Idioms in alphabetical order

Here're 119 idioms starting with B.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P R S T U W Y

BACK TO SQUARE ONE, GO
return to the beginning
BACK TO THE DRAWING BOARD, GO
return to the planning stage of a project
BACK TO THE WALL, HAVE (ONE'S)
to be in a difficult or desperate situation
BACK-SEAT DRIVER
a person who gives driving orders when he/she is not the driver
BACKHANDED COMPLIMENT
a criticism that is phrased in such a way that it appears to be a compliment
BAD BLOOD
negative or ill feelings
BANGING ONE'S HEAD AGAINST A BRICK WALL
to do, say, or ask for smth. repeatedly but to be unable to change a situation
BARE YOUR HEART / SOUL
to tell someone your secret thoughts and feelings
BARK UP THE WRONG TREE
to misdirect one’s efforts or argument
BATS IN (ONE'S) BELFRY, HAVE
harmlessly crazy or eccentric
BE (ONLY) FLESH AND BLOOD
to have normal human limits, needs, etc.
BE A HANDFUL
to be difficult to manage, disobedient
BE A MARTYR TO SMTH.
to often suffer because of an illness or problem
BE ALL EARS
to be waiting eagerly to hear about smth.
BE AT ONE'S BECK AND CALL
to be always ready and willing to do what someone wants
BE AT THE MERCY OF SMTH./SOMEONE
to not be able to protect yourself from smth. or someone that you cannot control
BE CUT FROM THE SAME CLOTH
to have very similar qualities to someone or smth. else
BE DOWN TO SOMEONE
to be someone's duty, decision, or responsibility
BE IN THE MIDDLE OF SMTH.
to be busy with an activity
BE OFF THE HOOK
to escape from a difficult situation
BE OVER THE HUMP
to be past the most difficult or dangerous part of an activity or period of time
BE OVER THE MOON
to be very pleased
BE PRESSED FOR TIME
to be in a hurry
BE ROLLING IN IT
to be extremely rich
BE ROTTEN TO THE CORE
to behave in a way that is not honest or moral
BE THE BEE'S KNEES
to be excellent or of an extremely high standard
BE THE LAST WORD IN SMTH.
to be the best or most modern example of smth.
BE UP TO NO GOOD
to be behaving in a dishonest or bad way
BE UP TO ONE'S NECK
to be very busy; to be very involved in a situation
BE/STAY/KEEP ONE JUMP AHEAD
to do smth. before other people do it
BEAT (SOMEONE) TO THE PUNCH
to do smth. before someone else does it
BEAT A DEAD HORSE
to argue or pursue a point or topic without the possibility of success
BEAT A HASTY RETREAT
to run very fast in the opposite direction
BEAT ABOUT/AROUND THE BUSH
to speak or write evasively; to talk around an issue
BEAT THE BUSHES
to search exhaustively
BED OF NAILS
a problematic or uncomfortable situation
BED OF ROSES
an easy and happy existence
BEHIND BARS
in prison
BEHIND THE EIGHT BALL
in a difficult situation or position
BELOW THE BELT, HIT (SOMEONE)
to act unfairly
BEND (SOMEONE'S) EAR
to talk to someone for a long time
BESIDE (ONESELF)
distraught; very anxious and troubled
BESIDE THE POINT
irrelevant
BEST BET
the best decision or choice
BET (ONE'S) BOOTS
to be sure
BET (ONE'S) BOTTOM DOLLAR
to be sure
BETWEEN A ROCK AND A HARD PLACE
facing two difficult outcomes for the same situation
BETWEEN THE DEVIL AND THE DEEP BLUE SEA
facing two difficult outcomes for the same situation
BETWEEN YOU AND ME
to tell someone smth. confidential
BEYOND THE PALE
beyond or outside the limits of morally or socially acceptable behavior
BIG CHEESE
an important, powerful or influential person
BIG FISH IN A SMALL POND
a person who is considered important primarily because the place or setting is small
BIG SHOT
an important, powerful, or influential person
BIG WHEEL
an important, powerful, or influential person
BIGWIG
an important, powerful or influential person
BIRD'S-EYE VIEW
a broad view or overview of smth. or someplace
BITE OFF MORE THAN (ONE) CAN CHEW
to take on more work or responsibility than one can accomplish
BITE THE BULLET
to face a difficult or unpleasant situation
BITE THE DUST
to be destroyed or ruined beyond repair; slang for “to die”
BITTER/HARD PILL TO SWALLOW
a difficult or unpleasant reality to deal with
BLACK AND BLUE
discolored from a bruise; injured in a fight either physically or verbally
BLACK MARKET
a system of buying and selling illegal goods or goods at illegal prices or quantities
