English Idioms

elephant in the room

An obvious truth that is going unaddressed - it also applies to an obvious problem or risk no one wants to discuss.

This phrase is VERY common in business. Sometimes people are trying to be polite so they don’t want to say something to offend a co-worker even if they think it might be obvious.


white elephant 

A possession which its owner cannot dispose of and whose cost, particularly that of maintenance, is out of proportion to its usefulness.

The phrase comes from stories about the kings of Siam (Thailand), who were accustomed to make a present of one of these animals to courtiers who had rendered themselves obnoxious, in order to ruin the recipient by the cost of its maintenance.

on [or off] the table 
Something has been officially suggested and is now being discussed or thought about

I’m heading to Tokyo later this week for the holiday weekend and right now nothing is off the table for places to visit!

to make a killing
you make a lot of money from a sale or a deal of some sort

Whatever investment I choose, my goal is always to make a killing!

follow up
To maintain contact with (a person) so as to monitor the effects of earlier activities or to pursue in an effort to take further action
This is a scrum master following up with people after scrum

follow through
To complete a task; to see a task through to its completion
Follow through is a desirable trait in people on a team – it means that you’ll do what you say you’re going to do without anyone needing to follow up! I wish the builders of this bridge had followed through!

for good
forever; permanently
This doesn’t have anything to do with being “good”. It’s tricky sometimes though because sometimes we’ll say things like you should do something for good (meaning for the good of mankind).

Now that the install for S51 is behind us I hope we’re done backing it out and reinstalling – for good!

turn the tide
reverse the trend of events
Hillary was able to turn the tide and win the most recent primary so there are now few opportunities for Bernie Sanders to win the nomination.

full steam ahead
With all possible energy and enthusiasm
The origin of this phrase has to do with the use of steam in ships and locomotives on trains. Using “full steam” makes a steamship or locomotive go at its top speed.

With the install for S51 behind us, it’s full steam ahead on S52!

Catch-22
A paradoxical situation from which an individual cannot escape because of contradictory rules.
An example would be: to apply for a job, you need to have a few years of experience. But in order to gain experience, you need to get a job first.

This phrase comes up a lot when you’re in a situation where you have to choose between two things and neither choice is particularly appealing.

to not feel like oneself

Not feeling physically or mentally well.

You can say things like “he doesn’t seem like himself this week” or “you aren’t yourself right now – maybe we should talk about this tomorrow”

pardon my French
Used to apologize for swearing.

So when you use a bad word and you realize it after you say it you can say “pardon my French” as a way to acknowledge your mistake.

to be on track 
To be doing something in a way that will bring good results.

To be BACK on track just means that now the team is once again working toward the goal.

a sight for sore eyes
Someone or something that you are happy to see

Coming back to work today was great – you all are a sight for sore eyes!

to tie one on
‎(third-person singular simple present ties one on, present participle tying one on, simple past and past participle tied one on). To drink alcohol excessively, to the point of being drunk.

In the US it is common in many cities like Boston, New York and Chicago with many citizens of Irish descent to celebrate with parades and festivities. In Chicago they even dye the Chicago River green in honor of St. Patrick’s Day! Celebrations in Irish pubs are common and some pubs even serve green beer (just regular beer with green dye).

St. Patrick’s Day honors the death of the Patron Saint (most important saint) of Ireland and is a public holiday in Ireland! Enjoy, but don’t tie one on since we all have to work tomorrow!

hit the road
(idiomatic) To leave a place; to go away.

After a long week, when the clock says 5:00, it’s time to hit the road!

you catch more flies with honey than with vinegar

It's easier to persuade others with polite requests and a positive attitude (“honey”) rather than with rude demands and negativity (“vinegar”).

My manager would have caught a lot more flies with honey than with vinegar; so remember, always be nice to people!

to bite off more than one can chew
To take on more responsibility than one can manage.

When you feel overwhelmed you should ask yourself, did I bite off more than I can chew?

put it to bed
To complete work on something and send it on to the next step in production.

That one is easily modified as well. For instance I thought of this because I said “I want to put this baby to bed!” I didn’t actually mean allow a baby to sleep, I meant that I wanted to finish something as quickly as possible. You might also hear “I want to put that puppy to bed!” It’s a very strange thing to say if you translate it literally but all it really means is to finish something.

kick the can
To put off solving a particular problem until later. This usage is short for "kick the can down the road"

It’s always easy to put something off and not focus on it but sometimes that makes things even harder, so don’t just kick the can! Tackle the problem as soon as possible!

to get over something
Move on; accept things the way they are; don't be concerned by/with something that is in the past or can't be changed.

I hope you are better at getting over things than I am – it’s not good to be frustrated or angry. If you’re holding onto any anger or frustration, get over it!

to take/bring/come/go/be along for the ride
Participating, but not actively

You can use the phrase with any of the verbs above.

to be absent minded
To have or show a habitually forgetful or inattentive disposition.

I usually am not absent-minded about repetitive tasks like this but sometimes I get distracted by more urgent work.

to run into

To meet or encounter by chance.

Before I left I ran into someone I hadn’t seen since university which shocked me because she lives in New York City now but this was in Boston!


twist someone’s arm
To twist someone’s arm literally means to take a person’s arm and turn it around, which could be really painful if you take it exactly word for word. If your arm has been twisted it means that someone has convinced you to do something you might not have wanted to do.

You won’t have to twist my arm to go on the hike at the botanical garden! I love plants! One of my hobbies is gardening.

to be up in the air
Things are uncertain or unsure; definite plans have not been made yet.

My travel plans to Shanghai right now are very up in the air. I should really figure out what I’m going to do soon!

to jump out
To be readily or easily noticed

Sometimes when you read something after you’ve learned a new word that word jumps out at you because you now know what it means!

to bubble up
to rise to the surface or become obvious

In this case we would say “after reading all the feedback from the site survey today the main theme that bubbled up was frustration with the site search function”

(to think) on your feet
react to events decisively, effectively, and without prior thought or planning
One of the key elements of being able to present well is being able to think on your feet. When a person interrupts you with a question you need to be able to answer it and connect it back to where you are in your rehearsed presentation.

(to think) on the fly
while in motion or progress
When you’re presenting sometimes you have to think on the fly and think about a new way to transition to the next topic to incorporate something you remember or something that came up in discussion. That’s why practicing is so important so you can be comfortable enough with the material to not have to think about it and that way you can think about other things on the fly! Great work today, everyone!