Street Directions phrases and words in English
Directions sound simple until a local rattles off 'it's a stone's throw away, you can't miss it'. These are the real phrases people use to point you somewhere — and almost all of them double as everyday figures of speech about being lost, on track, or way off.
10 phrases · meanings & example sentences
“Just around the corner”
Literally a few steps away, just past the next corner. But it's used far more for time than distance — meaning something is about to happen very soon, almost here.
- The pharmacy's just around the corner, you'll see it
- Don't stress about exams, but they're just around the corner
- Summer's just around the corner and I'm not ready
“A stone's throw away”
As close as you could throw a stone — so, very near. A vivid old way to say something is within easy reach, used for places that are practically next door.
- The beach is a stone's throw away from the flat
- Great spot — restaurants and the station are all a stone's throw away
- We grew up a stone's throw away from each other and never met
“You can't miss it”
The classic reassurance at the end of any direction — it's so obvious you couldn't possibly walk past it. Famously, people say this about places you absolutely can miss, which is half the charm.
- Big red door, second floor, you can't miss it
- It's the only tall building for miles — you can't miss it
- Follow the smell of fresh bread, honestly you can't miss it
“In the middle of nowhere”
Somewhere so remote it feels like it's nowhere near anything — no shops, no signal, no landmarks. Used for genuinely isolated places and, jokingly, for anywhere a bit too far out for comfort.
- The hotel turned out to be in the middle of nowhere
- We broke down in the middle of nowhere with no signal
- He bought a place in the middle of nowhere and loves it
“As the crow flies”
The straight-line distance between two points, ignoring roads and detours — the path a crow would take flying directly over everything. Used to contrast how near somewhere looks on a map with how long it actually takes to get there.
- It's two miles as the crow flies but a 40-minute drive round the bay
- As the crow flies we're neighbours, but the river's in the way
- Looks close as the crow flies — the mountain road says otherwise
“Hit a dead end”
A dead end is a street with no way through — you have to turn back. Used constantly as a metaphor for any effort that leads nowhere: a stalled search, a conversation, an investigation that runs out of road.
- Turn back, this road hits a dead end
- The job hunt hit a dead end so I'm changing tactics
- Every lead in the case hit a dead end
“Take a wrong turn”
To turn off in the wrong direction and end up off course. Literally a driving mistake, but widely used for life going off the rails — a bad decision that sends everything the wrong way.
- We took a wrong turn and added an hour to the trip
- His career took a wrong turn after he left that job
- The party was fine until the conversation took a wrong turn
“Lose your bearings”
Bearings are your sense of which direction is which — lose them and you no longer know where you are or which way to go. Used for physical disorientation and for feeling lost or unsteady in life generally.
- I lost my bearings the second I left the station
- Give me a map, I've completely lost my bearings
- After the move he lost his bearings for a few months
“Back on track”
From a train returning to its rails — back on the correct route after a detour or delay. Hugely common for getting plans, projects, health or life back to where they should be after going off course.
- One more left turn and we're back on track
- Took a week off and now I'm finally back on track with work
- We had a rough patch but we're back on track now
“Go the long way round”
To take a longer route than necessary — sometimes by mistake, sometimes on purpose for the scenery. Also a neat metaphor for doing something the slow, roundabout way instead of the direct one.
- Let's go the long way round, the coast road is gorgeous
- Sat-nav died so we went the long way round
- He always explains things the long way round when one sentence would do
