book review on english idioms and figurative expression

Idioms in Figurative Language with Examples and Activities

The idea for this blog post all started when I was in the car with my 4-year-old twins and asking them what they wanted in their premade dinner snack box because we had swimming lessons that night so I like to give them a little pre-dinner meal in the car so they can make it until actual dinner after swimming lessons.

First, I asked one twin and he told me what he wanted. I then moved on to the other twin asking him what he wanted to eat, however, he was fully engulfed in play in his car seat and didn’t hear my question. I then proceeded to say, “Earth to Boden”. Both boys thought that was such a weird comment to make. Was I trying to send Boden to earth? But he was already on earth…right?

I then went on to explain that it is an expression meaning, “Hello, are you paying attention?” They both laughed and said, “oh!”

This sweet little moment with my boys got me thinking about idioms and just how confusing they can be. So I decided I’d bring to you a quick guide to idioms and figurative language as well as 10 common examples with a free idiom activity for your child or students.

Idioms and Figurative Language: A Comprehensive Guide

Idioms are figurative expressions that are common in everyday speech in the English language. As a form of figurative language, idioms use words in an imaginative manner to convey non-literal meanings that are not immediately obvious from the literal interpretation of the words. 

Understanding figurative language is important for effective communication in English, as it can convey complex ideas and emotions in a concise and memorable way. Idiomatic expressions are just one type of figurative language, but they are common and can be found in many different contexts, from everyday conversations to literature.

Enhancing figurative language skills can be challenging, as it requires a deep understanding of the English language and the ability to use words creatively. 

However, by learning about the different types of figurative language and practicing their use in everyday conversations, you can help your students become more confident and effective in their communication! 

We have gathered 10 common idiom videos and have created a fun free activity to go along with them below.

Key Takeaways

• Idioms are a form of figurative language that use words in an imaginative manner to convey a meaning that is not immediately obvious from the literal interpretation of the words.
• Figurative language is important for effective communication in English, as it can convey complex ideas and emotions in a concise and memorable way.
• Enhancing your figurative language skills can be challenging, but by learning about the different types of figurative language and practicing their use in everyday conversations, you can become more confident and effective in your communication.

Understanding Figurative Language

Figurative language is the use of words or expressions that convey a non-literal meaning, often to create a more vivid or impactful image in the mind of the listener or reader.  

It goes beyond its literal meaning to convey a more abstract or symbolic idea. 

This can include the use of metaphors, similes, idioms, and other types of figurative expressions. 

Distinguishing Literal from Figurative

• Literal Expressions – the straightforward, dictionary meaning of words or a phrase. 

Example: “give a cold shoulder” would mean to actually give some a shoulder that is frozen.

• Figurative Meaning   – the listener has to interpret the non-literal meaning based on context, cultural knowledge and personal experiences. 

Example: “give a cold shoulder” has different meanings in the English language, and is a type of idiomatic expression that means to purposefully be rude or unfriendly to someone.

Understanding figurative language in everyday speech is an essential aspect of effective communication. It is a powerful tool that allows us to convey complex ideas and emotions in a more engaging and memorable way, and can help to create a deeper connection with the listener or reader. 

Types of Figurative Language

There are several types of figurative language that writers use to convey powerful messages in a creative way. These tools of expression are often used to add depth and meaning to the text. 

Here are some of the most commonly used types of figurative language! 

Similes and Metaphors are used for comparison.

• Simile – Uses “like” or “as” to compare two things that are not alike.

Example: Her eyes are as blue as the sky.

• Metaphors – Directly compares two things without using “like” or “as”.

Example: Life is a journey. 

Idioms and Proverbs are used to convey human characteristics and emotions.

• Idiom – A phrase or expression that has a figurative meaning that is different than its literal meaning.

Example – I can put that together it’s a piece of cake.

• ​ Proverb – Is a short saying that is used to convey a moral or lesson.

Example – You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.

Hyperbole and Understatement are opposite figures of speech.

• Hyperbole – Is an exaggeration used to emphasize a point.

​ Example: I told you a million times.

• Understatement – Downplays the importance of something.

Example: It’s just a scratch. 

Personification and Anthropomorphism are two examples of figurative language that give human characteristics to non-human things.

• Personification – Is when a non-human object, animal, or thing is described with human characteristics.

Example: The alarm clock yelled.

• Anthropomorphism – Is when a non-human object, animal, or thing behaves like a human.

Example: The wind whispered through the trees. 

Challenges in Figurative Language

Understanding idioms and figurative expressions can be challenging for many individuals, including non-native English speakers and those with language disorders. 

For Non-Native Speakers 

Non-native English speakers may struggle to understand idioms and figurative language due to the different meanings these expressions can have. Idioms often have non-literal meanings that are not immediately apparent from the words used. 

Another challenge for non-native speakers is the cultural understanding or understandings of the origins of the phrase required to grasp the meaning of common idioms. 

Idioms are often rooted in cultural references that may not be familiar to those from different backgrounds. 

For Individuals with Language Disorders

Individuals with language disorders may also struggle to understand idioms and figurative language. These individuals may have difficulty processing the metaphorical meanings of idioms and may interpret them literally. 

For example, someone with a language disorder may interpret the idiom “hold your horses” as a literal instruction to hold onto a horse.

Another challenge for individuals with language disorders is the difficulty in understanding the context in which idioms are used. Idioms often rely on context to convey their meaning, and individuals with language disorders may have difficulty understanding this context. 

For example, the idiom “the cat’s out of the bag” means that a secret has been revealed, but this meaning may not be clear to someone who is not familiar with the situation in which the idiom is used.

SEE ALSO: 31 Best Wordless Videos to Teach Problem Solving

Idioms in the english language.

Idioms are a type of figurative language that native English speakers use every day. They are phrases that have a meaning different from the literal interpretation of the words. Idiomatic expressions are an essential part of the English language, and they add color and depth to everyday conversation.

Common Idioms and Their Meanings

English has a vast collection of idiomatic expressions that are used every day by native speakers. Each idiom has its meaning, and it is essential to understand the context in which it is used to comprehend its meaning. 

Origins and Evolution

Idioms have been a part of the English language for centuries, and their origins can be traced back to cultural metaphors. Many idioms have their roots in literature, mythology, and historical events. 

For example, the idiom “barking up the wrong tree” has its origins in hunting, where dogs would bark up the wrong tree, indicating that they were chasing the wrong prey. Over time, the meaning of idioms can change, and new idioms can emerge.

Regional Variations

Idioms can vary from region to region, and even from country to country. For example, the idiom “take a rain check” is commonly used in North America to mean that someone cannot accept an invitation but would like to do so at a later time. 

In the UK, the equivalent idiom is “take a ticket for the next bus.” Understanding regional variations in idiomatic expressions can help non-native speakers communicate more effectively with native speakers.

SEE ALSO: 71+ Free Social Problem-Solving Scenarios

Enhancing Figurative Language Skills

To improve our figurative language skills, we need to learn and practice strategies that can help us understand and use idioms in our daily communication.

Learning and Practice Strategies

One of the best ways to learn idioms is through practice exercises. Below we have created a free idiom activity that can help your students learn and understand the meaning of idioms. Other exercises can be in the form of quizzes, games, or worksheets, and can be a fun way to learn new idioms. 

Another great way to practice idioms is through video examples, which we have compiled below.

A great way to enhance our figurative language skills is by using context clues. Context clues are the words or phrases surrounding an unfamiliar idiom that can help us understand its meaning. By analyzing the context, we can decipher the meaning of the idiom and use it in our communication.

Contextual Understanding and Usage

To use idioms effectively, we need to understand the meaning of the words that make up the idiom. By understanding the word meanings, we can use idioms in the right context and convey our message effectively. We can also group idioms together based on their meaning and use them in social groups.

SEE ALSO: Problem Solving Wheel: Help Kids Solve Their Own Problems

10 Common Idiom Examples with Video Explanations

We have compiled 10 idiomatic expressions that are common in the english language. Use the one minute short videos, by @TomsTalkingELA, as a way to explain these figurative expressions in further detail. 

These videos are powerful tools to explain the meaning of words, the origins of the phrase, the idioms non-literal meanings, and examples of how to use these common idioms in everyday speech. 

Don’t forget to download our free common idiom exercise activity below!

Breaking the Ice

Back to the Drawing Board

To Be All Ears

Cutting Corners

Eating your Words

Under the Weather

Judge a Book by its Cover

Crying over Spilled Milk

Break a Leg

Penny for your Thoughts 

Idioms and figurative expressions can be challenging but are an effective way to communicate with peers and in different social groups. 

We hope this quick explanation, as well as videos and activities to teach commonly used idioms, was helpful for you! Be sure to grab the 10 Commonly Used Idioms Activity. This is a free preview of our 100 Common Idioms + Quizzes Bundle!

Grab Your Free 10 Commonly Used Idioms Activity Here!

Simply enter your name and email to have this free 10 Idiom Activity emailed directly to your inbox! 

Grab Your Idioms in Figurative Language Free Activity

Buy the complete 100 commonly used idioms activity here, frequently asked questions, what are examples of idioms and their meanings.

Idioms are expressions that convey a figurative meaning different from the literal meaning of the words used. Examples of idioms and their meanings include “kick the bucket” which means to die, “at the drop of a hat” which means to do something right away, “break a leg” which means good luck, “raining cats and dogs” which means heavy rain. 

How does figurative language enhance communication?

Figurative language enhances communication by adding depth, color, and creativity to speech and writing. It helps convey emotions, experiences, and ideas in a way that is more interesting, memorable, and engaging than literal language. Figurative language can also help build rapport, establish trust, and create a sense of connection between the speaker and the listener.

Can you list different types of figurative language with definitions?

There are many types of figurative language, including:

• Simile: A comparison between two unlike things using “like” or “as.” Example: “She sings like an angel.”
• Metaphor: A comparison between two unlike things without using “like” or “as.” Example: “Life is a journey.”
• Personification: Giving human qualities to non-human things. Example: “The wind whispered in my ear.”
• Hyperbole: Exaggerating for effect. Example: “I’ve told you a million times.”
• Alliteration: Repeating the same sound at the beginning of words. Example: “Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.”

What distinguishes literal from figurative language?

Literal language refers to the use of words in their usual or most basic sense, while figurative language refers to the use of words in a non-literal or imaginative way. Literal language is straightforward and factual, while figurative language is more expressive, creative, and subjective.

How can figurative language be effectively used in speech therapy?

Figurative language can be effectively used in speech therapy to help clients improve their language skills, especially in areas such as vocabulary, comprehension, and social communication. By teaching clients to identify and use figurative language, speech therapists can help them become more effective communicators and better able to navigate social situations.

