Package 8 - Idioms and Proverbs
Learning Outcomes
By the end of this section you should
✔ be familiar with some English idioms and proverbs
✔ be able to deduce the meanings of idioms in context
✔ be able to understand and use idioms and proverbs
Introduction
Idioms, which exist in almost every language, form an important part of people’s vocabulary. English, like Chinese, is rich in idioms. They are fixed expressions which usually consist of more than one word but function as a single unit. People use idioms to be amusing, witty or to communicate what other words or phrases do not quite express.
The fact that some idioms are easy to understand and others are not usually catches the attention of learners of the English language. Frequently, knowing the meaning of every component word of an idiom does not help us that much in understanding the meaning of the idiom. Take ‘to bite the dust’ meaning ‘to die’ as an example. The words are fixed. We can say ‘she bit the dust’, but not ‘she chewed the dust’ or ‘she bit some dust’ (without radically changing the meaning). So idioms should be treated, just like individual words, as single lexical items.
It is also important to notice that rules governing usage and range of application can be obscure or non-existent. For example, barking up the wrong tree (be mistaken) is always used in continuous, not simple form. That is, we can say ‘He was barking up the wrong tree’ but not ‘He barked up the wrong tree’. Good dictionaries may help but it is best to observe the grammar in real examples.
Idioms are usually rather informal and sometimes humorous or ironic which include an element of personal comment on the situation. They should be used with care. We should not use idioms just to sound ‘fluent’ or ‘good at English’, for example, in a formal situation with a person you do not know, don’t say,
‘How do you do, Mr Wong. Do take the weight off your feet’.
Instead say ‘Do sit down’ or ‘Have a seat’.
Activity 1 Binomials
Binomials are pairs of words which display fixed membership and sequence, joined usually by a conjunction (e.g. and).
Complete the binomials by dragging and dropping the words in the box to the gaps.
Now use one of the binomials to complete these sentences by typing them in the gaps.
-
1. ‘Does Sheila work full-time at the supermarket?’ ‘No, only now and then when they need extra staff.’
Answer: now and then
2. The patient tossed and turned for at least an hour before he finally fell into a sound sleep.
Answer: tossed and turned
3. If Mary wants her marriage to work, she’ll have to learn how to give and take Everyone has to make compromises.
Answer: give and take
4. I can’t write the whole project today. I’ll have to do it bit by bit.
Answer: bit by bit
5. Joe doesn’t want to be just friends; it has to be all or nothing.
Answer: all or nothing
6. My English is progressing in leaps and bounds.
Answer: leaps and bounds
7. slowly but surely John has realized she was lying.
Answer: slowly but surely
8. Sunny won’t help her this time. She will have to sink or swim.
Answer: sink or swim
9. According to him, the election was perfectly fair and square.
Answer: fair and square
10. He has to wine and dine important clients.
Answer: wine and dine
Activity 2
Some idioms include parts of the body. Fill in each blank by dragging and dropping the appropriate word from the box to create a well known English idiom.
Activity 3 Similes
These are idioms of comparison found in the structure of as…as… Similes are generally easy to understand. If you see the phrase as dead as a doornail, you don’t need to know what a doornail is, simply that the phrase means ‘totally dead’’.
In pairs, complete the following similes by dragging and dropping the words on the right next to the as…as structure on the left. Then try to translate them into Chinese.
Click the tabs to show contents.
