Idioms in English
Eve Tamela
ICC-523
Midterm Project
This Lesson
At the end of this lesson, you will be
able to:
• describe what an idiom is in English;
• give the meanings of at least three
commonly used English language
idioms.
What is an idiom?
An idiom is a group of words with a
special meaning which is different
from the meanings of the separate
words.
For example, to
break the ice with
someone does
not mean to chop
ice into pieces !
It means getting
over any initial
embarrassment or
shyness when you
meet someone for
the first time and
start conversing.
Some Common Idioms
Ants in his pants = Nervous excitement
Kick the bucket = To die
Let the cat out of the bag = To tell a
secret
See red = To become very angry
Pulling a leg = To joke with someone
Take the bull by the horns =
To deal with a problem directly
Can you can guess the meaning of
these common English
idioms ?
When you take the
bull by the horns,
you deal with
problems directly.
True
False
Can you can guess the meaning of
these common English
idioms ?
When you are very
angry, you kick the
bucket.
True
False
Can you can guess the meaning of
these common English
idioms ?
When you let the cat
out of the bag, you
are able to keep
secrets.
True
False
Which idiom is it?
Click on the idiom to replace the expression in the brackets.
My uncle was [joking around] when he said that he had
won a large amount of money.
footloose and fancy free
No
pulling my leg
Yes
getting his feet wet
No
landing on his feet
No
Which idiom is it?
Click on the idiom to replace the expression in the brackets.
The little boy was sitting in the office with [nervous
excitement].
a cold fish
No
ants in his pants
Yes
the world as his oyster
No
a snail’s pace
No
Resources
Using English website:
http://www.usingenglish.com/reference/idioms/break+the+ice.html
ESL Resource Center website:
http://eslus.com/LESSONS/VOCAB/VOCAB.HTM
Pictures courtesy of Fotosearch & Clip Art websites:
http://www.fotosearch.com/photos-images/breaking-ice.html
http://www.clipartof.com/gallery/clipart/tipping_hat.html
The Idiom Connection website:
http://www.idiomconnection.com/legfoot.html#BQ