Everyday American English Phrases

Cards · 50

What's up?

How are you or what is happening? (Very informal/casual greeting)

How's it going?

How are you doing? (Casual, everyday greeting)

Take care

Goodbye and stay safe. (Warm, casual farewell)

Catch you later

See you later. (Informal farewell)

No worries

Do not worry about it, or you are welcome. (Casual/friendly)

It is what it is

Accepting an unfortunate situation that cannot be changed. (Resigned, casual)

To cut corners

To do something quickly or cheaply by skipping steps. (Neutral, common idiom)

Under the weather

Feeling slightly sick or unwell. (Casual/polite)

Hit the nail on the head

To describe an exact fact or truth perfectly. (Everyday idiom)

Bite the bullet

To face a difficult or unpleasant situation with courage. (Idiomatic)

Call it a day

To stop working on something for the rest of the day. (Casual/workplace)

Break a leg

Good luck, especially before a performance. (Friendly/informal)

To touch base

To briefly connect or talk with someone to check progress. (Casual/workplace)

Let's play it by ear

To decide how to deal with a situation as it develops without a firm plan. (Casual)

By the way

Used to introduce a new topic or additional information. (Everyday conversation)

For real?

Really? or Are you serious? (Informal, expressing surprise or skepticism)

My bad

My mistake, I apologize. (Informal/slang)

Piece of cake

Something very easy to do. (Casual/idiomatic)

Back to the drawing board

Starting over after a previous attempt failed. (Workplace/casual)

Barking up the wrong tree

Looking in the wrong place or accusing the wrong person. (Idiomatic)

Spill the beans

To reveal a secret prematurely. (Casual/informal)

Cut someone some slack

To not judge someone too harshly. (Everyday conversational)

I couldn't care less

I do not care at all. (Informal, can sound blunt)

You bet

Certainly, you are welcome, or of course. (Enthusiastic, casual)

Keep me posted

Keep me updated on the situation. (Everyday/workplace)

On the fence

Undecided between two choices. (Casual/idiomatic)

Ring a bell

To sound vaguely familiar. (Everyday idiom)

Better late than never

It is better to arrive or do something late than not at all. (Common proverb)

Beat around the bush

To avoid speaking directly about a topic. (Everyday idiom)

Hang in there

Stay strong and persevere through difficulty. (Supportive/encouraging)

So far, so good

Everything is going well up to this point. (Casual)

Pulling someone's leg

Joking or teasing someone by lying playfully. (Casual/friendly)

The elephant in the room

An obvious, major problem that everyone avoids discussing. (Everyday idiom)

Give it a shot

Try doing something. (Encouraging, casual)

Hit the road

To leave or begin a journey. (Casual)

Crash

To fall asleep quickly or sleep over somewhere. (Slang/informal)

Same here

I agree or I feel the same way. (Casual/conversational)

Not a big deal

Not important or not worth worrying about. (Casual/reassuring)

Cost an arm and a leg

To be extremely expensive. (Idiomatic/casual)

Off the top of my head

From immediate memory without checking facts. (Conversational)

Hit the sack

To go to bed or go to sleep. (Informal/casual)

Burn the midnight oil

To stay up late working or studying. (Idiomatic)

Long story short

Used to summarize a longer tale briefly. (Conversational transition)

Cross that bridge when we come to it

Deal with a future problem only when it arises. (Practical/casual)

Out of the blue

Completely unexpected or without warning. (Idiomatic)

See eye to eye

To agree fully with someone. (Everyday idiom)

Wrap up

To finish or complete an activity or meeting. (Casual/workplace)

Tell me about it

Expressing shared frustration or strong agreement. (Conversational/empathetic)

Sleep on it

Delay making a decision until the next day. (Casual advice)

Break the ice

To ease social awkwardness when people first meet. (Everyday idiom)