20 Work Idioms in English

Hello English learners! In this lesson, you will learn 20 useful work idioms in English, with clear meanings, natural examples and notes on how they are used.

Have you ever had to burn the midnight oil to meet a deadline? Perhaps you have worked with someone who never pulled their weight, or you have had to go back to the drawing board when a plan did not work.

English is full of colourful expressions for talking about work, deadlines, teamwork, pressure and career success. You will hear many of them in workplace conversations, interviews, articles, television programmes and everyday discussions about jobs and careers.

They can also be useful if you are preparing for B2 First or C1 Advanced, particularly in the Speaking test and in less formal writing. However, idioms work best when they sound natural, so the aim is not to squeeze as many as possible into one answer!

Burn the midnight oil

Meaning: to work or study late into the night.

This expression is often used when someone has a lot of work to finish before a deadline.

• I had to burn the midnight oil to finish the report.
• She spent several nights burning the midnight oil before her final exams.

Usage note: It is commonly used for both work and study.

Pull your weight

Meaning: to do your fair share of the work.

We often use this expression when talking about teamwork.

• Everyone needs to pull their weight if we want to finish on time.
• He is a reliable colleague who always pulls his weight.

If someone doesn’t pull their weight, other members of the team have to do more work.

Think outside the box

Meaning: to think creatively and find an unusual solution to a problem.

• We need to think outside the box if we want to attract new customers.
• She thought outside the box and came up with a much simpler solution.

Usage note: This expression is very common in business English, although it can sometimes sound rather clichéd.

Go the extra mile

Meaning: to make more effort than is expected.

• Our teacher always goes the extra mile for her students.
• The hotel staff went the extra mile to make our stay enjoyable.

We often use this idiom to praise someone who is particularly helpful, hardworking or dedicated.

Hit the ground running

Meaning: to start a new job, project or activity quickly and successfully.

• She hit the ground running in her new role.
• The new manager hit the ground running and introduced several changes in her first week.

This is especially useful when talking about starting a new job or taking on a new responsibility.

Keep your nose to the grindstone

Meaning: to continue working very hard for a long period.

• If you keep your nose to the grindstone, you should finish the project by Friday.
• She kept her nose to the grindstone for months while preparing for the exam.

Register: informal.

This expression is quite traditional, but it is still understood and used.

Put something on the back burner

Meaning: to postpone something because it is not a priority at the moment.

• We have decided to put the expansion plans on the back burner.
• I had to put my studies on the back burner while I looked after my family.

Notice the common structure:

put + something + on the back burner

You can also say that something is on the back burner.

• The project is on the back burner for now.

A well-oiled machine

Meaning: a group, organisation or system that works smoothly and efficiently.

• The team works like a well-oiled machine.
• During the conference, the whole organisation ran like a well-oiled machine.

This is usually a compliment.

Bring home the bacon

Meaning: to earn the money needed to support yourself or your family.

• She works two jobs to bring home the bacon.
• In their family, both parents bring home the bacon.

Register: informal.

The expression is still common, although it has a slightly traditional flavour.

Be under the gun

Meaning: to be under strong pressure, usually because something must be completed quickly.

• We are under the gun to finish the proposal by Friday.
• The team was under the gun after the deadline was brought forward.

Usage note: This expression is particularly common in American English. In British English, be under pressure is more neutral and more widely used.

Put in a good word for someone

Meaning: to say something positive about someone, especially to a person who can help them.

• Could you put in a good word for me with your manager?
• She put in a good word for her former colleague.

This expression is often used when someone is applying for a job, promotion or opportunity.

Crunch time

Meaning: the most important or difficult period when a decision must be made or work must be completed.

• It is crunch time now that the deadline is approaching.
• The final week before the product launch was crunch time for the whole team.

Grammar note: Crunch time is a noun phrase.

We often say:

• It’s crunch time.
• We’re approaching crunch time.

Back to the drawing board

Meaning: used when a plan has failed and you need to start again with a new idea.

• The first design did not work, so it is back to the drawing board.
• Our proposal was rejected, so we had to go back to the drawing board.

Two common forms are:

• It’s back to the drawing board.
• Go back to the drawing board.

Have too many irons in the fire

Meaning: to be involved in too many activities or projects at the same time.

• She has too many irons in the fire and is struggling to keep up.
• I realised I had too many irons in the fire, so I decided to focus on just two projects.

This is a useful expression for talking about being too busy or overcommitted.

Work like a dog

Meaning: to work extremely hard.

• He worked like a dog to build his business.
• We have been working like dogs all week.

Register: informal.

This expression is quite strong and can sound slightly old-fashioned, so it is more suitable for conversation than formal writing.

A labour of love

Meaning: work that requires a lot of time and effort but is done because you enjoy or care about it.

• Restoring the old house was a labour of love.
• Writing the book was a labour of love for her.

This expression often describes creative work, hobbies or personal projects.

Hold the fort

Meaning: to take responsibility for a place, team or situation while someone else is away.

• Can you hold the fort while I am at the meeting?
• Sarah held the fort while her manager was on holiday.

Register: informal.

It is particularly useful in workplace conversations.

By the book

Meaning: according to the official rules or procedures.

• The accountant does everything by the book.
• We need to make sure the investigation is carried out by the book.

This expression can be neutral, but sometimes it suggests that someone follows rules very strictly and leaves little room for flexibility.

Climb the corporate ladder

Meaning: to move to increasingly important positions within a company or organisation.

• She is ambitious and determined to climb the corporate ladder.
• He climbed the corporate ladder quickly and became a senior manager before he was thirty.

This expression is mainly used when talking about careers in companies and large organisations.

All in a day’s work

Meaning: something that is a normal part of your job, even if other people might find it difficult, unusual or impressive.

• Dealing with difficult customers is all in a day’s work for her.
• For a firefighter, facing dangerous situations is all in a day’s work.

It is often used humorously or modestly.

Want to Learn More Business English?

If you enjoyed these work idioms and would like to build a stronger vocabulary for professional situations, you may also like my English at Work: Business Idioms and Practice book.

It will help you learn useful business expressions in context through realistic workplace situations, explanations and practice exercises.

It is suitable for professionals, Business English learners and students working towards B2 First or C1 Advanced.

Explore English at Work: Business Idioms and Practice →

Final Tip

Idioms can make your English more expressive, but you do not need to learn all twenty at once.

Choose five or six that you genuinely like and try to use them in conversations, speaking practice or short pieces of writing. Once they begin to feel natural, add a few more.

That is usually far more effective than memorising a long list.

And if learning English occasionally feels like crunch time, keep going. With regular practice, even the most difficult expressions eventually become all in a day’s work. 😉

• Learn 100 everyday English idioms and download the PDF here
• Learn 100 business English idioms and download the PDF here