Idioms and
Phrases with Hindi meaning and Examples
👉Follow one’s nose – To go straight ahead
- सीधे जाना
- Follow your nose and keep walking in a straight
line—you'll be at my house soon enough.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 To latch onto – To promote
- बढ़ावा देना
- The news media has latched on to the scandal.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Sweeping Statement – Thoughtless statement
- व्यापक टिप्पणी
Ex: Don’t make a sweeping statement on limited
evidences.
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 All at sea – Puzzled
- फंसा हुआ / उलझा हुआ
Ex: He feels at sea with economics
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Enough rope – Enough freedom for action
- किसी को पर्याप्त स्वतंत्रता देना
- give somebody enough rope (to hang themselves)
meaning to allow someone to do what they want to, knowing that they will
probably fail
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 By fits and start – Irregularly
- शीघ्रता में एवं अनियमिततापूर्वक
Ex: Martina has been working on her master's thesis
in fits and starts; she needs to work on it consistently.
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Fell foul of – Got into trouble with
- किसी के कारण मुश्किल स्थिति में ( fall a foul of someone or something –
means - to get into a situation where one is to get into trouble with someone
or something.)
Ex: The boy fell a foul of the law at an
early age.
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Token strike – Short strike held as warning
- सांकेतिक हड़ताल
Ex: It was just a token strike, the real problems
are yet to come.
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Face the music – Get reprimanded
- किये का परिणाम भुगतो / डटकर रहे बिना कठिनाइयों से मिलना
Ex: After drinking alcohol all night, the next
morning I had to face the music (SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Look down upon – Hate intensely / consider someone
or something inferior in some way
- किसी को नीच समझना
Ex: Don’t look down upon the people, who have
lesser money than you have.
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Flogging a dead horse – Wasting time in useless
effort
- बेकार के काम में प्रयास बर्बाद करना
Ex: He keeps trying to get his manuscripts
published, but I think he is flogging a dead horse.
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Under a cloud – Under suspicion
- शक के दायरे में
Ex: Someone stole some money at work, and now
everyone is under a cloud.
(SO(Audit), 1997)
👉 Green thumb – To have natural talent for growing
plants
- पौधों के लिए आपकी प्राकृतिक प्रतिभा
Ex: “All my houseplants are in sorry shape; it's
clear I don't have a green thumb. (SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 Played havoc – Caused destruction
- विनाश का कारण
Ex: Fever continued to play havoc with both natives
and Europeans.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 Give way - Collapse
- त्याग देना / दबना / दब जाना / मान लेना / राज़ी होना
- his aching legs gave way, and he almost fell
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Tall tales - Boasting
- डींग मारना / डींग हांकना
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 No love lost between – Not on good terms
- दो के बीच मौजूदा कोई पसंद या स्नेह नहीं (no liking or affection existing between two)
Ex: There's no love lost between Bob and Bill.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 Fair and square – Honest
- ईमानदार
Ex: We won the match fair and square.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 A white elephant – Costly or troublesome possession
- व्यर्थ की चीज चो खर्च बहुत कराए और काम न आए; बहुत खर्चीली वस्तु
Ex: Those antique vases my dad gave me are simply
white elephants.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 Out and out – Totally / absolute
- संपूर्ण / पूरा /बिलकुल / पूरी तरह (whole,
absolute, Detailed, implicit faith, outright)
Ex: an out-and-out triumph.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 On the cuff – On credit
- ऋण के रूप में
Ex: They asked to be put on the cuff until they got
their monthly check.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 Does not hold water – Cannot be believed
- पर यकीन किया नहीं कर सकते
Ex: We can't do anything about it' argument simply
does not hold water.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 A wild goose chase – Futile search
- व्यर्थ खोज
Ex: physicists searching for the hypothetical particle may be on a wild goose chase. (SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 In cold blood – A murder done with no hurry
ठंडे खून से जघन्य हत्या
- For a person to say something like that in cold
blood is just horrible.
