Idioms for friendship

Friendship is one of the most beautiful relationships in life. And in English, there are many idioms that express the depth, loyalty, and emotions of friendship. Whether you’re writing an essay, improving your spoken English, or just love learning new phrases, these idioms for friendship will help you sound more natural and expressive.

25+ idioms for friendship

1. A shoulder to cry on
   → A person who listens and supports you when you’re sad.
   Sentence: After her breakup, I was her shoulder to cry on.
2. Thick as thieves
   → Very close friends who share secrets.
   Sentence: Since childhood, they’ve been thick as thieves.
3. Bury the hatchet
   → To forgive and be friends again.
   Sentence: After years of silence, they finally buried the hatchet.
4. Get on like a house on fire
   → To quickly become good friends.
   Sentence: They met at a party and got on like a house on fire.
5. See eye to eye
   → To agree or understand each other well.
   Sentence: Best friends don’t always see eye to eye, and that’s okay.
6. A friend in need is a friend indeed
   → True friends help during difficult times.
   Sentence: He helped me when I had nothing—truly, a friend in need is a friend indeed.
7. Birds of a feather flock together
   → People with similar interests stick together.
   Sentence: Gamers and coders often hang out because birds of a feather flock together.
8. Joined at the hip
   → Extremely close and always together.
   Sentence: My sister and her bestie are joined at the hip.
9. Through thick and thin
   → In good and bad times.
   Sentence: She stayed with me through thick and thin.
10. Like two peas in a pod
    → Very similar and close friends.
    Sentence: They’re like two peas in a pod—always laughing at the same jokes.
11. To hit it off
    → To form a connection instantly.
    Sentence: We hit it off the moment we met in college.
12. To be there for someone
    → To support someone emotionally.
    Sentence: Real friends are always there for each other.
13. Old friends are gold
    → Long-term friendships are the most valuable.
    Sentence: I cherish my school buddies—old friends are gold.
14. Break the ice
    → To start a conversation and make people comfortable.
    Sentence: She told a joke to break the ice with new classmates.
15. To have someone’s back
    → To protect or support someone.
    Sentence: Don’t worry—I’ve got your back.
16. Fair-weather friend
    → Someone who is only around during good times.
    Sentence: He disappeared when I needed him—just a fair-weather friend.
17. Make friends with
    → To become friends with someone.
    Sentence: It’s not easy to make friends in a new city.
18. To know someone inside out
    → To know someone very well.
    Sentence: After 10 years of friendship, I know him inside out.
19. Speak the same language
    → To understand each other easily.
    Sentence: We speak the same language when it comes to values.
20. Like family
    → Friends who feel like relatives.
    Sentence: My best friend is like family to me.
21. Tight-knit group
    → A close group of friends.
    Sentence: We’re a tight-knit group from college.
22. Bosom buddies
    → Very close friends.
    Sentence: They’ve been bosom buddies since school.
23. Sworn friends
    → Very loyal and committed friends.
    Sentence: We made a promise to be sworn friends forever.
24. To click with someone
    → To instantly connect with someone.
    Sentence: I just clicked with her during orientation.
25. To patch things up
    → To fix a broken friendship.
    Sentence: After a long talk, we patched things up.
26. To keep in touch
    → To maintain a relationship over time.
    Sentence: Even after moving, we kept in touch.
27. To go way back
    → To have known someone for a long time.
    Sentence: We go way back to kindergarten.
28. To catch up
    → To talk after some time apart.
    Sentence: Let’s catch up over coffee next week!
29. To drift apart
    → To slowly lose a close connection.
    Sentence: We were close once, but we drifted apart.
30. Circle of friends
    → A group of people you are close to.
    Sentence: She has a small but strong circle of friends.

✍️ Practice Sentences for idioms for friendship

1. Real friends stick with you through _ and thin.
2. We hit it _ the first day we met at the library.
3. My sister and her best friend are joined at the _.
4. They were angry but finally decided to bury the _.
5. He’s just a fair-_ friend—never around when I need him.
6. My college friends and I go way _.
7. We drifted _ after school, but I still miss her.
8. After months apart, we caught _ over lunch.
9. She’s my shoulder to _ on during hard times.
10. We speak the same _ when it comes to trust.

✅ Answers:

1. thick
2. off
3. hip
4. hatchet
5. weather
6. back
7. apart
8. up
9. cry
10. language

Conclusion

Learning these idioms for friendship helps you express your feelings better and build deeper connections in English. Whether you’re chatting with someone, writing an essay, or creating content, using these expressions will make your language rich and relatable. Practice regularly and try to use them naturally in real life.

❓FAQ.

Q1. Why should I learn friendship idioms?
Idioms make your English sound more natural and emotional. They also help you connect with native speakers.

Q2. Are idioms used in formal writing?
Most idioms are used in casual or conversational English, but some are acceptable in informal writing.

Q3. How can I remember these idioms?
Use them in your daily conversations, write them in your journal, or practice with exercises like fill-in-the-blanks.

Q4. What’s the difference between idioms and phrases?
Idioms have hidden meanings different from their literal words. Phrases may not always carry that hidden meaning.

Q5. Can idioms for friendship change with culture?
Yes, idioms can be cultural, so meanings may vary in different regions or countries.