Page-1 (B Idioms)
37. Bad blood- feelings of
hate between two families
There is bad blood between Fred and Jim. They cannot be civil to one another.
There is bad blood between Fred and Jim. They cannot be civil to one another.
38. Bend your ears- to talk to someone for a very long time about something boring
Tom is over there, bending Jane's ear about something.
39. Bite your tongue- to stop yourself from saying something because it would be better not to
A new grandmother must learn to bite her tongue so as not to give unwanted
advice.
40. Blue blood- belonging to high social class
He is a blue blood, he will never engage with the poor people like you.
41. Be above board- to be honest and legal
The honesty of the clerk is above board.
42. Be bouncing off the walls- excited and full of nervous energy
On hearing the news of his excellent result, Amina is bouncing off the walls.
43. Be tailor made- to be completely suitable for someone.
Accept her marriage proposal, she is really tailor made for you.
44. Break the ice- (to break the silence) to say something when there is complete silence
There was a
pin drop silence in the room when she broke the silence and started a
discussion.
45. Be as clear
as mud- to
be impossible to understand
Your ideas is as clear as mud. I am unable to make anything out of it.
Your ideas is as clear as mud. I am unable to make anything out of it.
46. Be in the doldrums- not very successful or nothing new is taking place
Despite so much hard work, her business is still in the doldrums.
47. Beat the drum- to speak eagerly about something you support
The president said he will beat the drum to build public support for his education program.
Since they got married they've been in seventh heaven.
49. Back the wrong horse- to support someone weak
I don't want to back the wrong horse, but it seems to me that Jed is the better
candidate.
50. Ball of fire- active and energetic
That guy is a really a ball of fire when it comes to sales.
51. Beat one’s head against the wall- to try to do something that is hopeless
I have tried many times to convince him to stop smoking, but I'm beating my head against a brick wall.
52. Bark up the wrong tree- to make a wrong assumption
The hitters blamed the team's bad record on the pitchers, but they were barking
up the wrong tree.
53. Batten down
the hatches- prepare for difficult times
When you're coming down with a cold, all you can do is batten down the hatches
and wait for the body to fight it off.
54. Bury
the hatchet- Abandon the enmity and agree to make peace
Both parties have buried the hatchet after 28 years of family enmity.
Both parties have buried the hatchet after 28 years of family enmity.
55. Behind
closed doors- done in secret
They held the meeting behind closed doors, as the law allowed. Every important
They held the meeting behind closed doors, as the law allowed. Every important
issue was decided behind closed doors.
56. Bet on the wrong horse- to misread the future
When I was a kid, I thought by the time I grew up we'd have walking, talking
When I was a kid, I thought by the time I grew up we'd have walking, talking
robots doing everything for us. Looks like I bet on the wrong horse.
57. Bite the bullet- to face a difficult situation bravely
You are just going to have to bite the bullet and make the best of it. Jim bit the bullet and accepted what he knew had to be.
58. Bitter pill to swallow- an unpleasant fact that must be accepted
It was a bitter pill for her brother to swallow when she married his enemy. We
found his deception a bitter pill to swallow.
59. Black sheep of the family- a disgraced or bad member of family
Uncle Akbar was the black sheep of the family; we always thought he emigrated toUK to avoid jail .
Uncle Akbar was the black sheep of the family; we always thought he emigrated toUK to avoid jail .
60. Blessing in disguise- something that turns out to be good which earlier appeared to be wrong
Dad's illness was a blessing in disguise; it brought the family together for the first time in years.
61. Blow one’s own horn- to praise one’s own
Within two minutes of meeting with someone new, Bilal begins to his own horn.
62. Bone of contention- subject matter of the fight
Kashmir is
bone of contention between India and Pakistan.
63. Blue in the
face- exhausted
and speechless
I argued with them until I was blue in the face.
I argued with them until I was blue in the face.
64. Burn a hole
in one’s pocket- to spend money quickly
Akram has to
burn a hole in his pocket on his brother’s marriage.
65. Burn the
midnight oil- to study till late of night
CSS is not a
child play. You have to burn midnight oil to pass the exams.