BLACK OUT
to lose consciousness temporarily
BLACK SHEEP
an outcast; a person who is regarded as a disgrace or failure by his/her family or peer group
BLACK TIE
formal dress in which men wear black bow ties and dinner jackets or tuxedos and women wear formal, usually floor-length dresses
BLIND AS A BAT
having very poor vision or sight (1); unaware of obvious things around (2)
BLOW (ONE'S) OWN HORN
to boast or brag
BLOW (ONE'S) STACK
to become suddenly very angry
BLOW OFF STEAM
to express one’s anger, usually noisily and harmlessly, thereby relieving one’s tension
BLOW/RUN HOT AND COLD
to have mixed or inconsistent feelings about smth.
BLUE IN THE FACE
wasting your efforts because you will get no results
BLUE LAW
a law which regulates personal behavior such as going to certain movies, dancing, or gambling
BLUE RIBBON
renowned (1); first prize (2)
BLUE-BLOOD
a person (or animal) that is an aristocrat or from a noble family
BLUE-COLLAR WORKER
a person who earns a living doing manual labor, or generally uses his or her body rather than his or her mind to earn a living
BLUE-SKY THINKING
an activity of trying to find completely new ideas
BOILING POINT
the point at which one loses one’s temper
BOMB
to fail completely
BONE OF CONTENTION, A
a topic of dispute
BONE TO PICK, A
a dispute
BORN AND BRED
to say that someone was born and grew up in a particular place; typical example of someone who lives there
BORN YESTERDAY
naive
BOSOM FRIEND/BUDDY
very close friend with deep trust and affection
BOTH FEET ON THE GROUND
(to be) realistic and practical
BOTTOM LINE, THE
the net result (1), or the simple and irrefutable truth (2)
BOTTOM OF THE BARREL
the least able member of a group; the least desirable items from a collection
BOTTOMS UP!
a call to drink; to empty one’s glass
BOXED IN/BOX (SOMEONE) IN
restricted; to restrict someone
BRAINSTORM
to generate many ideas quickly
BREADWINNER
somebody that provides financially for his or her family
BREAK (ONE'S) NECK
to put forth a great deal of effort (1); to harm or punish one very severely (2)
BREAK A LEG
to wish someone good luck
BREAK THE ICE
to get things started, particularly by means of a social introduction or conversation
BREATHE (NEW) LIFE INTO SMTH.
to bring new ideas and energy to smth.
BREATHE A WORD
to tell a secret
BREATHE DOWN SOMEONE'S NECK
to stay close to someone, watching everything that they do; pursue someone closely
BRING DOWN THE HOUSE
to be a great success
BRING HOME THE BACON
to bring money into the household to support a family
BRUSH-OFF, GET/GIVE (SOMEONE) THE
to be dismissed casually and almost cruelly
BUG SOMEONE ABOUT SMTH.
to bother, annoy, or irritate mildly
BULL IN A CHINA SHOP
insensitive to delicate situations; to be so clumsy that one breaks things inadvertently
BUM STEER, GIVE SOMEONE A
bad advice or instructions
BURN (ONE'S) BRIDGES
to take a course of action that makes it impossible to go back
BURN RUBBER
to accelerate so quickly that the rubber tires make a loud squealing noise and leave a black mark on the street; slang expression meaning to hurry
BURN THE CANDLE AT BOTH ENDS
to overwork oneself
BURN THE MIDNIGHT OIL
to stay up late at night studying or working
BURNED OUT
lacking enthusiasm due to overexposure or too much of the same thing; completely used up; worn out
BURNING QUESTION
a question that deserves or demands discussion
BURY THE HATCHET
to end a dispute
BUSY AS A BEE
to be moving about quickly doing many things
BUTT IN
to interfere (1) or literally to push one’s way in between other people (2)
BUTTER (SOMEONE) UP
to flatter someone, usually excessively, in order to gain a favor
BUY (SMTH.) FOR A SONG
to buy smth. very cheaply
BY AND BY
after a short period
BY HOOK OR BY CROOK
by one way or another; by any means possible
BY THE BOOK, GO
operate according to the rules
BY THE SEAT OF (ONE'S) PANTS, DO (SMTH.)
to accomplish smth. by luck and instinct rather than skill
BY THE SKIN OF (ONE'S) TEETH
by a very narrow margin
BY WORD OF MOUTH
the informal, verbal passing of information from one person to another

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