Using idioms is a way to show the examiner your talent with vocabulary and increase your score in the speaking exam. Using a few of the phrases below is a good way to get a score of 7 or higher.

Summary of some common idioms

Phrase	Explanation/synonym
On the go	busy
up-market	relatively expensive
work flat out	work very hard
chill out to	relax
the in thing	fashionable
at the height of fashion	fashionable
up-to-the-minute	the most recent
off the top of my head	without thinking
run of the mill	average, typical
soul mate	someone you trust deeply
a sounding board	a good person to talk to
in high spirits	happy
bump into	meet
once in a blue moon	not very often
have a chin-wag	have a conversation
on cloud nine	happy
down in the dumps	sad
the real McCoy	genuine, not fake
the wee hours    very early in the morning	after midnight
make a fuss over	overly care for someone/something
early bird	someone who gets up early

Using Idioms

In order to understand these idioms better you can see the examples usages of these idioms below and also if you want to you can download my MP3.

1. On the go (Busy) => In this modern high-tech world, most people especially young people are usually on the go with modern technology like cell phones. I’ve been on the go all day and I’m really tired.

2. Up-market (fashionable) => The younger generation buy up-market clothes to impress their peers. Celebrities have to wear up-market clothes to show their fans how successful they are.

3. Work flat out (work very hard) => I believe that if we work flat out using all our energy, we will be successful in the future.

4. chill-out (relax) => Students usually chill-out by going on picnics after their exams.

5. the in thing (fashionable) => Eating healthy food and getting regular exercise are the in thing as trying to be healthy is now really popular.

6. at the height of fashion (fashionable) => Televisions were at the height of fashion in the 1980s.

7. up-to-the-minute (the most recent) => Nowadays, the internet includes up-to-the-minute news stories.

8. off the top of my head (without thinking) => When Mary asked John about his plans for the holidays, he replied “off the top of my head, probably I’ll go to my lakeside cottage.”

9. run of the mill (average, typical) =>. He gave a fairly run-of-the-mill story that quickly had everyone bored.

10. soul mate (best friend) => A husband and wife should be soul mates to each other in their married life.

11. a sounding board ( a good person to talk to) => My mother is really a good sounding board for me whenever I face difficulties in my life.

12. in high spirits (happy) => When I passed the exam with flying colours, I felt in high spirits.

13. bump into (meet without planning) => I usually bump into my old friends once a month at Starbucks.

14. once in a blue moon (not very often) => If you exercise once in a blue moon, you will have a high chance of getting cardio-vascular diseases.

15. have a chin-wag (have an informal conversation) =>. Every Friday, I like to meet my mates at the bar for a chin-wag.

16. on cloud nine (happy) => When parents hear good news from their children’s success, they feel on cloud nine.

17. down in the dumps (sad) => My uncle was down in the dumps when his business went bankrupt.

18. the real McCoy (genuine, not fake) => The stamp on the certificate is the real McCoy.

19. the wee hours (very early in the morning after midnight) => Asthma patients can have an attack in the wee hours due to variations of hormone levels in our body.

20. make a fuss over (overly care for someone/something) =>. Don’t make a fuss over this, it is really quite trivial.

21. early bird (someone who gets up early) => My uncle is an early bird he gets up at 6 o’clock every morning to do exercise.