Here in the third edition of this indispensable volume are explanations of more than 6,000 sayings, similes, proverbs and phrases – an increase of nearly 700 over the previous edition of 2004 – from contemporary English and around the English-speaking world, both modern and historical.
It’s a fresh look at the colourful expressions – sometimes quirky, sometimes profound - that make English the rich and intriguing language that it is, and it’s based on Oxford’s language monitoring, the world’s largest dictionary research programme.
Many entries in this edition of Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms include additional features that give more detailed background on the idiom in question, such as the examples above.
Flavour of the Month
Did you know that ‘flavour of the month’ originated in a marketing campaign in American ice cream parlours in the 1940s, when a particular flavour would be specially promoted for a month at a time?
That ‘off the cuff’ refers to the rather messy practice of writing impromptu notes on one’s shirt cuff before speaking in public? That to be ‘taken aback’ was adopted from nautical terminology that described a ship unable to move forward because of a strong headwind pressing its sails back against the mast?
The book features a handy thematic index so that idioms can be easily found by topics such as crime and punishment, love, secrecy and sex. The meaning of expressions is explained although, in many instances, there is also an illustrative quotation or a note on the provenance or evolution of the idiom or on the range of its contemporary usage, achieving the overall objective of offering a comprehensive portrait of the phrase.
Like a Rat up a Drainpipe
New entries in this edition fill a number of important gaps in coverage hitherto, and introduce a range of recently established idioms – such as 'the elephant in the room', 'go figure', 'like a rat up a drainpipe', 'sex on legs', 'too posh to push' and 'win ugly'.
The majority of the material comes from the ongoing third edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, or is founded on evidence gathered for it. This is also the source of the quotations include in the Dictionary of English Idioms, which come not merely from printed texts (novels, guidebooks, newspapers and magazines) but also from a wide range of internet sources. There's also now a greater number of cross-references which enables any particular idiom to be looked more quickly and accurately.
Author Sunil S.
It’s a fresh look at the colourful expressions – sometimes quirky, sometimes profound - that make English the rich and intriguing language that it is, and it’s based on Oxford’s language monitoring, the world’s largest dictionary research programme.
Many entries in this edition of Oxford Dictionary of English Idioms include additional features that give more detailed background on the idiom in question, such as the examples above.
Flavour of the Month
Did you know that ‘flavour of the month’ originated in a marketing campaign in American ice cream parlours in the 1940s, when a particular flavour would be specially promoted for a month at a time?
That ‘off the cuff’ refers to the rather messy practice of writing impromptu notes on one’s shirt cuff before speaking in public? That to be ‘taken aback’ was adopted from nautical terminology that described a ship unable to move forward because of a strong headwind pressing its sails back against the mast?
The book features a handy thematic index so that idioms can be easily found by topics such as crime and punishment, love, secrecy and sex. The meaning of expressions is explained although, in many instances, there is also an illustrative quotation or a note on the provenance or evolution of the idiom or on the range of its contemporary usage, achieving the overall objective of offering a comprehensive portrait of the phrase.
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Like a Rat up a Drainpipe
New entries in this edition fill a number of important gaps in coverage hitherto, and introduce a range of recently established idioms – such as 'the elephant in the room', 'go figure', 'like a rat up a drainpipe', 'sex on legs', 'too posh to push' and 'win ugly'.
The majority of the material comes from the ongoing third edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, or is founded on evidence gathered for it. This is also the source of the quotations include in the Dictionary of English Idioms, which come not merely from printed texts (novels, guidebooks, newspapers and magazines) but also from a wide range of internet sources. There's also now a greater number of cross-references which enables any particular idiom to be looked more quickly and accurately.
Author Sunil S.
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