Showing 24 of 3,697 lessons.
black and white
Very clear and simple; seeing things as either completely good or completely bad
“It's not all BLACK AND WHITE - there are grey areas”
black eye
A mark of shame
“It's A BLACK EYE”
black ice
A thin transparent layer of ice on a road that is difficult to see
“Be careful of BLACK ICE on the roads”
black magic
Magic that is believed to use evil spirits to do harmful things
“They accused her of practicing BLACK MAGIC”
black market
Illegal trading of goods that are not allowed to be bought and sold
“He bought it on THE BLACK MARKET”
black money
Money that is earned illegally, or on which the necessary tax is not paid
“The government is cracking down on BLACK MONEY”
black sheep
A person who is considered a disgrace or an outsider by their family or group
“He's the BLACK SHEEP of the family”
black spot
A dangerous place where several accidents have happened
“That junction's A BLACK SPOT, best avoid it.”
black tie
Formal evening wear for men; very formal social occasion
“The event is BLACK TIE”
blackball
To vote against allowing someone to be a member of an organization or group
“He was BLACKBALLED from the club”
blacklist
A list of people or groups who are to be banned, censured, or are under suspicion
“They put him on the BLACKLIST”
blank check
Permission to spend or do whatever one wishes; carte blanche
“You gave me A BLANK CHECK”
blind date
When two people who have never seen each other before go on a date
“I'm going on A BLIND DATE”
blind leading the blind
Incompetent people leading each other
“It's THE BLIND LEADING THE BLIND”
blood, sweat, and tears
Extreme effort and hard work
“It took BLOOD, SWEAT, AND TEARS to build this business”
blow hot and cold
Shift one's level of enthusiasm repeatedly
“She BLOWS HOT AND COLD”
blow off steam
To release pent-up energy or stress
“I need to BLOW OFF SOME STEAM”
blow one's top
Lose one's temper
“He BLEW HIS TOP”
blow your own trumpet
To boast about yourself
“He loves to BLOW HIS OWN TRUMPET”
blue around the gills
Looking sick or pale
“You look BLUE AROUND THE GILLS”
blue blood
Person of aristocratic background
“He has BLUE BLOOD”
blue book
An official government report or manual
“Check the BLUE BOOK for the car's value”
blue chip
High-quality or valuable; especially stocks
“Invest in BLUE CHIP companies for stability”
blue-collar workers
People who do work needing strength or physical skill rather than office work
“Many BLUE-COLLAR WORKERS work in factories”