Life is full of surprises and expressions! In this blog post, we’re diving into some common idioms that include the word “life” or relate to the theme of life. These phrases add color to our language and help us describe different life experiences in fun and interesting ways. Whether you’re a language learner or just curious, these idioms will help you understand and use them better.
Life Idioms
Here are 20 life idioms in English.
1. That’s life
- Meaning: Accepting misfortunes
- Example: I missed the bus, but that’s life.
2. A dog’s life
- Meaning: A hard, miserable life
- Example: He leads a dog’s life at work.
3. Life of the party
- Meaning: Very lively person
- Example: She’s always the life of the party.
4. Life in the fast lane
- Meaning: A fast-paced, risky lifestyle
- Example: He lives life in the fast lane.
5. A matter of life and death
- Meaning: Something extremely important
- Example: This decision is a matter of life and death.
6. Bring to life
- Meaning: Make lively or realistic
- Example: The movie brought the book to life.
7. New lease on life
- Meaning: A fresh start
- Example: After the surgery, he had a new lease on life.
8. Life’s work
- Meaning: One’s major lifelong work
- Example: Her book was her life’s work.
9. Life goes on
- Meaning: Life continues despite troubles
- Example: Even after the loss, life goes on.
10. Breathe life into
- Meaning: Revive something
- Example: She breathed life into the old cafe.
11. Walk of life
- Meaning: A person’s occupation or position
- Example: People from all walks of life attended.
12. For the life of me
- Meaning: Used to emphasize inability
- Example: I can’t remember, for the life of me.
13. Facts of life
- Meaning: Basic truths about life, often about sex
- Example: Parents often explain the facts of life.
14. Not on your life
- Meaning: Definitely not
- Example: Not on your life will I do that!
15. This is the life
- Meaning: Life is wonderful
- Example: Sunbathing in Greece, this is the life!
16. Get a life
- Meaning: Start living a fuller life
- Example: You watch too much TV—get a life!
17. Life’s not all beer and skittles
- Meaning: Life isn’t always fun and easy
- Example: Well, life’s not all beer and skittles.
18. Shelf life
- Meaning: The period something remains useful
- Example: This product has a short shelf life.
19. The prime of life
- Meaning: The best stage of life
- Example: He’s in the prime of life now.
20. Larger than life
- Meaning: More exciting or important than others
- Example: He’s a larger than life character.