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 Off and on – Occasionally
- कभी कभी / यदा कदा
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 Hard and fast – Strict
- निश्चित / नियत (Rigidly adhered to - without doubt or debate)
Ex: hard and fast rules
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 Took to heels – Run away in fear
- डर कर भागना
Ex: Out rushed a little cub tiger of about three
months, and charged me so courageously that my elephant took to her heels.
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 To keep up – To keep in touch
- स्थापित रखना / गिरने से रोकना (sustain, prolong, maintain, preserve, conserve,
follow)
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 Make a clean breast – Confess without reserve / To
make a full disclosure
Ex: "He pressed him... to make a clean breast,
and tell him all."
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 Heads will roll – Transfers will take place
(SO(Audit), 2003)
29. Make no bones about – Do not have any
hesitation in anything
- बिना संदेह
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 Take after – Resembles
- सदृश होना (resemble, take after, partake)
👉 Penelope’s web – An endless job
- ख़त्म ना होने वाला काम
- Worries in life seem to be Penelope’s Web.
(CHSL, 2014)
👉 At draggers drawn - Enmity
- शत्रुता
- They have been at daggers drawn for weeks over
tactics
(CHSL, 2014)
👉 Break in - To enter premises forcibly or
illegally
- जबरन या अवैध रूप से परिसर में प्रवेश
- a prowler who was trying to break in.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Stir up a Hornet’s nest - To create a lot of
trouble
- परेशान करना
- If you say that to her, you will be stirring up a
hornet's nest.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Second thoughts – Reconsidering the original
idea
- दूसरा विचार / पुनर्विचार
- I'm having second thoughts about this party.
- I phoned her with second thoughts about our
relationship.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 In a tight corner – In a difficult situation
- मुश्किल स्थिति में
Ex: She had been in tight corners before and had
always managed to get out of them.
(SO(Audit), 2001)
👉 Eat like a horse – Eat a lot
- बहुत खाना
- If I told you my brother eats like a horse, what
would you think?
(CHSL, 2014)
👉 Go to the dogs – To be ruined
- धूल-धूसरित हो जाना
- He was a marvelous actor, but his drinking
problems caused his career to go to the dogs. (CHSL, 2014)
👉 Pay on the nail – Pay promptly / Payment
without delay
- तुरंत पेमेंट
- I could put the bill on my credit card, but if
it's all right with you, I'd rather pay on the nail.
(CHSL, 2014)
👉 Going places – Talented and successful
- बहुत तर्रकी करना (someone is going places – means
– someone will be successful)
Ex: Maria's a talented writer – she's definitely
going places.
(SO(Audit), 2003)
👉 Average out - Balance
- बैलेंस करना
- The highs and lows of life tend to average out in
the end.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 To be floored – To surprise or confuse
- आश्चर्य या भ्रमित
- You just floored me [amazed/shocked me] when you
told me that you and your wife had separated. You seemed to be the perfect
couple.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Backseat driver – A person who gives unwanted
advice
- एक व्यक्ति जो अवांछित सलाह देता है
- Although Mary was capable of completing the
project on her own, John couldn't stop himself from being a backseat driver and
telling her what to do.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 At random - Without any aim or target
- बिना सोचे समझे
- The lottery numbers are chosen at random. As a
prank, the children dialed phone numbers at random.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Break off – Suddenly stop
- तोरना या बंद करना
- I knew she was getting ready to break it off, but
Tom didn't. After a few long and bitter arguments, they broke off their
relationship.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Go haywire – Become out of control
- सब अस्त - व्यस्त होना
- I was talking to Mary when suddenly the telephone
went haywire. I haven't heard from her since.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Above board – Honest / Without any secret
- निश्छल / निष्कपट
- I expected that big company to try to take
advantage of us, but so far all of their dealings with us have been above
board.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
👉 Fight shy of – To avoid someone/ something
- टालना / बचना / दूर रहना
- He fought shy of entering his poems in the
competition, although everyone said he should.
(CGL T-2, 2014)
