Master the most commonly asked English idioms and phrases for competitive exams like SSC, UPSC, Banking, HSSC CET, CDS, NDA, and Railway. This list includes idioms with their meanings, example sentences, and Hindi explanations for better understanding. These idioms are frequently seen in exam papers and help improve both vocabulary and comprehension. PDF version is available for free download and revision.
Important Idioms and Phrases for Competitive Exams
| Idiom/Phrase | Meaning | Hindi Equivalent (हिंदी अर्थ) | Example Sentence |
|---|---|---|---|
| A blessing in disguise | Something good that seems bad initially | छिपा हुआ वरदान | Losing that job was a blessing in disguise; it led to a better career opportunity. |
| A dime a dozen | Very common, not valuable | आम बात, सस्ते में मिलना | Such trinkets are a dime a dozen in the market. |
| A drop in the bucket | A small, insignificant amount | राई का पहाड़ | The donation was a drop in the bucket compared to the funds needed. |
| A piece of cake | Something very easy | आसान काम, बाएं हाथ का खेल | The exam was a piece of cake for her. |
| A storm in a teacup | A big fuss over a small matter | तिल का ताड़ करना | Their argument was just a storm in a teacup; it resolved quickly. |
| Add fuel to the fire | To worsen a situation | आग में घी डालना | His harsh words added fuel to the fire during the debate. |
| All bark and no bite | Someone who threatens but doesn’t act | केवल भौंकना, काटना नहीं | He’s all bark and no bite; don’t worry about his threats. |
| An arm and a leg | Very expensive | बहुत महंगा | The new phone cost an arm and a leg. |
| Apple of one’s eye | Someone very dear | आंख का तारा | Her daughter is the apple of her eye. |
| At the drop of a hat | Instantly, without hesitation | तुरंत, बिना सोचे | She would help her friends at the drop of a hat. |
| Back to square one | To start over after a failure | शुरुआत से फिर शुरू करना | After the deal fell through, we were back to square one. |
| Bark up the wrong tree | To make a mistake in targeting someone | गलत निशाना लगाना | If you think I’m responsible, you’re barking up the wrong tree. |
| Beat around the bush | To avoid talking about the main issue | इधर-उधर की बात करना | Stop beating around the bush and tell me the truth. |
| Better late than never | It’s better to do something late than not at all | देर आए, दुरुस्त आए | He apologized late, but better late than never. |
| Bite the bullet | To endure a painful situation bravely | दांतों तले उंगली दबाना | She decided to bite the bullet and finish the tough project. |
| Break the ice | To start a conversation in an awkward situation | बातचीत शुरू करना | His joke helped break the ice at the meeting. |
| Burn the midnight oil | To work late into the night | रात-रात भर काम करना | She burned the midnight oil to prepare for the exam. |
| By the skin of one’s teeth | Narrowly escaping or succeeding | बाल-बाल बचना | He passed the test by the skin of his teeth. |
| Call it a day | To stop working for the day | काम खत्म करना | Let’s call it a day and continue tomorrow. |
| Can’t judge a book by its cover | Don’t judge based on appearance | ऊपरी चमक से नहीं आंकना | She’s quiet, but you can’t judge a book by its cover—she’s very talented. |
| Caught red-handed | Caught in the act of doing something wrong | रंगे हाथों पकड़ा जाना | The thief was caught red-handed stealing the jewels. |
| Chip on one’s shoulder | Holding a grudge or feeling inferior | कंधे पर बोझ | He has a chip on his shoulder about not getting promoted. |
| Cross the bridge when you come to it | Deal with problems when they arise | समय आने पर देखेंगे | Don’t worry now; we’ll cross the bridge when we come to it. |
| Cry over spilt milk | To regret something that can’t be changed | बीती बात पर पछताना | There’s no use crying over spilt milk; focus on the future. |
| Cut corners | To do something cheaply or quickly, compromising quality | काम को आसान करना | They cut corners on the project, and now it’s falling apart. |
| Cut to the chase | To get to the point without delay | सीधे मुद्दे पर आना | Let’s cut to the chase—what’s your proposal? |
| Don’t count your chickens before they hatch | Don’t assume success before it happens | समय से पहले खुशी न मनाना | You haven’t won yet, so don’t count your chickens before they hatch. |
| Down in the dumps | Feeling sad or depressed | उदास, निराश | She’s been down in the dumps since failing the test. |
| Draw the line | To set a boundary | सीमा रेखा खींचना | I’ll help, but I draw the line at working weekends. |
