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An idiom is a common word or phrase with a figurative, non-literal meaning that is understood culturally and differs from what its composite words' denotations would suggest; i.e. the words together have a meaning that is different from the dictionary definitions of the individual words (although some idioms do retain their literal meanings – see the example "kick the bucket" below).
Hoist with his own petard. " Hoist with his own petard " is a phrase from a speech in William Shakespeare 's play Hamlet that has become proverbial. The phrase's meaning is that a bomb-maker is blown ("hoist", the past tense of "hoise") off the ground by his own bomb ("petard"), and indicates an ironic reversal or poetic justice. [1]
The left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing; The light is on but nobody is home; The longest day must have an end; The longest journey starts with a single step; The Moon is made of green cheese; The more the merrier; The more things change, the more they stay the same; The only disability in life is a bad attitude – Scott Hamilton
An idiom is a phrase or expression that largely or exclusively carries a figurative or non-literal meaning, rather than making any literal sense. Categorized as formulaic language , an idiomatic expression's meaning is different from the literal meanings of each word inside it. [ 1 ]
Listen to the full episode by pressing play: ″ [Sleeping with contact lenses in your eyes] is bad. It’s real bad. Don’t do it,” Redfern told us, adding that this even applies to naps ...
Combining Colorless green ideas with sleep furiously creates a sentence that some believe to be nonsensical. On the one hand, an abstract noun like idea is taken to not have the ability to engage in an activity like sleeping. On the other hand, some think it possible for an idea to sleep. [3] [4]
Katie Beirne Fallon and Shaun Donovan knocking on wood in the Oval Office (2015). Knocking on wood (also phrased touching wood or touch wood) is an apotropaic tradition of literally touching, tapping, or knocking on wood, or merely stating that one is doing or intending to do so, in order to avoid "tempting fate" after making a favorable prediction or boast, or a declaration concerning one's ...
ESPN posted a headline using the text "Chink in the Armor" but quickly retracted it. While the phrase itself is innocuous, its use in contemporary times has caused controversy in the United States due to it including the homonym "chink", which can be interpreted as an ethnic slur to refer to someone of Chinese or East Asian descent.