National University of San Martin

Faculty of education and humanities

IDIOMS
Report

Professor:
Antony Bocanegra
Students:
Villacorta de la Cruz María Raquel
Pichis Freitas Kiara
Morales Mondragon Heidy Teresa
Course:
specific problems of English grammar
Semester:
IV
 IDIOMS
Definition.
an expression whose meaning is not predictable from the usual meanings of its constituent
elements, as kick the bucket or hang one's head, or from the general grammatical rules of
a language, and that is not a constituent of a larger expression of like characteristics.
Idiom comes from the Greek idios, which means personal. Idiom originally meant
"speech peculiar or proper to a people or country."
Idioms in fact, evolve the language; they are the building blocks of a language and
civilization. They also have great intensity to make a language interesting and dynamic.
Idioms bring a spectacular illustration to everyday speech. They provide interesting
insights into the use of words, languages and the thought processes of their speakers. They
have a sense of mystery and fun about them.
Ttricks to understand a “Idiom”
- Try to find a similarity with our own language, in the sayings or idioms you already
know.
All roads lead to Rome = Todos los caminos conducen a Roma.
- Think if there is a similar equivalent in your mother tongue. Many times, the idiom
is not a literal translation of a saying, but it does come close enough to the words or
the global concept.
A word is enough to the wise: “Una palabra es suficiente para el sabio” = A buen
entendedor, pocas palabras bastan.
- Try to understand its meaning through context
Every cloud has a silver lining: “Cada nube tiene un forro de plata”. > “no hay mal que
por bien no venga”.
Why does an idiom arise?
There are many different reasons for forming an idiom, some arise from certain ancient
customs that were practiced, others appear from lines in books that become popular
among people for representing an aspect of life at that time, therefore many idioms have
different form in their origins.
The dioms envolve according to the time, many of them disappear while new ones arise
from different contexts , somethime we end forgetting their true meaning because as time
changes the customs also do it and the languages.
 Don't count your chickens before the eggs have hatched

Meaning: "Don't make plans for something that might not

happen".
Origin: This phrase may have its origins with Aesop, the
Greek fable writer who lived around 620 to 560 BC. In his
fable “The Milkmaid and Her Pail”
There is a line from the fable which reads “Ah, my child,”
said the mother, “Do not count your chickens before they
are hatched.”
Example:
Mary: “I’m sure my boss will give me a raise next month,
so I’ve decided to treat myself to an exotic holiday.”
Dennis: “If I were you I wouldn’t book the holiday until
you actually get the raise…don’t count your chickens...

Every cloud has a silver lining

Meaning: Be optimistic, even difficult times will lead to

better days.
Origin: This idiom has been used for at least 150 years, as it
was printed in The Atlas newspaper in 1840. The idea of
clouds having silver linings comes from the fact that when
the sun (or moon) bursts through a cloud it looks as if the interior is silver.
If clouds float in front of the sun, it can look like they have a silver lining around them.
That is, the center of the cloud looks darker, while its edges are brighter. At some point,
people must have observed this and with time, it became a saying.
This phrase might also be said only as 'silver lining,' without the cloud part
The first known use of the phrase in writing, written down simply as "silver lining," is
said to be from John Milton in a book called Comus: A Mask Presented at Ludlow Castle,
1634.
Examples:
- Our dinner was burnt, but the silver lining is that we can eat a healthy salad instead
- “Don’t worry about breaking your leg - you’ll be able to relax all day on the sofa
watching your favourite TV shows, so every cloud has a silver lining!”

Curiosity killed the cat

Meaning: Being Inquisitive can lead you into an unpleasant situation.

Origin: Is a proverb used to warn of the dangers of unnecessary investigation or
experimentation. The original form of the proverb, now little used, was "Care killed the
cat". In this instance, "care" was defined as "worry" or "sorrow."
The original proverb is attributed to the British playwright Ben Jonson in his 1598 play,
Every Man in His Humour, which was performed first by William Shakespeare.
Example:
- My boss warned me that curiosity killed the cat after I kept pestering him to tell me
why he fired his last employee.

Drastic times call for drastic measures

Meaning: extreme circumstances can only be resolved by equally extreme actions

Origin: This phrase is actually derived from the saying of the ancient Greek physician
Hippocrates, that appear in his Aphorisms: “For extreme diseases, extreme methods of
cure, as to restriction, are most suitable”, or “Desperate diseases must have desperate
remedies”
Example:
- Sales have been slow and we had to let go three of our employees; drastic times call
for drastic measures.
- With pressing problems like this, drastic times call for drastic measures.
Piece of cake
Meaning: A job, task or other activity that is easy.
Origin: The idea of cake being “easy” originated in the 1870’s when cakes were given
out as prizes for winning competitions. In particular, there was a tradition in the US
slavery states where slaves would circle around a cake at a gathering. The most “graceful”
pair would win the cake in middle. From this the term “cake walk” and “piece of cake”
came into being, both meaning that something was easy to accomplish.
The term was first used in print in 1936 by Ogden Nash who wrote, “Her picture’s in the
papers now, and life’s a piece of cake.” Today the term is commonly used to describe
tests at school, or friendly competitions.
Example:
- The roof was leaking, so Jake climbed to the top of his house to fix the problem
thinking it would be a piece of cake, and it was!

Biblyography
http://www.pages.drexel.edu/~zk32/clicheorigin.html
https://www.bloomsbury-international.com/en/index/25-en/ezone/idiom-of-the-
week/1648-don-t-count-your-chickens-before-they-hatch.html
https://www.knowyourphrase.com/a-piece-of-cake
https://www.theidioms.com/