Quirky English idioms add sparkle and wit
The English language is a mystery to all of us, whether you’ve been speaking it since day one, or you’ve just started to learn it.
From its bizarre spelling rules to its free-for-all grammar, it’s a daily struggle just trying to form sentences that make sense. No wonder people are turning to emoji to express their thoughts, rather than coping with some weird English words and phrases.
An idiom is a figure of speech that means something different than a literal translation of the words. For example, “it’s raining cats and dogs” is a common idiom in English, but it’s not meant to be taken literally. It’s a colourful way of saying that it’s raining really hard outside.
What makes idioms different from other common phrases, is that usually, you cannot understand the given expression by its literal meaning.
Imagine you’re learning a new language and hear someone saying ‘it’s raining cats or dogs’ or tells you to ‘break a leg’, this would be very confusing! Idioms are such an interesting way to get a point across, they’re often seen in
literature. In fact, many of the most common idioms we use today were originally coined by great writers as a unique metaphor; then people liked them enough to start using them in everyday conversation. See how many of these famous examples of idioms in literature you recognise.
‘Break the ice.’ This phrase was first used in The Taming of the Shrew. Tranio encourages Petruchio to “break the ice” with Katherine to get to know her, suggesting that he may like her better — and get her to like him. Today this phrase is used to refer to relieving tension or getting to know someone better, usually by making small talk, or a kind gesture.
‘Pot calling the kettle black.’ This phrase comes from the Spanish novel Don Quixote by Cervantes. It referred to the fact that pots and kettles of the time were made of cast iron and got blackened in the fire and is used to suggest that one shouldn’t accuse or criticise.
‘Mad as a hatter.’ This expression is said to refer to the use of mercury to set felt hats which affected hat makers. Though the expression predates his work, Lewis Carroll created his Mad Hatter character in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland in reference to this English idiom.
Great literature has always been filled with idioms to describe characters and settings in vivid, memorable terms. Whether the authors were the first to coin a phrase or were simply making the best use of the language they heard around them, idioms add sparkle and wit to the works in which they are employed. If writers are lucky, their sentiments will be memorable enough to continue being used for hundreds of years.