Idioms – as clear as mud?

Miranda Steel is a freelance ELT lexicographer and editor. She has worked as a Senior Editor for dictionaries for learners at OUP and has also worked for COBUILD. In this post, she looks at some of the weird and wonderful idioms in the English language. Idioms are commonly used in spoken and written English. Native English speakers are usually confident that their readers or listeners will recognize the idiom, so well-known phrases rarely need to be given in full. Some idioms can be shortened in other ways such as long story short (to cut a long story short). “Anyway, long story short, it turns out Drake isn’t really his father.” Sometimes only a fragment of the original idiom remains. Another common way of changing an idiom is to reverse its meaning. Many idioms are very versatile and can be changed in a variety of ways. “Why use a stick when a carrot will work better?” “Their approach is all stick and no carrot.” “They are using every carrot and stick at their disposal.” Like this: Related: lexique

IdiomSite.com - Find out the meanings of common sayings Cliche Finder Have you been searching for just the right cliché to use? Are you searching for a cliché using the word "cat" or "day" but haven't been able to come up with one? Just enter any words in the form below, and this search engine will return any clichés which use that phrase... Over 3,300 clichés indexed! What exactly is a cliche? This is Morgan, creator of the Cliche Finder. Or, you might like my crazy passion project: Spanish for Nerds: Learning Spanish via Etymologies! Back to cliches... if you would like to see some other Web sites about clichés? © S. Special thanks to Damien LeriAnd to Mike Senter Morgan's Web page

100 Words for Facial Expressions By Mark Nichol Face it — sometimes you must give your readers a countenance-based clue about what a character or a subject is feeling. First try conveying emotions indirectly or through dialogue, but if you must fall back on a descriptive term, try for precision: 1. Subscribe to Receive our Articles and Exercises via Email You will improve your English in only 5 minutes per day, guaranteed! 12 Responses to “100 Words for Facial Expressions” Lucia Hello!

French Words and Expressions in English Updated October 16, 2015. Over the years, the English language has borrowed a great number of French words and expressions. Some of this vocabulary has been so completely absorbed by English that speakers might not realize its origins. Other words and expressions have retained their "Frenchness" - a certain je ne sais quoi which speakers tend to be much more aware of (although this awareness does not usually extend to actually pronouncing the word in French). adieu "until God" Used like "farewell": when you don't expect to see the person again until God (when you die and go to Heaven) agent provocateur "provocative agent" A person who attempts to provoke suspected individuals or groups into committing unlawful acts aide-de-camp "camp assistant" A military officer who serves as a personal assistant to a higher-ranking officer aide-mémoire "memory aid" 1. à la française "in the French manner" Describes anything done the French way allée "alley, avenue" A path or walkway lined with trees

a word a day A.Word.A.Day with Anu Garg We equate French with sophistication and when we import French words into English, we look at them with rose-colored glasses. We often give them special meanings. In French, concubin/concubine are simply people living together. This week we'll feature five terms from French that relate to love, lust, and sex. risque or risqué (ri-SKAY) adjective: Bordering on indelicacy or impropriety, especially in a sexually suggestive manner. From Fremch risqué (risky), past participle of risquer (to risk). "A woman who was fired from her job at a NY lingerie business says she was fired because her employer complained her work attire was too risque." "The normally pristine Senator Evan Bayh made a risqué joke about a fellow Indianan from a town called French Lick."

Terracotta Army: The History of China's Terracotta Soldiers The Terracotta Army or the “Terra Cotta Warriors and Horses” buried in the pits next to the Qin Shi Huang's tomb, Xi'an China (Photo: Cezary Wojtkowski via Shutterstock Royalty-free stock photo) Today, the unexpected unearthing of the Terracotta Army—a hoard of legendary, life-sized clay soldiers intended to fill an emperor's elaborate mausoleum—is renowned as one of the world's greatest archaeological events. Discovered in northwestern China and dating back to its first dynasty, the ceramic figures have shed light on the country's ancient artistic practices and age-old burial rituals. In addition to offering a glimpse into Imperial China's distinctive approach to funerary art, the sculptures are also celebrated for their scale—both in terms of each individual sculpture's height and of the group as a whole. Here, we present the history of the Terracotta Army, including its creation in the third century BCE, discovery in the 1970s, and its legacy in contemporary culture. History Discovery