An idiom is a phrase you cannot translate word for word. Here are the 25 most common Slovak idioms, ranked by how often you will actually meet them, each with its literal translation, real meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation, so you know what natives actually mean.
Common Slovak idioms are everyday expressions whose meaning cannot be guessed from the individual words. For example, liezť niekomu na nervy literally means "to crawl on someone's nerves" but is used to mean to irritate someone, to annoy them repeatedly. This free page ranks the 25 most common Slovak idioms by how often you meet them, each with its literal translation, meaning, the closest English idiom where one exists, and an example sentence with an English translation.
All 25 idioms, most common first.
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Idiom list verified as of August 2026.
liezť niekomu na nervy
Literally to crawl on someone's nerves
Means to irritate someone, to annoy them repeatedly
English idiom get on someone's nerves
Example Ten jeho smiech mi už lezie na nervy.
That laugh of his is really getting on my nerves.
Note Informal but not rude, and extremely common in everyday speech.
mať plné ruky práce
Literally to have full hands of work
Means to be very busy with more tasks than you can comfortably manage
English idiom have one's hands full
Example Pred sviatkami máme v obchode plné ruky práce.
Before the holidays we have our hands full at the shop.
držať niekomu palce
Literally to hold thumbs for someone
Means to wish someone luck and hope things turn out well for them
English idiom keep one's fingers crossed
Example Budem ti držať palce na skúške.
I'll be keeping my fingers crossed for you at the exam.
Note Slovaks squeeze the thumb inside a fist instead of crossing fingers, and often show the gesture while saying this.
lámať si hlavu
Literally to break one's own head
Means to think hard about a problem, often without getting anywhere
English idiom rack one's brains
Example Nelám si hlavu nad tým, veď to nie je až také dôležité.
Don't rack your brains over it, it's really not that important.
mať niečoho plné zuby
Literally to have full teeth of something
Means to have had far more than enough of something
English idiom be fed up to the back teeth
Example Mám plné zuby jeho výhovoriek.
I've had it up to here with his excuses.
držať jazyk za zubami
Literally to hold the tongue behind the teeth
Means to stay quiet and not give away what you know
English idiom hold one's tongue
Example Povedz mi to, sľubujem, že budem držať jazyk za zubami.
Tell me, I promise I'll keep it to myself.
byť v siedmom nebi
Literally to be in the seventh heaven
Means to be extremely happy
English idiom be in seventh heaven
Example Keď mu ponúkli tú prácu, bol v siedmom nebi.
When they offered him the job, he was in seventh heaven.
spať ako zabitý
Literally to sleep like one killed
Means to sleep very deeply, without waking up
English idiom sleep like a log
Example Po tom výlete som spal ako zabitý.
After that trip I slept like a log.
mať toho veľa na krku
Literally to have a lot of it on one's neck
Means to have many responsibilities or obligations to deal with
English idiom have a lot on one's plate
Example Momentálne mám toho veľa na krku, sotva stíham dýchať.
I have a lot on my plate at the moment, I barely have time to breathe.
spadol mi kameň zo srdca
Literally a stone fell from my heart
Means a worry suddenly lifted and you felt great relief
English idiom a weight off one's mind
Example Keď zavolala, že dorazila v poriadku, spadol mi kameň zo srdca.
When she called to say she had arrived safely, it was a weight off my mind.
Note Almost always used in the past tense, with the relieved person in the dative (spadol mi, spadol jej); padol mi kameň zo srdca is an equally common variant.
vodiť niekoho za nos
Literally to lead someone by the nose
Means to keep deceiving someone over time while they still believe you
English idiom string someone along
Example Už mesiac ma vodí za nos, sľuby nikdy nesplní.
He's been stringing me along for a month, he never keeps his promises.
mať maslo na hlave
Literally to have butter on the head
Means to be guilty of something yourself while acting innocent
Example Prečo sa tak bráni? Asi má maslo na hlave.
Why is he defending himself so hard? He's probably got something to hide.
ako blesk z jasného neba
Literally like lightning from a clear sky
Means completely unexpected, with no warning at all
English idiom a bolt from the blue
Example Správa o jeho odchode prišla ako blesk z jasného neba.
The news of his departure came like a bolt from the blue.
hodiť flintu do žita
Literally to throw the rifle into the rye
Means to give up too early and stop trying
English idiom throw in the towel
Example Nehádž flintu do žita, ešte to môžeš dokázať.
Don't give up yet, you can still pull it off.
Note Most often heard in the negative, as encouragement not to quit.
chodiť okolo horúcej kaše
Literally to walk around hot porridge
Means to avoid saying the important thing directly
English idiom beat around the bush
Example Prestaň chodiť okolo horúcej kaše a povedz mi, čo sa stalo.
