Why do the idioms look more grown-up this year?

Eighth graders read more writing meant for adults. The jury is still out and a double-edged sword turn up in news articles and speeches, and a reader who stalls on them loses the thread of the argument.

Can two of the choices mean the same thing?

No. Each wrong choice is a real idiom with a clearly different meaning, so only one fits the sentence. If two seem to fit, reread the part of the sentence farther from the blank.

8th grade idioms

8th grade idioms worksheets

Eighth grade idioms come from editorials, sports pages and novels: pass the buck, read between the lines, a red herring. The sentence still carries the meaning, but the clue often sits a clause away from the blank, so a student has to read the whole sentence before choosing.

Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core L.8.5.a.

Each print is a different sheet with its own answer key. You don't need to sign up.

The kind of sentences you'll fix

Choose the idiom that fits the sentence, and write it on the line.

Ms. Garcia warned that letting one late project slide was (a pie in the sky / a slippery slope / a sweet tooth), because soon everyone would ask for more time.
Fixed: Ms. Garcia warned that letting one late project slide was a slippery slope, because soon everyone would ask for more time.
Dad usually stays calm, but when the puppy chewed through his new work boots, he (bent over backward / drew a blank / flew off the handle).
Before launching the full app, the club released one feature to twenty students to (pay the piper / split the difference / test the waters).

Every print pulls a new set of sentences at this level, so a make-up test or a second sibling gets a different mix.

What's on an 8th grade sheet

8th grade sheets draw from 51 sentences, 7 to a page. None of these sentences are on 7th grade sheets. 7th grade sheets print 8 to a page.

A few of the sentences, as the answer key corrects them:

The gym was silent for ten minutes before the fans poured in for the championship; it was the calm before the storm.
Researchers have studied the new diet for two years, but the jury is still out on whether it works.
After graduation, my sister was at a crossroads, trying to choose between college and a job offer.

Fix it. Choose the idiom that fits the sentence, and write it on the line. 7 sentences to fix per page.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key on the last page.

How to teach this

Before your student writes the answer, have them underline the words that settled it. At this level the clue is rarely right next to the blank. In the sentence about muddy footprints, the second half (the real thief never set foot in the garden) is what makes the footprints a red herring. A student who can find that clue can handle an idiom they have never seen before.

Watch for: Idioms cannot be figured out letter by letter; they are learned as whole phrases, like vocabulary with a wink. The context sentence always carries the real meaning. Kids learning English deserve extra patience here: idioms are the least fair part of the language, and collecting them is the only route.

Common questions about 8th grade idioms

Why do the idioms look more grown-up this year?: Eighth graders read more writing meant for adults. The jury is still out and a double-edged sword turn up in news articles and speeches, and a reader who stalls on them loses the thread of the argument.
Can two of the choices mean the same thing?: No. Each wrong choice is a real idiom with a clearly different meaning, so only one fits the sentence. If two seem to fit, reread the part of the sentence farther from the blank.

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Aligned to Common Core L.8.5.a. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 241, updated September 2026.

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