Welcome to our fun guide on bike idioms! Idioms are phrases that have a different meaning than the individual words might suggest. In this post, we’ll explore common English idioms that use the word “bike.” These are perfect for kids and beginners to learn because they are simple and interesting.
Bike Idioms
Here are 20 bike idioms in English with meaning and example sentences for each.
1. On your bike!
Meaning: Go away; leave immediately.
Example: When he started being rude, I told him, “On your bike!”
2. Like riding a bike
Meaning: Easy to remember how to do it.
Example: Don’t worry, driving is like riding a bike.
3. Spin one’s wheels
Meaning: Waste effort; make no progress.
Example: He’s just spinning his wheels in that job.
4. Get back in the saddle
Meaning: Resume something after stopping.
Example: He got back in the saddle after his vacation.
5. Freewheeling
Meaning: Operating without restrictions.
Example: We spent a freewheeling summer abroad.
6. Chain reaction
Meaning: A series of events caused by an initial event.
Example: The new policy started a chain reaction.
7. Pump the brakes
Meaning: Slow down or be cautious.
Example: Let’s pump the brakes on this project.
8. Shift gears
Meaning: Change what you are doing.
Example: We need to shift gears to succeed.
9. Backpedal
Meaning: Reverse one’s opinion or decision.
Example: He had to backpedal on his promise.
10. Handle something with kid gloves
Meaning: Deal with very carefully.
Example: They handled the vase with kid gloves.
11. Kickstand support
Meaning: Provides support or stability.
Example: His advice was a kickstand support.
12. Training wheels
Meaning: Support for a beginner.
Example: This program is like training wheels.
13. Hit the road
Meaning: Start a journey; leave.
Example: It’s late, let’s hit the road.
14. Road rage
Meaning: Anger caused by driving stress.
Example: He’s really suffering from road rage.
15. Take for a ride
Meaning: Deceive or cheat someone.
Example: She was taken for a ride by scammers.
16. Wheel and deal
Meaning: Engage in complex dealings.
Example: He loves to wheel and deal in stocks.
17. Reinvent the wheel
Meaning: Duplicate a basic method.
Example: We don’t need to reinvent the wheel here.
18. Wheels in motion
Meaning: Begin a process.
Example: Let’s get the wheels in motion now.
19. A fifth wheel
Meaning: Superfluous person or thing.
Example: I felt like a fifth wheel at the party.
20. Grease the wheels
Meaning: Make things run smoothly.