Useful idioms for IELTS Speaking

Useful idioms for IELTS Speaking

1. Common Everyday Idioms

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
A piece of cake	Very easy	The IELTS listening test was a piece of cake for me.	सजिलो काम
Hit the nail on the head	To be exactly right	You hit the nail on the head about the traffic problem.	ठीक कुरा गर्नु
Once in a blue moon	Very rarely	I go to the cinema once in a blue moon.	कहिलेकाहीँ मात्र
Under the weather	Feeling sick	I was under the weather last week.	अस्वस्थ हुनु
On cloud nine	Extremely happy	I was on cloud nine when I got my IELTS results.	धेरै खुशी हुनु
In hot water	In trouble	He got in hot water for missing the deadline.	समस्यामा पर्नु
Cost an arm and a leg	Very expensive	Studying abroad costs an arm and a leg.	धेरै महँगो हुनु
A blessing in disguise	Something good hidden in a bad situation	Losing that job was a blessing in disguise.	प्रतिकूल स्थितिमा पनि फाइदा हुने कुरा

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2. Hard Work and Success

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
Go the extra mile	Do more than expected	If you go the extra mile, success will follow.	बढी मेहनत गर्नु
Pull one’s weight	Do a fair share of work	Everyone in our team pulls their weight.	आफ्नो जिम्मेवारी पूरा गर्नु
Rome wasn’t built in a day	Great things take time	You can’t master English overnight; Rome wasn’t built in a day.	ठूलो कुरा समय लाग्छ
Burn the midnight oil	Work late at night	I had to burn the midnight oil to finish my project.	रातभरि काम गर्नु
Learn the ropes	Learn how something works	I’m still learning the ropes in my new job.	कुरा बुझ्दै हुनु
By leaps and bounds	Very quickly	My English has improved by leaps and bounds.	तीव्र रूपमा
Keep one’s chin up	Stay positive	Even after failing once, I kept my chin up.	हिम्मत नगुमाउनु

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3. Communication and Social Life

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
Break the ice	Start a conversation	I tried to break the ice by asking about her hobbies.	कुरा सुरु गर्नु
Get along with	Have a good relationship	I get along well with my coworkers.	राम्रो सम्बन्ध राख्नु
See eye to eye	Agree completely	My parents and I don’t always see eye to eye.	सहमत हुनु
On the same wavelength	Think alike	My best friend and I are always on the same wavelength.	समान सोच राख्नु
Speak one’s mind	Say what you really think	I prefer to speak my mind instead of hiding my opinion.	खुला मनले कुरा गर्नु
Hit it off	Become friends quickly	We hit it off right after we met.	तुरुन्तै मिल्नु

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4. Personal Growth and Motivation

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
Step out of your comfort zone	Try new or difficult things	I stepped out of my comfort zone to study abroad.	नयाँ चुनौती लिनु
The sky’s the limit	There’s no limit	When it comes to learning, the sky’s the limit.	कुनै सीमा छैन
Every cloud has a silver lining	There’s something good in every bad situation	Even during hard times, every cloud has a silver lining.	दुःखमा पनि केही राम्रो हुन्छ
Practice makes perfect	Repetition brings improvement	Practice makes perfect in English speaking.	अभ्यासले सुधार ल्याउँछ
Bite the bullet	Face a difficult situation bravely	I had to bite the bullet and retake the exam.	कठिन कुरा स्वीकार गर्नु
Turn over a new leaf	Start behaving better	I turned over a new leaf after joining college.	नयाँ शुरुआत गर्नु

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5. Travel and Experience

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
Hit the road	Start a journey	We hit the road early to avoid traffic.	यात्रा सुरु गर्नु
Travel light	Carry little luggage	I prefer to travel light when I go abroad.	कम सामान लिएर यात्रा गर्नु
Off the beaten track	Unusual or less-visited places	I love visiting places off the beaten track.	कम प्रसिद्ध ठाउँ
A culture shock	Surprise from a new culture	I experienced culture shock when I moved abroad.	संस्कृतिको आश्चर्य
Call it a day	Stop working for the day	After a long drive, we decided to call it a day.	काम रोक्नु

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6. Daily Life & Emotions

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
Out of the blue	Unexpectedly	He called me out of the blue after 5 years.	अचानक
Feel over the moon	Extremely happy	I felt over the moon when I passed the test.	धेरै खुशी हुनु
In the blink of an eye	Very quickly	The time flew in the blink of an eye.	तुरुन्तै
Be on the same page	Agree or understand each other	We’re finally on the same page about the plan.	एकमत हुनु
Face the music	Accept the consequences	I had to face the music after making a mistake.	परिणाम स्वीकार गर्नु
Have butterflies in one’s stomach	Feel nervous	I always have butterflies before a presentation.	डराउनु

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7. Thinking and Decision Making

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
A rule of thumb	A general principle	As a rule of thumb, I study 2 hours a day.	सामान्य नियम
On second thought	After reconsidering	On second thought, I think I’ll join that course.	पुनर्विचारपछि
In two minds	Unable to decide	I’m in two minds about whether to study abroad.	निर्णय नलिनु
Think outside the box	Be creative	We need to think outside the box for this project.	नयाँ सोच राख्नु
Jump to conclusions	Decide too quickly	Don’t jump to conclusions without the facts.	चाँडो निष्कर्ष निकाल्नु

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8. Advanced Idioms for Band 8–9 Speaking

Idiom	Meaning	Example	Nepali Meaning
A double-edged sword	Something that has both good and bad sides	Social media is a double-edged sword.	राम्रो र नराम्रो दुबै हुने कुरा
The ball is in your court	It’s your decision now	I’ve done my part, now the ball is in your court.	अब तिम्रो पालो
A drop in the ocean	A very small part of something big	Donating once is just a drop in the ocean.	सानो योगदान
The tip of the iceberg	A small visible part of a bigger issue	Corruption is just the tip of the iceberg.	सानो देखिने भाग
In the long run	Over time	Studying hard pays off in the long run.	दीर्घकालमा
To hit the books	To study hard	I need to hit the books for my IELTS exam.	कडा अध्ययन गर्नु

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Tips for Using Idioms Naturally in IELTS Speaking

Ø  Use 1–2 idioms per answer, not too many.

Ø  Make sure they fit the context — forced idioms sound unnatural.

Ø  Use natural intonation and collocations (e.g., “feel over the moon,” not “be over the moon” in every case).

Ø  Practice saying them in mock speaking answers — especially for Part 2 & 3.

Ø  Avoid very informal slang (like “cool,” “chill out”) in formal IELTS.