What role does alliteration play in figurative language?

Alliteration is a type of figurative language that involves the repetition of the same sound at the beginning of words. It is often used in poetry, slogans, and advertising to create a memorable and catchy effect. Alliteration can also be used to emphasize certain words or ideas, and to create a sense of rhythm and flow in speech and writing.

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25 Reading idioms about books and more, with explanations and examples

If you love reading books, you are probably already familiar with a lot of English idioms . These figurative expressions help make our writing more vibrant and descriptive, but they can be hard to understand.

Here we have a helpful list of idioms about books and reading – whether it’s reading literature or reading in some other sense of the word.

With each of the reading idioms on this list, we have included a definition and example sentence so you can see how to use them correctly. So, settle into a comfy spot and let’s get started!

Idioms about books

Let’s begin with some idioms about books (many of which are also about reading). Then, we’ll move on to some more general reading idioms.

Here’s a lovely book idiom to start us off. A bookworm is simply someone who loves reading. They are likely to spend much of their free time engrossed in books.

“Our whole family are bookworms. We don’t even have a TV; we’d much rather be reading.”

Lost in a good book

This is a common state for bookworms! To be/get lost in a good book usually refers to fiction books, and suggests being so engrossed in the story that you lose track of time and the surrounding world.

“The only way I can truly relax is to get lost in a good book for a few hours.” “Once Charles is lost in a good book, you can’t get through to him.”

Balance the books

Next in our list of book idioms we have an expression about finance . Balancing the books is the act of ensuring that financial records are accurate, usually by reconciling income and expenses or by addressing discrepancies in bookkeeping.

“Our accountant needs some time to balance the books for the last quarter. Once that’s done, we’ll have a clearer financial picture.”

Cook the books

This might sound like a cooking idiom , but it’s actually about finance again. It’s not as positive as the one above though; to cook the books is to falsify financial records.

“It looks like this company has been cooking the books for years.”

It should go without saying that this action is dishonest and fraudulent.

Page-turner

Have you ever read a book that you just couldn’t put down because you wanted to keep reading it? That kind of book can be described as a page-turner .

“I started reading that novel last night, and it was such a page turner, I didn’t go to sleep until 3am.”

Read someone like a book

If you can read someone like a book , it means you can easily understand their thoughts, feelings, or intentions based on their behavior or body language – just as easily as reading words on a page.

“I’ve known her for years, and I can read her like a book.”

You may also hear ‘like an open book’ used in this phrase.

Have your nose in a book

When you are deeply engrossed in reading, with your full attention and focus dedicated to the book, people may comment that you have your nose in a book .

“I tried to get his attention, but he had his nose in a book. He’s always lost in some fascinating story.”

Have your head buried in books

This book idiom is similar to the one above, in that it describes someone being deeply engrossed in reading, often to the point of being oblivious to their surroundings or other activities.

However, to have your head buried in books is more of an idiom about education , as it suggests they are consulting several books at once in a studious way, rather than reading for fun or pleasure.

“I haven’t seen Sarah for days. She’s been preparing for her exams, with her head buried in books day and night.”

Close the book on something

When you conclude or finalize a matter, particularly one that has been ongoing or unresolved for a while, you are said to close the book on it .

This signifies putting an end to a situation or decision-making process, just as you would close a book when you have finished reading it.

“After much research and contemplation, I’ve decided to close the book on my project.” “After months of investigations, the committee decided to close the book on the issue and move forward with other pressing matters.”

Note that closing the book on something doesn’t necessarily mean the matter is fully resolved, only that you have decided to move on from it.

Don’t judge a book by its cover

The famous life lesson don’t judge a book by its cover means that you should not make assumptions or form opinions about something or someone based solely on outward appearances.

This common idiom reminds us of the importance of looking beyond superficial characteristics to truly understand and appreciate the essence of a person or thing.

“I know the presentation may seem dull, but remember, don’t judge a book by its cover. The content inside might surprise you!” “Did you know Clarissa is quite a successful businesswoman? Just goes to show, you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover.”

An open book

When someone is described as an open book , it means they are transparent and reveal their thoughts, emotions, or intentions without hesitation. They are easy to understand or figure out due to their straightforward nature.

“You never have to imagine what Sarah is thinking or feeling. She’s like an open book, always honest and upfront about everything.”

Of course, the opposite of this saying would be a closed book ; someone who is very hard to figure out due to their shy or secretive nature.

Hit the books

If you’re getting ready for an exam it may be time to hit the books . This learning idiom means to study or engage in serious reading, usually in preparation for an examination or to acquire knowledge on a particular subject.

“I have a big test tomorrow, so I need to hit the books tonight and review all the important concepts.”

Throw the book at someone

This expression is used when talking about the justice system or any other disciplinary procedure.

When a judge, lawmaker, or other person in authority throws the book at someone , they impose the most severe punishment or legal penalties on someone for their actions.

“Sadly the judge threw the book at him and gave the maximum jail time.” “David decided to resign before the board of directors threw the book at him for his misconduct.”

One for the books

If something remarkable, memorable, or outstanding happens, you could comment that it’s one for the books . It means that the action or event is worth remembering.

“I can’t believe we had such beautiful weather for our vacation. Not a spot of rain. That’s one for the books!” “The team won the match despite being 2 men down. Definitely one for the books.”

This was originally a sports idiom , referring to the books used to record sporting achievements, but nowadays it can refer to any kind of act or event.

You may still hear people say one for the record books , though, especially if referring to an outstanding achievement.

Reading idioms

Read between the lines.

To read between the lines is to understand or perceive a deeper or hidden meaning that is not explicitly stated. It involves interpreting or inferring information beyond the literal words written or spoken.

“His email seemed innocent, but I read between the lines and sensed his true intentions.” “If you read between the lines, it’s obvious that the company is discussing a merger.”

Read the writing on the wall

When you read the writing on the wall you notice and interpret small signs or clues that point to something happening in the future. This writing idiom generally refers to something negative happening.

“With the company’s declining profits and increasing layoffs, we can read the writing on the wall.”

This is an example of an idiom from the Bible , originating in the book of Daniel.

Read up on something

If you want to educate yourself about something in detail, or refresh your memory of some past knowledge, you should read up on it . This is the act of studying or researching a particular topic or subject to gain knowledge or information.

“I’m planning a trip to Japan, so I’ve been reading up on the country’s culture, customs and popular tourist destinations.” “I had a meeting with a potential client today so I spent all night reading up on the company, and then they canceled at the last minute.”

Turn the page

To turn the page is to make a fresh start after a period of trouble in your life. It’s about leaving something negative in the past and hoping for better things in the future.

“I’m not going to go chasing after Julia any more. It’s time to turn the page on that relationship.”

The saying turn over a new leaf has a similar meaning about making a positive change in your life, especially turning away from some detrimental behavior and resolving to do things differently.

“After years of unhealthy habits, I’ve decided to turn over a new leaf and prioritize my health and wellbeing.”

These are both good idioms to talk about the future in a positive way.

On the same page

When people are on the same page , it means they share a common understanding, viewpoint, or goal. They are in agreement or have aligned perspectives.

“Let’s make sure we’re all on the same page before we proceed with the project. We need everyone’s input and consensus.”

Read the room

Here’s another of our reading idioms that refers to the ability to assess a situation.

This time, to read the room is to understand the atmosphere or mood in a particular setting or among a group of people. It involves gauging the reactions, emotions, or dynamics of the situation.

“Before giving a speech, it’s essential to read the room and adjust your approach accordingly.”

Read someone’s mind

If you can read someone’s mind , it means you can understand their thoughts, desires or intentions without them explicitly expressing them. This usually happens when you have a close connection with someone and know them very well.

“There’s no point hiding anything from my wife. After 20 years together, she can read my mind anyway.” “You bought pizza for dinner? You must have read my mind – that’s excactly what I was craving!”

Of course, some people will claim they can read your mind without knowing you at all, perhaps as a magic trick, but can you really do that ?

Read the fine print

Whenever you sign an agreement or contract, there are usually lots of terms and conditions to read. This text is referred to as ‘fine print’ (or ‘small print’, in British English ).

You’d better read the fine print carefully, because some companies hide a lot of unfavorable terms in there, hoping that you won’t notice.

“Before signing the lease, make sure you read the fine print.”

We hope this list of reading idioms has provided you with some amusement and insight into the captivating world of English language and literature.

Feel free to leave a comment below if you know any other good idioms about books that should be on this list. Otherwise, we wish you happy reading!

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English By Day

Everything you need to know about learning english

47 Common Book Idioms & Phrases (Meaning & Examples)

February 6, 2022 by Wes

Are you looking for some common book idioms ?

You are in the right place.

In this post, we will look at 47 useful idioms about books that you can use in your everyday English.

47 Common Books Idioms

A closed book.

• Meaning: A person or subject that few know much about.
• Example: Sullivan is a closed book. We know nothing about him.

An open book

• M eaning: A person or subject that is easy to get to know, or is well known
• Example: Don’t be scared to ask Molly anything, she’s an open book.
• M eaning: A person who acquires knowledge from reading and studying, but lacks common sense.
• Example: Jennifer may be book smart, but she has no common sense! How many times do I have to remind her to look both ways before crossing the street?
• M eaning: A person who loves to read
• Example: Lisa is such a book worm. She has read 3 books just this week!
• M eaning: A way to describe someone’s financial state
• Example: I went through my bankbook and I have no money for my rent this month.

By the book

• M eaning: A person who does something according to the rules.
• Example: Chris does everything by the book, so you know it is getting done right. I really appreciate that type of dedication.

Cuddle up with a good book

• M eaning: To get cozy and comfortable while reading a book.
• Example: My plan for this afternoon is to cuddle up with a good book.

Do you read me?

• M eaning: Another way of asking “do you understand me?”
• Example: Hey Peter, do you read me?

Every trick in the book

• M eaning: To try all available means to achieve the desired result
• Example: I’ve tried every trick in the book, yet I still can’t get my car to start. I think I need to surrender and just buy a new one.

I’ll see you in the funny pages

• M eaning: A way to say farewell or goodbye to someone.
• Example: Thank you for everything. I’ll see you in the funny pages.
• M eaning: In my personal opinion
• Example: In my book, Rory is a good person. She tries her best and is always encouraging others.

In someone’s bad book

• M eaning: To be in someone’s disfavor, to have their disapproval
• Example: Timothy is definitely in Paul’s bad book.

In someone’s good book

• M eaning: To be in someone’s favor, to have their approval
• Example: Rosie is in Henry’s good book. She has made quite the impression on him.

