All Idioms
A blessing in disguise
A good outcome from an apparently bad situation.
A dime a dozen
Very common and of little value.
A drop in the ocean
An insignificantly small amount compared to what is needed.
A rolling stone gathers no moss
A person who keeps moving avoids stagnation or responsibilities.
Absence makes the heart grow fonder
Being apart increases affection between loved ones.
Actions speak louder than words
What people do is more important than what they say.
Add fuel to the fire
To make a bad situation even worse.
Add insult to injury
To worsen a bad situation by adding a humiliation or further harm.
Against the clock
In a race to finish something before a set deadline.
Ahead of time
Earlier than expected or scheduled.
All ears
Eagerly waiting to hear what someone has to say.
All that glitters is not gold
Attractive appearances can be misleading.
An apple a day keeps the doctor away
Eating healthy food maintains good physical well-being.
Around the clock
Continuously without stopping for 24 hours.
As blind as a bat
Extremely poor eyesight or lack of awareness.
As luck would have it
By chance or fortune (good or bad).
At one's wit's end
Completely puzzled or at a loss as to what to do next.
At the drop of a hat
Instantly and without hesitation.
At the eleventh hour
At the last possible moment.
At the end of one's tether
Having reached the limit of one's patience or endurance.
English Idioms: Meaning, Usage and Equivalents
English idioms are expressions whose meaning cannot always be understood from the individual words they contain. Their meaning often depends on context, usage, and the situation in which they appear. Learning an idiom therefore means learning not only what it means, but also how and when it is used.
Understanding English Idioms
Meaning depends on context
An idiom can have a clear meaning in one situation but sound unnatural or inappropriate in another. Context helps determine whether an expression is suitable, how formal or informal it is, and what exactly the speaker intends to convey.
For this reason, idioms are best learned together with examples rather than as isolated definitions.
Literal meaning vs. figurative meaning
The literal meaning of an idiom’s words is often different from its actual meaning. Spill the beans, for example, is not about spilling beans; it means to reveal a secret. Understanding this distinction is essential when learning idiomatic English.
English Idioms and Their Equivalents in Other Languages
Why idioms are rarely translated word for word
Idioms are closely connected to the way each language expresses ideas. A literal translation may preserve the individual words while losing the meaning or producing an expression that native speakers would never use.
A natural equivalent can use completely different imagery while expressing essentially the same idea. This is why translating an idiom often requires finding an expression with the same function and meaning rather than translating its words.
Equivalent does not always mean identical
Some idioms have close equivalents in another language: they may use similar imagery or have a comparable structure. Others share only the underlying meaning.
Akcento distinguishes between these cases rather than treating every equivalent as an exact match. The difference can be useful for understanding how languages express the same ideas in different ways.
How to Learn English Idioms Effectively
Idioms are easier to remember when learned in context. Pay attention to example sentences, the situations in which an expression is normally used, and whether it is formal, informal, humorous, old-fashioned, or specific to a particular context.
It is also useful to compare an English idiom with a natural equivalent in another language. The comparison can reveal both similarities and differences in the way languages express the same idea.
Explore the Idiom Collection
Browse the complete collection of English idioms by category or initial letter. Each entry includes the meaning, origin, example sentences, and natural equivalents in Russian, Spanish, and French.