Skip to content
Start My 3 Free Days $0 today · cancel anytime

Idioms Resources

18 idioms resources: 8 worksheets, 7 activities, 3 Common Core Lessons and more. How teachers use these

Idioms Resources

18 idioms resources: 8 worksheets, 7 activities, 3 Common Core Lessons and more. How teachers use these

Worksheet
Worksheet4th GradeMatching Idioms Worksheet

A matching idioms worksheet where 4th graders draw a line to connect six common idioms to their meanings. Includes an answer key for quick, no-prep figurative language practice.

Worksheet
Worksheet5th GradeCompleting Idioms Worksheet

This Completing Idioms Worksheet asks 5th Grade students to finish six common idioms from memory and write three of their own, with an answer key, so figurative language practice takes one page.

Worksheet
Worksheet5th GradeIdiom Meanings Worksheet

This idiom meanings worksheet helps 5th grade students explain common idioms with context clues and tell idioms from literal phrases. An answer key is included, making practice and checking quick and easy.

Worksheet
Worksheet3rd GradeDefining Idioms Worksheet

This defining idioms worksheet helps 3rd grade students read idioms in sentences, choose their real meanings and explain them in their own words. An answer key is included for easy checking.

Activity
Activity2nd GradeIdioms Figurative Language Activity

This idioms figurative language activity lets 2nd to 4th grade students match idioms to their real meanings in a fun card game, then draw and explain them. Answer key included.

Activity
Activity2nd GradeWhat Does it Mean Literal Non-Literal Language Activity

This what does it mean literal non-literal language activity has 2nd to 4th grade students sort 16 food sentence cards and explain idioms. A practice page and answer key are included.

Activity
Activity2nd GradeFood for Thought Idiom Simile Metaphor Activity

Students match food idioms, similes, and metaphors to their meanings and sort them by kind in this food for thought idiom simile metaphor activity for 2nd to 5th grade, with an answer key included.

Assessment
Assessment3rd GradeRaining Cats and Dogs Reading Comprehension Worksheet

The Raining Cats and Dogs Reading Comprehension Worksheet gives 3rd Grade readers a short passage about weather idioms, six questions, and an answer key, so every answer comes straight from the text.

Worksheet
Worksheet4th GradeFilling in Idioms Worksheet

This filling in idioms worksheet gives 4th grade students five sentences to complete from a word box and three idioms to explain in writing. An answer key is included, so checking the work takes a moment.

Activity
Activity3rd GradePlaying With Idioms Activity

This playing with idioms activity has 3rd to 5th grade students match idiom cards to their real meanings, draw funny literal pictures and read idioms in stories. An answer key is included.

Activity
Activity2nd GradeIt's Raining Cats and Dogs Idioms Activity

This it's raining cats and dogs idioms activity helps 2nd to 4th grade students match idioms to their real meanings in a rainy-day game. A practice page and an answer key are included.

Worksheet
Worksheet4th GradeUsing Idioms Worksheet

This using idioms worksheet helps 4th grade students finish sentences with the right idiom and then write original sentences with new idioms. An answer key is included to make checking quick and simple.

Common Core Lesson
Common Core LessonKindergartenL.K.6 Kindergarten Common Core Lesson

Using L.K.6 Kindergarten Common Core Lesson, students use words and phrases acquired through conversations, reading and being read to, and responding to texts.

Common Core Lesson
Common Core Lesson4th GradeL.4.5 Fourth Grade Common Core Lesson

Using L.4.5 Fourth Grade Common Core Lesson, students match idioms to their meanings in order to use figurative language in their writing.

Worksheet
Worksheet3rd GradeDescribing Idioms Worksheet

Using Describing Idioms Worksheet, students choose four idioms to describe through writing and drawing in order to use them in their writing.

Activity
Activity3rd GradeL.3.5 Common Core Activity

This L.3.5 common core activity gives 3rd to 5th grade students idiom task cards, a tips chart, and a practice page. An answer key is included for quick checking.

Common Core Lesson
Common Core Lesson3rd GradeRL.3.4 Third Grade Common Core Lesson

Using RL.3.4 Third Grade Common Core Lesson, students determine the meaning of words and phrases as they are used in a text, distinguishing literal from nonliteral language.

Activity
Activity2nd GradeFlip-a-Chip Idioms Activity

This flip-a-chip idioms activity is a memory game where 2nd to 4th grade students match idioms to their real meanings. A draw and explain sheet, practice page and answer key are included.

From our teachers' playbook

Is it really raining cats and dogs?

What do kids learn about idioms?

An idiom is a saying that means something different from its words. If it's "raining cats and dogs," no pets are falling from the sky. It just means it's pouring! Kids learn to tell the literal meaning (what the words say) from the figurative meaning (what people mean). They use context clues to figure out new idioms, like "piece of cake" = really easy, and try using them in their own writing. The click moment is when kids catch an idiom in a book and explain it to the class.

Our favorite ways to teach idioms

Idioms are pure fun when kids can laugh at the literal meaning first.

Draw it literally

Give kids an idiom like "raining cats and dogs" and have them draw exactly what the words say. Then they write the real meaning underneath. The silly picture makes the real meaning unforgettable.

Why it works: children learn more from words and pictures together than from words alone (Mayer, 2009).

It's Raining Cats and Dogs Idioms ActivityTry it withIt's Raining Cats and Dogs Idioms ActivityActivitiesOpen it →

Match the meaning

Kids match idioms to their meanings in a quick warm-up. Mix in a few new ones each week so the list keeps growing.

Why it works: pulling an answer out of memory makes it stick far better than rereading it, one of the strongest findings in learning research (Dunlosky and colleagues, 2013).

Matching Idioms WorksheetTry it withMatching Idioms WorksheetWorksheetsOpen it →

Use the clues

Read a sentence like "The test was a piece of cake, so I finished early." Think aloud: "Finished early means it was easy, so 'piece of cake' must mean easy!" Modeling shows kids how context unlocks idioms.

Why it works: handing over the work step by step, from teacher to student, is one of the most widely used teaching frameworks (Pearson and Gallagher, 1983).

Using Idioms WorksheetTry it withUsing Idioms WorksheetWorksheetsOpen it →

Questions parents and teachers ask us

What is an idiom for kids?

An idiom is a phrase that means something different from what the words say. "Break a leg" means good luck, not actually breaking a leg.

What are some common idioms for kids?

Try "piece of cake" (easy), "raining cats and dogs" (raining hard), "under the weather" (sick), "spill the beans" (tell a secret) and "hit the hay" (go to bed).

What grade learns idioms?

Idioms are usually introduced in 2nd and 3rd grade and taught more deeply in 4th and 5th grade as part of figurative language.

What is the difference between an idiom and a simile?

A simile compares two things using "like" or "as," such as "fast as a cheetah." An idiom is a saying with a hidden meaning, like "let the cat out of the bag."

Keep exploring