New York minute
A very short period of time
(बहुत कम समय)
Sentence: The deal was finalized in a New York minute.
Night owl
A person who prefers to be active at night and goes to bed late
(देर रात तक जागने वाला व्यक्ति)
Sentence: He is a night owl and studies best after midnight.
Nig-nog
A foolish person
(मूर्ख व्यक्ति)
Sentence: Don’t act like a nig-nog; think before you speak.
Nine days’ wonder (4)
Something that attracts a lot of attention but is soon forgotten
(जो केवल थोड़े समय के लिए हो)
Sentence: The viral video turned out to be just a nine days’ wonder.
Nine times out of ten
Almost always; in most cases
(अधिकतर; लगभग हमेशा)
Sentence: Nine times out of ten, hard work leads to success.
Nip in the bud (9)
To stop something bad before it has a chance to develop
(शुरुआत में ही रोक देना)
Sentence: The teacher decided to nip the misbehavior in the bud.
No dice
Used to refuse a request or to say something is not possible
(कोई गुंजाइश नहीं; साफ़ इनकार)
Sentence: I asked for a leave, but the boss said no dice.
No ifs and buts
No excuses or objections allowed
(कोई अगर-मगर नहीं; कोई बहाना नहीं)
Sentence: Finish your homework now—no ifs and buts.
No love lost between (4)
Two people who have strong mutual dislike for each other
(आपसी नफ़रत)
Sentence: There is no love lost between the two rival teams.
No pain, no gain
Success requires effort and sacrifice
(बिना परिश्रम सफलता नहीं मिलती)
Sentence: He trained daily for months—no pain, no gain.
No spring chicken
No longer young
(जवानी ख़त्म होना)
Sentence: He may not be a spring chicken, but he still runs fast.
No strings attached (2)
Without any special conditions or restrictions
(बिना किसी शर्त के; पूरी तरह स्वतंत्र)
Sentence: They offered help with no strings attached.
Nobody’s fool
Someone who is too intelligent or experienced to be deceived
(चतुर व्यक्ति; समझदार)
Sentence: She is nobody’s fool and quickly spotted the scam.
Not breathe a word
To not tell anyone about a secret
(मुँह न खोलना; किसी बात को गुप्त रखना)
Sentence: He promised not to breathe a word about the surprise party.
Not have a clue
To know nothing about something; to not understand something at all
(बिल्कुल जानकारी न होना)
Sentence: I don’t have a clue how this machine works.
Not have a leg to stand on (2)
To have no facts or evidence to support an argument or claim
(बात में दम न होना)
Sentence: Without proof, his accusation didn’t have a leg to stand on.
Not hold water (2)
To be illogical or not able to be supported by facts
(तर्कसंगत न होना)
Sentence: His explanation does not hold water.
Not mince words (or matters) (6)
To say what you mean clearly and directly, even if it upsets people
(बिना घुमाए-फिराए साफ़-साफ़ बोलना)
Sentence: She did not mince words when criticizing the policy.
Not one’s cup of tea (5)
Something that one does not like or is not good at
(बस की बात न होना, पसंद न होना)
Sentence: Mathematics is not my cup of tea.
Not play with a full deck
To be mentally deficient or lacking intelligence
(मूर्खतापूर्ण व्यवहार)
Sentence: Anyone who believes that rumor is not playing with a full deck.
Not see eye to eye
To not agree with someone about something
(सहमत न होना; विचार न मिलना)
Sentence: They do not see eye to eye on political issues.
Not someone’s line
Not within one’s area of knowledge or interest
(मेरे क्षेत्र का नहीं)
Sentence: Finance is not my line, so I prefer working in marketing.
Not turn a hair
To show no emotion or reaction at all
(अविचलित या अप्रभावित रहना)
Sentence: Even after hearing the shocking news, she did not turn a hair.
Not worth one’s salt
Not good at one’s job; not deserving the money one earns
(काम के लायक़ न होना)
Sentence: A teacher who doesn’t explain clearly is not worth his salt.
