Idioms — Set 19

Set 19 of Idioms covers 5 idioms: blood, sweat and tears, easy come easy go, whistle in the wind, bend over backwards, reinvent the wheel. Each entry below includes its definition, an example sentence, and synonyms — practice them with the interactive cards above.

1. blood, sweat and tears · idiom/blʌd swɛt ənd tɪrz/

   extremely difficult and requiring hard work

   Trying to survive in this industry is all blood, sweat and tears although there are fun parts, as well.

   Origin: Famously used by Winston Churchill in his 1940 wartime speech, promising total sacrifice from his country.

2. easy come easy go · idiom/ˈizi kʌm ˈizi ɡoʊ/

   whatever is achieved easily is lost easily

   Jeremy wasted all the money he inherited on wild living. Well, easy come, easy go.

   Origin: From the 1600s — captures the philosophy that wealth gained without effort is also lost without sorrow.

3. whistle in the wind · idiom/ˈwɪsl ɪn ðə wɪnd/

   to try hopelessly to achieve something

   My exercise routine feels like I'm just whistling in the wind because I haven't even lost a pound in more than three weeks.

   Origin: A 19th-century expression — the sound of a whistle vanishes in the wind, just like wasted effort.

4. bend over backwards · idiom/bɛnd ˈoʊvɚ ˈbækwɚdz/

   to try very hard to make something happen

   Noah had to bend over backwards to convince Lisa that he deserves another chance.

   Origin: An American 20th-century image — physically bending so far back shows extreme, almost impossible effort.

5. reinvent the wheel · idiom/riɪnˈvɛnt ðə wil/

   to create something that is clearly not better than the existing ones

   There are already excellent examples of success stories, so we do not need to reinvent the wheel.

   Origin: A 20th-century expression — the wheel is humanity's most basic invention, so recreating it wastes time.