Saying “I’m sorry” is something we all need to do sometimes. It can be hard, but it helps fix problems and shows we care. In English, people often use special phrases called idioms to say sorry. These idioms make language more interesting and can help you sound more natural when you speak.
In this article, you will learn some common idioms people use when they want to apologize. These phrases are used in movies, books, and everyday talk. Understanding them will help you know what others mean and give you more ways to say sorry in a kind and clear way.
Idioms for Apology
1. Eat humble pie
Meaning: Admit you were wrong and say sorry.
Example: I had to eat humble pie after blaming my sister for the mess. / Jake ate humble pie when he found out he was wrong about the test.
Put Differently: I said sorry because I made a mistake. / He admitted he was wrong.
2. My bad
Meaning: A short way to say it was your fault.
Example: Oops, I knocked over your drink—my bad. / My bad, I forgot to bring your book.
Put Differently: It was my mistake. / I’m the one who did it.
3. Take the blame
Meaning: Say that something bad was your fault.
Example: I took the blame for the broken window. / He took the blame for being late.
Put Differently: I said it was my fault. / He admitted he caused the problem.
4. Make amends
Meaning: Try to fix a mistake you made.
Example: I helped my friend carry her books to make amends. / She made amends by saying sorry and baking cookies.
Put Differently: I tried to make it right. / She did something nice to say sorry.
5. Own up
Meaning: Say the truth about what you did wrong.
Example: I owned up to breaking the pencil sharpener. / He owned up to losing the homework.
Put Differently: I told the truth about my mistake. / He admitted it.
6. Mea culpa
Meaning: A fancy way to say “It was my fault.”
Example: “Mea culpa,” I said after knocking over the paint. / She said “mea culpa” for being late.
Put Differently: I’m to blame. / It was my mistake.
7. Swallow your pride
Meaning: Apologize even if it’s hard.
Example: I had to swallow my pride and say I was wrong. / He swallowed his pride and said sorry to his teacher.
Put Differently: I said sorry even though I didn’t want to. / He admitted his mistake.
8. Put things right
Meaning: Fix a problem you caused.
Example: I cleaned the mess to put things right. / She helped fix the toy to put things right.
Put Differently: I tried to fix what I messed up. / She made it better.
9. Make it up to someone
Meaning: Do something nice after hurting someone.
Example: I gave her my cookie to make it up to her. / He said sorry and helped me study to make it up to me.
Put Differently: I tried to be kind after hurting her. / He showed he was sorry.
10. Fall on your sword
Meaning: Take full blame and accept the punishment.
Example: The team captain fell on his sword after the loss. / I fell on my sword for losing the class project.
Put Differently: I took all the blame. / He said it was his fault completely.
11. Clear the air
Meaning: Talk to fix a problem or misunderstanding.
Example: We cleared the air after our argument. / I wanted to clear the air with my friend after I yelled.
Put Differently: We talked and made peace. / I wanted to say sorry and fix things.
12. Say sorry
Meaning: Admit you did wrong.
Example: I said sorry for hurting her feelings. / He said sorry after the prank.
Put Differently: I told her I was wrong. / He admitted it and felt bad.
13. Smooth things over
Meaning: Try to make a bad situation better.
Example: I brought her a flower to smooth things over. / We had a talk to smooth things over.
Put Differently: I tried to calm things down. / We made peace.
14. Patch things up
Meaning: Fix a friendship after a fight.
Example: We patched things up after our argument. / He patched things up with his sister.
Put Differently: We became friends again. / They stopped fighting.
15. Eat crow
Meaning: Admit you were wrong in a way that feels embarrassing.
Example: I had to eat crow after I said she was wrong but she was right. / He ate crow after saying the answer was easy but got it wrong.
Put Differently: I felt silly for being wrong. / He had to say sorry.
16. Say uncle
Meaning: Give up and admit fault or defeat.
Example: I said uncle and apologized first. / She said uncle after the argument.
Put Differently: I gave in and said sorry. / She stopped arguing.
17. Hang your head
Meaning: Feel bad and ashamed.
Example: I hung my head when the teacher found out I lied. / He hung his head in front of the class.
Put Differently: I felt really sorry. / He was ashamed.
18. Face the music
Meaning: Deal with the result of your mistake.
Example: I had to face the music and explain my actions. / She faced the music when her parents found out.
Put Differently: I dealt with the trouble. / She accepted the blame.
19. Bend over backward
Meaning: Try really hard to fix a mistake.
Example: I bent over backward to help my friend after I hurt her feelings. / He bent over backward to say sorry.
Put Differently: I tried everything to make it right. / He did all he could.
20. Spill the beans
Meaning: Admit something, often by mistake.
Example: I spilled the beans and said I was the one who broke the vase. / She spilled the beans and told the truth.
Put Differently: I said what really happened. / She admitted her mistake.
21. Say it with flowers
Meaning: Show you’re sorry by giving flowers or a gift.
Example: I said it with flowers after hurting her feelings. / He gave his mom flowers to say sorry.
Put Differently: I showed my apology with a small gift. / He made her smile with flowers.
22. Wipe the slate clean
Meaning: Forget the past and start fresh.
Example: Let’s wipe the slate clean and be friends again. / I said sorry and asked to wipe the slate clean.
Put Differently: Let’s forget what happened. / I want to start over.
23. Mend fences
Meaning: Fix a broken relationship.
Example: I want to mend fences with my cousin after our fight. / We mended fences over lunch.
Put Differently: We became friends again. / I fixed things with her.