Nothing doing
Used to say that you will not do something or that something is not possible
(सवाल ही पैदा नहीं होता; बिल्कुल नामुमकिन)
Sentence: You want me to lie for you? Nothing doing!
Nothing to sneeze at
Something that is important and should not be ignored
(मामूली बात न होना)
Sentence: Earning a scholarship is nothing to sneeze at.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained
You cannot achieve anything worthwhile without taking risks
(बिना जोखिम उठाए कुछ नहीं मिलता)
Sentence: She started her own business because she believed nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Now and again (or then)
Sometimes, but not often
(कभी-कभार)
Sentence: I go out for dinner now and again.
Null and void (2)
Having no legal power; not valid
(क़ानूनी रूप से बेकार)
Sentence: The contract was declared null and void after the fraud was discovered.
Nurse back to health
To care for someone until they recover
(किसी की देखभाल करके स्वस्थ बनाना)
Sentence: She nursed her father back to health after his illness.
Odd man (one) out
A person or thing that is different from the others in a group
(असंगत व्यक्ति; जो समूह से अलग दिखे)
Sentence: In the group of engineers, he felt like the odd man out as a designer.
Odds and ends
Small things of various types that are not very important or valuable
(इधर-उधर की छोटी-मोटी चीजें; फुटकर सामान)
Sentence: She bought some odds and ends from the market.
Of (or to) no avail
Without success; ineffective
(व्यर्थ; किसी काम का नहीं)
Sentence: All his efforts to convince her were of no avail.
Of the first water (2)
Of the highest quality or degree
(सबसे अच्छी गुणवत्ता वाला)
Sentence: The diamonds she wore were of the first water.
Of the old school
Having traditional beliefs or values
(पुराने ज़माने की सोच वाला)
Sentence: My grandfather is of the old school and values discipline highly.
Off base
Completely wrong about something
(पूरी तरह ग़लत; ग़लतफ़हमी में होना)
Sentence: Your assumption about him is completely off base.
Off one’s food
Having no desire to eat; not hungry
(भूख न होना)
Sentence: He has been off his food since he fell ill.
Off one’s rocker
Crazy; behaving in a very strange way
(पागल होना)
Sentence: Anyone who trusts that rumor must be off their rocker.
Off the beaten track (or path)
In a place where not many people go
(आम राह से हटकर)
Sentence: They explored villages off the beaten path during their trip.
Off the cuff
Said or done without any preparation
(बिना तैयारी के)
Sentence: He made an impressive speech off the cuff.
Off the record
Not intended to be made public or published
(अनौपचारिक रूप से; ग़ैर-आधिकारिक)
Sentence: The minister made some comments off the record.
Off the wall
Strange or unusual in an amusing way
(अजीबोग़रीब; असामान्य)
Sentence: His ideas may seem off the wall, but they often work.
Off-colour (2)
Feeling slightly ill
(तबियत ठीक न होना)
Sentence: She looked a bit off-colour during the meeting.
Oily tongue
Someone who speaks in an insincere flattering way
(चापलूसी)
Sentence: Don’t trust him; he has an oily tongue.
Old hand
A person who is very experienced at something
(अनुभवी व्यक्ति)
Sentence: She is an old hand at managing large events.
Old hat
Old-fashioned; no longer interesting or exciting
(पुराना या अप्रचलित)
Sentence: That style of teaching is now old hat.
On (or at) the double
Very quickly; immediately
(बहुत तेज़ी से)
Sentence: The soldiers moved on the double when the alarm sounded.
On (or in) the cards (3)
Likely to happen
(संभावित; होने के आसार होना)
Sentence: A promotion is on the cards for her this year.
On a collision course
Moving toward a situation in which a disagreement or fight is likely
(संघर्ष की दिशा में)
Sentence: The two companies are on a collision course over the new policy.
On a roll (2)
Experiencing a period of success or good luck
(लगातार सफलता की लय में होना)
Sentence: The team is on a roll, winning every match this season.