Off the books

• M eaning: When something is off the record or done in secret
• Example: Keep Kayden’s contribution to the new library off the books. We don’t want to spark a competition between the employees.

On the books

• M eaning: When something is on the records, or known about.
• Example: Kyla’s donation is on the books.

One for the (record) books

• M eaning: An amazing event that will forever be remembered.
• Example: Jack’s touchdown with 2 seconds left in the 4th quarter, is one for the record books!

Read it and weep

• M eaning: To find out the bad results of something, many times, the expression is used in cards games.
• Example: A royal flush, read it and weep!

Read my lips

• M eaning: To listen carefully
• Example: Read my lips, I am not returning to Stanford next year. Do you understand?

The oldest trick in the book

• M eaning: A trick, prank or gimmick so predictable, it should not fool anyone
• Example: That is the oldest trick in the book, did he really think I would believe that he could pick up a 2000 pound horse?

The printed word/page

• M eaning: When something is printed or written on a physical piece of paper
• Example: Apparently the GPS needs to be updated. Hence, let’s just read what the printed page says, so we will know the directions.

To balance the books

• M eaning: To add up all credits and debits in one’s own personal or business finances.
• E xample: Before you leave tonight, please balance the books for the company.

To be on the same page

• M eaning: To think in the same manner, or have the outlook as someone else
• E xample: Kevin and I are on the same page as far as wedding details.

To be put in one’s black book

• M eaning: To be disgraced, or out of favor with someone.
• E xample: Earl was definitely in my grandpa’s black book. He made some bad decisions in his younger years and my grandpa never forgave him for it.

To blot your copybook

• M eaning: To damage your reputation
• E xample: Make wise decisions so you don’t blot your copybook.

To bring someone to book

• M eaning: To punish or penalize someone by bringing attention to their bad behavior
• E xample: It’s not a surprise that Kris brought to book Ethan’s bad decisions. She tends to look for the negative in others.

To close the books

• M eaning: To stop spending time and effort on something.
• E xample: For now, I just need to close the books on my science project.

To cook the books

• M eaning: To falsify information, including facts or figures.
• E xample: Whatever you do, do not cook the books!

To have your nose in a book

• M eaning: To read with intensity
• E xample: Jimmy has his nose in a book , so don’t expect him to come down for another few hours.

To hit the books

• M eaning: To study in general, but many times the idiom is used when studying for an exam.
• E xample: I would love to go to the mall with you, but I have to hit the books today.

To make/open book

• M eaning: To take a bet on something.
• E xample: I don’t like the idea of an open book.

To page through something

• M eaning: To flip through a book or other written work in a casual manner.
• E xample: Tyler, can you page through the blue book for me? Perhaps my note is hidden in there.

To read between the lines

• M eaning: To look for or capture an implied meaning
• E xample: Though he wasn’t direct with me, I could read between the lines.

To read from the same page

• M eaning: To have the same understanding or knowledge about something as someone else.
• E xample: Josh and Jim read from the same page when it comes to cars.

To read into something

• M eaning: To give something meaning that may not be there.
• E xample: Mike was known for always reading into something, whether he had a basis to or not.

To read of something or someone

• M eaning: To read news about something or someone
• E xample: I just read of some kids who started a million-dollar company all by themselves.

To read up on

• M eaning: To read about a person or topic to increase one’s knowledge
• E xample: I want to read up on the Holocaust to really understand what the Germans went through.

To read someone like a book

• M eaning: To understand or recognize someone’s thoughts or motives without actually being told what they are.
• E xample: I don’t know how my Dad does it, but he can read someone like a book .

To read someone the riot act

• M eaning: To give a strong warning to someone because of their bad behavior.
• E xample: He may not have liked it, but Luke needed to be read the riot act.

To read someone’s mind

• M eaning: To discern someone’s thoughts
• E xample: Zach could always read my mind, I just couldn’t understand how.

To read something cover to cover

• M eaning: To read something in its entirety.
• E xample: Lou read that book cover to cover in under an hour.

To read the fine/small print

• M eaning: To be certain of the conditions or circumstances of an agreement
• E xample: Before you make a deal, be sure to read the fine print.

To read the room

• M eaning: To analyze the general mood in a particular setting and act in accordance
• E xample: Lucas was so great at reading the room, I just followed his lead.

To take a leaf/page out of someone’s book

• M eaning: To imitate an admirable quality that someone else has
• E xample: Next time Johnny, try taking a leaf out of Caleb’s book.

To take something as read

• M eaning: To accept or assume something is true, without actually knowing if it is, or discussing it further
• E xample: Ms. Penny always takes it as read, so be careful what you say around her.

To throw a book at

• M eaning: To severely punish someone for bad behavior.
• E xample: You better be good or else Mom will throw a book at you.

To turn the page

• M eaning: To move on or transition to something else, especially from a negative experience to a positive one.
• E xample: After everything last year, I have decided to just turn the page .

You can’t judge a book by its cover

• M eaning: The outward appearance of a person or thing, does not always indicate who or what it/they really are.
• Example: Gina surprised us all with her knowledge of sharks. But like I said, you can’t judge a book by its cover.

There you have it, 47 useful book idioms. Did we miss one? Please share your favorite in the comments below.

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July 24, 2023

Exploring the World of Books Idiom: Unraveling Figurative Language in English

Language is a vibrant tapestry of expressions, and idioms are its colorful threads. Idioms are phrases or expressions that convey a figurative meaning, different from the literal interpretation of the individual words. In this article, we delve into the captivating realm of "books idiom" and explore some fascinating idiomatic expressions related to books that add charm and depth to the English language.

List of "Books Idiom":

To hit the books  .

Meaning:  Meaning to study diligently, often used by students preparing for exams.

Example: "I have a big test tomorrow, so I need to hit the books tonight."

Close the book on (something/someone) 

Meaning:  To reach a final decision or conclusion about a matter.

Example: "After years of investigation, the police finally closed the book on the case."

By the book

Meaning:  Refers to following rules or guidelines strictly and meticulously.

Example: "The supervisor ensured that all safety procedures were followed by the book."

An open book 

Meaning:  Describes someone who is transparent and easy to understand.

Example: "Unlike her secretive friend, Sarah is an open book; she shares everything with us."

Don't judge a book by its cover 

Meaning:  Advises against forming opinions based solely on appearances.

Example: "Although the house looks old from the outside, don't judge a book by its cover; it's beautifully renovated inside."

To throw the book at someone 

Meaning:  To apply the maximum possible penalty or punishment.

Example: "Given the severity of the crime, the judge decided to throw the book at the defendant."

To be an open book

Meaning:  To be easy to understand or interpret, leaving nothing hidden.

Example: "His emotions were written all over his face; he was an open book."

Every trick in the book

Meaning:  using every possible method to achieve something, even unconventional ones., example: "they tried every trick in the book to win the game, but their opponent was too strong.".

Meaning & Examples: Books idioms infuse the language with vivid imagery and metaphorical meanings. They offer a creative way to express thoughts and emotions beyond literal speech. For instance, "hitting the books" doesn't involve any physical violence against books, but rather implies dedicated and focused studying. Similarly, "closing the book on something" doesn't involve an actual book but signifies reaching a final decision or resolution on a particular matter.

• Idioms can vary regionally, so their usage might differ based on the location.
• Some idioms might have origins dating back centuries, adding historical significance to their usage.
• It's essential to understand the context in which an idiom is used to avoid misunderstandings.

Questions and Answers:

Q: Why do we use idioms in the English language?

A: Idioms add richness and depth to the language, making it more expressive and engaging. They also facilitate concise communication, conveying complex ideas in a few words.

Q: Can idioms be used in formal writing?

A: While idioms are commonly used in informal settings, they can be included in formal writing to add flair, but their usage should be appropriate and relevant to the context.

Q: Are there idioms related to other fields apart from books?

A: Absolutely! Idioms exist in various domains, such as sports, nature, animals, and more, offering a captivating glimpse into the culture and history of a language.

Interesting Quotes:

"A room without books is like a body without a soul." - Marcus Tullius Cicero.

"Books are the plane, and the train, and the road. They are the destination and the journey. They are home." - Anna Quindlen.

"Some books leave us free and some books make us free." - Ralph Waldo Emerson.

Conclusion:

Idioms related to books showcase the creative spirit of the English language. They take readers on a figurative journey, adding depth and vividness to everyday conversations and writing. Understanding and using these idioms allows one to appreciate the beauty of figurative language and enhances communication, making it a delightful aspect of the English lexicon. So, let's continue exploring the vast world of idiomatic expressions, enriching our language one phrase at a time!

• English Idioms
• #English Idioms
• #Language Learning

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Idiom Definition

What is an idiom? Here’s a quick and simple definition:

An idiom is a phrase that conveys a figurative meaning that is difficult or impossible to understand based solely on a literal interpretation of the words in the phrase. For example, saying that something is "beyond the pale" is an idiomatic way of saying that it is improper or "over the line," but you would only know that if someone had explained it to you, or if you had been able to infer its meaning based on context.

Some additional key details about idioms:

• Idioms are usually specific to a particular region, culture, language, or dialect , and they are often difficult to translate from one language or culture to another.
• Although many idioms are widely understood by people within the region, culture, or language where they are used, some idioms are less commonly used than others, and therefore would not make sense to someone who hadn't heard the idiom used frequently, or who hadn't has the meaning explained to them.
• Idioms become popularized through everyday spoken language, but they are widely used in writing and literature, too. Writers often use idioms in dialogue in order to create realistic voices for their characters, and using idioms can also more generally make writing seem down-to-earth and accessible.

How to Pronounce Idiom

Here's how to pronounce idiom: ih -dee-um

Understanding Idioms

Idioms are groups of words that only make sense when they are interpreted figuratively rather than literally. For example, if you were waiting in line at the DMV to renew your driver's license and suddenly realized you'd forgotten to bring all the right documents, you might complain about all the "red tape" preventing people from renewing your license. But if the person standing in line next to you had never heard this idiom and interpreted your words literally, they would probably be confused, because they wouldn't see any red tape anywhere. However, someone who knows the idiom would understand that by "red tape" you simply mean "unnecessary bureaucratic regulations." Similarly, if someone were to say, "I can't believe I have to jump through all of these hoops to get my license," they wouldn't literally mean that the DMV requires them to jump through hoops—they're simply complaining that they need to fulfill so many different requirements in order to get their license.

