“Remember even though the outside world might be raining, if you keep on smiling the sun will soon show its face and smile back at you.”
– Anna Lee, British actress
Say hello to the sun or as the Beatles sing, “Here comes the sun!”
It is now truly summer here so what better time to look at 10 fun beach-themed idioms in English for you to use this summer!
Be sure to check out my Ask Us Anything live where I give a different lot of 10 beach idioms:
Now let’s look at the top 10 in this podcast:
1) To sink or swim
This great idiom can be used when you are talking about succeeding or failing without any help:
“When I started my new job, it was sink or swim as I was thrown in at the deep end with no training.”
2) To test the waters
This is used when you want to try something out to see how it works. You want to trial it before committing:
“Let’s test the waters first before we invest fully in this project.”
3) The calm before the storm
There is often a quiet time before a storm starts and so we can use this idiom to talk about the quiet period before the chaos or trouble starts:
“The office was quiet before we opened – the calm before the storm.”
4) To be smooth sailing
To talk about something going smoothly and easily without any problems.
” After a rough start in my new job, it’s been smooth sailing and I’ve reached all my targets.”
5) To be in deep water
We use this idiom when we are in serious trouble:
“He’s in deep water with his boss after missing another deadline.”
6) To catch the tide
This means to take an opportunity at exactly the right moment. Imagine you are a sailor and how important the tide (when the sea comes in or goes out) is to you:
“If you want to succeed in this business, we have to catch the tide now.”
7) To be dead in the water
We use this idiom to talk about a project or task that is not making any progress and is likely to fail:
” That project is dead in the water without any funding from the government.”
8) The tide has turned
When you want to express that a change has come in the direction of events or that things have changed for the better, you can use this idiom.
” Sales were low last quarter but luckily this quarter the tide has turned and we are doing much better.”
9) To be on the rocks
If you are on the rocks, you are in trouble. This is often used for relationships or businesses:
“Their marriage is on the rocks and I think they’re heading for divorce.”
10) To rock the boat
This idiom means to disrupt a stable situation. If you rock the boat then you cause the situation to become unsteady and unsettled:
“Don’t rock the boat – we’ve just got things under control!”
For the month of July we are refreshing our English for Travelling course so be sure to check it out if you are planning an adventure this summer!
Intrepid English Members can access the course right here to test your learning with interactive quizzes, and continue learning essential vocabulary and phrases for arriving at baggage reclaim, how to handle any missing luggage, navigating customs and transportation, booking and arriving at your accommodation, and much more beyond!
Not an Intrepid English Member yet? Check out our membership options right here. All memberships include access to our extensive online library of self-study courses on English grammar, pronunciation, idioms, business English, IELTS preparation, and much more.