was extremely surprised when he or she found out about something
Stand (Or Stick) Out Like A Sore Thumb - be different from the surrounding people or things
Can't See The Forest For The Trees - someone who is too involved in the details of a problem to look at the situation as a whole
Achilles' Heel - weakness that could result in failure
Packed Like Sardines - a large number of people in a small space
In A Nutshell - to describe something very briefly, using a few words
Your Pound Of Flesh - insist on getting something you have a right to, even though you might not need it
Off The Cuff - speak without planning what you will say beforehand
Catch Someone Flat-footed - to catch someone who is unprepared; take by surprise
A Bolt From The Blue - something unexpected or surprising
Dig Your Heels In - stubbornly resist something or refuse to change
Waiting In The Wings - ready to take over a role or a position when you have the chance to do so
An Acid Test - something that shows the true worth or value of something or someone
Pick Somebody's Brain - ask for detailed information or ideas about something
An Even Break - a fair opportunity to succeed in your ambition or to achieve your goals
Let The Cat Out Of The Bag - to reveal facts previously hidden
Ignorance Is Bliss - if one is unaware of an unpleasant fact or situation one cannot be troubled by it
A Couch Potato - someone who is very lazy and spends a lot of time sitting around watching TV and eating junk food
Tempest In A Teapot - lot of anger or worry about something that is not important
Yellow Streak - to act sometimes in a cowardly way and not be very brave
Call A Spade A Spade - to describe the true nature of someone or something, even if it is unpleasant
Cut Corners - to skip certain steps in order to do something as easily or cheaply as possible
Like A Fish Out Of Water - to be surrounded by people who are different to you, and it's making you feel a little uncomfortable
To Whet One’s Appetite - to arouse interest in something, usually food
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