Learn common idioms about fruit in English. Here you’ll learn natural expressions used by native speakers and how to use them in real-life situations. These common English phrases often come up in conversations, TV shows, and daily life. You’ll hear short stories and clear explanations to help you remember what they mean and when to use them.
This episode is great for intermediate and advanced learners who want to speak English more fluently, improve listening skills, and sound more natural in conversations. Perfect for learners preparing for IELTS, CAE, or just looking to improve their spoken English.
List of fruit idioms
Harry
common idioms about fruit in English
In this advanced lesson, we’re going to look at idioms about fruits in English. I got that idea from actually one of my students who asked me to explain one particular fruit idiom. So I put together 10 idioms connected to fruit, let’s explain them.
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another/a second bite at the cherry
Meaning: a second chance to do something you were not successful with the first time
Example:
You didn’t get the job at first, but they offered you another interview. It was a second bite at the cherry.
They were close to losing, but the late goal gave them a second bite at the cherry.
the apple of your eye
Meaning: someone who is loved very much and is very special to you
Example:
His grandson is the apple of his eye. He talks about him all the time.
She was the apple of his eye and he could never go to bed without reading her a story.
You know what her father’s like. She’s the apple of his eye, and whatever she does, he thinks it’s perfect.
to cherry-pick
Meaning: to choose only the best or most suitable things or people from a group, often in a way that is not fair
Examples:
The coach cherry-picked the strongest players to build a competitive team for the tournament.
He spent ages cherry-picking the best apples from the display.
The manager was allowed to cherry-pick the best staff for the new marketing team.
common idioms about fruit in English
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low-hanging fruit
Meaning: any situation where you’re trying to make quick gains or achieve quick success
Examples:
Let’s focus on a low-hanging fruit here. Selling this new product to our existing customers is certainly an easier sale.
To get better marks in your exam, always look for those low-hanging fruit questions first that you can answer more easily.
driving/going bananas
Meaning: to become extremely angry or excited, often in a silly or uncontrolled way
Example:
The kids were shouting and running around. I was going bananas. I wish they could go outside and play.
The numbers still don’t make sense. This project is driving me bananas.
apples and oranges
Meaning: used to say that two things are completely different and cannot be compared
Example:
You can’t compare living in a house and living in an apartment. It’s like comparing apples and oranges.
Living in the city and living in the countryside are completely different. It’s apples and oranges.
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go pear-shaped
Meaning: to go wrong or fail, especially in a sudden or unexpected way
Example:
The business started well but went pear-shaped after a few months when sales dropped and staff left.
Their relationship went pear-shaped after just six months of living together.
You never take my advice, but when things go pear-shaped, you come running to me.
a bad/rotten apple
Meaning: someone who has a negative influence on others in a group, often by behaving badly
Example:
Most of the team works well together, but James is a bad apple. He’s lazy and brings down everyone’s motivation.
Most of the class behaved well, but one rotten apple kept disrupting lessons.
upset the apple cart
Meaning: to spoil someone’s plans or cause trouble in a situation that was going well
Examples:
I don’t want to upset the apple cart, but the project won’t be ready on time and the launch will have to be delayed.
Everything was going smoothly until she questioned the budget figures and upset the apple cart.
common idioms about fruit in English
sour grapes
Meaning: used to describe someone who pretends not to care about something they want but cannot have
Example:
He wasn’t picked as team captain, and now he says the game is boring. It’s just sour grapes.
Emma got the promotion, but Jack said the role wasn’t that important anyway. It sounded like sour grapes.
the cherry on (top of) the cake
Meaning: an additional benefit or positive aspect that makes a good situation even better
Examples:
The weather was perfect and the hotel was lovely, but the cherry on the cake was the free upgrade to a suite.
The renovation was a success, but the cherry on the cake was when friends said how good it looked.
a plum job
Meaning: a desirable position which is well-paid and considered relatively easy to do (for example, a job in the European Union)
Example:
Wow, Mark really landed a plum job. Now he can sit back, put his feet up and look forward to a happy retirement.
So here are my common idioms about fruits in English:
- to have a second bite of the cherry
- the apple of your eye
- to cherry-pick
- low-hanging fruit
- to go bananas
- comparing apples and oranges
- go pear-shaped
- the cherry on (top of) the cake
- a bad apple
- sour grapes
- a plum job
See if you can find any other fruits that perhaps I’ve left out. Write to me and let me know about it.
If you want to contact me then you can do so on www.englishlessonviaskype.com very happy to hear from you and very happy to include your ideas in future podcasts. Thanks for listening.
More information
For more information on English grammar rules, English collocations and English idioms, check out the links below:
Difference between Win, Earn and Gain
20 English phrasal verbs about Health
Don’t forget to check out intermediate and advanced English learning materials at Learning English with the British Council
