Idioms and Phrases

English grammar is quite fascinating as it provides an explanation of different parts of speech. In fact, it is much easier to study English than most of the prevalent languages in the world. It is the most used language in the world as it is considered the official language for communication. The words in the dictionary have literal meanings. When used in a particular format, a couple of words can mean something absolutely different. This is where idioms and phrases enter into English grammar. Students often get confused with the figurative and literal meaning of these groups of words. Let us study the meaning of idioms and phrases properly and find out how to understand the difference in the literal and actual meanings.

Idioms and Phrases: Summary

The first step is to understand the idiom’s meaning and then move forward by practicing a few examples.

An idiom is a group of words used as an expression to impart a meaning absolutely different from that of the literal meaning of the compiled words. These idioms are generally used to express your ideas, thoughts, emotions, etc., in a dramatic way. You will be astonished to know that every language has idioms and phrases. It means that the native users like to use words that mean something different to give a twist to the context but make the listener understand what they actually mean. English idioms are quite funny too. There are many examples you will find in grammar books. Let us consider one example in the beginning to understand the concept.

‘It has been raining cats and dogs since morning.’

The group of words, ‘raining cats and dogs’ literally means that the clouds are dropping dogs and cats on the ground. It sounds very funny. If you check the figurative meaning of these words, you will discover that this idiom means, ‘raining torrentially and nonstop’.

For this, you have to learn the idiom’s definition properly and move on to the examples. Learn as many examples as you can as there is no hard and fast rule to create one. you will have to memorize the figurative meaning so that you can answer the questions in the exercise easily. Here is a list of idioms. their meanings and examples you need to understand and remember for scoring well in the exams.

English Idioms and Phrases with Meanings

• Give Me a Hand

The speaker does not want someone’s hand. He actually wants the person standing or present in front of him to help him out. This idiom is used when someone needs help from someone present at that time.

• Catch Him Red-Handed

These words literally mean that someone needs to be caught whose hands are red. The idiomatic meaning states that someone needs to be caught in the act of doing something wrong. This is used when someone is caught while doing something unethical.

• Shake a Leg

The literal meaning might sound like someone is telling others to dance on the floor. It actually means that a person is telling others to hurry up as they are late. It can also be told to a single person.

• Beating Around the Bush

It literally means someone is trying to check for something but actually looking at the place where he should. In an idiomatic sense, it is used to tell someone to stop circling around and come to the point of a discussion without avoiding the subject.

• Judging a Book by its Cover

This is one of the idioms sentences used popularly in different conversations. It means someone is buying a book by just looking at the decorative elements of the cover. Its idiomatic meaning states ‘relying on superficial appearances’. In other words, one should not judge a person by how they look or where they come from as well as what is said about them.

• Once in a Blue Moon

This is one of the most common idioms and their meanings. It tells us about something that happens not very often. When you don’t see a friend often or he/she tends to miss school regularly and show up one day, you can say. ‘I see you once in a blue moon’.

• A Piece of Cake

This idiom does not even mean what the words actually say. In fact, it signifies that someone can do a piece of work easily like eating a piece of cake.

• A Dime a Dozen

This is also one of the common idiom phrases used in the English language that actually means something very common and obvious.

Idiom Vs Phrase

Although it is difficult to draw a clear line, ‘an idiom' can not be a synonym for aphorism. It is more than that. To become an idiom, a word or phrase must be distinctive, belonging to a specific language. It has to have a meaning that is not obvious from the common meaning of the words that have been employed. For example: "raining cats and dogs", "hangover", "jonesing", "You're pulling my leg", it is an English idiom used for "teasing".

An Idiom is a common word or phrase which signifies other things from its literal meaning, but it can be understood because of its popular usage whereas a phrase is a small group of words that adds meaning to a specific sentence.

A phrase is a group of words. Phrases can be short or long, but it does not include the subject-verb pairing necessary to make a clause. A phrase is a group of words that stand together as a single unit. It typically is a part of a clause or a part of a sentence. A phrase does not always contain a subject and a verb. It cannot convey a complete thought. A phrase contrasts with a clause. A clause contains a subject and a verb. It has to convey a complete idea. Phrases consist of Noun Phrases, Verb Phrases, Gerund Phrases, Infinitive Phrases, Appositive Phrases, Participial Phrases, Prepositional Phrases and Absolute Phrase. 

1. Noun Phrases: A noun phrase consists of a noun and all of its modifiers. 

2. Verb Phrases: A verb phrase consists of a verb and all its modifiers. 

3. Gerund phrases: A gerund phrase is a noun phrase that starts with a gerund. 

4. Infinitive Phrases: An infinitive phrase is a noun phrase that begins with an infinitive verb. 

5. Appositive Phrases: An appositive phrase restates and defines a noun. It consists of one or more words. 

6. Participial Phrases: A participial phrase begins with a past or present participle. 

7. Prepositional Phrases: A prepositional phrase begins with a preposition that does act as a noun, an adjective or an adverb. 

8. Absolute Phrases: An absolute phrase has a subject but it doesn’t contain an action verb. It cannot stand alone as a complete sentence. It modifies the whole sentence, not just a noun only. 

Examples of different Phrases Defined Above are as Follows

• Examples of Verb Phrases: She was waiting for the rain to stop.

• Examples of Gerund Phrases: Getting a promotion is exciting.

• Examples of Infinitive Phrases: To see Niagara Falls is mind-boggling.

• Examples of Appositive Phrase: A cheetah, the fastest land animal, can run 70 miles an hour.

• Examples of Participial Phrases: The happy dog ran the entire length of the park, pausing only to sniff the dandelions.

• Examples of Prepositional Phrases: He won the challenge against all odds.

• Examples of Absolute Phrases: The guys attacked the pile of nachos, their fingers getting the last bit of cheese off the plate.

Conclusion

An idiom is a phrase or a group of words with an underlying metaphorical meaning. It has become accepted in common usage. An idiom’s symbolic meaning is quite different from its literal meaning or definition of the words from which it is made. There are a large number of Idioms, and they are used in all languages. There are estimated to be around twenty five thousand idioms in the English language. Idioms evolve the language. They are also the building blocks of a language. They have great capacity to make a language exciting and dynamic. Idiomatic expressions do bring some kind of a spectacular illustration to everyday speech and it provides compelling insights into the usage of words, languages, and to the speakers’ thought process. Idioms have a sense of mystery and fun surrounding them. Vedantu provides you with explanatory articles on all topics that you need to cater to your learning needs.