Stop beating around the bush and tell me what happened.
robiť z komára somára
Literally to make a donkey out of a mosquito
Means to turn a small matter into a big one
English idiom make a mountain out of a molehill
Example Nerob z komára somára, veď je to len škrabanec.
Don't make a mountain out of a molehill, it's just a scratch.
mať niečo za lubom
Literally to have something behind the bark
Means to be secretly planning something, usually not something good
English idiom be up to something
Example Ten úsmev sa mi nepáči, určite má niečo za lubom.
I don't like that smile, he's definitely up to something.
Note Lub is a strip of bark or thin bent wood used for sieve rims and baskets, so the image is of something kept out of sight behind it.
sľubovať modré z neba
Literally to promise the blue from the sky
Means to promise wonderful things you have no intention of delivering
English idiom promise the moon
Example Pred voľbami nám sľubovali modré z neba.
Before the elections they promised us the moon.
mať niečo v malíčku
Literally to have something in one's little finger
Means to know a subject so well that you handle it without effort
English idiom know something like the back of one's hand
Example Nové pravidlá má v malíčku, spýtaj sa jeho.
He knows the new rules inside out, ask him.
byť za vodou
Literally to be beyond the water
Means to be in the clear, with the hard part behind you
English idiom be out of the woods
Example Keď podpíšu tú zmluvu, budú za vodou.
Once they sign that contract, they'll be out of the woods.
Note Colloquial, and usually about money or a job finally being secure.
mať srdce na dlani
Literally to have a heart on one's palm
Means to be sincere, warm and generous towards others
English idiom have a heart of gold
Example Tá žena má srdce na dlani, vždy nám pomôže.
That woman has a heart of gold, she always helps us.
hádzať niekomu polená pod nohy
Literally to throw logs under someone's feet
Means to deliberately put obstacles in someone's way
English idiom put a spoke in someone's wheel
Example Namiesto pomoci mi iba hádzal polená pod nohy.
Instead of helping me, he just kept putting obstacles in my way.
vziať nohy na plecia
Literally to take one's legs onto one's shoulders
Means to run away quickly
English idiom take to one's heels
Example Keď uvideli policajta, vzali nohy na plecia.
When they saw the police officer, they took to their heels.
Note Informal and slightly humorous.
chytiť sa za nos
Literally to catch oneself by the nose
Means to admit your own fault instead of blaming other people
Example Namiesto obviňovania druhých by sa mal každý chytiť za nos.
Instead of blaming others, everyone should take a good look at themselves.
ísť s kožou na trh
Literally to go to market with one's skin
Means to take a personal risk by openly showing where you stand
English idiom stick one's neck out
Example Ak chceš presadiť svoj názor, musíš ísť s kožou na trh.
If you want your view to prevail, you have to stick your neck out.
An idiom is a phrase whose meaning is fixed by convention, not built from its words. That is why a word-for-word translation fails: Liezť niekomu na nervy comes out as "to crawl on someone's nerves", which makes no sense until you know it means to irritate someone, to annoy them repeatedly.
Learn a few at a time, not a whole list. Pick the ones you keep running into, say them out loud in a real sentence, and you will remember them far longer than by drilling flashcards.
The most reliable way to absorb idioms is to meet them in context, again and again, in things you actually read. Parallel text and audio let you catch an idiom in a real Slovak sentence and check what it means without breaking your reading. That is what reading in Lingo7 is built for.
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The most common Slovak idioms, ranked by everyday frequency, start with liezť niekomu na nervy, mať plné ruky práce, držať niekomu palce, lámať si hlavu, mať niečoho plné zuby. Each one means something you could not guess from the words alone, which is exactly why learners have to meet them in context. This page lists 25 of them with meanings and example sentences.
In Slovak, "liezť niekomu na nervy" translates literally as "to crawl on someone's nerves", but it actually means to irritate someone, to annoy them repeatedly. The closest English idiom is "get on someone's nerves". Example: Ten jeho smiech mi už lezie na nervy. ("That laugh of his is really getting on my nerves.")
The Slovak equivalent is "liezť niekomu na nervy", literally "to crawl on someone's nerves". Example: Ten jeho smiech mi už lezie na nervy. ("That laugh of his is really getting on my nerves.")
In Slovak, an idiom is called frazeologizmus, and a proverb is príslovie. A frazeologizmus is a fixed figurative phrase that you build into a sentence, while a príslovie is a complete saying that states a piece of folk wisdom on its own.
Idioms are non-compositional: their meaning is fixed by convention, not built from the individual words. Liezť niekomu na nervy translates literally as "to crawl on someone's nerves", yet it means to irritate someone, to annoy them repeatedly. Translate word for word and you get nonsense, so idioms have to be learned as whole units.
The fastest way is to meet them in context and reuse them, not to memorize a list. Learn a handful at a time, notice them while reading and listening, and try them in your own sentences. Reading real Slovak with tap-to-translate, the way Lingo7 works, turns every page into idiom practice.