American Idioms and Expressions

Handy Idiom

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. .

handy What does handy mean?	can easily fix things	He is very handy around the house and is always fixing or building something.
handy What does handy mean?	can easily fix things	The man is very handy around the house and is always fixing or building something. hang Idioms
	Some Random Idioms
cash in one's chips What does "cash in one's chips" mean?	to take one's gambling chips to a teller in a casino for money, to sell something for a profit	It was getting late so I decided to cash in my chips and go home. My Internet stock had done very well so I decided to cash in my chips and take the money.

get into (someone's) head What does "get into (someone's) head" mean?	to understand what someone thinks and feels so that you can communicate well with them	I am having a difficult time to get into the principal's head and understand what he is really doing.
fall from grace What does "fall from grace" mean?	to lose approval	The politician fell from grace with the public during the money scandal.
throw (someone) a curve What does "throw (someone) a curve" mean?	to mislead or deceive someone	The purchasing manager threw us a curve when he said that he would not need any of our products until next year.
in black and white What does "in black and white" mean?	in writing, officially	I put down my complaint in black and white.
Davy Jone's locker What does "Davy Jone's locker" mean?	the bottom of the sea (as a grave)	When the boat sank, all of the crew members went to Davy Jone's locker.
something/words to that effect What does "something/words to that effect" mean?	something like what was just said	The apartment manager said that we could not bring a bicycle into the apartment lobby or something to that effect.
hard on (someone or something) What does "hard on (someone or something)" mean?	treat someone or something roughly	His son is very hard on shoes.

back of beyond What does "back of beyond" mean?	somewhere very remote	Every summer we go to the back of beyond for a camping trip.
on the fence (about something) What does "on the fence (about something)" mean?	to be undecided	The politician is on the fence about the tax issue.
in one ear and out the other What does "in one ear and out the other" mean?	ignored, not listened to or not heard	The teacher told the students about their homework but it went in one ear and out the other.
catch (someone`s) eye What does "catch (someone`s) eye" mean?	to attract someone`s attention	I tried to catch my friend`s eye at the movie theater but he did not notice me.

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