| Every cloud has a silver lining | Every bad situation has some good | हर मुसीबत में कुछ अच्छा | Though she lost her job, every cloud has a silver lining—she found her passion. |
| Face the music | To accept consequences | परिणाम भुगतना | He cheated and now must face the music. |
| Feel under the weather | To feel unwell | अस्वस्थ महसूस करना | I’m feeling under the weather, so I’ll rest today. |
| Fish out of water | Feeling uncomfortable in an unfamiliar situation | पानी के बाहर मछली | At the formal event, he felt like a fish out of water. |
| Get cold feet | To become nervous and back out | डर के मारे पीछे हटना | She got cold feet before the speech and canceled. |
| Get one’s act together | To organize oneself and act effectively | खुद को व्यवस्थित करना | You need to get your act together before the deadline. |
| Give the benefit of the doubt | To trust someone despite uncertainty | संदेह का लाभ देना | I’ll give her the benefit of the doubt and assume she’s honest. |
| Go the extra mile | To make additional effort | अतिरिक्त प्रयास करना | She went the extra mile to ensure the project’s success. |
| Hit the nail on the head | To describe something exactly | सटीक बात कहना | You hit the nail on the head with your analysis. |
| Hold one’s horses | To be patient, wait | धैर्य रखना | Hold your horses; we’ll leave soon. |
| In hot water | In trouble | मुसीबत में | He’s in hot water for missing the deadline. |
| In the nick of time | Just before it’s too late | अंतिम क्षण में | She arrived in the nick of time to catch the train. |
| Jump on the bandwagon | To follow a popular trend | लोकप्रियता की लहर पर सवार होना | Everyone’s jumping on the bandwagon for the new diet trend. |
| Keep an eye on | To watch or monitor | नजर रखना | Keep an eye on the kids while I’m away. |
| Kick the bucket | To die (informal) | मर जाना | He kicked the bucket after a long illness. |
| Kill two birds with one stone | To achieve two goals with one action | एक तीर से दो निशाने | By studying abroad, she killed two birds with one stone—learning and traveling. |
| Let the cat out of the bag | To reveal a secret | राज खोल देना | He let the cat out of the bag about the surprise party. |
| Make a mountain out of a molehill | To exaggerate a small issue | छोटी बात को बढ़ा-चढ़ाकर पेश करना | She’s making a mountain out of a molehill over a minor mistake. |
| Miss the boat | To miss an opportunity | मौका चूक जाना | He missed the boat by not applying for the scholarship. |
| Not a bed of roses | Not easy or pleasant | फूलों की सेज नहीं | Life as a freelancer is not a bed of roses. |
| On cloud nine | Extremely happy | सातवें आसमान पर | She was on cloud nine after getting the job offer. |
| On the ball | Alert and competent | चौकस, सतर्क | The new manager is really on the ball. |
| Once in a blue moon | Very rarely | कभी-कभार | We go camping once in a blue moon. |
| Out of the blue | Unexpectedly | अचानक | The news came out of the blue and shocked everyone. |
| Over the moon | Extremely delighted | बहुत खुश | He was over the moon when he won the lottery. |
| Pass the buck | To shift responsibility to someone else | जिम्मेदारी टालना | Don’t pass the buck; own up to your mistake. |
| Penny for your thoughts | Asking someone what they’re thinking | तुम क्या सोच रहे हो? | You seem quiet—a penny for your thoughts? |
| Pick up steam | To gain momentum or speed | गति पकड़ना | The campaign is picking up steam as more people join. |
| Play with fire | To take a dangerous risk | आग से खेलना | By ignoring the warnings, you’re playing with fire. |
| Pull one’s leg | To tease or joke with someone | मजाक करना | Are you serious, or are you pulling my leg? |
| Put all eggs in one basket | To risk everything on one option | सब कुछ एक ही जगह दांव पर लगाना | Don’t put all your eggs in one basket; diversify your investments. |
| Rain cats and dogs | To rain heavily | मूसलाधार बारिश | It’s raining cats and dogs, so stay indoors. |
| Read between the lines | To understand the hidden meaning | छिपा अर्थ समझना | Her letter was polite, but reading between the lines, she was upset. |
| Rock the boat | To cause trouble or disrupt | व्यवस्था भंग करना | Don’t rock the boat by bringing up old issues. |
| Rome wasn’t built in a day | Great things take time | बड़े काम में समय लगता है | Be patient with your startup—Rome wasn’t built in a day. |
| See eye to see eye | To agree completely | एकमत होना | We don’t see eye to eye on this matter, but we can compromise. |
