What are English idioms and how do they function?

Idioms are common words or phrases with figurative, non-literal meanings that are understood culturally and differ from their composite literal definitions. They require precise replication of the phrase to evoke their intended effect, distinguishing them from other figures of speech like metaphors or similes. Furthermore, English idioms can sometimes be categorized by specific themes such as death or controversial cultural origins.

What we know

• An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning understood culturally and differing from its composite words' denotations. [2]
• Idioms require precise replication of the phrase to evoke the desired effect, meaning articles cannot be changed interchangeably without losing the idiomatic meaning. [2]
• English idioms are part of a language that emerged from West Germanic dialects spoken by the Anglo-Saxons and later incorporated vocabulary from Old Norse, French, and Latin. [4]
• Some English expressions and idioms related to death act as slang or euphemisms to soften the unpleasantness of the subject. [5] · medium confidence

Where to go next

• a case in pointWhat makes certain idioms considered racist?
• the bigger pictureHow did the English language evolve historically?
• how we knowWhat English expressions are related to death?
• compared withHow do metaphors differ from idioms?
• how it workedWhat mechanism allows non-literal phrases to be understood culturally?
• an unexpected connectionHow do death-related euphemisms overlap with common English idioms?Many common English idioms, such as kick the bucket, function simultaneously as death-related euphemisms or slang within the language.

Sources

• [1]English-language idiom (Wikidata Q6570147) · CC0 1.0
• [2]English-language idioms · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]List of idioms considered racist · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]English language · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]List of English-language expressions related to death · CC BY-SA 4.0

Your path

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2. /What are English idioms and how do they function?