50 Idioms About Books With Meaning & Sentences
Idioms About Books
1. Open book
Meaning: Someone easy to understand or transparent.
In a Sentence: He’s like an open book—you always know what he’s thinking.
Other Ways to Say: Easy to read, Transparent
2. Don’t judge a book by its cover
Meaning: Don’t form opinions based on appearances.
In a Sentence: She might seem shy, but don’t judge a book by its cover.
Other Ways to Say: Look deeper, Appearances can be deceiving
3. Bookworm
Meaning: Someone who enjoys reading a lot.
In a Sentence: Sarah is a bookworm; she reads all the time!
Other Ways to Say: Avid reader, Loves to read
4. By the book
Meaning: Follow rules strictly.
In a Sentence: The lawyer does everything by the book.
Other Ways to Say: According to rules, Follow protocol
5. Read between the lines
Meaning: Understand the hidden meaning.
In a Sentence: He didn’t say it outright, but I could read between the lines.
Other Ways to Say: Understand the subtext, Look deeper
6. Take a leaf out of someone’s book
Meaning: Imitate someone’s behavior or success.
In a Sentence: You should take a leaf out of her book and start saving money.
Other Ways to Say: Learn from, Follow their example
7. Throw the book at someone
Meaning: Punish someone severely.
In a Sentence: The judge threw the book at him for repeated offenses.
Other Ways to Say: Come down hard on, Punish harshly
8. In someone’s good books
Meaning: In someone’s favor.
In a Sentence: I brought her coffee, so now I’m in her good books again.
Other Ways to Say: In favor, On their good side
9. In someone’s bad books
Meaning: Out of favor with someone.
In a Sentence: After missing the deadline, I’m in my boss’s bad books.
Other Ways to Say: Out of favor, In trouble
10. Hit the books
Meaning: Start studying seriously.
In a Sentence: Finals are next week—I need to hit the books.
Other Ways to Say: Study hard, Crack the books
11. Cook the books
Meaning: Falsify financial records.
In a Sentence: The company was caught trying to cook the books.
Other Ways to Say: Cheat the accounts, Falsify records
12. A closed book
Meaning: Someone or something hard to understand.
In a Sentence: He’s a closed book when it comes to emotions.
Other Ways to Say: Mysterious, Hard to read
13. Crack a book
Meaning: Open a book to study.
In a Sentence: You won’t pass the exam if you don’t crack a book.
Other Ways to Say: Start studying, Begin reading
14. Turn the page
Meaning: Move on from a bad experience.
In a Sentence: After the breakup, she decided to turn the page.
Other Ways to Say: Move on, Start fresh
15. Write the book on
Meaning: Be the ultimate expert.
In a Sentence: He could write the book on car engines.
Other Ways to Say: Expert, Authority
16. Story of my life
Meaning: A recurring unlucky event.
In a Sentence: Another traffic jam—story of my life!
Other Ways to Say: Always happens to me, Typical
17. Read like a book
Meaning: Easy to understand someone’s thoughts.
In a Sentence: I can read you like a book—you’re hiding something!
Other Ways to Say: See through, Predictable
18. Books are balanced
Meaning: Accounts are correct and settled.
In a Sentence: After a full day of work, the books are finally balanced.
Other Ways to Say: Financially settled, Correct
19. Book smart
Meaning: Academically intelligent but not practical.
In a Sentence: He’s book smart but lacks street sense.
Other Ways to Say: Educated, Theoretical thinker
20. Booked solid
Meaning: Completely full or busy.
In a Sentence: The hotel is booked solid for the weekend.
Other Ways to Say: Fully occupied, No availability
21. A real page-turner
Meaning: A very interesting book.
In a Sentence: That mystery novel is a real page-turner.
Other Ways to Say: Gripping read, Can’t-put-it-down
22. Close the book on
Meaning: Finish or give up on something.
In a Sentence: They decided to close the book on the old project.
Other Ways to Say: End it, Move on
23. The oldest trick in the book
Meaning: A well-known and outdated tactic.
In a Sentence: Falling for that? It’s the oldest trick in the book!
Other Ways to Say: Cliché tactic, Common scam
24. One for the books
Meaning: Memorable or historic.
In a Sentence: That comeback was one for the books!
Other Ways to Say: Legendary, Unforgettable
25. Judging a book by its cover
Meaning: Making shallow assumptions.
In a Sentence: Don’t go judging a book by its cover—it may surprise you.
