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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have a card up one's sleeve
What does have a card up one's sleeve mean? | to have a reserve plan or a secret advantage | The man
had a card up his sleeve when he went to the bank to ask for more money for his
business.
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have a card up one's sleeve
What does have a card up one's sleeve mean? | to hide something of value |
I thought that the negotiations would not succeed but my boss had a card up his sleeve that we did not know about.
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Some Random Idioms
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fall into a trap
What does "fall into a trap" mean? | to become caught in someone's scheme |
The criminals fell into a trap that the police had prepared for them.
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tell time
What does "tell time" mean? | to report the correct time, to be able to read time from a clock or watch | The child is only now learning to tell time.
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Put your thumb on the scales
What does "Put your thumb on the scales" mean? | If you put your thumb on the scales, you try to influence the result of something in your favour. |
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know (something) by heart
What does "know (something) by heart" mean? | know something perfectly and from memory | I know the poem by heart.
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on hand
What does "on hand" mean? | to be available | I am sorry but I do not have any aspirin on hand at the moment.
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With a grain of salt
What does "With a grain of salt" mean? | With a healthy dose of skepticism, suspicion, and
caution. | Dave has been known to stretch the truth a bit. Take what he says with a grain of salt.
Salt is now an inexpensive and readily available commodity. But it was once very valuable due to its high demand as a food preservative and relative scarcity.
Salt was thought to have healing properties and to be an antidote to poisons. To take (eat or drink) something "with a grain of salt" was to practice preventive medicine. One would do this if they were suspicious that the food might be poisonous or may cause illness. |
up to one's neck/ears/eyeballs (in something)
What does "up to one's neck/ears/eyeballs (in something)" mean? | having a lot of something, much involved/busy with something | I am up to my neck in work at the moment and won't be able to attend the dinner tonight.
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get a head start
What does "get a head start" mean? | to get an advantage when you start doing something or going somewhere | We woke up early in the morning in order to get a head start on our holiday.
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shook
What does "shook" mean? | scared; frightened; startled |
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When it rains, it pours
What does "When it rains, it pours" mean? | This idiom means that when things go wrong, a lot of things go wrong at the same time. |
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Shades of meaning
What does "Shades of meaning" mean? | Shades of meaning is a phrase used to describe the small, subtle differences in meaning between similar words or phrases; 'kid' and 'youth' both refer to young people, but carry differing views and ideas about young people. |
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go into effect
What does "go into effect" mean? | to become effective (a law or a rule), to start to function | The new parking regulations will go into effect next week.
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fight against time
What does "fight against time" mean? | to hurry to do something quickly, a fight to do something quickly | The rescue party was fighting against time to save the men who were trapped in the coal mine.
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