Idioms worksheets
Updated on October 15, 2025
Idioms can confuse even strong readers because their words and phrases don’t mean what they say. Idioms worksheets help your 9th grader decode common expressions, learn meaning in context, and build understanding of figurative language, skills they need both to succeed in school and real life, and to enjoy literature.
Idioms worksheet: Examples
Worksheets on idioms break this sometimes confusing topic into a clear practice. First, your child meets an idiom in a short passage. Next come multiple-choice questions that ask them to choose the sentence with the same meaning, paying attention to figurative vs. literal definition. The sentences contain well-designed distractors, including literal readings and near-synonyms, so students learn to rule out tempting but wrong options. With each exercise, your 9th grader will start grasping what each idiom means better.
Idiom worksheets for free download
With focused and carefully selected exercises of the appropriate level, printable free idioms worksheets are perfect for structured self-paced practice. Each exercise begins with a short passage, followed by multiple-choice items where your child chooses the sentence with the same meaning. This format will build figurative reading through context clues while training them to ignore literal “trick” options.
More 9th-grade reading worksheets
- Character Analysis Worksheet
- 9th Grade Reading Passages Worksheets
- Figurative Language 9th Grade Worksheets
Make sure to explore other free printable worksheets for 9th grade that our tutors have developed.
Benefits of the idiom worksheet documents
- Contain answer keys
- Boost rephrasing and paraphrasing skills
- Enrich vocabulary
- Follow US-accepted standards for education
- Improve context-clue understanding
Idioms worksheets come with answers PDF
The idioms worksheets come with answers included at the end of the PDFs. This way, both you and your child will be able to verify each choice right away, so mistakes don’t linger and good habits stick. This helps create a quick study loop, during which students can work on the item, check the response, and adjust their thinking if they got it wrong, before moving on.
Note: A study of school students has shown that immediate feedback during homework leads to better learning outcomes than the same feedback given the next day.
Idioms worksheet PDF strengthens rephrasing and paraphrasing skills
By finding sentences with identical meanings, your child practices saying the same idea in different words. This is an important skill both in reading and writing. This not only builds a more flexible vocabulary, but also makes summaries, short responses, and essays clearer.
Idiom worksheet PDF enriches vocabulary
Idioms add color to language. These worksheets help your child learn expressions that are both vivid and natural-sounding, and, just as important, learn when an idiom fits the context. By comparing meanings and picking the closest paraphrase, they develop a more flexible and rich vocabulary, which then translates into more expressive conversations and a more effective writing style. Over time, idioms will stop feeling “tricky” and will become tools your child can use to sound clear and confident.
Note: Idioms are understood much better in context than in isolation, and children with stronger reading comprehension significantly outperform peers on idiom tasks, highlighting the connection between the two skills.
Free printable idioms worksheets follow US-accepted education standards
All the worksheets on idioms were developed to meet the US education standards. This way, you can rest assured that your child practices exactly the skills they will need to succeed in class and during tests. Additionally, this will build familiarity with the types of exercises they can expect during standardized testing, reducing test anxiety.
Idioms worksheets improve context-clue understanding
When practicing with idioms worksheets printable PDFs, your child trains to recognize and use context clues to find sentences with identical meaning, not just a near match. They practice reading around the situation, tone, and nearby words, to infer the figurative meaning. This is a critical skill for reading comprehension. If they don’t know how to approach understanding idioms, an encounter with an unknown idiom in a text or a book can hinder text understanding.
Note: Students interpret idioms much more accurately in context than in isolation, and idiom difficulties are often a result of weak use of context when meeting unfamiliar expressions.
Idioms practice
When practice targets the right habits, idioms become manageable. These free idioms worksheets help your 9th grader read for meaning, not word-for-word. Each passage is followed by items that ask which sentence expresses the same idea. This way, kids learn to use context clues, spot literal “traps,” and choose the best figurative interpretation.
If you are looking for more interactive 9th grade practice, make sure to have a look at our 9th grade reading test page, where your child can find test-like questions covering different ELA topics.
And for more printable worksheets and useful materials, make sure to explore our 9th grade reading worksheets page.
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