Where Idioms Come From

The majority of idioms originated as phrases with literal meanings, and only later came to have a figurative and more widely-known meaning. "Red tape" is one such idiom: in England, the government used to use red ribbon to bind packets of legal documents together, so red tape came to be associated with bureaucracy and legal regulations. But the phrase continued to be used long after legal documents ceased to be tied with red ribbon, and today "red tape" is an idiom that is used exclusively as a figurative expression.

Idioms Are Set Phrases

Idioms are said to be "set phrases," meaning that they only make sense if you use them exactly. For instance, if instead of using the term "red tape" when complaining about all the bureaucracy at the DMV you instead complained about all of the "crimson ribbon," no one would have any idea what you're talking about. Idioms are almost set phrases, in that they only make sense when they aren't modified.

Idioms, Colloquialisms, and Euphemisms

Idioms are related to and sometimes confused with two other literary terms: colloquialisms and euphemisms .

Colloquialisms vs. Idioms

Colloquialisms are informal words or phrases in writing or speech that only make sense to people of a particular community. Such communities are usually defined in geographical terms, meaning that colloquialisms are often delineated by their use within a dialect , a regionally-defined variant of a larger language. Colloquialisms differ from idioms in two ways:

• Figurative vs non-figurative: Colloquialisms can be either figurative or literal, while idioms must be figurative.
• Length: A colloquialism can be one or more words, while an idiom is always a set phrase of two or more words.

Idioms are a subset of colloquialisms: all idioms are colloquialisms, but not all colloquialisms are idioms. Colloquialisms can be idioms, but they can also be aphorisms , terminology, or even profanity. For instance, the terms "pop," "coke," and "soda," are all different colloquialisms used in different parts of the United States to mean "bubbly sugar water." These colloquialisms are not idioms, though, because they aren't figurative and they're single words.

Euphemisms vs. Idioms

Euphemisms are mild, indirect, or gentle words or phrases substituted for other words or phrases that are considered to be too embarrassing, unpleasant, offensive, or harsh to use in formal settings or in polite conversation. When we say that someone "passed away" instead of saying that they died, we are using a phrase that is both an idiom and a euphemism: the phrase is a figurative way of saying in an unoffensive way that someone died.

However, not all idioms are euphemisms, because not all idioms are designed to avoid having to state something uncomfortable directly. Similarly, not all euphemisms are idioms, because not all euphemisms are "set phrases," as an idiom must be. For example, when it was discovered in 2013 that former director of national intelligence, James Clapper, had lied to the US Senate, Clapper explained that he had responded in "the least untruthful manner" possible. Because it is not a widely used set phrase with a figurative meaning, "the least untruthful manner" is not an idiom, but it is a euphemism because it is meant to soften the uncomfortable reality of Clapper's lie.

Idiom Examples

Examples of idioms in everyday speech.

Idioms are such a central part of ordinary speech that people often use them without thinking about the fact that they're employing a form of figurative language.

Idioms and Death

• If you want to inoffensively state that a person has died, you might say that they passed away . This idiom is also a euphemism.
• You could also say that someone bit the dust or kicked the bucket —but these idioms are considered crude and insensitive, and therefore are not euphemisms.
• The idiom bucket list is related to the idiom kicked the bucket — it's not a list of buckets, but a list of things you want to do before you "kick the bucket."
• Again, if you're not worried about being polite, you might say that a person who is dead and buried is pushing up daisies .
• And if you say that someone is sleeping with the fishes, it means they've been killed and disposed of in some body of water. (This particular idiom originated in the film The Godfather .)

Idioms and Sleep

• If you're about to go to bed, you might announce that you're planning to hit the hay or hit the sack .
• If you want to get some sleep, you could say you want to catch some shut-eye .
• And if a person sleeps so soundly that it is difficult to wake them, you could say they sleep like a log .
• A cat nap is a particularly short nap, usually in the middle of the day.

Idioms and Body Parts

• A person who is very busy might say, "I have my hands full."
• Someone who is prepared to listen attentively might tell you, "I'm all ears!"
• If someone guesses what you are thinking, you could tell them, "You read my mind!"
• To wish an actor luck, people often tell them, "Break a leg!"
• If you plan to watch someone closely, you might say, "I'm going to keep an eye on them."

Examples of Idioms in Literature

Much ado about nothing by william shakespeare.

In Much Ado About Nothin g, the character Antonio says of his brother Leonato:

If he could right himself with quarreling, some of us would lie low.

In this scene, Antonio muses that, if his brother could fight, his enemies would do well to hide from him—implying that they'd surely be defeated. The idiom "to lie low," which means to hide oneself or to remain hidden in order to avoid notice, was already in common usage when Shakespeare wrote Much Ado About Nothing (though Shakespeare is known not only for using many idioms, but for coining (or inventing) original figurative expressions that over time have become widely used idioms.)

The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain

In the opening chapter The Adventures of Tom Sawyer , Tom, the novel's protagonist and title character, plays a trick on his Aunt Polly. Uncertain if she should laugh or reprimand him, she says:

Can't learn an old dog new tricks, as the saying is. But my goodness, he never plays them alike, two days, and how is a body to know what's coming? He 'pears to know just how long he can torment me before I get my dander up, and he knows if he can make out to put me off for a minute or make me laugh, it's all down again and I can't hit him a lick.

This passage is full of idioms. To "get one's dander up" is an idiom meaning to arouse one's anger; and "to put someone off" is to delay, discourage, or dissuade them. Aunt Polly uses these two idioms together to express that Tom always teases her just enough to momentarily anger her before making her laugh and persuading her to forgive him. Twain is known for using idioms and colloquial language in his writing, and this passage is an excellent example of how writers can use idioms in dialogue to give their characters distinct, lifelike voices.

As I Lay Dying by William Faulkner

In As I Lay Dying , Addie Bundren's husband, Anse, announces that after Addie dies, the family will have to take her body to be buried in Jefferson. Even though the trip will be a difficult one, he says they must go because:

Her mind is set on it.

The idiom "to have one's mind set on something" means to be determined to do something, or to be determined that something will happen. As I Lay Dying is narrated by 15 different characters, and Faulkner gives each of them their own distinctive voice. One of the ways he does this is by having characters speak using idioms and colloquial language.

Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng

In this passage in Everything I Never Told You , the character Marilyn thinks about her mother, Doris Walker, who is a home economics teacher:

Newcomers to the school district assumed Mrs. Walker was a widow. Her mother herself never mentioned it. She still powdered her nose after cooking and before eating she still put on lipstick before coming downstairs to make breakfast. So they called it keeping house for a reason, Marilyn thought. Sometimes it did run away.

Here, Marilyn contemplates the idiom "keeping house," which means to take care of a household by cooking, cleaning, and so on. Marilyn's observation that "sometimes [houses] did run away" rests on her literal interpretation of the word "keep," which implies that one could lose a house if they don't "keep" it.

Examples of Idioms in Pop Music

Idiom in "we are never getting back together" by taylor swift.

In the song "We Are Never Getting Back Together," Taylor Swift uses two idioms to describe her decision to end a romantic relationship:

Ooh, we called it off again last night But ooh, this time I'm telling you, I'm telling you We are never ever ever getting back together

When Swift sings that she and her partner "called it off," she employs an idiom that means to cancel something —and in this case, the thing that they are canceling is their relationship. When she says, "We are never getting back together," she is using another idiom: to get together can either mean to begin dating, or alternatively it can be a euphemistic idiom for being physically intimate with someone.

Why Do Writers Use Idioms?

Writers use idioms for many of the same reasons people use idioms in everyday speech: these pithy, "set phrases" of figurative language convey ideas in a neat and easily recognizable way. Often, people use idioms without thinking much about it (for many, it's just as natural to say that they'll "give it a shot" as it is to say they'll try something, and simpler to say that they're "getting in the holiday spirit" than it is to say that they're in the mood to participate in seasonal festivities). Here are some of the other reasons a writer might choose to use an idiom rather than saying something without the use of figurative language:

• Writers often use idioms to create a distinctive voice for their narrators or other characters.
• When, in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer , Aunt Polly says that Tom knows how to get her dander up, readers can infer that Tom is annoying or angering her, but the silly-sounding idiom creates a more lighthearted and humorous tone than if she were to say that Tom knows how to torment and infuriate her.
• For instance, it creates a very different impression for a character to say that a deceased person "passed away" than if they were to say that the person "kicked the bucket."

Writers, of course, have linguistic habits just like everyone else, and they sometimes use an idiom simply because it feels like the best or most natural way to communicate an idea.

Other Helpful Idiom Resources

• The Wikipedia Page on Idioms: A helpful but somewhat technical overview of the term.
• 42 Idiom Origins : In this short video, author and vlogger John Green discusses the origins of 42 idioms.
• Idioms from Shakespeare : This Mental Floss article lists widely-used phrases that originated in Shakespeare's plays.
• The Huge List of Idioms : If you're looking for even more examples of idioms, check out this resource!

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Idiom Acquisition and Usage-Based Language Learning Theory

• First Online: 01 January 2023

Cite this chapter

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The learning of idiomatic expressions has been reported as notoriously difficult in both native and second language contexts. The past several decades have witnessed a strong research interest in the processing and learning of idioms (Cooper in TESOL Q 33:233–262, 1999 ; Gibbs in J Speech Lang Hear Res 34:613–620, 1991 ; Gibbs and Colston in Interpreting figurative meaning. Cambridge University Press, 2012 ; Hsieh and Hsu in J Psycholing Res 39:505–522, 2010 ; Levorato and Cacciari in Euro J Cogn Psychol 11:51–66, 1999 ; Martinez and Murphy in TESOL Q 45:267–290, 2011 ; Nippold in Later language development: the school-age and adolescent years. PRO-ED, 1998 ; Nippold and Rudzinski in J Speech Hear Res 36:728–737, 1993 ; Nippold and Taylor in J Speech Lang Hear Res 45:384–391, 2002 ). In this chapter, we will first sketch some representative models of idiom processing and comprehension and highlight the factors that influence idiom learning in the current literature, particularly in the L1 environment. Then the research gap will be opened in recognition of the scarcity of research on idiom schematicity and productivity, especially the schematic idioms in Chinese. The usage-based language learning theory will be subsequently reviewed since construction learning is inherently usage-based. The factors that play significant roles in the literature on construction learning will be summarised. Finally, a framework will be established based on which inquiries into the learning process of Chinese schematic idioms can be conducted.

