The Magic of Idioms in Language
Fred kicked the bucket. Sally flys by the seat of her pants. Cat caught your tongue? What do all these sayings have in common? They are all idioms. What’s an idiom?
What’s an Idiom?
An idiom is an verbal expression that has a special meaning other than the literal words. It’s figurative, non-literal speech that translates to a known meaning. Have you been thrown under the bus lately? If so you probably are miffed about it. Thrown under the bus means to betray a friend or alley for selfish reasons. You are not actually thrown under a bus however, I bet you wish your friend was who back stabbed you, especially if they betray you right in front of you and state they put the bus in reverse to make sure you are down for the count. All kidding aside (am I?), let’s make a list of idioms and try to use a few of them this week.
- Kicked the bucket — Died, dead
- Fly by the seat of your pants — rely on instinct rather than logic or knowledge
- Cat caught your tongue — unable to speak
- Es Codo (Spanish idiom) — a person is cheap
- Take that to the bank — to emphasize that something is know for sure
- By the skin of your teeth — just barely making it
- Fit as a fiddle — in good health
- A taste of your own medicine — being treated like you treat others
- Up the creek without a paddle — in an unfortunate situation
- Shit hits the fan — the point in which a dire situation goes into utter chaos
- Now we’re cooking with gas — functioning particularly effectively
- Bite the bullet — get something over with because it’s uncomfortable
- Break a leg — good luck
- A dime a dozen — something common
- Call it a day — to stop working on something
So, go ahead and use them. They are always $free to use.
See List of Idioms for more idioms.