| Shoot oneself in the foot | To harm oneself unintentionally | खुद को नुकसान पहुँचाना | By lying, he shot himself in the foot during the investigation. |
| Sit on the fence | To remain neutral | तटस्थ रहना | Stop sitting on the fence and take a side in the debate. |
| Spill the beans | To reveal a secret | राज खोल देना | She spilled the beans about the new product launch. |
| Steal someone’s thunder | To take credit for someone else’s idea or success | किसी की प्रशंसा चुराना | He stole her thunder by presenting her idea as his own. |
| Take it with a pinch of salt | To not believe something too seriously | हल्के में लेना | His promises should be taken with a pinch of salt. |
| The ball is in your court | It’s your decision or responsibility | अब तुम्हारी बारी है | I’ve done my part; the ball is in your court now. |
| The best of both worlds | To enjoy advantages of two situations | दोनों का लाभ उठाना | Working remotely gives her the best of both worlds—flexibility and income. |
| The last straw —Cognate | The final problem that causes collapse | आखिरी तिनका | His rudeness was the last straw, and she quit. |
| Through thick and thin | Through good and bad | हर हाल में | They’ve supported each other through thick and thin. |
| Throw in the towel | To give up | हार मान लेना | After many failed attempts, he threw in the towel. |
| Time flies when you’re having fun | Time passes quickly when enjoying | समय तेजी से बीतता है | Time flies when you’re having fun at the festival. |
| Turn a blind eye | To ignore deliberately | जानबूझकर अनदेखा करना | The teacher turned a blind eye to the minor disruption. |
| Under one’s nose | Right in front, yet unnoticed | नाक के नीचे | The keys were under her nose, but she couldn’t find them. |
| Up in arms | Angry and protesting | गुस्से में | The workers were up in arms over the salary cuts. |
| Walk on air | To feel very happy | हवा में उड़ना | She was walking on air after her engagement. |
| Wear one’s heart on one’s sleeve | To show emotions openly | भावनाओं को खुलकर दिखाना | He wears his heart on his sleeve, so everyone knows how he feels. |
| When pigs fly | Something that will never happen | असंभव, जब सुअर उड़ेंगे | He’ll clean his room when pigs fly! |
| Wild goose chase | A futile or hopeless pursuit | व्यर्थ की खोज | Searching for that old file was a wild goose chase. |
| Wolf in sheep’s clothing | Someone who pretends to be harmless but is dangerous | भेड़ की खाल में भेड़िया | Beware of him; he’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing. |
| You can’t have your cake and eat it too | You can’t have two desirable outcomes at once | दोनों हाथों में लड्डू नहीं | You can’t work part-time and expect full-time pay—you can’t have your cake and eat it too. |
| A tough row to hoe | A challenging task | कठिन काम | Starting a business was a tough row to hoe, but she succeeded. |
| Bite off more than one can chew | To take on too much responsibility | अपनी क्षमता से ज्यादा लेना | He bit off more than he could chew by accepting three projects. |
| Break a leg | Wish for good luck (used in theater) | शुभकामनाएं | Break a leg in your performance tonight! |
| Burn bridges | To destroy relationships permanently | रिश्ते तोड़ देना | Quitting without notice burned bridges with her former employer. |
| Caught between a rock and a hard place | Facing two difficult choices | दो पाटन के बीच में | She was caught between a rock and a hard place—stay in a bad job or risk unemployment. |
| Don’t put the cart before the horse | Do things in the right order | उल्टा काम न करना | Plan your budget first; don’t put the cart before the horse by spending. |
| Give someone the cold shoulder | To ignore or act coldly toward someone | ठंडा व्यवहार करना | After the argument, she gave him the cold shoulder. |
| In the same boat | In the same difficult situation | एक ही नाव में सवार | We’re all in the same boat with this tight deadline—let’s work together. |
| Let sleeping dogs lie | To avoid stirring up trouble | सोते शेर को मत जगाओ | Don’t bring up old grudges; let sleeping dogs lie. |
| On thin ice | In a risky or dangerous situation | जोखिम पर | You’re on thin ice with your work—if you miss another deadline, you’re out. |
| Pull the plug | To stop or cancel something | रद्द करना | They pulled the plug on the project due to budget issues. |
| Put your foot in your mouth | To say something embarrassing or inappropriate | गलत समय पर बोलना | He put his foot in his mouth by joking about her new haircut. |
