Idiomatic Pairs

31 July 2015 by Diane

safe and sound: free from danger or injury           
Example: After a long day of hiking, Dan arrived home safe and sound.

above and beyond: doing more than is necessary
Example: They really went above and beyond to make me feel at home.     

pros and cons: good parts and bad parts of something
Example: What are the pros and cons of living in the city?              

wear and tear: damage from overuse
Example: There’s a lot of wear and tear on my car.               

short and sweet: quick and accomplishing the main goal
Example: The meeting was short and sweet, just as I like it.

ins and outs: all of the details; insider knowledge
Example: He has been working there for twenty years.  He knows all of the ins and outs of the office.         

live and learn: learn from one’s mistakes/experiences
Example: I didn’t make the best decision, but you know what, you live and you learn.                   

sick and tired: very annoyed with someone/thing
Example: I’m sick and tired of listening to him complain.  He needs to quit his job.   

black and white: having an obvious right and wrong answer
Example: Not everything is black and white.

ups and downs: good parts and bad parts
Example: Every job has its ups and downs.

now or never: the only opportunity to do something
Example: You need to tell him how you feel!  It’s now or never.             

wine and dine: provide someone with a nice dinner and special treatment
Example: The company wined and dined me because they wanted me to accept the proposal.                 

fair and square: fair/honest
Example: He looked at all the evidence before he made a decision.  It was fair and square.