Idiom for the Day. Sport

     Oh No!!!  

It's...... Idiom for the Day.

Once again with idioms there are a lot of idioms in each topic or theme that we look at and so I have given you a long list of the more common ones to.

It is a good idea to become familiar with the concept and with the way words like: 'get', 'go' and 'take' are used. This will help with other aspects of your English. 

So, even though idioms are quite specialized and are rather difficult to use, they can raise your comprehension and help you get a better feel of the English language.

Idiom (with the sport or game)	Meaning	Example Sentence
To be Across the board Cards	equal for everyone	Ten percent raises were given across the board.
At this stage in the game Any sport	at this time	Nobody knows who is going to win the election at this stage in the game.
The ball is in your court Tennis	it's your decision or responsibility to do something now	"Do you think I should accept the job offer?" "Don't ask me. The ball is in your court now".
To Call the shots Billiards/Pool	make the decisions	While our boss is on vacation, Bob will call the shots.
To Chip in Gambling	Offer a suggestion. Help by donating money or time	The staff members chipped in 5 pounds each to buy Jody a birthday gift.
To be down to the wire horse racing	right at the end	It's coming down to the wire to get these done on time.
To be a Front runner athletics	one of the people who is expected to win	Angela is a front runner for the new supervisor position.
To Get a head start horse racing	start before all others	They gave the walkers a head start in the run for cancer.
To get into the full swing tennis	be comfortable doing something after some time	It will probably take a month of working at my new job before I get into the full swing of things.
To Get off the hook fishing	escape, have responsibility removed	The child got off the hook for stealing because the security camera was broken.
To Give something or someone a fair shake gambling	try for a while before giving up	You should give Nadine a fair shake before you decide she isn't good enough for the job.
To Get a second wind sailing	have a burst of energy after tiring	I was exhausted after 3 kilometres of running, but I got a second wind after I passed the beach.
To Give it your best shot shooting	try your hardest	Give it your best shot and you may just make it to the finals.
To Give one a run for one's money horseracing	try one's hardest to defeat another person	I know the other team is expected to win, but let's give them a run for their money tonight.
To Go overboard sailing	do or say more than you need to	You can't believe everything Janice says about Rick. She tends to go overboard when she's complaining about him.
have the upper hand cards	have a better chance of winning or succeeding	The Blues have the upper hand in the tournament, because none of their players is injured.
To hit below the belt boxing	do or say something that is very unfair or cruel	Amanda was hitting below the belt when she called Adrian an unfit father.
To Hit a snag boating	come up against a problem	The renovations were going along great until we hit a snag with the carpet installation.
To Hold all the aces cards	expected to win or succeed	The children hold all the aces when it comes to the father-son baseball tournament.
To be on the home stretch horse racing	almost the end	I think Alice's pregnancy is in the home stretch.
To Jump the gun athletics	start too early	I guess I jumped the gun by buying Pam and Steve a wedding gift. They called off the engagement.
To Learn the ropes sailing	understand new things	The first week on the job you will just be learning the ropes.
A level playing field any field sport	everyone has an equal chance	The spelling bee is a level playing field because all of the kids are in grade nine.
A long shot shooting	a very difficult thing to accomplish	Jim thinks we can afford the house, but I think it's a long shot.
To Make the cut golf	be chosen to be part of a team or group	I didn't get a second interview, so I'm pretty sure I won't make the cut.
To be neck and neck horse racing	to be in a close tie with someone	George and Stan are neck and neck in the hockey pool. Either of them could win the money.
To be not playing with a full deck cards	not having full brain capacity	I think Jerry was still drunk at work on Sunday because he wasn't playing with a full deck.
To be Not up to par golf	not good enough for a job or position	I'm afraid your resume isn't up to par for the engineering position.
To be On target archery/darts/shooting	doing the right thing to succeed	We are on target to meet our budget this month.
To be On the ball	ready and able	The new receptionist is really on the ball when it comes to answering the phone.
To be Out of someone's league team sport	not as good as someone	I'd like to date Maria, but I'm afraid I'm out of her league.
To be Par for the course golf	an expected circumstance	Waiting in line is par for the course at Christmas time.
A Race against time athletics	there is almost no time left to accomplish something	It's a race against time to find a kidney donor for my cousin.
A Shot in the dark shooting	a guess	I was lucky to win the quiz. All my answers were shots in the dark.
To Skate on thin ice skating	do something risky, take a chance	You're skating on thin ice by not sending in your college application before now.
To Start the ball rolling ball sports	begin something	Please can everyone be seated so we can start the ball rolling.
To Take sides any sport	choose a person or group to support	I hate to take sides, but I think Jerry is right about the paint colour.
To Take the wind out of one's sails sailing	make someone feel deflated	I think I took the wind out of Angela's sails when I told her she was a terrible singer.
To Throw in the towel boxing	give up	If they don't accept our offer this time we are going to throw in the towel and look at houses elsewhere.
To Do something under the table gambling	illegally	I don't have a work visa, so they have to pay me under the table.
To Win hands down gambling	easy victory	The other team was missing half of its players. We won hands down.