100 American English Phrases for Beginners | Speak Like a Native Speaker

Learning American English goes beyond understanding vocabulary and grammar; it’s also about mastering common phrases that make you sound like a native. These idioms and expressions are widely used in everyday conversation.

Here are 100 American English phrases to help you sound more like a local:

1. A dime a dozen – Something very common and not special.

2. Beat around the bush – Avoid saying what you mean, usually because it's uncomfortable.

3. Better late than never – It’s better to do something late than not at all.

4. Bite the bullet – To endure a painful or unpleasant situation that is unavoidable.

5. Break the ice – To initiate conversation in a social setting.

6. Burn the midnight oil – To work late into the night.

7. By the skin of your teeth – Just barely.

8. Caught between a rock and a hard place – Facing two difficult choices.

9. Cut to the chase – Get to the point.

10. Don’t count your chickens before they hatch – Don’t assume something will happen before it does.

11. Down to earth – Practical and realistic.

12. Elephant in the room – An obvious problem that no one wants to discuss.

13. Feeling under the weather – Feeling sick.

14. Get a taste of your own medicine – Experiencing the same bad thing you’ve done to others.

15. Give someone the cold shoulder – To ignore someone.

16. Go the extra mile – Make an extra effort.

17. Hit the nail on the head – To describe exactly what is causing a situation or problem.

18. Hit the sack – Go to bed.

19. In the heat of the moment – Overwhelmed by what is happening in the moment.

20. It takes two to tango – Actions or communications need more than one person.

21. Jump on the bandwagon – Join a popular activity or trend.

22. Kill two birds with one stone – Accomplish two things with one action.

23. Let the cat out of the bag – Reveal a secret.

24. Miss the boat – Miss an opportunity.

25. No pain, no gain – You have to work hard for something you want.

26. On the ball – To be alert and responsive.

27. Once in a blue moon – Something that happens very rarely.

28. Piece of cake – Something very easy.

29. Pull someone’s leg – To joke with someone.

30. Speak of the devil – When someone you were talking about appears.

31. Spill the beans – Reveal secret information.

32. The best of both worlds – An ideal situation.

33. The last straw – The final problem in a series of problems.

34. Through thick and thin – Through good times and bad times.

35. Throw in the towel – To give up.

36. Under the weather – Not feeling well.

37. Your guess is as good as mine – I don’t know either.

38. A blessing in disguise – A good thing that seemed bad at first.

39. A piece of cake – Very easy.

40. Break a leg – Good luck.

41. Cost an arm and a leg – Very expensive.

42. Cry over spilt milk – Complain about a loss from the past.

43. Cut corners – Do something the cheapest or easiest way.

44. Devil’s advocate – Argue against something for the sake of argument.

45. Easy does it – Slow down.

46. Every cloud has a silver lining – There’s something good in every bad situation.

47. Get out of hand – Get out of control.

48. Get your act together – Behave properly.

49. Give someone the benefit of the doubt – Trust what someone says.

50. Go back to the drawing board – Start over.