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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night owl
What does night owl mean? | a person who likes to stay up late at night | My friend is a night owl and stays up late every night.
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Some Random Idioms
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snail`s pace
What does "snail`s pace" mean? | a very slow movement forward | The cars on the highway were moving at a snail`s pace.
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put (someone) in the picture
What does "put (someone) in the picture" mean? | to tell someone what the situation is | The supervisor has finally decided to put me in the picture about the new policy at work.
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let (something) slip by
What does "let (something) slip by" mean? | forget or miss an important time or date | We let my parent's wedding anniversary slip by without doing anything at all.
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in one`s hair
What does "in one`s hair" mean? | annoying someone | The child has been in my hair all morning because she is on holidays now.
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to perk up
What does "to perk up" mean? | to become energetic or happy after being sad or tired | My sister began to perk up after she had a chance to rest after her long drive.
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of all the nerve
What does "of all the nerve" mean? | How shocking! | Of all the nerve for my friend to ask me for more money when she never repaid me what she had already borrowed.
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no news is good news
What does "no news is good news" mean? | when you do not receive any news about something or somebody it probably means that everything is going well | Although the woman had not heard from her son for several weeks, she believed that no news is good news and she did not worry.
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rob Peter to pay Paul
What does "rob Peter to pay Paul" mean? | to take from one person or thing to pay another | When the government began to take money from the education system to pay for the medical system it was like robbing Peter to pay Paul.
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razz
What does "razz" mean? | tease; taunt |
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a play-by-play description
What does "a play-by-play description" mean? | a description of an event as it is taking place | The announcer gave a play-by-play description of the championship game.
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whet (someone's) appetite
What does "whet (someone's) appetite" mean? | to cause someone to be interested in something and want to learn more about it | The introduction to playing a musical instrument helped to whet my appetite to learn more about music.
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bring (something) on
What does "bring (something) on" mean? | to cause something to develop rapidly | I do not know what brought on his anger but you should avoid him until he calms down.
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school of hard knocks
What does "school of hard knocks" mean? | the ordinary experiences of life | The man learned about life in the school of hard knocks.
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reality of a situation
What does "reality of a situation" mean? | the way that a situation really is | The reality of the situation is that it is very difficult to enter some of the best universities in the country.
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