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Li, L. (2023). Idiom Acquisition and Usage-Based Language Learning Theory. In: Quadri-syllabic Schematic Idioms in Chinese: Description and Acquisition. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-7202-7_3

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A thematic corpus-based study of idioms in the Corpus of Contemporary American English

• Elaheh Rafatbakhsh 1 &
• Alireza Ahmadi   ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0001-8327-2420 1  

Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education volume  4 , Article number:  11 ( 2019 ) Cite this article

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The traditional approach to presenting idioms relies mainly on teachers’ or materials writers’ judgement, one-by-one and quite incidentally; and the existing teaching materials and references for idioms are mostly intuition-based. However, a more recent approach to better teaching and learning idioms is to present them under categories of their common themes and topics. Corpus linguistics can be of much contribution through helping the design and development of more authentic and systematic materials using comprehensive corpora which are typically the best representatives of the target language. In this connection, the present study aimed at searching for the thematic index of 1506 idioms under 81 categories at the end of the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms in the largest freely available corpus, i.e. the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA), composed of more than 520 million words. To this end, we used a manuscript in PHP written by a professional computer programmer especially for this purpose. The findings yielded a list of idioms sorted based on their frequencies under their theme-based categories. To focus on the more frequently-used idioms of various themes in real contexts, materials designers, teachers, and learners of English can benefit from this idiom list in textbooks and classroom activities.

Introduction

An idiom is defined as a “constituent or series of constituents for which the semantic interpretation is not a compositional function of the formatives of which it is composed” (Fraser, 1970 ; p.22). Idiomaticity is a topic of some research and studies in the areas of linguistics, psycholinguistics, developmental psychology, and neuropsychology (Cacciari, 1993 ). “The importance of idioms in any language cannot be doubted. Their ubiquity makes them anything but a marginal phenomenon, and surely a linguistic theory has an obligation to explain them in a natural way” (Chafe, 1968 ; p.111).

It is believed that the more words a learner knows, the more proficient they are in the process of language learning (Laufer & Goldstein, 2004 ; Nation & Meara, 2002 ). This assumption does not take the different combinatory possibilities of words into consideration (Daskalovska, 2011 ). A successful language learning mastery includes a crucial component of learning formulaic sequences such as idioms, collocations, and compounds (Wray, 2000 ). Idioms provide the language with variety and imagination (Cooper, 1999 ) and their learning embodies learning a culture (Crystal, 1997 ; Glucksberg & McGlone, 2001 ; Ovando & Collier, 1985 ). Learning idioms can lead to native-like proficiency since idioms are learned in chunks, and consequently, they are retrieved from the learners’ memory without hesitations which can lead to fluency (Boers, Eyckmans, Kappel, Stengers, & Demecheleer, 2006 ; Cain, Towse, & Knight, 2009 ; Lim, Ang, Lee, & Leong, 2009 ; Teodorescu, 2015 ). On the other hand, when language learners learn the words individually, they may need more time to retrieve them and make proper sentences. Translators or language teachers cannot afford to ignore idioms or idiomaticity if their aim is natural use of language (Fernando, 1996 ).

Furthermore, idioms are considered to be a particular kind of lexical items. Lexical items are “socially sanctioned independent units”. Language is not individually defined; it is rather a social phenomenon. Lewis ( 1993 ) emphasized the importance of “lexical approach” in language teaching and learning. According to this approach, although language can be sub-divided into sentences, turns, morphemes and phonemes, “lexical items” can be considered as the minimal units for certain syntactic purposes. Larger sequences are too large for analyses and shorter ones are too short. The multiword units can be analyzed but researchers (Lewis, 1993 ; Nattinger, 1988 ) believe that these units should be perceived as single, unanalyzed wholes which is in turn quite important in the process of language teaching and learning.

Although figurative expressions may appear quite arbitrary, there exist certain structures and organizations among them and a large number of these expressions have common metaphoric themes (Kovecses & Szabco, 1996 ). For example, there is a wide range of idioms related to themes of nature, animals, body parts, sports, specific names, food, colors, and all the senses which are used to describe personality, appearance, work, health issues, and many more (O’Dell & McCarthy, 2010 ). Moreover, idiomatic expressions often indicate and reflect social norms, beliefs, attitudes, and emotions (Glucksberg & McGlone, 2001 ). There is a taxonomy that suggests classifying teaching approaches into two broad categories of non-semantic (Szczepaniak, 2006 ; Tran, 2013 ; Vrbinc & Vrbinc, 2011 ) and semantic approaches (Boers & Stengers, 2008 ; Panou, 2014 ). In the non-semantic approaches, the idioms are provided for the learners one-by-one and quite incidentally through the materials, while in the semantic approaches, the idioms are presented by their shared meanings or themes. Therefore, the semantic approaches, which are based on classification of idioms according to metaphors, their source domains and origins can enhance idiom learning and deeper retention (Boers, 2013 ).

As a large number of idioms are not intelligible to learners at first sight and their meanings typically cannot be guessed through the analysis of the components, teaching and learning idioms have always been a problematic and challenging part of language. There are several drawbacks and limitations in the teaching textbooks concerning the choice of idioms as well as their presentation which have made their teaching and learning even more difficult (Cameron & Low, 1999 ; Simpson & Mendis, 2003 ). Therefore, there is still a lot of room for more research and improvement on idioms in teaching methods and materials, particularly in EFL/ESL contexts. Applied and corpus linguistics can offer solutions to this problem by identifying frequencies and patterns of idiom use in order to give priorities in teaching and learning contexts (Liu, 2003 ).

Johansson ( 2009 ) has summarized the uses of corpora in language acquisition in the following figure (Fig  1 ).

Johansson: Uses of corpora of relevance for language teaching

He argues that the corpus can be used in almost every aspect of language teaching and acquisition including materials development, testing, and so far.

Corpus search results and patterns can effectively replace teachers’ and material developers’ intuition when preparing the materials. A teacher can determine the level of importance of the materials for language teaching using corpus linguistics (Biber & Reppen, 2002 ). In this connection, the present corpus-based study aimed at identifying the frequencies of the idioms’ categories in the large Contemporary Corpus of American English (COCA) and reporting the most frequent ones for such purposes.

Literature review

Defining idioms.

Scholars have always had difficulty defining what an idiom is. Although there exist a lot of definitions, it is sometimes impossible to differentiate between collocations, phrasal verbs and idioms. In her dissertation, Grant ( 2003 ), after summarizing all the definitions of an idiom, came a conclusion that linguists have not reached a consensus on idiom definition and classification for language teachers and learners.

Fernando ( 1996 ) considers idioms as “conventionalized multi-word expressions often, but not always non-literal” (p. 1). Gramley and Pátzold ( 2003 ) have added more to that definition and define idiom as a “complex lexical item which is longer than a word form but shorter than a sentence and which has a meaning that cannot be derived from the knowledge of its component parts” (p. 55). Semantically speaking, scholars have proposed different scales or continuum of idiomaticity (Alexander, 1987 ; Cowie, Mackin, & McCaig, 1983 ; Fernando, 1996 ; Moon, 1998b ; Wood, 1981 ). Grant ( 2003 ) summarized the scales used by such scholars into six categories of a) semi-idioms including at least one word connected to its literal meaning (e.g. white lie), b) semi-opaque idioms whose meanings can be guessed but not easily (e.g. sail too close to the wind), c) pseudo idioms including an element that has no meaning on its own (e.g. spic and span), d) pure idioms, well-formed idioms, or idioms of decoding that have both literal and non-literal meaning (e.g. kick the bucket), e) full idioms which consist of constituents whose ordinary meanings are not related to the idioms’ semantic interpretations (e.g. butter up) and f) figurative idioms that have figurative meanings besides current literal interpretations (e.g. catch fire).

There are three themes repeated in all the definitions of idioms, compositionality, institutionalisation, and degree of frozenness or fixedness. First, the idioms are non-compositional since their meanings are not the sum of the meanings of their parts; secondly, they are institutionalised which means they are commonly used by a large number of people in a speech community; and finally, the idioms are frozen and fixed i.e. but the degree of their frozenness varies (Grant, 2003 ).

There is a blur line between idioms and other multiword units and since the mentioned characteristics might be common among them, it is difficult to differentiate between idioms and multiword units. This lack of unanimous agreement among scholars causes a lot of difficulties for teachers and learners on what an idiom is. Therefore, their only criterion for the choice of an idiom is dictionaries. However, the great number of existing idioms in the dictionaries is quite overwhelming and the attempts to prioritize them based on the categories and frequencies can be of great help in this respect.

Teaching and learning idioms

As mentioned earlier, formulaic language such as idioms should be taught in EFL contexts in order to increase the fluency and naturalness of leaners’ language. Teaching and learning idioms have a lot of advantages for learners such as promoting communicative competence, proficiency, fluency and familiarizing them with the target language culture (Bardovi-Harlig, 2002 ; Fernando, 1996 ; Liu, 2008 ; Moon, 1998a ; Schmitt, 2004 ; Thyab, 2016 ; Wood, 2002 ; Wray, 2000 ). Teaching and learning idioms are important and significant, since not only can lack of knowledge of idioms cause serious comprehension problems and misunderstandings in many contexts, even rich in clues, but also the use of idioms and figurative idioms in particular, is not as infrequent as it has been assumed (Boers, 2013 ). The results of an exploratory research (Maisa & Karunakaran, 2013 ) on the importance of teaching idioms to ESL students based on teachers’ perspectives showed that teachers believed teaching idioms to undergraduate students as an integral part of vocabulary teaching, lead to more fluent speaking and writing. As a result, they suggested the inclusion of idioms in dialogues, readings, and stories in the curriculum.

Boers ( 2000 ) carried out three experiments on figurative expressions in EFL contexts and all three studies involved two parallel groups of control and experimental. The participants of three studies were each 118, 73, and 74 intermediate learners of English respectively. In the first experiment, both groups were asked to read a text about emotions. Following that, the experimental group were given a list of expressions and vocabulary from the text, organized by their metaphoric themes while the control group received the same vocabulary but not in an organized way. The participants studied and discussed the expressions and subsequently took a cloze test based on the list of vocabularies and expressions. In the second experiment, the two groups received a list of vocabulary all on economic trends, however, unlike the control group, the experimental group had their list sorted based on the expressions’ source domains. To test the effectiveness of the experiment, they were asked to write an essay describing some graphs and the use of the mentioned expressions were examined and compared accordingly. Finally, in the third experiment, pupils were presented with a set of multiword verbs (prepositional and phrasal verbs). The experimental group received a list categorized by the headings of underlying orientational metaphors while the control group had the same list alphabetically. Following that, they all took a cloze test on the same topic. The result of all the three experiments indicated superior retention of the figurative expressions in experimental groups who received the lists sorted based on underlying metaphoric themes. That is because determining source domains lead to deep-level cognitive processing which in turn enhanced memory storage and learning.

