This
database is a comprehensive collection of all the American idioms and slang available.
American Idioms are many and varied. We hope you enjoy our collection. We are adding more all the time.
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Brand Spanking New
What does Brand Spanking New mean? | New and unused. | What you really need is a brand spanking new Porsche turbo.
Doctors have traditionally spanked babies immediately after delivery to start them crying, and breathing. |
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Some Random Idioms
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in black and white
What does "in black and white" mean? | in writing | I want to get the information in black and white before I go to the meeting.
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rock the boat
What does "rock the boat" mean? | to upset the way things are | The woman is a very quiet worker and never likes to rock the boat at work.
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take it upon oneself to (do something)
What does "take it upon oneself to (do something)" mean? | to make something one's responsibility | I decided to take it upon myself to fix the broken window in our apartment.
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put one's thinking cap on
What does "put one's thinking cap on" mean? | to start thinking in a serious manner | I put my thinking cap on and tried to think of a name for the student newspaper.
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rake (something) off
What does "rake (something) off" mean? | to take money from something illegally | The sales clerk was accused of raking money off of the daily cash sales.
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split hairs
What does "split hairs" mean? | to find and argue about small and unimportant differences | My boss always splits hairs when I talk to him about something important.
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good on ya, mate
What does "good on ya, mate" mean? |
idiom. well done; nicely done |
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find one's tongue
What does "find one's tongue" mean? | to be able to talk | The man could not find his tongue when he was asked to speak at the banquet.
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two of a kind
What does "two of a kind" mean? | people or things of the same type, similar in character/attitude etc. | The young girls are two of a kind and they do almost everything together.
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The writing is on the wall
What does "The writing is on the wall" mean? | One can see the inevitable result of circumstances. | We are having a downsizing and the writing is on the wall: we'll all be cut loose.
From the Book of Daniel in the Bible's Old Testament. Belshazzar, the king of Israel, had stolen from the temple in Jerusalem. At a party where wine was being consumed, the fingers of a man's hand appeared and wrote on the wall.
The interpretation of the writing was that the King's days were numbered. He had been weighed on the scales and found deficient and his kingdom was divided and given to the Medes and Persians. That same night, Belshazzar was killed. |
two bits
What does "two bits" mean? | twenty-five cents, a quarter of a dollar | The newspaper cost only two bits a copy.
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the jury is still out (on someone or something)
What does "the jury is still out (on someone or something)" mean? | a decision has not been reached on someone or something (used often and in a casual manner when one has not made a decision about something) | The jury is still out on whether or not we will move or not.
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keep from (doing something)
What does "keep from (doing something)" mean? | prevent/refrain from doing something | I love ice cream and couldn`t keep from eating three bowls.
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stumble into (somewhere)
What does "stumble into (somewhere)" mean? | to enter a place by stumbling | I stumbled into my bedroom and went to bed.
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