idioms (P-S)

(not) put it past someone – you would not be surprised to find that someone behaved in a certain, usually bad, way

• I wouldn’t put it past her to try and ruin the event.

take your pick – choose the one you would like

• This restaurant serves coffee, tea, or soft drinks. Take your pick.

be in the pipeline – something being planned that will happen in the future

• Jack has some big business deals in the pipeline.

be out of place – not correct for the situation

• The farmer felt out of place among the big-city lawyers.

pay the price – accept the consequence for what you have done

• Sherri has paid the price for hurting her friends. Now she has nobody to help her.

the pros and cons – the good and bad of a situation

• What are the pros and cons of studying in another country?

a quick fix – a fast, usually temporary, solution to a problem

• I have seldom found a quick fix to life’s big concerns.

be on the right track – do something that will eventually bring success

• Shawn’s health is on the right track now that he is getting more sleep.

a rip-off – a bad business deal

• My monthly mobile phone plan is a real rip-off!

bend the rules – do something usually not allowed

• The teacher bent the rules and let us leave five minutes early today.

be on the run – to try and avoid the police

• The prisoner escaped jail and is now on the run.

give (someone) a hand – help someone, especially with work

• I gave my brother a hand with his project.

get the hang of (something) – learn how to do something correctly, especially with practice

• Jane got the hang of playing chess after only two games.

lose your head – suddenly become very angry

• He lost his head when the waiter spilled his drink.

break someone’s heart – make someone feel sad, especially by rejecting their love

• He broke her heart, but she still loves him.

a heart-to-heart – a serious conversation involving deep feeling or emotion

• The father had a heart-to-heart talk with his son before he left for college.

play it safe – do not take unnecessary risks

• Jane plays it safe with her money; she never gambles.

behind the scenes – something which happens without public knowledge

• I’d like to thank everyone who worked behind the scenes to make this party a success.

from scratch – to start something from the beginning step

• I forgot to save my file and had to start from scratch when my computer crashed.

be in someone’s shoes – understand another person’s situation

• If I were in his shoes, I would leave immediately.

sleep like a log – sleep heavily and without waking

• Jack slept like a log last night, not even the thunderstorm woke him.

stick out like a sore thumb – be very different from your surroundings

• Chris’s bright orange shirt makes him stick out like a sore thumb.

a sweet tooth – fond of eating sugary food

• Jane has a sweet tooth. She is always buying candy.