Corpus-based studies on idioms

Although searching for idioms in corpora is a difficult and complex process due to the complex nature of the idioms, some studies have focused on searching the frequencies of idioms and their patterns of use in various corpora. For instance, Baddorf and Evens ( 1998 ) selected three corpora of Wall Street Journal (WSJ) corpus (47,456,421 words), Dictionary of Old English (DOE) corpus (27,944,329 words), and the corpus of Gutenberg (41,588,806 words) and searched 30 idioms and their syntactic variants in these corpora using a computer program written for this purpose. They reported the idioms and their frequencies in details from the most to the least frequent.

Another main corpus-based study was carried out by Moon ( 1998b ) in which 6776 commonest British and American English Fixed Expressions including Idioms (FEI) in a premade database were searched for in the Oxford Hector Pilot Corpus (OHPC). The findings yielded information on overall frequencies and distributions; and explanations were provided on lexical and grammatical form, variation, ambiguity, polysemy, and metaphor, discoursal functions, evaluation and interactional perspectives, and cohesion in FEIs. Conclusions drawn from this study showed that further studies are required to create a more accurate image of the expressions. Furthermore, more revisions of existing models and descriptions should be made and the importance of the roles FEIs play in discourse should not be underrated.

Later, Liu ( 2003 ) in a study to identify pure semiliteral and literal idioms consulted four major contemporary English idiom dictionaries and three English phrasal verb dictionaries. Subsequently, he searched for such idioms in three contemporary spoken American English corpora, Corpus of Spoken, Professional American English, Michigan Corpus of Academic Spoken English, and Spoken American Media English. The findings of the study suggested four lists of the most frequently used idioms and their patterns of use followed by recommendations for improving quality of teaching, materials and references in terms of idiom selection, meaning, explanation, and the examples. The researcher criticized teaching and including idioms in materials based on mere intuition.

In another corpus study of idioms by Simpson and Mendis ( 2003 ), the researchers selected the idioms based on three factors of compositeness or fixedness, institutionalization and semantic opacity. The corpus used was the Michigan Corpus of Academic Spoken English (MICASE) consisting of 1.7 million words of academic discourse. The result suggested two idiom lists: The idioms particularly useful for English for academic purposes curricula and the idioms occurring four or more times in MICASE. Based on their findings, they recommended the use of corpus studies in teaching and learning idioms.

In a major corpus-based search of idioms, to prioritize teaching and learning idioms for ESL/EFL teachers and learners based on their frequencies of use in a corpus by Grant ( 2007 ), three groups of core idioms (non-compositional, non-figurative), figuratives (non-compositional, figurative), and ONCEs (one non-compositional element, may also be figurative) were used. The corpus for this study was the spoken genre of the British National Corpus (BNC) and the results were then compared to Liu’s ( 2003 ) and Simpson and Mendis’s ( 2003 ) lists. The results were presented as tables manifesting the comparison of frequencies of figuratives in MICASE and the spoken BNC as well as in spoken American and British English.

Additionally, the number of color idioms were studies and also compared in the Corpus of Contemporary American English, British National Corpus, and TIME Magazine Corpus of American English by Vaclavikova ( 2010 ). The results manifested higher popularity of idioms in American English than in British English. Furthermore, the overall number of color idioms was greater in newspapers and magazines than in academic texts.

It can be very demanding and time consuming to search for a large number of idioms in large corpora. To date, not enough corpus-based studies have been conducted on idioms and the existing research has been limited to only some specific types of idioms such as core idioms or figuratives. Moreover, the corpora chosen for the studies have been restrained to the academic or spoken sections which are not very large in size. Therefore, the purpose of the present study was to uncover the frequencies of all the idioms of the thematic index of the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms, grouped based on their topics and themes, along with their variations and forms in the large Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA). The search was done via a manuscript written by a computer programmer for this purpose. The search result is a list of 1506 idioms in 81 theme-based categories along with their frequencies per million, sorted from the most frequent to the least in each category.

This section begins by introducing the corpus and the idiom dictionary used in the present study. It then provides information on how the idioms were prepared and searched for in the corpus.

The research was based on the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA) including 20 million words each year from 1990 to 2017; however, the purchased version of COCA for this study was composed of 520 million words in 220,225 texts from 1990 to 2015. COCA was created by Mark Davies, Professor of Corpus Linguistics at Brigham Young University. Currently, COCA is the most recent, comprehensive and balanced corpus of English language that exists. This corpus is divided evenly between five genres of spoken, fiction, popular magazines, newspapers, and academic journals for each year and also overall. Each genre comes from various authentic sources. The genre of spoken consists of 109 million words (109,391,643) which are transcripts of unscripted conversation from more than 150 different TV and radio programs (examples: All Things Considered (NPR), Newshour (PBS), Good Morning America (ABC), Today Show (NBC), 60 Minutes (CBS), Hannity and Colmes (Fox), Jerry Springer, etc.). The genre of fiction which has 105 million words (104,900,827) is from short stories and plays from literary magazines, children’s magazines, popular magazines, first chapters of first edition books 1990-present, and movie scripts. Popular magazine genre includes 110 million words (110,110,637) from about 100 magazines with a balanced mix of specific domains such as news, health, home and gardening, women, financial, religion, sports, etc. Time, Men’s Health, Good Housekeeping, Cosmopolitan, Fortune, Christian Century, Sports Illustrated, etc. are some examples of magazines used for this purpose. For newspapers, 106 million words (105,963,844), a good mix of various sections such as local news, opinion, sports, financial, etc. of 10 newspapers including USA Today, New York Times, Atlanta Journal Constitution, San Francisco Chronicle, etc. is included. Finally, the genre of academic journals with 103 million words (103,421,981), is from about 100 peer-reviewed journals covering the entire range of the Library of Congress classification system (e.g. a certain percentage from B (philosophy, psychology, religion), D (world history), K (education), T (technology), etc.), both overall and by number of words per year. It should be noted than the purchased corpus of COCA has 95% of the whole data and 5% is removed by the owner due to reasons of copyright. Table  1 summarizes COCA, its genres, and the number of words in each from 1990 to 2015.

Idiom dictionary

As the main source of the idioms, the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms, 2nd ed., was chosen since it was the latest dictionary of idioms available to the researchers in digital format. This dictionary includes about 5000 British and American idioms along with their definitions, explanations and some with illustrative quotations and examples. Background information of some of the idioms is also attached in a box. Overall, a comprehensive picture of the idioms is presented in this dictionary. Moreover, at the end of the book, 1506 idioms with the same topics and themes are grouped together under 81 categories. This gives the users a vivid picture of those areas and aspects of life that have generated a rich variety of figurative expressions. The target idioms of the current corpus-based study were all the 1506 idioms included in the index. The 81 themes and the number of the idioms in each are illustrated in Table  2 .

The number of idioms in each theme differs ranging from 7 to 39 with a mean of 28. The theme of ‘pregnancy’ includes the least number and the ‘misfortune and adversity’ the largest number of idioms in this index.

Data collection procedure

Obtaining the frequencies of the idioms involved three main steps. First, a computer program was written; then the idioms were manually prepared to be searched by the designed system; and finally, they were searched for in the whole corpus of COCA.

Idioms transformation and coding procedure

First, all idioms of the index were extracted from the digital version of the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms manually and a list of 1506 idioms was created. Each entry was checked again in the dictionary to add other variations of the idiom if present. For instance, the idiom “have seen better days” in the index has also another variation “have known better days”. Therefore, all the idioms of the list were updated based on their entries in the dictionary.

Normally, concordancers are used to extract frequencies from a given corpus. Concordancers are computer programs for text analysis usually used in corpus linguistics to retrieve alphabetically or otherwise sorted lists of linguistic data from a corpus. So far, four generations of concordancers have been developed; however, the third generation tools such as WordSmith Tools (Scott, 2012 ) and AntConc (Anthony, 2012 ) have some limitations. For instance, they are not able to manage large corpora of more than 100 million words because of their architecture. The fourth generation tools such as c orpus.byu.edu (Davies, 2015 ), CQPweb (Hardie, 2013 ), and SketchEngine (Kilgariff, 2013 ) are mostly web-based and include a single corpus interface with their own specific controls and operation characteristics that cannot be easily adapted to every use. Given the mentioned shortcomings of the concordancers, researchers such as Anthony ( 2009 ), Biber, Conrad, and Reppen ( 1998 ), Gries ( 2009 ), and Weisser, M. ( 2009 ) maintain that the best solution for the corpus linguists is to program and develop their own tools for text analysis to fit their own needs.

Since there were a large number of idioms intended to be searched for in the large COCA, a professional computer programmer wrote a script in PHP for this purpose. In order for the search to be thorough and to include all forms and variations of each idiom, all the idioms were manually prepared for the program. The preparations were as follows:

The main verbs of the idioms that could take different forms depending on the context were identified and capitalized (e.g. the idiom “shake a leg” was rewritten as “SHAKE a leg”), and the system would search for idioms with all the grammatical forms.

Some idioms included possessive adjectives, subject and object pronouns or words such as something, someone, somebody, one, etc. that were not fixed and could be replaced by other words in the context. These words were changed into an asterisk symbol before the search (e.g. the idiom “rattle someone’s cage” were rewritten as “RATTLE * cage”). Different samples of some of these idioms were studied from the corpus and it was decided that the asterisks represent from no words up to three words during the search. For instance, the idiom “tied to someone’s apron strings” could be “tied to HER apron strings”, “tied to MOTHER ‘S apron strings” or “tied to HIS MOTHER ‘S apron strings” or in some cases it gives more space for possible adjectives and adverbs in the idioms; or the idiom “be one’s own man (or woman or person)” might be “be HIS OWN man” or “be VERY MUCH HIS own man”.

Some idioms may include interchangeable elements with the same overall meaning which can create nodes when searching for the frequencies. In case nodes were present in the idioms, the symbol “|” was used to separate the two or more options and search for them all (e.g. the idiom “cry over spilt (or spilled) milk” changed into “CRY over spilt|spilled milk”).

COCA has its own specific written format; e.g. contractions and possessives such as “‘s, n’t, ‘re, etc.” are separated by a space. Hence, the idioms including these contractions were rewritten as they are in the corpus (e.g. the idiom “Caesar’s wife” was written as “Caesar ‘s wife”).

In order to cover more related idioms some articles at the beginning of the idioms were omitted when possible (e.g. the idiom “a black sheep” was changed to “black sheep”).

Since some words such as rumor, honor, color, etc. have two different spellings, they were written as nodes separated by ‘|’ symbol in order to be more comprehensive e.g. the idiom “with flying colours” were rewritten as “with flying colours|colors”.)

