腕を上げる
improve one's skill
→ I cook every day and have improved my skill considerably.
手を焼く
be at a loss what to do with
→ I am at a loss what to do with the child who only plays pranks.
手を引く
wash one's hands of
→ You better wash your hands of dangerous business quickly.
手が届く
be within one's reach
→ If I try hard, that goal might be within my reach.
手が出ない
beyond one's reach
→ A luxury car is too expensive and beyond my reach.
手が込む
intricate, complicated
→ This dish is extremely intricate.
手が回らない
be too busy to attend to
→ I'm too busy to attend to minor tasks.
手を尽くす
try all possible means
→ Try all possible means to cure the illness.
手に余る
be beyond one's capability
→ This large project is beyond my capability.
手に負えない
be uncontrollable
→ I can no longer handle his selfish behavior.
手がつけられない
be out of hand
→ The room is so messy that it is out of hand.
手を切る
break off relations with
→ You should cleanly break off relations with bad companions.
手を打つ
take measures
→ Take measures early before the problem gets bigger.
足が棒になる
one's legs become stiff
→ I walked around all day and my legs became stiff.
足を引っ張る
stand in someone's way
→ I practice desperately so as not to stand in the team's way.
揚げ足をとる
trip someone up
→ Stop tripping someone up on their slip of the tongue.
足元を見る
take advantage of someone's weakness
→ Take advantage of someone's weakness when they are in trouble and ask an unreasonably high price.
足が早い
spoil easily
→ Raw fish spoils easily, so put it in the fridge immediately.
足元にも及ばない
be no match for
→ I am no match for his talent at all.
手足となる
work as one's assistant
→ An excellent secretary working as the president's assistant.