24. Cry over spilled milk
Meaning: Feel sad about something that already happened.
Example: There’s no use crying over spilled milk—just say sorry. / He cried over spilled milk instead of fixing it.
Put Differently: Don’t stay upset, just make it better. / It’s better to move on.
25. A slip of the tongue
Meaning: Say something wrong by mistake.
Example: I called her the wrong name—it was just a slip of the tongue. / He had a slip of the tongue and felt bad.
Put Differently: I didn’t mean to say that. / It was an accident.
26. Let bygones be bygones
Meaning: Forget old problems and move on.
Example: Let’s let bygones be bygones and play together. / We let bygones be bygones and sat at lunch again.
Put Differently: We stopped being upset. / We forgot the fight.
27. Throw yourself at someone’s mercy
Meaning: Ask for forgiveness and accept the result.
Example: I threw myself at her mercy after ruining her drawing. / He threw himself at his teacher’s mercy after cheating.
Put Differently: I begged her to forgive me. / He hoped she would give him another chance.
28. Hold out an olive branch
Meaning: Try to make peace after a fight.
Example: I held out an olive branch by writing him a note. / She brought cookies as an olive branch.
Put Differently: I showed I wanted to make peace. / She tried to fix things.
29. Bury the hatchet
Meaning: End a fight and be friends again.
Example: We buried the hatchet after the game. / I told him I wanted to bury the hatchet.
Put Differently: We made up. / I stopped being mad.
30. Blow over
Meaning: A problem goes away with time.
Example: Don’t worry this will blow over soon. / Our fight blew over by the next day.
Put Differently: Things got better on their own. / It didn’t last long.
31. Beat yourself up
Meaning: Blame yourself a lot.
Example: I beat myself up for forgetting her birthday. / He beat himself up about the broken toy.
Put Differently: I felt really bad. / He was hard on himself.
32. Apologize from the bottom of your heart
Meaning: Say sorry and really mean it.
Example: I apologized from the bottom of my heart. / She said sorry from the bottom of her heart.
Put Differently: I truly meant it. / She was very honest.
33. Choke on your words
Meaning: Find it hard to say sorry.
Example: I choked on my words but said sorry anyway. / He choked on his words when he apologized.
Put Differently: It was hard to say, but I did. / He didn’t know what to say.
34. Bite the bullet
Meaning: Do something hard, like say sorry.
Example: I bit the bullet and told my mom the truth. / She bit the bullet and said sorry to the class.
Put Differently: I finally did the right thing. / She faced her mistake.
35. Turn the other cheek
Meaning: Forgive someone who hurt you.
Example: She turned the other cheek after I was rude. / I turned the other cheek and forgave him.
Put Differently: She forgave me. / I let it go.
36. Be in the doghouse
Meaning: Be in trouble with someone.
Example: I was in the doghouse after losing his book. / She’s in the doghouse for yelling at her friend.
Put Differently: I was in trouble. / She needed to say sorry.
37. Kiss and make up
Meaning: Be friends again after a fight.
Example: We had a fight but then kissed and made up. / The sisters kissed and made up after arguing.
Put Differently: We forgave each other. / They were friends again.
38. White lie
Meaning: A small lie told to not hurt someone.
Example: I told a white lie about liking the picture. / She said a white lie so he wouldn’t feel bad.
Put Differently: I didn’t want to hurt feelings. / She was trying to be kind.
39. Get off on the wrong foot
Meaning: Start something badly.
Example: We got off on the wrong foot, but now we’re friends. / I got off on the wrong foot with my teacher.
Put Differently: It started badly. / We had a rough beginning.
40. It’s water under the bridge
Meaning: It happened before, and we don’t need to worry now.
Example: That fight is water under the bridge. / Forget it ,it’s water under the bridge now.
Put Differently: It’s in the past. / Let’s move on.
“Rewrite the Sentence” Activity:Idioms for Apology
Below are 10 sentences expressing feelings or situations about aging without using idioms. Your task is to rewrite each sentence using one of the idioms from the previous sections. Be sure to make the new sentences sound natural and keep the meaning the same.
Sentences to Rewrite
1. I know I made a mistake and it was my fault.
2. I feel really bad that I forgot her birthday.
3. I didn’t mean to push you in the hallway.
4. I got too angry and yelled during the game.
5. I broke your toy and I know I should fix it.
6. I’m sorry for spilling juice on your book.
7. I didn’t do my part of the project, and that was wrong.
8. I should not have taken your seat.
9. I know I need to say sorry for being late.
10. I said something mean and I wish I hadn’t.
Answer Key
1. That was my fault. My bad. I know I made a mistake.
2. I feel really bad that I forgot her birthday. I feel terrible for forgetting her birthday.
3. I didn’t mean to push you in the hallway. I didn’t mean to do that. I messed up.
4. I got too angry and yelled during the game. I lost my cool during the game.
5. I broke your toy and I know I should fix it. I’ll make it right and fix your toy.
6. I’m sorry for spilling juice on your book. My apologies for spilling juice on your book.
7. I didn’t do my part of the project, and that was wrong.
I take full responsibility for not helping with the project.
8. I should not have taken your seat. I was wrong to take your seat.
9. I know I need to say sorry for being late. I owe you an apology for being late.
10. I said something mean and I wish I hadn’t.
Conclusion
Apologizing is important. It helps people understand each other and feel better. Idioms can make your apology sound more honest and real.
By using these simple phrases, you can show that you care and want to fix the mistake. Keep practicing them so you can use them the next time you need to say sorry.