In addition, a list of all English verbs and their forms (past tense, past participle, third person, and gerund) was added to the process to address the grammatical forms of each idiom. Some verbs such as have , to be , and modals also had their negatives and contracted forms in the verb list. For instance, for the verb have , the following were added and searched in the corpus: have, has, having, had,‘ve, ‘s, ‘d, haven’t, hasn’t, hadn’t, have got, has got, haven’t got, hasn’t got, hadn’t got, have not got, has not got, and had not got.

As an example, for the idiom “settle (or pay) a (or the) score”, the formula was written as “SETTLE|PAY a|the score” and the system searched for all the following idioms in the corpus and provided a frequency of all of them for each year and each genre separately and summed up the figures automatically:

Settle a score, settles a score, settled a score, settling a score

Settle the score, settles the score, settled the score, settling the score

Pay a score, pays a score, paid a score, paying a score

Pay the score, pays the score, paid the score, paying the score

Searching the corpus

First, the accuracy of the written script was tested, comparing some random idioms’ frequencies calculated by the current system with the frequencies received from the concordancer of the website of COCA. The matching results manifested that the script worked very well.

Afterwards, the written script broke the big COCA into smaller pieces and then used regular expressions -strings of text that allow creating patterns that help match, locate, and manage text in programming- to search for the frequencies of each idiom in the COCA. The designed system then provided a comprehensive spreadsheet of statistics with the frequencies of the idioms for each year from 1990 to 2015. The result of the search was a table with 1506 rows and 127 columns. Each genre in each year had a cell with a frequency result for each idiom. The frequencies were then summed up and the idioms in each theme category were sorted from the most frequent to the least. Some idioms such as “have a ball” or “past it” have both idiomatic and non-idiomatic meanings in different contexts. Hence, these idioms were manually searched for in the website of COCA and by reading all the existing contexts, their frequencies were recalculated again and their literal and non-idiomatic uses were subtracted. Some instances of both uses in the context are as follows:

(Spoken genre: NBC Today, 2011) We’re back from Seattle. We had a ball in Seattle. Thank you, everybody, for coming and being with us while we taped two shows.

(NEWS genre: Denver Post, 2009) In order for Johnson, Colorado State’s star running back, to get a job in the NFL, he would have to forget - at least for now - how to run like a football player. # “ Being a running back, you’re used to carrying the ball, and when I first got there, I was running the 40 like I had a ball in my hands, “ Johnson said. “

In the first context above, the idiom means having fun and enjoying oneself, while in the second the meaning of the phrase is quite literal. Moreover, the frequency of some of the top idioms that included asterisks were checked in the website of COCA again in order to omit irrelevant words that had substituted an asterisk.

A sample search result of an idiom in the corpus is shown below. An idiom such as “rest on one’s oars” was repeated 5 times in the corpus. The system searched for all the verb forms of the verb “rest” and all the possibilities of the words that could replace “one’s”. The five sample sentences are as follows:

(Fiction genre: Field & Stream, 1997) He rested on the oars and watched the water for the length of time it would have taken to make a couple dozen casts, to search under the alders, along the seam, beyond the chop.

(Fiction genre: Arkadians, 1995) By the time Oudeis called a halt, Lucian’s muscles were twitching in protest, and he was glad enough to rest on his oars .

(Fiction genre: Slow Waltz in Cedar Bend, 1993) Just turned in my grades and resting on my oars .

(NEWS genre: Christian Science Monitor, 1993) But we are in no way guaranteed to keep in that position if we rest on our oars .

(NEWS genre: San Francisco Chronicle, 1991) My concern is that the industry has not done anything to improve the (accident) situation for 6 years -- they’re kind of resting on their oars , “said William Pugh, former top railroad investigator at the National Transportation Safety Board and now a private consultant.

By searching all the forms and variations of each idiom, the researchers attempted to reveal a comprehensive picture of the frequencies of the index. However, since idioms have a specific unpredictable nature at times, the full cover cannot be claimed.

To show the relative proportion of the idioms in the whole corpus of COCA, the frequencies of all the idioms were calculated per million and inserted in a table. Due to the very large size of the table, only the results of the first three themes, action, age, and ambition are depicted in Table  5 in Appendix.

Based on the search results, most of the idioms of the Oxford Dictionary index have the frequency of less than 1 per million in the whole corpus except for 17 idioms. Table  3 reports the idioms that had a frequency of above 1 per million in COCA along with their themes and frequencies.

The idiom “behind the scenes”, belonging to the theme of secrecy, seems to be the most frequent of all the idioms of the index with the frequency of 4.71 per million. Two instances of the idiom together with their sources, genres and years are given here.

(NEWS genre: USA Today, 2015) Everyone looks flawlessly glamorous for the Academy Awards, but behind the scenes, millions of dollars and thousands of hands are making sure the show goes off without a hitch.

(Magazine genre: People, 2012) Everyone saw me on TV or read articles, and it was all about my great marriage, the white picket fence, all this success and my perfect life. But behind the scenes, it was a struggle, “says Vonn, now 28, over lunch.

The next most frequent idiom in the list is “under fire”, related to theme of criticism, which was repeated 3.22 per million in the whole corpus.

(News: Atlanta Journal Constitution, 2009) The Bush administration came under fire in 2006 and 2007 for what appeared to be the politically motivated firings of several U.S. attorneys, amid accusations that administration officials were trying to turn the prosecutors into partisan agents.

(Academic: Professional School Counselling, 2005) To be sure, middle school counselors’ efforts are most accepted and become more valuable when harmonious to the focus on academic achievement. This is particularly true as middle schools have come under fire for the declines in achievement during the middle school years.

On the other hand, 234 idioms of the index, for example, “go down a storm” and “knight of the road”, appeared to be non-existent in the whole corpus of COCA. Of the 1506 idioms, 15.5% had the frequency of zero, 726 of them (48.2%) occurred between one and 40 times, and 546 idioms (36.3%) repeated more than 40 times in the whole corpus.

The overall result of the corpus search of the themes is presented in Table  4 . The themes are sorted based on their overall frequencies in the corpus and the figures show the frequencies per million.

The theme of secrecy, consisting of 29 idioms with the overall frequency of 10.26 per million, is the most frequent theme, while the topic of fools and foolishness including 19 idioms with the overall frequency of 0.16 per million is the least frequent one.

Discussion and conclusions

Searching for the idioms in the thematic index of the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms and their forms and variations in the largest freely-available corpus of English, COCA, led to a frequency list of idioms organized based on 81 topics and sorted by the frequencies of occurrence (Table 5 in Appendix). Overall, among the 1506 idioms searched for in the corpus, 17 had frequencies above 1 per million and 234 idioms were not found at all.

The quantitative comparisons of the findings, idiom lists and the frequencies of the present study with the previous similar ones (Grant, 2007 ; Liu, 2003 ; Moon, 1998b ; Simpson & Mendis, 2003 ) are difficult to assess because of the following reasons: The idioms chosen in this research were not similar to the previous corpus search. The criteria of choosing an idiom, the type and number of idioms were quite different in each study. We searched for all types of idioms recorded in the thematic list of the Oxford Dictionary of Idiom, whereas former studies focused on different sets of idioms such as core or figurative idioms. What is more, the corpora (e.g. BNC, MICASE) and the sections or genres (e.g. academic or spoken English) in other studies differed from the current one which makes comparison even more difficult due to the relative infrequency of the idioms.

The present corpus-based study has shed light on the more frequent idioms of various themes in order to ease their teaching and learning. As mentioned earlier, native-like idiomaticity has been the target of language learning in many cases, so collocations, formulaicity and idiomaticity should also be the focus of educators. Prefabricated chunks such as idioms aid learners to improve fluency specifically in spoken language since they are retrieved from the memory with less hesitations (Boers et al., 2006 ; Mauranen, 2004 ; Teodorescu, 2015 ). Based on the fundamental attitudes of the lexical approach the use of awareness-raising activities directing students’ attention to the chunks in a given text is essential. When it comes to natural use of language, idioms without a doubt cannot be neglected. Therefore, the result of the present study can benefit English teachers, learners, as well as materials developers in several ways.

First, instead of using intuition to develop the language learning materials, the real use of language from the corpus can provide more authentic sources. To highlight the importance of corpus studies, Liu ( 2003 ), after analysis of some teaching and reference materials, criticized the way the idioms were selected which was quite inconsistent since they included less frequent and more transparent idioms but missed some highly frequent or highly opaque items. The selection of materials based on corpus studies would be more systematic and rigorous comparing to the intuition-based sources. It can help in “selecting and sequencing linguistic content, as well as determining relative emphases” (Tsui, 2004 , p. 40). The present study produced frequency lists for a large number of idioms (1506 idioms) from a wide variety of topics (81 thematical categories). This can provide language teachers and learners with diverse opportunities to practice idioms and help them prioritize what is more important and beneficial to teach and learn first. Given the short amount of time and the large amount of materials teachers and learners have to deal with, it is quite crucial to first focus on the more useful and frequently repeated parts of the language rather than spending time on the less frequent ones. Based on the lists provided in this study, language teachers and learners can easily select idioms from a specific theme of their interest knowing how frequent that idiom is in the authentic texts produced by native speakers. This can be of great help in learning idioms which are of more use in different contexts. As Muller-Hartmann and Schocker-von Ditfurth ( 2004 ) argue “teachers need to be able to present language as naturalistic examples of the target language, to expose learners to examples of language currently in use, with features which are characteristic of authentic discourse in the target language (p. 28)”.

Second, the findings of this study can be of paramount importance in the contexts of EFL where there is often not enough exposure to target language for learners. In such contexts, education should focus more on frequent and authentic parts of the language. This can assist them with learning idioms that are probably more useful to them. Furthermore, information about idiom distribution and frequency “may help students develop a more complete grasp of the idioms or decide to what extent they want to learn and use those idioms” (Liu, 2003 , p. 687).

Third, the frequency lists of idioms can be employed by materials developers and language teachers to develop different exercises for learners at different proficiency levels. As argued by Simpson and Mendis ( 2003 ), when it comes to pedagogical materials, pupils have proved to respond well to multiple-choice exercises using the idioms’ definitions. They also respond well to the items with extracts from the corpus as the stem in which they have to guess the meaning of the idioms. However, the importance of rich contextual clues in the selected sentences from the corpus should be taken into account.

Fourth, test developers can also benefit from the results of this study as they can use the frequency lists in preparing test items. Depending on the proficiency levels of the testes, idioms of different frequencies can be included in the test. Furthermore, different themes may also be considered in preparing test items.

