A Drop in the bucket.

Paul Huber
  1. A drop in the bucket

A drop in the bucket means a small and insignificant amount compared to what is needed or desired. It refers to the idea of adding a drop of water to a bucket that is already full or nearly full, which will not make much of a difference in the overall level of the water.

Sample Sentences:

I know you’re trying to save money, but cutting back on your daily coffee won’t make much of a difference. It’s just a drop in the bucket.

Your $10 donation is appreciated, but it’s just a drop in the bucket compared to the amount we need to raise for this project.

Increasing our advertising budget by $1000 is only a drop in the bucket for our company’s overall marketing efforts.

Although the government has promised to increase funding for education, the amount allocated is only a drop in the bucket compared to what is needed.

2. Shape up or Ship out

Shape up or ship out means that a person needs to improve their behavior or performance, or else they will be removed from their position or situation. The phrase is often used to warn individuals that they need to change their ways or face negative consequences such as losing their job, being removed from a project, or being excluded from an opportunity.

Sample Sentences:

The boss gave the unproductive team member a choice to either shape up or ship out of the company.

The coach gave the struggling player an ultimatum, telling him to shape up or ship out of the team.

The supervisor told the employee, who repeatedly came late to work, that he needed to shape up or ship out.

The director told the actors who were not taking the rehearsal seriously that they needed to shape up or ship out of the production.

Better late than never

Paul Huber

Learning English idioms is one of the best strategies to improve your fluency in the language. Learning idiomatic idioms is crucial to your success in understanding and interacting with native English speakers.

Here at Poly Languages, we’ll teach you four of the most practical idioms you’ll ever need—all of them together!

Sample Sentence:

My grandparents finally got married after being engaged for 30 years. They say better late than never, and I couldn’t agree more.

Better late than never means it’s preferable to do something, even if it’s delayed than to not do it at all. It implies that it’s better to complete a task or fulfill a responsibility, no matter how late it is than to not do it at all.

Here are some more sample sentences:

I know I’m behind on my assignments, but I’m going to turn them in tomorrow because, as they say, better late than never.

The company had a rough start, but it managed to turn things around and become successful. It’s true what they say—better late than never.

Sample sentence:

Let’s meet up at the coffee shop and chew the fat for a while.

Chew the fat means to have a casual conversation with someone about unimportant things. The term is often used to describe a friendly conversation or gossip session between friends, colleagues, or acquaintances.

Here are some more sample sentences:

Whenever my grandparents come over, they like to chew the fat with my mom about their childhood memories.

We were waiting in line for the movie to start, so we started chewing the fat about our favorite actors.

to hit the sack

Paul Huber

American Idiom: to hit the sack

To hit the sack means to go to bed or to sleep.  You can also say to hit the hay, which means the same thing.

A working knowledge of frequently used idioms is essential in order to naturally communicate with Americans. Learn to speak English fluently with Poly Languages.

Watch the full video below to learn about the idiom, to hit the sack/hay

Video Transcript

to hit the sack/hay

Let’s talk tomorrow. I am really tired, and I need to hit the sack.

To hit the sack means to go to bed or to sleep.  You can also say to hit the hay, which means the same thing.

Here are example sentences :

I wasn’t able to hit the sack until very late last night because I had to study for my exam today.

Jane wanted to hit the sack early, so she didn’t go to the party with her friends last night.

Let’s do an exercise to better remember the Idiom.

For each question, replace a word or words in a sentence with the idiom so that the meaning of the sentence is not changed. You have five seconds per question.

Question 1:

Before you go to bed, please make sure to finish your homework.

Before you hit the sack, please make sure to finish your homework. Or, before you hit the hay, please make sure to finish your homework.

Question 2:

We need to get up early tomorrow. Let’s go to bed now.

We need to get up early tomorrow. Let’s hit the sack now. Or, let’s hit the hay now.

Practice makes perfect!

A working knowledge of frequently used idioms is essential in order to naturally communicate with Americans. Learn to speak English fluently with Poly Languages.

Please subscribe to our YouTube channel, and learn to speak English with Poly Languages.

Learn more Idioms with American Teachers here in POLY! Apply now!

to bite the bullet

Paul Huber

American Idiom: to bite the bullet

To bite the bullet means to make oneself to do something undesirable, unpleasant, or unavoidable.

A working knowledge of frequently used idioms is essential in order to naturally communicate with Americans. Learn to speak English fluently with Poly Languages.

Watch the full video below to learn about the idiom, to bite the bullet

Video Transcript

to bite the bullet

I don’t like his class, but I need it to graduate. I’ll just have to bite the bullet and take his class.

To bite the bullet means to make oneself to do something undesirable, unpleasant, or unavoidable.

Here are example sentences :

My car broke down in the middle of nowhere. Even though I knew I was overcharged, I had to bite the bullet and pay up.

I don’t want to call Jennifer to give her the bad news, but I should bite the bullet and let her know.

Let’s do an exercise to better remember the Idiom.

For each question, replace a word or words in a sentence with the idiom so that the meaning of the sentence is not changed. You have five seconds per question.

Question 1:

I had an unbearable toothache, so I forced myself to do something undesirable and visited a dentist. 

I had an unbearable toothache, so I bit the bullet and visited a dentist.

Question 2:

She hates math, but she forced herself and took the required math classes in order to graduate.

She hates math, but she bit the bullet and took the required math classes in order to graduate.

Practice makes perfect!

A working knowledge of frequently used idioms is essential in order to naturally communicate with Americans. Learn to speak English fluently with Poly Languages.

Please subscribe to our YouTube channel, and learn to speak English with Poly Languages.

Learn more Idioms with American Teachers here in POLY! Apply now!