Other Ways to Say: Don’t assume, Wait and see
26. Off the books
Meaning: Not officially recorded.
In a Sentence: They paid him off the books to avoid taxes.
Other Ways to Say: Under the table, Unofficial
27. A book deal
Meaning: Contract to publish a book.
In a Sentence: She landed a big book deal with a major publisher.
Other Ways to Say: Publishing agreement, Book contract
28. Book of life
Meaning: Destiny or fate.
In a Sentence: I guess that chapter wasn’t in my book of life.
Other Ways to Say: Fate, Life story
29. An open-and-shut book
Meaning: Easy case or situation.
In a Sentence: The robbery was an open-and-shut book.
Other Ways to Say: Clear-cut, Obvious
30. Book it
Meaning: Leave quickly.
In a Sentence: We’re late—book it to the station!
Other Ways to Say: Hurry, Dash out
31. In someone’s good books
Meaning: In someone’s favor or approved by them.
In a Sentence: I helped her with her project, so now I’m in her good books.
Other Ways to Say: In favor, On someone’s nice list
32. In someone’s bad books
Meaning: Out of favor or disliked by someone.
In a Sentence: After forgetting her birthday, I was in her bad books.
Other Ways to Say: On the wrong side, Not liked
33. Every trick in the book
Meaning: Trying every possible method.
In a Sentence: He used every trick in the book to win the game.
Other Ways to Say: Used all methods, Tried everything
34. Bring someone to book
Meaning: To punish someone or hold them accountable.
In a Sentence: The manager was brought to book for mismanaging the funds.
Other Ways to Say: Hold accountable, Punish
35. Throw the book at
Meaning: Punish someone very severely.
In a Sentence: The judge threw the book at him for repeated offenses.
Other Ways to Say: Give strict punishment, Crack down hard
36. Close the book on
Meaning: To end or finalize something.
In a Sentence: After the final meeting, we closed the book on the project.
Other Ways to Say: Wrap up, Conclude
37. An open book
Meaning: Someone who is easy to understand or transparent.
In a Sentence: She’s an open book — you always know what she’s thinking.
Other Ways to Say: Transparent, Easy to read
38. A closed book
Meaning: Something or someone hard to understand.
In a Sentence: Physics is a closed book to me — I just can’t get it.
Other Ways to Say: Mystery, Hard to understand
39. By the book
Meaning: To follow rules strictly.
In a Sentence: The officer did everything by the book during the investigation.
Other Ways to Say: Follow the rules, Stick to the law
40. Book smart
Meaning: Intelligent in academic or theoretical knowledge.
In a Sentence: He’s book smart, but struggles with real-world problems.
Other Ways to Say: Academically intelligent, Theoretical thinker
41. Take a leaf out of someone’s book
Meaning: To imitate or follow someone’s example.
In a Sentence: You should take a leaf out of her book and start saving money.
Other Ways to Say: Follow their lead, Imitate
42. The oldest trick in the book
Meaning: A very well-known and obvious trick.
In a Sentence: Hiding homework was the oldest trick in the book.
Other Ways to Say: Common tactic, Obvious strategy
43. Read someone like a book
Meaning: Understand someone’s feelings or thoughts easily.
In a Sentence: She can read me like a book — she always knows what I’m feeling.
Other Ways to Say: Easily understand, See right through
44. In my book
Meaning: In my opinion.
In a Sentence: In my book, honesty is the best policy.
Other Ways to Say: As I see it, From my view
45. Take a page from someone’s book
Meaning: To adopt someone’s behavior or way of doing things.
In a Sentence: You could take a page from his book and be more respectful.
Other Ways to Say: Learn from, Copy their style
46. The book of life
Meaning: Life experiences and lessons learned.
In a Sentence: That experience added a new chapter to the book of life.
Other Ways to Say: Life’s story, Personal journey
47. Cook the books
Meaning: To manipulate financial records dishonestly.
In a Sentence: The company was caught cooking the books to avoid taxes.
Other Ways to Say: Falsify accounts, Cheat in accounting
48. Balance the books
Meaning: Ensure that income and expenses are equal.
In a Sentence: The accountant stayed late to balance the books.
Other Ways to Say: Settle accounts, Make ends meet
49. One for the books
Meaning: Something worth remembering.
In a Sentence: That was a performance for the books!
Other Ways to Say: Memorable moment, Historic event
50. In black and white
Meaning: Written or printed clearly.
In a Sentence: The rules are right there in black and white.
Other Ways to Say: Clearly stated, Written down
