What are some examples of idioms?

Answer 1

Here are some of the more common idioms :

1. Piece of cake - easy
2. Under the weather - not feeling well
3. Keep your chin up* - be brave
4. Butterflies in your stomach - nervous
5. All thumbs - clumsy
6. Slip of the tongue - verbal error
7. Slap on the wrist* - mild punishment
8. Spill the beans - to tell something that was supposed to be secret
9. At wit's end - frustrated until you can't think of anything else to do

*these may not be considered actual idioms, because they reflect an action taken that would clearly indicate the meaning of the phrase. The hallmark of an idiom is that it does not mean what it says.

(see the related answers and links, especially the lists of idioms and their meanings)

What is an Idiom

An idiom, or idiomatic expression, is a phrase or term whose meaning cannot be guessed from a literal definition of the words. The phrase seems to make sense if you look up the individual words, but other people seem to mean something totally different when they say it, or the phrase makes no sense along with the rest of the conversation.

There are really two types of idioms:

1) Expressions whose literal meanings are nonsensical and do not mean their figurative meanings, such as "The police informant spilled the beans," "It's 100 miles away as the crow flies," "John sounded serious but said it tongue in cheek," "At the party, Jane made a long speech off the cuff," "The cops were on a fishing expedition for evidence";

2) Short phrases that have peculiar syntax and word usage, usually involving prepositions. Examples include: "The remote control is in back of the couch," "When the bell rang, Bob answered the door," "I had to look up the word in the dictionary," "Mary doesn't get along with her sister," "We proceeded with our plans in spite of the weather."

Why Idioms Are Confusing

In the English language expression 'to kick the bucket', for example, a listener knowing only the meaning of kick and bucket would be unable to deduce the expression's actual meaning, which is to die.

Although it can refer literally to the act of striking a specific bucket with a foot, native speakers rarely use it that way. It cannot be directly translated to other languages - for example, the same expression in Polish is to kick the calendar, with the calendar being as detached from its usual meaning as the bucket in the English phrase is. The same expression in Dutch is het loodje leggen (to lay the piece of lead), which is entirely different from the English expression, too.

It is estimated that William Shakespeare coined over 2,000 idioms still in use today.

Idioms hence tend to confuse those not already familiar with them; students of a new language must learn its idiomatic expressions the way they learn its other vocabulary. In fact many natural language words have idiomatic origins, but have been sufficiently assimilated so that their figurative senses have been lost.

A Long Answer (contains many idioms you can look up)

Any Tom, Dick or Harry could answer this question, and what I mean by any Tom, Dick or Harry is any answerer here on WikiAnswers, as idiomatic expressions are a dime a dozen, here in the English language and what I mean by a dime a dozen is that there are more idioms in the English language than you can shake a stick at. First, before we start listing idiomatic expressions as if it were some kind of blow by blowdescription, it is best, as a rule of thumb, to understand what idioms or an idiomatic expression is. I should however point out that the idiom that you can shake a stick at means a whole lot and blow by blow means detailed description and a rule of thumb is common sense knowledge passed down to us since time immemorial. Now, to define idiom or idiomatic expression let's just start by calling a spade a spade and by that I mean let's be frank about it...I mean, what is an idiom really but a clever or hackneyed way to cut to the chase and by that I mean get to the point. Now then, what was my point? Oh right, idiom defined! Idioms are words that when used together do not mean the same thing as separately defined. In other words, idioms are like the dog and pony show of language because when you think about it, what do things like dog eat dog or better to dance with the devil you know or discretion is the better part of valor really mean when they are simply quaint idiomatic expressions that reveal lots of style without any obligation of substance?

Of course, that is not to say that we don't really live in a dog eat dog world where it's every man for themselves and when you are stuck in that sort of a situation I suppose it is better to dance with the devil you do know than the devil you don't and of course, if you're dancing with devils discretion is most certainly the better part of valor and reticence truly divine. All I am saying is that what real purpose do idioms provide other than decorating one's thoughts? Garnishing our ideas with familiar expressions can oftentimes be a double edged sword, and by that I mean the expressions should be used to better communicate your ideas and not to further confuse the issue. Especially if the idiom is misused. For example, if you are debating an issue with someone and they point to an error in your argument, if you respond by saying: "Point given" instead of the familiar expression point taken, it should be clear the confusion that would follow. Can you imagine if someone said: "It's better to dance with devils than someone you know" how that might be a little confusing? I'll tell you what, you can bet your bottom dollar that if someone said that to me I would be more than just confused and would try to drive home the point that they were mixing their metaphors or illegally interpreting their idioms.

Look, I don't want to rain on anyone's parade, or burst their bubbles, and if people want to go through life wearing rose colored glasses that's fine by me, but I would argue that if you are going to use an idiomatic expression you should first know and understand exactly what it is you are saying by saying it that way. I'm not saying you should have to rack your brain analyzing every word or idiom you utter, but are you sure when you are using these idiomatic expressions that you know what you're talking about? If you don't and you use an idiom inappropriately you are likely to raise some eyebrows and may even find yourself being raked over the coals and by that I mean taken to task for your misappropriation of idiomatic expressionism. When using idioms people shouldn't have to read between the lines in order to discern what you meant by using that idiom. It is better to be on the same page with the people you are communicating to when using idioms. All I am saying is that at the end of the day it is better to wake up and smell the coffee than to eat your humble pie.

