Did you know that 'flavor of the month' originated in a marketing campaign in American ice-cream parlors in the 1940s, when a particular flavor would be specially promoted for a month at a time? And did you know that 'off the cuff' refers to the rather messy practice of writing impromptu notes on one's shirt cuff before speaking in public? These and many more idioms are explained and put into context in this second edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Idioms.
The volume takes a fresh look at the idiomatic phrases and sayings that make English the rich and intriguing language that it is. This major new edition contains entries for over 5000 idioms, including 350 entirely new entries and over 500 new quotations.
The text has been updated to include many new idioms using the findings of the Oxford English Reading Program, the biggest language research program in the world. The entries are supported by a wealth of illustrative quotations from a wide range of sources and periods and the text has been entirely redesigned so that it is both elegant and easy to use. Anyone interested in the colorful side of the English language will get hours of fun browsing this fascinating and informative volume.
Author(s): Judith Siefring (editor)
Edition: 2
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Year: 2004
Language: English
Pages: 346
Cover
Copyright page
Contents
Preface
Dictionary of Idioms
A (1)
B (12)
C (44)
D (71)
E (90)
F (100)
G (119)
H (133)
I (152)
J (155)
K (159)
L (166)
M (181)
N (196)
O (206)
P (211)
Q (233)
R (235)
S (251)
T (285)
U (302)
V (304)
W (306)
Y (321)
Index
A
Action
Age
Ambition
Anger and annoyance
Anxiety and worry
Appearance
Argument and conflict
B
Beauty
Boastfulness and conceit
Bribery, corruption, and
extortion
C
Caution
Certainty
Change
Chaos and disorder
Class
Clothes
Cooperation
Courage
Crime and punishment
Crisis
Critics and criticism
D
Danger
Death
Debt
Deception and lying
Doubt and uncertainty
Drinking
Drugs
Duty and responsibility
E
Embarrassment, shame, and
humiliation
Equality
Excess and extravagance
Expense
Experience
F
Family
Fate and chance
Food
Fools and foolishness
Foresight and the future
Forgiveness and reconciliation
Friends and acquaintances
Futility
G
Gossip and rumour
H
Happiness, pleasure, and
enjoyment
Haste and speed
Health and illness
Honesty
Hope and optimism
Hypocrisy
I
Indecision and prevarication
Intelligence and knowledge
J
Jealousy and envy
Justice
L
Language, speech, and
conversation
Laziness
Love
M
Madness
Marriage
Misfortune and adversity
Mistakes
Money, wealth, and prosperity
N
Nakedness
O
Opportunity
P
Poverty
Power
Pregnancy
Preparation and readiness
R
Reputation and fame
Revenge and retribution
S
Secrecy
Self-interest
Sex
Strength
Success
Surprise
T
Thoroughness
Time
Traitors and treachery
Travel and transport
U
Unhappiness and
disappointment
V
Violence
W
Warfare
Weakness
Weather
Work and employment
Y
Youth
