March 19, 2019 | 0 comments
IDIOM
Cat out of the bag
LET THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG – IDIOM
Idiom or idiomatic as it is also referred to, are taught to and learnt by advanced students. They say that a foreign student that understands and speaks with idioms is considered an English fluent speaker.
For instance, do you know the following idioms:
‘When pigs fly’ – something that will never happen.
“When pigs fly she’ll tidy up her room.”
‘Once in a blue moon’ – an event that happens infrequently.
“I only go to the cinema once in a blue moon.”
Speak of the devil’ – this means that the person you’re just talking about actually appears at that moment.
“Hi Laura, speak of the devil, I was just telling Sara about your new flat.”
These are a few of the more common idioms in the English language, there are hundreds and the only way to learn them is to learn how to speak them.
Try this by putting in the missing idiom:
I can’t afford this purse! It _______. I won’t be able to pay my rent!
Ok the answer is COSTS AN ARM AND A LEG or another idiom you can use is also COSTS A BOMB.
This idiom, expression if you like, means that something is very expensive. Can you imagine if you had to give one of your arms or legs to buy something.
Some other idioms that English people use a lot are the following:
‘Break a leg’ – means ‘good luck’ (often said to actors before they go on stage).
“Break a leg Sam, I’m sure your performance will be great.”
Or
‘You can’t judge a book by its cover’ – to not judge someone or something based solely on appearance.
“I thought this no-brand bread would be horrible; turns out you can’t judge a book by its cover.”
Or even
‘To kill two birds with one stone’ – to solve two problems at once.
“By taking my dad on holiday, I killed two birds with one stone. I got to go away but also spend time with him.
WHERE DID THE WORD IDIOM COME FROM
So where did the idiom come from, Idiom is not originally an English word – it is one of the many that have come into the language from Greek. Idiom means ‘one of a kind’ and indicates that a phrase is being used with a special meaning that can be very different to the literal meaning.
Our qualified English native speaking teachers teach the more advanced level of English like expressions and idiomatic phrases, you can buy just one lesson at a trial price to see how you can learn and understand idioms better here.
