10 Common English Idioms for Saying Something Is Really Good [592]

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In this episode, you’ll learn common English idioms you can use when something is really good, impressive, successful, or better than expected.

Native speakers often use idioms when they want to praise someone’s work, describe a great experience, talk about a successful result, or explain why something really stands out.

You’ll hear expressions like top-notch, the icing on the cake, second to none, and more. I’ll explain what each idiom means, when you can use it, and how it sounds in real English conversations.

This lesson is for non-native English speakers who want clear explanations, useful examples, and natural phrases they can actually remember and use.

By the end of the episode, you’ll understand positive English idioms more easily and have better ways to describe good things in everyday English, workplace conversations, reviews, stories, and informal chats.

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Transcript

Speaker: 0:09

Hi there. This is Harry. Welcome back to Advanced English to help you to get a better language, to help you with your business, English skills, goals are, we're here to help. And for those of you and your to one lessons, well, you know Just get in touch www.englishlessonviaskype.com and you can apply for a free trial lesson. And we'll be very happy to hear from you and very happy to help you. Okay, so the advanced English idioms and it's about idioms Okay. You have this expression, your good thing, and it means somebody who's happy about somebody that they are doing something right, or they just use it as a term of endearment or an affectionate way to welcome someone. Are you a good thing? How are you? But we're talking about good things today, so I've got a list again. Back to ten in my list. I'll go through them with you and then I'll explain them one by one. The icing on the cake. Well, when you get something in that's happened, then you might So you get the new job that you And the icing on the cake is minutes away from home, and they remotely two days a week. So that's the icing on the cake. It's the job that you always And in addition to that, it's work remotely anyway. So that's the icing on the cake. So the icing on the cake is something in addition, something special that really tops everything off. It makes it really, really good. The icing on the cake. Second, the best thing since Well, if you're like me and Cutting a loaf of bread or you know, particularly when you to cut it. I end up with the thickest won't even fit into the toaster. So the best thing since sliced bread, sliced bread was a great invention. It means you don't have to cut You can just take the bread out and drop it into the toaster. So when we talk about the best thing since sliced bread, we mean something is really, really good. Oh, that new motorway. Wow. It cuts off half an hour in my It's the best thing since sliced Okay. Or perhaps you're talking about just pop in a bowl of porridge The bite the best thing since whatever it is, whatever the like, it's really, really good. It saves you a lot of time. So you explain it away by saying it is the best thing since sliced bread. Out of this world. This is a very popular and well It shouldn't take too much explanation when something is out of this world, it's really extraordinary. Yeah. Oh, the new movie. Just out of this world. I mean, really, the cinema cinematography, the Philomena, the directing. Wow. It's really, really special. Really would recommend that you It's just out of this world or the new music from whoever the group happens to be that, you know, it's just something really, really special out of this world. The holiday that you had out of had for that anniversary or you know, is a little bit of this world. It's a really good experience. Miles ahead. Well, when something or somebody things better than other people. Wow. That new printer. It's miles ahead of the one that I mean, it prints in in no time And you can copy and you can It's really, really top notch. It's really, really the best. Okay. So it's the, the best you can So miles ahead or that team city, they're miles ahead of everybody else in the the division. They've got billions to invest. So they buy all the best No wonder they're miles ahead. Will never catch up with them. We're always going to be playing Or to be miles ahead means to be well in advance of everybody else. Miles ahead, top notch. I already mentioned that when we Top notch means the best. Yeah, the printer top notch, the been released top notch. I mean, have you seen the camera The quality of the pictures is It's amazing. It's really top notch. Or if you produce a really, teacher or your professor looks really top notch. You did some really good Where did you get this You must have spent a lot of You're going to really get a It's the work is top notch. Well done. Something of your dreams or in So slightly different meaning to A thing of your dreams is something you would think of, but you might not be able to achieve it. A holiday in Mexico would be a You might not get there ever. It's very, very expensive, but But when we say in your dreams we mean ha, you're not likely to get it, you know, say if you're wishing, I'd love to have a Tesla car in your dreams, meaning you're not likely to get it. Or I'd like to drive a Ferrari. Ah, yeah. In your dreams. Yeah. So this is when we sort of say exclamation, but something of you are planning. It's a thing of your dreams and Maybe not today or tomorrow or get that holiday in Mexico. The thing of your dreams. It could be the house of your Okay, so you decide you're going have at the moment. And when you see this arc, this car around the corner. And there it is, the house of It's standing on its own piece Beautiful manicured gardens, Wow. Yeah. I mean, it's just something that The house of your dreams, the job of your dreams, the partner of your dreams, boyfriend, girlfriend, whoever. The partner of your dreams, the settling down with. Something of your dreams second Well, when something is second to none, it means it cannot be beaten. My mother's Yorkshire puddings where I went. No matter how often I had them, they were never as good as my mother's, so I used to tell her so. Her Yorkshire puddings were So this book is second to none. It's really the best book I've ever read, and I'm not so sure I'll read anything, anything like this. It's second to none. So when we want something to be the top, the number one, the best, then we say it's second to none. So we can look at great tennis we could say, well, Messi, he's best footballer in the world. When something is to die for, Well, not literally you want to give up anything to have it. Or those brownies in that cafe. They're to die for. Really? You should go there and try I mean, I'd even go out of my And you should drive ten The taste is exquisite. I haven't tasted anything like They are to die for. Or you go on that really special You've got the hotel near the beach and the view is to die for nothing. Blocking your view. When you wake up in the morning, Blue sky, blue sea, golden The view is to die for heaven. Yeah, really something very, Creme de la creme. We often borrow expressions from A tete a tete. All of these other expressions. And this is one of them. Creme de la creme means the top. The creme on the on the coffee. Yeah. So that's something that really finishes something off creme de la creme, the hotel creme de la creme, the service in the restaurant. Creme de la creme. Yeah, this law firm to work for creme de la creme, the top company to work for, the best company to work for the greatest reputation, pay the best salaries. Everybody wants to work for You're lucky enough to get that The creme de la creme. Okay, so it's all about the Those at the top and what we say Cream always rises to the top. Cream always rises to the top. That's where you get the best, And then finally, a tough act to Well, somebody who's really, really good is a tough act to follow. So if you're going to your local stand up comedy show, somebody comes on and he knocks the audience dead. He's really, really funny, and you're going to say he's going I'm not so sure this guy's going And sure enough, he dies on the So when something or somebody is a tough act to follow, it means that they've really done the best. They've really impressed you. Anything coming after that might When Alex Ferguson was the so many, many years, he was to follow because simply he had He had put them in a position them, and when the next guy came that was going to be better? Could he get better players? Unfortunately, no. Could he get Unfortunately, no. Could he win Unfortunately, no. What He got sacked. Why? Because Ferguson was a very So if something is a tough act to live up to that expectation. You really have to wait and see Okay. A tough act to follow. Okay, so these are our advanced expressions, idioms about good things. So ten of them in total. Let me give them to you one last The icing on the cake. Best thing since sliced bread Miles ahead. Miles ahead of everybody. Top notch. Really top notch. A thing of your dreams. The house of your dreams. The car of your dreams. Second to none. To die for. Something to die for. Creme de la creme. And then finally, a tough act to So idioms always difficult to You'll remember one or two of Try them, practice them. See how you can use them and Any difficulties come back to As always, thanks for listening. Thanks for watching. Thanks for your support. Join me again soon. Harry saying goodbye.