Idioms: sarcasm and irony

This ESL worksheet introduces students to 12 sarcastic idioms and expressions, helping them understand and use sarcasm in everyday English conversations. Through dialogue-based activities, students gain practical experience in incorporating sarcastic idioms into their communication.

The first 6 idioms (e.g., Don’t give up your day job!, What do you want, a medal?, Nice try!, Cry me a river!) are introduced through 6 short dialogues. Students match the sarcastic expressions to the correct use. Then, they match 6 lines to the suitable response and complete 5 dialogues with the correct expression. 

The rest of the idioms (e.g. Don’t hold your breath!, You had one job!, Thanks for nothing!) are introduced through 6 more dialogues. To practise, students complete a multiple-choice activity. Then, they are asked to correct the mistakes in 9 sarcasm-related idioms.

Students create their own dialogues using 6 real-life scenarios provided, helping them apply the idioms in context and enhancing their conversational fluency.

As a homework assignment, students are given 7 additional sarcastic expressions and are asked to research their meaning and use and to write a short dialogue with them.

For more practice, you can use the conversation cards.