Finally, learners’ attention should be drawn to formulaic language during their process of learning and one of the most practical ways to do it is to present the idioms in a theme-based manner. Learning figurative expressions such as idioms by using their common themes can create the possibility of better retention since these topics and themes present a framework and organization for the random lists and make it much easier for the learners to grasp them more deeply (Boers, 2000 ; Ellis, 1994 ). Raising the students’ awareness for categorizing the idioms based on their topics and themes during the classroom activities, not only can help them learn the idioms more deeply and easily, but also can assist them to be more independent and successful outside the classrooms.

Limitations

The inaccessibility of more up-to-date and recent dictionaries of idioms in digital format was a limitation that needs to be considered in using or generalizing the results of this study. The main source of the idioms of the study was the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms with about 5000 British and American idioms, and the research was based on the Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA). It is possible that British idioms are not fully and representatively presented in COCA.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets analyzed during the current study are available in https://corpus.byu.edu/coca/

The datasets generated in the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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ER conducted the study under the supervision of AA. All the steps of the research were done collaboratively. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Elaheh Rafatbakhsh is a PhD candidate of TEFL in the Department of Foreign Languages and Linguistics at Shiraz University. Her main research interests include Computer Assisted Language Learning, Language Assessment and Corpus Linguistics.

Alireza Ahmadi is an associate professor of Teaching English as a Foreign Language in the Department of Foreign Languages and Linguistics at Shiraz University, Shiraz, Iran. He teaches second language assessment and language learning courses. His main area of research is second language assessment.

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Rafatbakhsh, E., Ahmadi, A. A thematic corpus-based study of idioms in the Corpus of Contemporary American English. Asian. J. Second. Foreign. Lang. Educ. 4 , 11 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1186/s40862-019-0076-4

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Teaching with Children's Books

21 Funny Picture Books with Idioms in Them

Picture Books

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Idioms can be tricky for young readers (and those learning ESL). However, this collection of funny picture books with idioms in them will help make the meanings clearer.

What is an idiom? It’s a common phrase that has a different meaning than what is being said. For instance, when you say something costs an arm and a leg, what you really mean is that the item is very expensive. Hold your tongue means be quiet. A piece of cake can mean something is easy to do.

This collection of picture books with idioms in them will help demonstrate the meaning of common idioms in a way that will help children understand them better.

Picture Books with Idioms in Them

Don’t Cry Over Spilled Milk | Idioms are a fun way of expressing yourself by using words and phrases which mean something different from what it actually says. Would you like an enjoyable way to learn common phrases?

Parts | I just don’t know what’s going on or why it has to be. But every day it’s something worse. What’s happening to me? So begins this uproarious new story…

More Parts | Give me a hand . . . hold your tongue . . . scream your lungs out . . . what’s a kid to do if he wants to keep all his body parts in place? Well, one thing is for sure, he’ll have to be creative.

Even More Parts | This time he’s made a list of all the strange, crazy things he’s heard people say: “I lost my head.” “My nose is running.” “I sang my heart out. . . .” It’s scary stuff, but he has a plan for making sure he doesn’t accidentally leave any of his parts behind.

You Are What You Eat | Mealtime should be a piece of cake, but this finicky eater eats like a bird. And that drives his mom bananas because he really should have three square meals a day. What will happen when he dines at the home of a friend whose mom is a real health nut? Maybe he’ll discover that variety is the spice of life!

Mad as a Wet Hen and Other Funny Idioms | Have you ever been so angry that you were mad as a wet hen? The meanings of 134 lively idioms are explained in this entertaining and useful book.

Idioms for Kids: Cartoons and Fun | Learn new idioms with cartoons and simple explanations. Perfect for kids and ESL readers. Each idiom has a fun cartoon and a simple step-by-step explanation. Learning idioms has never been so much fun!

Punching the Clock: Funny Action Idioms | Introduces and explains action idioms and their origins with comical illustrations that lend a literal interpretation.

Scholastic Dictionary of Idioms  | If you think idioms are a “tough nut to crack,” pick up the revised SCHOLASTIC DICTIONARY OF IDIOMS. Fun new design and more than 700 common American phrases, sayings, and expressions.

My Teacher Likes to Say | From “Do you have ants in your pants?” to “Stick together!” and “Great minds think alike,” readers will be intrigued by the history of these adages, told in poetry form as well as expository text, and amused by the witty illustrations, depicting these sayings as a child might imagine them.

Reach for the Stars | The young hero of Serge Bloch’s delightful  Butterflies in My Stomach  is back, along with his loyal dog Roger. Having mastered the first day of school, the two are embarking further on the perilous journey of life. Like all of us, they encounter many FORKS IN THE ROAD and UPHILL BATTLES—but they also find that there’s no better time than right now to REACH FOR THE STARS and SHOOT FOR THE MOON.

Butterflies in My Stomach | You can  bet your bottom dollar  this funny story is  the cream of the crop — and the best thing since sliced bread ! Award-winning artist Serge Bloch will have kids laughing their heads off at this child’s-eye look at idiomatic expressions like “ants in your pants,” “homework is for the birds,” and “cat got your tongue?”

The World is Your Oyster | What do you do when your world is raining cats and dogs, you’re up to your neck in alligators, and all you want to do is bury your head in the sand? When children read this empowering book of animal idioms illustrated in gorgeous, vibrant watercolors, they learn new ways to express themselves. This playful book teaches the complexities of language — and that’s straight from the horse’s mouth!

Roller Coaster | The roller coaster car is going up, up, up to the highest spot. And at least one of the people in the car has never ridden on a roller coaster before . . . ever.  Wheeeeeeee! (also featured in my onomatopoeia book list )

Pigsty | Wendell Fultz’s room isn’t a mess. It’s a total pigsty. But even Wendell’s own mother can’t get him to clean it up. Wendell doesn’t think the mess is so awful. In fact, he doesn’t even mind it when one day he discovers a REAL pig sitting on his bed. Then more pigs show up, and the mess grows and grows. Wendell finds hoofprints on his comic books. And his baseball cards are all chewed. Living in a pigsty isn’t much fun anymore. But Wendell’s got a plan to clean up the mess – with a little help from his new friends.

In a Pickle | Thirty popular expressions such as “straight from the horse’s mouth” and “white elephant” are amusingly explained and illustrated.

There’s a Frog in My Throat | 440 Animal Sayings a Little Bird Told Me. An amusing and informative collection of animal sayings.

The King Who Rained | Confused by the different meanings of words that sound alike, a little girl imagines such unusual sights as “a king who rained” and “the foot prince in the snow.”

A Chocolate Moose for Dinner  |  A little girl pictures the things her parents talk about, such as a chocolate moose, a gorilla war, and shoe trees.

Why the Banana Split  | So why did the banana split? Well, for the same reason that the jackhammers hit the road, the lettuce headed out, and the jump ropes skipped town. It was even enough to make the baseball players strike out. Here’s a hint: it’s bigger than a breadbox. And named Rex.

I’m Not Hanging Noodles On Your Ears | “I’m not hanging noodles on your ears.” In Moscow, this curious, engagingly colorful assertion is common parlance, but unless you’re Russian your reaction is probably “Say what?” The same idea in English is equally odd: “I’m not pulling your leg.” Both mean: Believe me.

Do you have a favorite book that you use when teaching idioms? If it’s not on this list, will you leave me a comment and let me know what it is? I’d love to check it out.

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• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Saint Clair Publications (August 25, 2016)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Paperback ‏ : ‎ 556 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1935786709
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1935786702
• Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.88 pounds
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.39 x 9 inches

About the author

Stanley j. st. clair.

Stanley J. “Stan” St. Clair is the author of numerous published books and the sole proprietor of St. Clair Publications found at http://stclairpublications.com which publishes POD paperbacks and e-books for authors around the world, and has a Classic Book Division. He is also the cofounder of St. Clair Research at www.stclairresearch.com along with Steve St. Clair, and its worldwide Family DNA study.

After graduating from Franklin High School in Franklin, North Carolina in 1964, Stan began Religious Studies at Beulah Heights University in Atlanta, later earning a BRE from Covington Theological Seminary in Rossville, Georgia. He also studied Creative Writing at Tennessee State University in Nashville in the early 1990s and was granted an honorary PhD from Abide University in 2020.

Stan is also a graduate of the Life Underwriters Training Council in Washington, DC, and has a Fellowship Designation (LUTCF). He enjoyed a very successful career in insurance marketing and management for over forty years which enabled him to travel extensively around the U.S. and to ten foreign countries including China.

He was knighted by The Supreme Military Order of the Temple at Jerusalem (SMOTJ) in Metro Atlanta in April, 2003 and transferred his Knighthood status to OSMTJ-KTOA in February, 2020.

He has been involved with Kiwanis International since 1984, serving as President of his local club six times, and Lieutenant Governor of the Kentucky / Tennessee District for one year.

He served as a Commissioner of the Scottish Clan Sinclair, U.S.A. for a number of years, and as Eastern Vice President for three years.

His extensive research book series, Most Comprehensive Origins of Clichés, Proverbs and Figurative Expressions, which took ten years to produce, has been recognized by professors, newspaper columnists, editors, ministers and others as some of the best in their genre. The original volume, first published in 2013, made its way into libraries across America, has been used to teach English as a second language, and referenced in a doctorate thesis for Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. This first book is owned by several well-known people, including the Governor of Tennessee, Bill Lee.

Stan also writes a weekly column for his local newspaper, The Southern Standard, and one in a neighboring town, as well as three online sites, including The Templar Banner, the official organ of the KTOA (Knights Templar of America).

Stan has three living children, one deceased son, one stepdaughter, sixteen grandchildren and fourteen great grandchildren. He and his wife, Rhonda, live in Tennessee.

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Conventional Figurative Language Theory and idiom motivation

The central point of discussion is how idiom motivation is reflected in the Conventional Figurative Language Theory. Most lexical units are motivated to a certain extent, i.e. they point to their actual meaning via the meanings of their parts, either parts of their structure or of their conceptual basis. Several types of motivation can be distinguished in the field of phraseology. Apart from the quite small number of idioms where no comprehensible link can be found between the literal reading and the figurative meaning that would allow for a meaningful interpretation of a given expression, all other idioms have to be considered transparent or motivated. Idioms form a very heterogeneous domain in terms of motivation. There are levels of motivation and semantic predictability both from the perspective of a speaker and from the perspective of the semantic structure of a given unit. In this paper, we present a typology of motivation that captures all types of transparent idioms. The typology of idiom motivation connects our theory to the Cognitive Theory of Metaphor and to the Construction Grammar approaches.

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