Book of Idioms , Episode 1

A "tough son of a gun" is an older idiom seldom used today, but is used as a non-expletive version of a much more widely and commonly used version with a different last word. It was used tonight by President Obama to refer to the late (as in, now deceased) ambassador Richard Holbrooke. The meaning is the same in both cases: very tough, physically but especially mentally.

A "basket case" is someone or something that is completely helpless and incapacitated. Originally, the term was an extremely insensitive way for Americans to refer to multiple amputation WWI victims. As a result of media attention, it has become a permanent feature of international English. Example: The U.K. government denies that any of its banks are basket cases.

Easier Said Than Done: An expression describing a task where success is easy to talk about, but difficult to achieve in reality. It is also used as an answer to those who are proposing an action without any thought as to what achieving it would require. Example: "You keep complaining about your car. Why don't you just buy a new one?" "Easier said than done! I don't have that kind of money."

On the fritz: A temporary technical failure of an electrical device. Often applied to televisions, this can be applied to other things. Example: My internet was on the fritz for several hours earlier today, making me unable to blog or post to English Idioms. (It's true.)

"Waste not, want not." (Proverb, more than idiom so just posting here) This is an old saying relying on an older reading of "want," which in this case, means "lack of something that one desires." If you waste less food, you are less hungry. If you waste less clothing, you have more of it. More importantly, it expresses the PRINCIPLE of reducing waste as much as possible.

For those who ask about learning to speak English: It's difficult to help without an opportunity to get you speaking. Starting small helps. Practice speaking about things you know about. Anything that makes you more comfortable, helps. Listen to as much English as you can; the best non-natives I've heard are Russians who watch a lot of movies. Practice and enjoy yourself.

➤ Read more idioms and phrases, English grammar and vocabulary at Basic English Grammar And Vocabulary . You might also like ⏬

➤ Idioms about Animals

➤ Idioms of Expression

➤ Idioms on Food

➤ Idiomatic Expressions

➤ Origin of Idioms

➤ Proverbs

➤ Idioms on Situation

➤ Idioms on Temperature