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(see the related questions and links below)

Answer 2

Here are some of the more common idioms :

1. Piece of cake - easy
2. Under the weather - not feeling well
3. Keep your chin up* - be brave
4. Butterflies in your stomach - nervous
5. All thumbs - clumsy
6. Slip of the tongue - verbal error
7. Slap on the wrist* - mild punishment
8. Spill the beans - to tell something that was supposed to be secret
9. At wit's end - frustrated until you can't think of anything else to do

*these may not be considered actual idioms, because they reflect an action taken that would clearly indicate the meaning of the phrase. The hallmark of an idiom is that it does not mean what it says.

(see the related answers and links, especially the lists of idioms and their meanings)

What is an Idiom

An idiom, or idiomatic expression, is a phrase or term whose meaning cannot be guessed from a literal definition of the words. The phrase seems to make sense if you look up the individual words, but other people seem to mean something totally different when they say it, or the phrase makes no sense along with the rest of the conversation.

There are really two types of idioms:

1) Expressions whose literal meanings are nonsensical and do not mean their figurative meanings, such as "The police informant spilled the beans," "It's 100 miles away as the crow flies," "John sounded serious but said it tongue in cheek," "At the party, Jane made a long speech off the cuff," "The cops were on a fishing expedition for evidence";

2) Short phrases that have peculiar syntax and word usage, usually involving prepositions. Examples include: "The remote control is in back of the couch," "When the bell rang, Bob answered the door," "I had to look up the word in the dictionary," "Mary doesn't get along with her sister," "We proceeded with our plans in spite of the weather."

Why Idioms Are Confusing

In the English language expression 'to kick the bucket', for example, a listener knowing only the meaning of kick and bucket would be unable to deduce the expression's actual meaning, which is to die.

Although it can refer literally to the act of striking a specific bucket with a foot, native speakers rarely use it that way. It cannot be directly translated to other languages - for example, the same expression in Polish is to kick the calendar, with the calendar being as detached from its usual meaning as the bucket in the English phrase is. The same expression in Dutch is het loodje leggen (to lay the piece of lead), which is entirely different from the English expression, too.

It is estimated that William Shakespeare coined over 2,000 idioms still in use today.

Idioms hence tend to confuse those not already familiar with them; students of a new language must learn its idiomatic expressions the way they learn its other vocabulary. In fact many natural language words have idiomatic origins, but have been sufficiently assimilated so that their figurative senses have been lost.

A Long Answer (contains many idioms you can look up)

Any Tom, Dick or Harry could answer this question, and what I mean by any Tom, Dick or Harry is any answerer here on WikiAnswers, as idiomatic expressions are a dime a dozen, here in the English language and what I mean by a dime a dozen is that there are more idioms in the English language than you can shake a stick at. First, before we start listing idiomatic expressions as if it were some kind of blow by blowdescription, it is best, as a rule of thumb, to understand what idioms or an idiomatic expression is. I should however point out that the idiom that you can shake a stick at means a whole lot and blow by blow means detailed description and a rule of thumb is common sense knowledge passed down to us since time immemorial. Now, to define idiom or idiomatic expression let's just start by calling a spade a spade and by that I mean let's be frank about it...I mean, what is an idiom really but a clever or hackneyed way to cut to the chase and by that I mean get to the point. Now then, what was my point? Oh right, idiom defined! Idioms are words that when used together do not mean the same thing as separately defined. In other words, idioms are like the dog and pony show of language because when you think about it, what do things like dog eat dog or better to dance with the devil you know or discretion is the better part of valor really mean when they are simply quaint idiomatic expressions that reveal lots of style without any obligation of substance?

Of course, that is not to say that we don't really live in a dog eat dog world where it's every man for themselves and when you are stuck in that sort of a situation I suppose it is better to dance with the devil you do know than the devil you don't and of course, if you're dancing with devils discretion is most certainly the better part of valor and reticence truly divine. All I am saying is that what real purpose do idioms provide other than decorating one's thoughts? Garnishing our ideas with familiar expressions can oftentimes be a double edged sword, and by that I mean the expressions should be used to better communicate your ideas and not to further confuse the issue. Especially if the idiom is misused. For example, if you are debating an issue with someone and they point to an error in your argument, if you respond by saying: "Point given" instead of the familiar expression point taken, it should be clear the confusion that would follow. Can you imagine if someone said: "It's better to dance with devils than someone you know" how that might be a little confusing? I'll tell you what, you can bet your bottom dollar that if someone said that to me I would be more than just confused and would try to drive home the point that they were mixing their metaphors or illegally interpreting their idioms.

Look, I don't want to rain on anyone's parade, or burst their bubbles, and if people want to go through life wearing rose colored glasses that's fine by me, but I would argue that if you are going to use an idiomatic expression you should first know and understand exactly what it is you are saying by saying it that way. I'm not saying you should have to rack your brain analyzing every word or idiom you utter, but are you sure when you are using these idiomatic expressions that you know what you're talking about? If you don't and you use an idiom inappropriately you are likely to raise some eyebrows and may even find yourself being raked over the coals and by that I mean taken to task for your misappropriation of idiomatic expressionism. When using idioms people shouldn't have to read between the lines in order to discern what you meant by using that idiom. It is better to be on the same page with the people you are communicating to when using idioms. All I am saying is that at the end of the day it is better to wake up and smell the coffee than to eat your humble pie.

---

(see the related questions and links below)