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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catch (someone) off guard
What does catch (someone) off guard mean? | to catch a person at a time of carelessness |
I was caught off guard when the teacher asked me about my homework.
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Some Random Idioms
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Spanner in the works
What does "Spanner in the works" mean? | (UK) If someone puts or throws a spanner in the works, they ruin a plan.
In American English, 'wrench' is used instead of 'spanner'. |
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from stem to stern
What does "from stem to stern" mean? | from one end to the other, from the front to the back of a ship |
The boat was damaged from stem to stern after the big storm.
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Whistling past the graveyard
What does "Whistling past the graveyard" mean? | If someone is whistling past the graveyard, they are trying to remain cheerful in difficult circumstances.
('Whistling past the cemetery' is also used.) |
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fricking
What does "fricking" mean? | poor; lousy; frustrating |
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out to lunch
What does "out to lunch " mean? | to be crazy, to be uninformed |
The woman is out to lunch and you should never believe what she tells you.
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Jump the shark
What does "Jump the shark" mean? | Said of a salient point in a television show or other activity at which the popularity thereof begins to wane: The Flintstones jumped the shark when a man from outer space came to visit them. The expression derives from an episode of the television sitcom 'Happy Days' in which Fonzie, clad in leather jacket and on water skis, jumps over a shark. That episode was widely seen as the beginning of the end for the formerly popular series. |
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In droves
What does "In droves" mean? | When things happen in droves, a lot happen at the same time or very quickly. |
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In your element
What does "In your element" mean? | If you are in your element, you feel happy and relaxed because you are doing something that you like doing and are good at.
"You should have seen her when they asked her to sing; she was in her element." |
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cut from the same cloth
What does "cut from the same cloth" mean? | to share a lot of similarities | The two cousins were cut from the same cloth and were similar in every way.
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hold all the aces
What does "hold all the aces" mean? | to have all the advantages (the ace is the most valuable card in many card games) |
The company held all the aces when it began to negotiate with the small union.
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come through (something)
What does "come through (something)" mean? | to complete a difficult activity successfully, to survive something successfully |
Our town came through the big storm with no damage.
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Dutch treat
What does "Dutch treat" mean? | a meal or movie etc. where each person pays his or her own way, to contribute equally to something |
When the boy goes out with his girlfriend it is always a Dutch treat as he does not have much money.
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