All Idioms
Saved by the bell
Rescued from difficulty at the very last moment.
See eye to eye
To agree fully with someone on an issue.
Shape up or ship out
To improve behavior/performance or leave.
Shed crocodile tears
To display insincere or hypocritical grief.
Sick and tired
Exhausted and thoroughly annoyed by something.
Sick to death
Thoroughly tired of something unpleasant.
Skeleton in the closet
A discreditable or embarrassing secret.
Slow and steady wins the race
Consistent effort brings better results than reckless speed.
Smooth sailing
Easy and unimpeded progress.
So far so good
Things have been successful up to the present moment.
Speak of the devil
Said when a person appears right after being mentioned.
Speak your mind
To state one's opinion openly and directly.
Spill the tea
To share gossip or dramatic news.
Steal someone's shine
To draw attention away from someone who deserves it.
Steal someone's thunder
To take credit for someone else's ideas or achievements.
Storm in a teacup
Great excitement or concern about a trivial matter.
Straight from the horse's mouth
Directly from the original or most authoritative source.
Strike while the iron is hot
Take immediate advantage of an opportunity.
Take a leap of faith
To trust something without proof or guarantee.
Take a rain check
To postpone accepting an offer to a later date.
Take it easy
Relax and do not get stressed.
Take someone's word for it
To accept what someone says without verification.
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.